Free Bridal Jitters by Jayne Castle Page B

arm.
    “Where?”
    “Up.” He took her arm and started toward the emerald staircase. “It’s easier to hunt when you’ve got the high ground.”
    “Whatever you say.”
    She followed him up the narrow, twisting steps to the next level. He saw the gloom-shrouded entrance to another chamber similar to the one below. An energy fountain cascaded silently in the center. Several more ornately carved chests were arranged in an artful manner around the room.
    But the thing that interested him the most was the narrow window. He hesitated before he crossed the threshold and glanced at Virginia.
    “Trapped?”
    She shook her head, frowning intently. “No. This room is clear. Maybe this was the zoo’s souvenir shop.”
    “Or the visitors’ room in the prison.” He went to the window, braced one hand on the wide ledge, and looked down into the lane. “This will work. If they bother to search this far, I’ll have a clear shot.”
    “…Got it. We’re in.”
    “Shit. What the hell is this place? Look at all those little rooms. Some kinda cheap hotel, d’ya think?”
    Virginia stirred hesitantly in the doorway. Then she walked slowly into the room, careful to keep a respectful distance from the energy fountain. “I don’t like this.”
    “Don’t worry. I’ve got a hunch that once they get a good look at all these little cubicles and realize how long it will take to search this place, they’ll figure out something else to do. If they do get this far, I can handle them.”
    “I know that.” She folded her arms very tightly beneath her breasts. “Sam, I’m afraid that tangler will try to de-rez some of the traps.”
    He sank deeper into the gloom and watched the lane. “So?”
    “I told you, I don’t think they should be touched. If he starts fooling around with some of them, looking for us—”
    She broke off.
    He gazed at her. “You’re really worried about the nature of the those illusion traps, aren’t you?”
    “Yes.” Her mouth tightened. “I told you, there’s something very, very strange about them. One way or another, they all seem to spell out Do Not Disturb in great big capital letters.
    “Whatever didn’t want to be disturbed is long gone, Virginia.”
    “I know, but it just doesn’t
feel
right.”
    He shrugged. “Maybe that tangler down there will come to the same conclusion, and he and his hunter pal will leave us in peace.”
    “… Gonna take a couple of hours to go through this place room by room. Must be hundreds of little cubicles in here. And they’re all trapped, I’m telling you.”
    “If they got this far, neither one of ’em would be in great shape. Gage will have crashed, and the tangler will be scared out of her wits. I’ll bet they would have picked one of these little cubbyholes near the entrance. Start working, man. I’d rather find the bastard before he recovers from the crash. Easier to handle that way.”
    “Uh, Drake, I don’t like the looks of these traps.”
    “I don’t give a damn how they look to you. Start takin’ ’em apart.”
    “There’s something real weird—”
    “Shut up and get to work, Chaz. Unless you wanna explain things to Fairbanks.”
    “Sure. Okay. I’m workin’ on it.”
    “Oh, damn,” Virginia whispered. “He’s going to do it.”
    Sam took his eyes off the lane long enough to look at her. The stark alarm in her voice worried him. She was scared, he thought. Genuinely, thoroughly, deep-down scared.
    “What is it with you and these traps?” he started to ask.
    “Sam.”
Her eyes widened in sudden alarm. “Get down. Now.”
    “Take it easy, honey, I’ve got to keep watch—”
    “He’s got it. He’s undone the first trap. I can feel it.”
    “It’s okay—”
    “No, it’s not okay.” She flew toward him across the room and seized his arm. “Get away from the window.”
    Automatically, he started to resist the tug of her fingers. But the urgency in her was not to be ignored. He reminded himself that traps fell