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Once Brett leaves the office, I unmute the call. “Sorry about that. What’s up? Do you need me to cover a shift?”
“Cash.” Ian’s voice is strained, not what I was expecting. “Sorry to interrupt you at work. But I thought you’d want to know.” Sirens blare in the background.
My stomach fills with lead. “Know what?”
“We just got a call, we’re on our way now.” Ian pauses, his voice muffling as he talks to someone on the other end of the line. Then he’s back. “Don’t panic.”
What?
I ask sharply, “Don’t panic aboutwhat, Ian?”
“We got a call to your girlfriend’s house. Probable carbon monoxide leak.”
“What?” I feel like a damn parrot. “My girlfriend? You mean Ari?”
“Yeah.” Ian pauses again, a staccato burst of voices rising in the background. “It’s her house. We’re nearly there.”
“She’s staying with me,” I tell him, willing my pulse to slow down. Ari isn’t there. She’s fine.
“No, man.” His tone drops. “She’s there. That’s what the call said. Two people with possible exposure, the resident and another man with her. I’m sorry, Cash, but I thought you’d want to get here.”
My heart stops. No. It can’t be.
I can’t breathe.
“Cash, I gotta go,” Ian is saying, but his voice is dull and distant.
Sluggishly, stuttering, my heart starts again. Already jogging out of the office, I jab at the phone to hang up and bark at my assistant, “I have to go. Emergency.”
As I run toward the exit—no elevator, too slow, stairs are faster—I stab at Ari’s name on my phone. The call rings, and I’m praying, please, please have gotten out of the house.Please be okay.
There’s no answer. God.
All the things that could have happened—could be happening—are flashing through my head like a horrific slideshow. Ari unconscious. Brain damaged. Dead.
Please,no.
I’m hurtling down the flights of stairs, dialing Ari on repeat. It’s a miracle I don’t pitch headfirst down them and break my neck.
Just as I’m slamming through the door to the parking lot, my phone rings.
Ari’s name appears and my heart staggers again. I gasp into the phone, “Ari?”
“Cash.” She’s not unconscious. Not brain damaged. Not dead.
I fire panicked questions at her. “Are you okay? What happened? Are you hurt? Where’s Finn? Please tell me you’re okay.”
“I’m okay, Cash.”
I stumble, my legs going wobbly from relief.
Still jogging, I head toward my car. “What happened? Are you safe?”
“I’m safe.” Sirens blare, and her voice rises, trying to speak over them. “I came back here after work. Finn brought me. We were inside for… I don’t know, five minutes? And then he noticed something. Not a smell, but he knew somehow. So we ran outside and called 911.”
Panic resurges. How long was Ari inside? Wasit really only five minutes? How high was the concentration? Could she have carbon monoxide poisoning?
“Make sure they check you out.” I unlock my car and jump into it. “Tell them how long you were in there, what rooms you were in, everything you can think of.”
