Page 18 of Crimson Love

Felicity is panicked. “Lennon, can you hear me? The security system is going off!”

I turn and look up the side of the mountain where the main estate sits in her grand glory. The grounds are usually bustling no matter what the weather is, but this is different.

I see everything I hear coming across the line.

Chaos.

“What the hell’s going on?” Jett demands.

“I’m on my way,” I say to Felicity. “Do you know what happened?”

“I have no idea,” she yells over the alarms as she tries to assure guests everything is fine. “Nothing to be worried about. Please stay calm while we figure out what’s going on.”

“Where is Mr. Donnelly?” I demand.

“I called him first. He’s on his way back. He and Ms. Madison went to her grandmother’s home for a meeting with the contractors. No one knows what’s going on. This didn’t even happen when we had a shooting.”

“I’m on my way. Keep everyone calm.”

I thought it was hard hiking down the hill in my heels. I stop to take them off and hurry barefoot on the cold path up the mountain when I realize Jett is right next to me.

I look up at him. “Really, go for your walk. I’m sure it’s the security system acting up. I’ll figure it out.”

But he doesn’t turn around. He keeps up with me, even though he’s barely at a brisk walk to my hurried run. “Are you kidding? This is the most excitement I’ve seen that has nothing to do with my newfound family or my failing kidneys. I want to see what’s going on.”

I glance back at him. “For your safety, you should really stay out here until we can get everything under control.”

Jett chuckles.

It’s not a straight-up laugh, but the deep tone of it pulls my attention away from the disorder going on at the back doors of the estate. “That’s cute. I’m not afraid of a security alarm, Lennon. This looks like fun.”

I slow to a walk when a pain courses through my side. I’m not a runner and never have been. The last time I ran, the stakes were too high to feel a stitch in my gut. I breathe hard and hold my side. “If you get run over by someone not paying attention to where they’re going, it’s not on me.”

“I’ll be on the lookout,” he assures me. “And I’m not fresh off the operating table. I’m at a good eighty percent.”

As we get to the doors, the alarms blare from within the manor. Guests flood out as we push our way against the masses to make our way inside. I slip my heels back on before hurrying to the atrium where Felicity stands in the middle of the space with a walkie talkie in one hand, her cell in the other, and doing everything she can to direct guests.

I go straight to her. “Does anyone know what tripped the system?”

She shakes her head quickly. “No. And Mr. Donnelly is in a fit over it. The security company doesn’t know what happened and can’t override the system to turn off the alarms. We’ve lost control.”

The crowd starts to dissipate.

“Are you okay here if I step outside to call my contact at the security company? I want to have an update by the time Mr. Donnelly gets back.”

Felicity nods. “I’ve got this.”

I turn for the door and find Jett standing off to the side surveying the situation. His gaze takes in the atrium, the halls beyond that lead to ballrooms, and The Greenhouse. I’m about to walk by him, but he catches my forearm in his big hand. He leans down and his breath is heavy and warm on my skin. “Where is the control room?”

I pull back far enough to look up at him. “Control room?”

He lifts his chin. “Electronics. Surveillance. Cameras ... the room where the shit is controlled. Where is it?”

The control room is out of my jurisdiction, but Mr. Donnelly did take me on a tour of the inner workings of the manor when I first started. Still, I don’t know this man. He will be Mr. Donnelly’s brother-in-law eventually. “Why?”

He points to the ceiling and motions around. “Because I can make this stop. Unless you want to listen to squealing tones. Everyone looks like they’re having a great time planning their five-star reviews.”

He’s right, and Mr. Donnelly isn’t here. We can figure out why the alarm tripped later. “Follow me.”