Deadly Dance Read Free Page B

as you can. Annie and I will give you cover.”
    “Copy that,” she said, glancing behind her, trying to make him out in the gloom.
    “On my count.” Harrison replied, his confidence reassuring. “One… two… three.”
    A barrage of bullets rang out, but this time coming from behind her. The men in front slowed, one of them falling, and Hannah didn’t wait to see more. Running full out, keeping as low as possible, she maneuvered herselfacross the roof, sliding to a stop when she reached the two-foot ledge that rimmed the building.
    “You’ve got to be kidding.”
    Across the way, she could see Harrison, and at intervals, Annie, as she moved to get the best angle on each shot. Spanning the gap between the buildings was an old wooden ladder, the ends precariously planted on each building’s edge.
    “You can do this,” Harrison’s voice coaxed in her ear. “It’ll be a piece of cake. Just like a—”
    “Walk in the park?” Hannah finished for him. “You’re out of your mind.” She sucked in a breath and climbed up on the ledge. Behind her she could hear footsteps, and a bullet smashed into the masonry at her feet.
    “Come on, Hannah. I’ve seen you deal with worse.” Harrison held out a hand, and Hannah stepped onto the ladder, the wood bowing downward with her weight.
    “Son of a bitch,” she mumbled under her breath as she teetered five floors above the street. She took a hesitant step and then, eyes locked on Harrison and the safety of the other rooftop, she dashed across the groaning ladder. She’d almost made it to the other side when the ladder suddenly shimmied, and a low rumble behind her sent the hairs on her neck into the locked and upright position.
    Then all hell broke loose, the office building exploding, the ensuing roar engulfing the night. Behind her, all she could see was a wave of fire coming right at her, and then suddenly the ladder dropped. Panic laced through her as she reached up to grab a rung, the still-cognizant part of her brain registering the fact that somehow the ladder was still attached to the other building.
    It was only when she looked up that she realized itwas Harrison, holding the ladder in place through sheer strength of will. “Climb, Hannah,” Harrison ordered, the words coming through gritted teeth.
    Instinct kicked in, and she scrambled upward, his hand closing around her wrist when she reached the top. Annie appeared over the edge as well. She shot Hannah a quick reassuring look, then shifted her focus up again as a second explosion ripped through the night. Hannah could feel bits of the building as they cut through the fabric of her jacket and skirt.
    “I’m going to drop the ladder now,” Harrison was saying, his voice barely audible over the din, even with the comlink in her ear. “But you’ve got to let go first. Then I can pull you up. All right?”
    Hannah nodded. The whole world seemed to be shaking with the fury of the blast, but even so, she could feel the ladder shimmying beneath her again. Her heart hammered so loudly it echoed through her head, threatening to swamp all rational thought.
    But she’d be damned if she lost the battle now. So, summoning every ounce of willpower she could muster, she let go of the ladder. Harrison’s grip tightened as he jerked her upward, the ladder spiraling downward toward the street. In one fluid motion, he pulled her up and over the building’s edge to safety.
    “You all right?” he asked, his eyes searching hers.
    “I’m okay.” She nodded, not quite believing the words. “I’m really okay.”
    “Then we need to get going,” Harrison said, helping her to her feet, his arm strong around her waist when her knees threatened to buckle. “Annie?”
    “We’re safe,” Annie said, lowering the rifle as shewaved toward the office building now completely engulfed in flames. “No one could have lived through that.”
    In the distance, Hannah heard the wail of sirens. “Avery and Simon?” she asked,