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He grabbed me by the vest and walked me to the exit of the building. A man came rushing over to me, followed by a slew of reporters. “Mr. Helmer! Are you the one who deactivated the bomb? This city owes you a debt of gratitude.”
“He threw a bomb against the wall,” Thumper argued.
The mayor shot him a dirty look and dragged me to the edge of the steps where all the reporters could see me. “Your bravery and courage is something we should all aspire to. We can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for the city today.”
I grinned at the reporters, resting my thumbs in my belt loops. “Well, it was just another day at the office, Mayor. Anyone would have done the same.”
“Mr. Helmer!” one of the reporters shouted. “What was it like down there?”
I shook my head. If only they knew. “It was intense. But because of the amazing training I’ve received, I was able to keep a cool head and dismantle the bomb with no harm to anyone in the city.”
Another hand shot up. “Mr. Helmer, tell us about your training!”
As in, how did I know to throw an explosive against the wall? Sheer luck. “I was trained by the military—the best of the best.”
“Who was behind this attack?”
“Do you have any suspects?”
“Was your partner there with you the whole time?”
“How did you deactivate the bomb?” another reporter yelled.
“Well—”
An explosion shook the ground. Everyone screamed, grabbing for something to hold onto. The force shattered the windows on the lower level of the building and dust poured out from the broken panes. When everything settled, I looked back at the angry crowd.
Chuckling, I cleared my throat. “And that is why you don’t play with bombs.”
And then I exited stage left.
* * *
“Sityour ass down and don’t move,” Cash grumbled as I followed him into the office.
I took a seat, waiting for the lecture that would soon follow. I hadn’t meant to blow up a building. I got twitchy sitting there and waiting for the bomb to go off. It was a complete accident.
Cash paced the room, muttering to himself every so often, then he would glare at me and continue. It went on for so long that I started to doze off.
“Am I boring you?”
His booming voice jerked me awake. I sat up, clearing my throat as I locked eyes with him. “Not at all, sir.”
“Then why are you sleeping?”
“Catching up on zzz’s. It’s been a long year.”
“And that’s supposed to make me feel bad for you?” He stormed over, grabbing the chair as he jerked me toward him. “You blew up a building!”
“Technically, I blew up the elevator shaft. The damage was contained to that location and?—”
“I didn’t tell you to talk!”
I zipped my lips, knowing there was nothing good I could say right now.
“Why did you do it?”
I didn’t say a word. I was pretty sure that was a rhetorical question.
