Page 66
Finished. Just need to clean up.
She added a bunch of Christmas emojis that made him smile. He wanted her to have an amazing holiday to make up for the hard and lonely ones.
On my way. Wait inside until I get there.
It might not be far, but he didn’t want her outdoors alone.
Knox, Thea, Jolie, and Ford entered the mudroom as he was pulling on his boots and winter gear.
His brother shook his head at him. “You were supposed to text us when you were heading over.”
Jolie poked him in the shoulder. “He’s so eager to see Rissa, he forgot.”
He couldn’t argue with that, so he didn’t. Instead, he smiled and told them to hurry, making them all laugh.
Outside, the wind whipped his face and shocked the air in his lungs. He hoped Rissa had a scarf.
They all pulled up hoods and tightened their zippers to keep the wind out. For a moment, he wished for mittens instead of the gloves he wore. Even for the couple of minutes they’d be outside, the extra warmth would be welcome.
As soon as they turned the corner of the farmhouse and the Q Lab came into sight, a shiver of dread ripped down Burke’s spine. “Something’s wrong.”
Knox and Ford reacted immediately by pulling weapons and placing themselves in front of the women. Whatever the threat was, it was ahead of them.
Terror like he’d never known gripped him, and Burke raced for the RV, calling Rissa’s name.
A loud bang filled the air, lifting the RV right off its wheels.
Then everything went to hell.
Chapter 20
Shoot First, Ask Questions Later
Burke watched the Q Lab rise at least a foot in the air, propelled by an explosion beneath the front end. Flashbacks from his time overseas tried to take over his brain, but his terror for Rissa shoved them aside. He’d never lost anyone in a vehicular explosion, and that sure as hell wasn’t happening now.
The RV landed on its tires unequally and bounced. Even as he shouted her name and raced closer, he watched the vehicle wobble and then topple over and bounce twice on its side.
Behind him, the women screamed, and then Jolie yelled for help, hopefully into her phone. He didn’t waste even a moment to check as the RV settled on its side, the door facing the ground.
Uprighting the beast would require more manpower than they had available. He needed to get Rissa out now. Where there was one explosive, there could be another.
Overseas, many of the terrorists had set off one explosion to get everyone running to help, and then more to take out the group.
He couldn’t worry about that. Ford and Knox would check. His job was to get the driver’s door open and get Rissa and Frizzle to safety. Nothing else mattered.
He used the Q Lab’s tire to launch himself to what was now the top of the vehicle. He braced himself on the edge and pulled at the driver’s door.
Locked.
Damn it. Their edict to keep everything locked was working against him. He pounded his fist against the window. “Rissa. Are you okay? Open the driver’s door. Hurry.”
His voice broke on the last word, and he swallowed hard to shove down the emotion. He wouldn’t let his terror be the thing that stopped her from reaching safety.
A gunshot sounded from behind him, and Burke threw himself to lie flat on the RV. “Rissa. Stay down. We’ve got a shooter.”
Why hadn’t she answered him? Where was she? Was she hurt?
Either Knox or Ford returned fire, and Burke tried the door again. Still locked. He needed something to break the window, but the only thing he had was his weapon.
