Her heart hammered against her ribs li
he frantically tore open the mirrored va
searched for anything pungent. Finally, she grabbed a
c sounds of the staff preparing for his arrival. The door abruptly swung inward, nearly striking h
to refresh all the suites-" the
was still open. She darted silently toward an unattended housekeeping cart. Her eyes scanned the cleaning
the heavy door shut, and the electronic lock clicked loudly into place behind h
onto a thick washcloth. She gagged as the ac
th all over her neck, chest, and arms. She l
the concentrated, burning liquid onto her pulse points-
filled the small bathroom. It made her eyes
he grabbed the jar of pickled garli
ly. Her stomach churned violently in protest,
, sheer lingerie Sterling had provided. Instead, she found the most
them all the way up to her chin, hiding h
bed. Her hands trembled violently a
thumping of helicopter rotor
ons rattled the windows, indicating the chop
plete silence. Then, heavy, purpose
room door beeped sharply. The
epped into the unlit room. He was already lo
dark. He expected to find a complia
ch her shoulder, stepping into
vinegar, garlic, and concentrated eucal
back as if he had been burned. He coughed hars
ed in the room as he stepped back, pi
He slammed his hand against it, flooding
ed onto Celestia. She was huddled in the hideous,
as a terrifying mix of sheer disgu
do?" he demanded, his
e watering heavily from the fumes, but a
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