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Mateo went back to working on the screws in the unit, trying to make the process go faster. Trying and failing.

This bomb would be the worst. Having it so close to the house meant the flying debris would be catastrophic.

“Mateo! Where are you?” he heard a woman yell out.

Bonnie?

“At the side of the house.”

What in the ever-loving-fuck was Bonnie doing back in the house? He dropped everything and stood, horrified, as he saw her racing around the corner of the house towards him.

“Goddammit, Bonnie, get back to the cars!”

“One girl is still in the house,” she screamed as she slammed into his chest.

“How—?”

It didn’t matter.

“Braxton,” he yelled. “One kid is still in the house.”

“Fuck!” Braxton yelled back at him. He might not be able to see the man, but at least Mateo could hear him from where he was.

“Work faster,” Mateo hollered as he glanced at him on the way back to the patio and the sliding glass door. “Then go to the AC unit. I’ve got to go help find the girl.” Mateo yelled, hoping he would be heard over the rain.

“Gotcha,” Braxton yelled back.

Good, he heard him.

As soon as they got inside the great room, Bonnie careened to a halt. “It’s bad, right?” She was trembling, her face the color of parchment.

“There are two bombs. I don’t know if we can diffuse them in time,” Mateo burst out. “We’ve got to get her out of here. What’s her name?”

Bonnie didn’t bother to answer him, just turned around and shouted, “Laura!” at the top of her lungs. “Laura, honey, you need to stop hiding. Your dad is worried about you.”

The house was two stories, and massive. There were at least four bedrooms upstairs and one bedroom downstairs.

“You take downstairs, I’ll take upstairs.” He didn’t wait for Bonnie’s response; he just ran to the staircase and took the steps three at a time as he pulled his phone out of his back pocket.

“We’re in a car and on our way,” Gideon said as he answered his phone.

“You’ll be too late.” Mateo looked at his watch. “We have six minutes and fifty-five seconds. Two bombs and one girl hiding in your house. Are there any hiding places we should know about?”

Mateo hit the first bedroom on the right. “Laura, I need you to come out and stop playing. The other kids are worried about you.”

He scanned the room. Just a bed, dresser, chair, and closet. She was little, but she wasn’t behind the curtains or the chair. Not under the bed, and not in the bathroom or the glassed-in shower. Next door was a closet with towels and sheets. He yanked out the folded sheets at the bottom of the closet and found nothing.

He hit the next room; it was another guest room. He checked the closet first. It was piled high with shoeboxes. He tore through them, seeing if the girl was behind them.

“Mateo!”

Shit, he’d forgotten that Gideon was still on the line.

“What?”

“Don’t forget to check the deck off the master. Jada washed out the planters. They’re empty. She could be there.”

“Got it.” Mateo shoved his phone back into his pocket and raced to the room at the end of the hall, hoping it was Gideon and Jada’s room. As soon as he opened it, he struck gold. The size of the bed told the story. He glanced at his watch.