It was a good thing Noah chose Barry as his ticket to Jill and Katherine. Looking at the guards scanning the perimeter in the central area, Noah knew he never would have made it past them on his own.
Noah stuck to Barry like glue, terrified that if he lagged even half a step behind, the other security personnel would intercept him.
Fortunately, as a S.T.A.R.S. member, Barry commanded deep respect from the local police. The guards didn't bother to search him, and following Barry's lead, they didn't search Noah either. In their eyes, Noah was just some Asian VIP Barry was escorting for a private word with Katherine.
Feigning a calm he didn't feel, Noah followed Barry step by step into the heart of the banquet, closing the distance between them and the two women.
By now, the heavy hitters—Umbrella's William Birkin, the squat Chief Irons, and the sharp-eyed Wesker—had already moved on. Jill and Katherine were in a relaxed state, catching their breath.
When they were just a few paces away, Jill looked up. She recognized Noah as the hand from the gun shop and was about to ask Barry what was going on.
That was the moment.
Noah lunged from behind Barry and gave him a violent, two-handed shove.
Caught off guard, Barry lost his center and stumbled forward, nearly falling flat on his face. Jill's instincts kicked in—she reached out to catch the veteran before he hit the deck, instinctively moving away from Katherine to help her teammate.
Noah seized that split-second opening.
He lunged behind Katherine, one hand clamping firmly around her throat from behind, the other hand gripping the thumb-sized cylindrical "trigger" he had improvised.
"Noah! What the hell are you doing?!"
Jill was the first to react. Ignoring the still-stumbling Barry, she whipped out her sidearm and aimed it directly at Noah's skull.
Noah was fast. He immediately pulled Katherine back, using her as a human shield as he retreated toward the temporary Western-style building. He didn't stop until his back hit the wall. Only then did he lean in close to Katherine's ear and speak in a low, forced whisper.
Pressed against Katherine from behind, Noah couldn't help but notice her incredible figure and stunning face again. Even in this terrifying situation, her trembling and the look of pure dread in her eyes made him feel a twisted sense of pity.
If all the women in this world are this beautiful, maybe I shouldn't even worry about saving the world. Just staying safe and building a harem of ordinary girls would be a hell of a life.
No, no! Get your head in the game!
Noah shook his head violently to clear the distraction. He was currently staring down the barrel of Jill Valentine's gun. One mistake and his "life" would be over. And who knew if "restarting" meant going back to his old life as a corporate slave.
Besides, a bullet to the brain would hurt like a bitch.
Noah shook his head again to refocus on the life-and-death situation in front of him.
He tightened his grip on Katherine's neck, pulling her body flush against his. He wasn't trying to feel her up—not primarily—he wanted her to feel the cylinders taped around his waist.
The candles, of course.
Katherine felt the hard shapes pressed against her back and her eyes went wide with realization. Noah lowered his voice, trying to sound as non-threatening as a kidnapper could.
"I don't want to hurt you, and I don't want to hurt anyone else. I just need to talk to you. I only chose this way because I had no other choice."
"What do you want?"
Katherine proved her pedigree as the Mayor's daughter. She didn't scream. Screaming would only draw a crowd, cause a mass panic, and likely provoke the stranger holding her by the throat. She stayed composed, despite the terror.
"It's not hard. All you have to do is find an excuse to end this banquet early. Then, I need you to promise that from now until October, you'll ban all citizens from coming to the outskirts."
"I can't do that."
Katherine's answer was direct. She made it sound like she was completely powerless.
"You can. You just need to talk to your father and then talk to Umbrella. You can make it happen."
Noah kept his voice low, negotiating with her, but he knew time was running out. Jill and Barry were standing right in front of them, and other armed guards were already closing in, their weapons raised. They weren't just going to stand there and let him haggle with their VIP.
Noah realized being out in the open was suicide. It was only a matter of time before someone took the shot.
"Forget the details for a second. Tell Jill to open the doors to the building behind us. We're going inside to a room where we can talk privately."
Noah scanned the hostile faces surrounding him. A closed space was his only chance to maintain leverage.
"Just the three of us?" Katherine asked.
"Jesus, Katherine, don't you trust Jill? If she's as weak as you're implying, why the hell did you hire her as your bodyguard?"
"I'm currently being held hostage, aren't I?"
Katherine retorted. Noah wanted to slap her for being a smart-ass, but she wasn't wrong. She was a lamb to the slaughter right now.
"Do it!"
Noah panicked slightly, tightening his grip on her throat and making his voice sound deeper, more threatening.
Finally recognizing the reality of her situation, Katherine gave in. She looked at the guards and shouted her orders.
"Everyone back off! Jill, drop your weapon. Open the door behind us and come inside with us."
"What? Drop my gun?"
Jill was stunned. She hadn't expected Katherine to order her to disarm herself and walk into a hostage situation as a second captive.
Noah was surprised too. He hadn't expected Katherine to be bold enough to make Jill go in unarmed.
"He has a bomb on him! If we don't do this, everyone dies!"
Katherine sounded like she was pleading, but it was a direct order.
"The whole point of this party was to prove the outskirts are safe. If we provoke him and something happens, it will be a PR disaster!"
In Noah's ears, it almost sounded like Katherine was making excuses for him.
Seeing her charge was in legitimate danger, Jill had no choice. She slowly bent down, placed her sidearm on the ground, and quickly stepped back to open the doors of the temporary building. Once the doors were open, she moved back to her original position.
Noah's grip on Katherine's neck loosened just a fraction. Katherine cooperated, matching her steps to his as they shuffled backward into the open doorway.
Pressed together, one step at a time, they finally moved inside the building.
"Tell Jill to get in here too."
Having Jill inside was good—both of them thought so, for different reasons.
Noah wanted to use the opportunity to clear the air with Jill.
Katherine figured that once they were inside, it would be two against one. There was no way Noah could take Jill in a fair fight.
Jill didn't hesitate. She kept her hands raised at her sides and followed them into the temporary structure.
"Close the door!"
"This isn't going to help you much," Jill warned.
"Do what he says! Just close the door!" Katherine yelled.
Seeing her hostage signal the order, Jill turned and shut the heavy doors, locking the outside world out.
The three of them stood in the silent, empty hall, all of them unarmed—or so Jill and Katherine thought.
"There are other rooms in here. Your back is to them. Aren't you worried someone will sneak up behind you?"
Jill looked up at the two-story building. There were temporary lounge rooms on both floors for Katherine and the staff.
In this situation, Noah was a rat in a trap. He had nowhere to run, and if there were any Umbrella security guards or bored cops resting in those rooms, he was finished.
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