Chapter 33 - Chapter 33

Ace's fingers clamped onto the cold, rough metal of the water tower ladder. Rust flaked off like dirty snow under his grip. Every muscle in his body screamed with tension. The climb had been a nightmare. The bottom part of the ladder was eaten away by rust. Several rungs groaned ominously under his weight, threatening to snap. Higher up, the metal felt stronger, but the height was terrifying. Ace forced himself to climb steadily, one careful step at a time, refusing to look down at the ground far below. Silva's battered pickup truck was just a speck hidden behind the collapsed shed. Ahead, inside the sprawling, razor-wire fortress of Finley's scrapyard, Deke's black sedan had screeched to a dusty halt right in front of the large, windowless metal office building.