I hope you all have been enjoying the story so far. I don't own anything. Thanks for reading :)
Charlie glared at Monroe as she heard the guard shutting the door on his way out. He looked like shit and yet she was still somewhat happy to see his face. The knock she'd taken when he'd backhanded her must be making her a little delusional. Being happy to see Monroe just wasn't a sane thing to do.
"Well glad to know that you aren't wasting any time in offing another Matheson." Charlie spit more blood out from her mouth towards Monroe. "I told you why I'm here, keep your damn voice down or the guard will come back in when he hears you finally giving up information." "So is that why you're here? Information on Miles? Still got your boy crush going strong for him?" Monroe looked vicious again. "Dammit Charlotte, I said to keep your voice down! If you keep this up neither one of us is getting out of here!"
Charlie couldn't believe her ears, she so desperately wanted to believe him. His hands had been gentle and careful when he had pulled up upright on the chair again. Someone who wanted to cause pain and damage wouldn't have been kind when pulling her chair back up. And his whispered promise in her ear said that he was there to help. She just didn't know if she wanted to put any hope in him. Every time she had any hope only bad had come of it. Monroe was searching her face to see if she was going to believe him, and something in his eyes had finally made her mind decide to give it a shot.
"Alright then, what's your big plan?" Charlie had lowered her voice to a whisper so that the guard wouldn't be overhearing their every word. "Usually I'd plan a big exit, to live up to my reputation and all, but this situation calls for something a little cleverer." Charlie had no idea what he meant, she could only watch as he began working on the boarded up window. "I've got to do this fast, so as soon as I cut you out of those ropes I need to get us up into the ceiling." Charlie looked up to see rusted air vents that were large enough for her to fit through, but wasn't sure about Monroe. "Are you going to be able to fit up there with me?" "If I weren't so busy I think I might be offended. I'll get in. But I gotta say, I'm surprised that you're worried about me." "Can it Monroe, I was just asking a question." Monroe let out a soft chuckle and got back to work on the bottom boards of the window.
The soft cling of a nail falling on the ground brought her attention back to him. "They took my knife off of me before coming in. I guess the bastards didn't want you too damaged by these assholes." After that Monroe made his way back to Charlie and began untying her. "You could have done that earlier." "I wanted to protect my own ass until I was sure you weren't going to try and kill me before I could help you out of here." Charlie stood up from the chair rubbing her wrists. She looked up at Monroe and gave him a half smile. "Thanks…."
Monroe couldn't believe his eyes. There she stood, smiling at him, thanking him even. He shook his head and set to work on getting the rusty vent open with the nail he'd lodged loose from the board. "I'm going to lift myself up first then you're going to move the chair back to where it was to begin with and I'll pull you up with me." Charlie nodded her head and Monroe jumped up and pulled himself into the vent. He knew he only had maybe a minute or two before the guard came in. The diamonds he had gotten off of the man in line in front of him that he had killed had been enough for an extended visit in Charlie's cell. But that visit was cutting to a close and they would need to be stowed away in the air vents if they wanted out of this alive. He watched as Charlie moved the chair back into the middle of the grimy room and when she reached her hands up to him he took them carefully. Her wrists were raw from her bindings and he didn't want to hurt her any more than she'd already had to endure.
As he lifted her up in the vent with him and settled back. "Now here's the worst part for you. It's cramped in here and I'm going to have to be a human chair." He smiled as he saw the shocked look on her face. "Now Charlotte, I promise it won't be so bad." He smirked at her but then stopped when he heard the guard making a move to enter the room. Niceties aside, he yanked Charlie onto his lap and barely registered her sharp intake of breath. "Hush, they're coming in." He realized he had put a finger up to her lips to silence her and felt how soft they were. Now it was his turn to take a sharp breath.
The guard was opening the door right as Monroe settled the vent cover back in place. Charlie was so stiff straddling his lap, and holding her breath. He took his finger away from her lips and listened for the guard to walk in. Monroe knew that the guard would probably be executed for losing Charlie but it was Charlie's life or his, and Charlie would win that decision every time. "Mother fucking, dammit! Jenson, Daniels! Get in here!" The guard was calling in reinforcements.
Good, let them all get in on it and go on a wild goose chase.
Monroe knew that the whole town would be on lookout for them. That's why hiding exactly where they would never think to look was the best choice. Then when the coast was clear from all of the bumbling idiots they would make their getaway. He looked down and saw two other armed men enter the room.
"Well you done fucked up. Boss isn't going to be happy with this. Looks like they hopped out the window while you were in charge. And to think, she probably would have cracked if a few more men had been given a shot at her." The guard had a smug look on his face. "She wasn't talking no matter what. I told all of you that. She didn't even want to give up General Monroe! That bitch was going to hold out till the end. Now get all the men and let's scout the town and go from there!"
Monroe could not believe his ears. Charlie hadn't given up anything about him? Nothing at all? He looked up from the vent cover and into her eyes. She looked panicked. He held his fingers up to his own lips this time to make sure she didn't say anything until the guards were out of ear range. Then he noticed the panting breaths coming from her. He lifted an eyebrow in question and she shook her head. When he looked back down he saw the guards exiting. "Monroe…" Charlie's voice was so low he could barely hear her. "Monroe, I can't do this. We need to get out of this vent. NOW!" Her voice was gradually rising. He couldn't realize why, they were safe up here, no one would even suspect that they were hiding in the same spot they were supposed to be fleeing from. Then it hit him like a train. Charlie was afraid of small spaces. And it sounded like she was about to have a panic attack.
"Charlotte, look at me! Charlotte!" He was harshly whispering at her as he put his hand on each side of her face and lifted her head up to make eye contact with him. Charlie's eyes had started to get a crazed look in them. "Charlotte, it's going to be fine. Focus on my breathing, I'm right here, just focus. I'm going to put your head against my chest now ok? Just focus on the in and out of my breath." He carefully put his hand on the back of her head and pushed her gently down into his chest. Her legs had tightened around his waist and it was taking a lot not to focus on how close she was to him, or how long it had been since he'd been with a woman. Not even just a woman, but someone who made him actually feel things.
Monroe took slow breaths and stroked Charlie's blonde curls. Her fast rapid breaths were starting to slow down and she was relaxing into his body. Her face snuggled into his t-shirt and her arms snaked around the inside of his jacket around to his back. Now his breath was coming out rapidly. "Umm Charlie." She immediately yanked her arms back out and he regretted saying a damn word. "Sorry, I just, it's just been so long….since I've felt this warm." Her words sent a ripple through him. She leaned back and before he knew what he was doing he grabbed the back of her neck and pushed his lips onto hers.
He hadn't meant for it to be so rough, but at the second his lips touched hers it was like he'd been dying of thirst and he couldn't get enough of her to drink in. She tasted sweet, and yet he could also taste the blood from her split lip. She whimpered and he eased back, thinking he might have hurt her again. Yet as soon as he pulled back she leaned in. It was the most wonderful sensation he had felt in a long time. And when her hips started to work back and forth on top of him it took everything he had to hold onto his sanity.
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