Love Is Always Write Volume 4

maneuvered himself to drop without tearing anything on the sharp window frame. His landing was soft by habit, and he shuffled along the wall. Not that he really thought there was something to be cautious for, but old habits died hard, and he didn't want to scare whatever animal had gotten trapped, he told himself.
    At the first sight of sunshine blonde hair, Jonathan ducked back down behind a crate. He waited, breath strained, but the only noises were the soft shuffling of cloth and that strange half-animal whine. Breathing in deep through his nose, Jonathan slid around the crate and directed his gaze at the blond-headed child bound by tape to a rickety wooden chair.
    When her pale hazel eyes focused on him, Jonathan lifted a finger to his lips. She nodded frantically, and Jonathan made another slow shushing gesture. The girl stilled but continued to watch him with wide, frightened eyes. Jonathan took stock of the girl and her surroundings. She wore a dark blue blazer and a matching plaid skirt that covered her knees. The left breast displayed a familiar school crest. It was the private day school he ate his lunch outside of at least three times a week, which meant this girl's parents were either rich, famous, or political. And likely all three.
    There didn't appear to be a guard anywhere, which most likely meant whoever was supposed to watch her had figured she was too weak to help herself and had slipped off for a break. Jonathan sneered at their lax operation even as it made his job that much easier.
    Maneuvering as quickly as he dared while keeping quiet and avoiding the rotting pits in the floor, Jonathan stepped close to the girl and made quick work of her bonds. He simply cut the bonds around her arms and legs and left the tape pressed to her skin. The tape across her mouth gave him most trouble and only because he didn't want to hurt the child.
    As soon as her mouth was free, the girl let out a pathetic sob. Her voice was thin and hoarse, so she'd probably been screaming behind her gag in an attempt to attract attention. Jonathan quickly laid his fingers over her lips, silently begging her keep quiet a little longer. Her thin arms looped around his neck, and Jonathan lifted her against him, letting her little shudders run through him as he ran his hands over her back in a comforting gesture. Now was the trouble of getting out. The girl wouldn't be able to go out the way he'd come in, which meant he'd have to find a door or low opening somewhere.
    The sound of male voices and creaking metal gave Jonathan just a moment's notice before he ducked into a shadowed alcove, arms tightening around the girl. She stayed blessedly quiet as the men just around their hideaway began cursing and yelling at each other.
    "You left her alone? What were you thinking?!"
    "Sorry, boss. But she couldn't go anywhere."
    Jonathan heard the familiar smack of skin on skin contact then a lot of shuffling and items shifting.
    "Check under everything. She has to be around. Can't have gotten out by herself. And do it fast; the police are already looking."
    Jonathan looked around for a better hiding place. The police may be on their way, but there was no way of telling how long it would take them to find the right building. There were at least a dozen abandoned warehouses before this one, maybe more.
    Finally, a space opened up to him, but it was small, maybe too small for both of them.
    Not giving himself time to consider his options or the consequences, Jonathan used his expertise to slip through the shadows and discarded packages of the warehouse. The alcove was even smaller than it looked far away. An old filing cabinet butted up against the "L" of a desk. There was probably a space underneath the desk with more room, but the file cabinet created an entrance barely a foot wide. Jonathan quickly disentangled himself from the quivering bundle in his arms. For a moment, the girl looked like she might cry out or reattach herself to Jonathan, but he pushed her gently towards the opening. As a last thought, he stripped off his jacket and laid it on the ground for her to use as a barrier between herself and the cold, unknown floor. With a little stiff upper lip, the girl wiggled into the crawlspace, Jonathan's jacket disappearing with her behind the filing cabinet.
    Jonathan had just shuffled away in hopes of finding his own nook when the tale tell crunch of glass and gravel behind him gave him a second to curse before painful fingers were