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His bomb kit was still in his car and, with the fire eating its way toward town, he didn’t have time to go get it. He stood up and looked around the room, searching for something, anything, that could help him. His eyes landed on his butcher block. His knives weren’t as sharp as they should be and had seen better days, but they were all he had handy.
Without thinking twice, he grabbed the entire block off the counter and set it on the floor in front of Sasha.
“Okay, angel,” he said, his voice calm and steady. “We’re going to get this thing off you. But I need you to trust me.”
Sasha nodded, her eyes never leaving his. He could see the fear in them, but he could also see the trust and love she had for him. It gave him the strength he needed.
“Okay, now listen to me very carefully,” he said. “I need you to stay perfectly still. Don’t move a muscle. I’m going to try and cut the wires on the vest, but I have to be very careful. If I cut them in the wrong order, it could trigger the bomb.”
Sasha nodded again, biting her lip so hard that it started to bleed.
He reached down and chose a medium-sized knife from the block, testing the edge with his thumb. Not sharp enough but all he had. He studied the vest, trying to make sense of the tangle of wires and cylinders, then took a deep breath and began to cut. The first wire snapped under the blade, and something on the vest beeped.
“Donovan?” Sasha’s voice was barely a whisper.
“I’m here, angel,” he said, his voice steady. “It’s okay.”
He cut the second wire and then the third, his fingers steady despite the thunderous pulse of his heart.
Another wire, and the beeping increased in frequency.
“Donovan,” Sasha said, her voice trembling. “Please hurry.”
“I’m almost done,” he said, his own voice shaking now. He cut through two more wires in quick succession, going too fast, getting too sloppy. The knife slipped and there was a sharp hiss followed by a loud pop. He froze for a second, his heart in his throat, but then he saw that the cylinder he had pierced had only been a dummy.
Sasha sobbed. “Oh, God. Donovan, the fire—”
He glanced over his shoulder and saw a wall of flames devouring the woods around his house. It roared like a wild animal. The dogs howled in the garage.
“I need another minute.” He was almost there, he could feel it. Just one more wire and—
The front door crashed open, and Tiago stepped inside, a gun in his hand. “Get away from her. You can’t disarm it. You clip that last wire, and we’re all dead.”
Donovan stepped back and raised his hands slowly. “We’re all dead if we stay here much longer.”
“Good. I’ll enjoy watching you burn, but this time, I’ll stay until the end and make sure the job’s done.”
“Tiago, man. Why are you doing this?”
“Because you murdered Chrissy so she wouldn’t tell everyone you killed Darcy, and nobody in this fucking town cares! She was just a drug addict. Another sad overdose. Nobody was doing anything about it, so I took matters into my own hands.”
“I didn’t kill Darcy. Mark Salas did. He was just arrested for it. And I didn’t kill Chrissy, but you’re right— someone did, and I’m working with Ash to figure out who.” Donovan risked a glance at Sasha. “Let her go, Tiago. This isn’t going to solve anything. Chrissy wouldn’t want this. She liked Sasha.”
Tiago shook his head, his finger tightening on the trigger. “You took everything from me. Now it’s your turn.”
A crash sounded from the back of the house, and Tiago swung toward it for a split second, but it was enough of a distraction for Donovan to make his move. He hit Tiago at the same time as a furry, dog-shaped bullet. The three of them slammed into the floor, and Spirit sank her teeth into Tiago’s arm. He released the gun with a scream. Donovan rolled away and came face-to-face with a stack of explosives.
Fuck.
Tiago had rigged the entire house.
And the fire was getting closer.
“Don’t move!” Donovan yelled at Sasha, who had been knocked to the ground during the scuffle. “The whole house is a bomb!”
Tiago scrambled toward the gun and Donovan knew he had only seconds to act.
He grabbed a knife from the block on the floor and lunged at Tiago, plunging the blade into his chest. There was resistance and he leaned into it, then a pop as the knife broke through. Tiago gasped and fell back, his eyes widening in shock as he clawed at the knife sticking out of his chest. His movements slowed, then his hands dropped to his sides, and he exhaled one final time before his eyes glazed over with death.
