AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Where was his son? He spun around to stare at the house. Grant had left Nick with Charlotte to finish his homework after dinner. There was a very real possibility that the kid had come back to the RV when he was done. It had happened a few times before.
Grant took a step toward the RV, but someone stopped him with a hard hand to his chest. He looked down at the hand, following it to the body of the man standing next to him.
Bo shook his head firmly.
For a brief moment, Grant considered tearing the man’s arm off. If there was anyone inside that mattered to Bo, he’d want to do the same thing. Before he could do anything about it, a small voice broke into his mind.
“Dad!”
It sounded so real—so close.
“Dad! Your house. It’s on fire.”
Grant turned toward the voice and his body went limp with relief. Nick threw his arms around Grant’s middle and buried his face in his stomach. He peered up at his father, tears streaking his cheeks.
“I was so scared,” he said shakily. “I thought you were inside.”
Grant could understand the sentiment. He dropped down to be eye level with his son. “It’s okay,” he assured him. “I’m okay and you’re okay—that’s all that matters.” He pulled his child into his chest and wrapped his arms around him firmly, never wanting to let go.
The sirens blared as the fire engine appeared. Those who had gathered to watch the spectacle that his home had become scattered to make way for the large vehicle. Men jumped from the open doors and ran this way or that. They got their hoses working and, in no time, the RV was just a smoldering pile of smoke and debris.
It was almost as if everyone who stood around him had gone into shock. The air was eerily quiet and something strange hung in the air, like an expectation of something more to come. Grant still hadn’t released his son, but now he was on a mission—to find whoever did this and sock ‘em.
Except no one appeared to have any clue how this had happened. It didn’t matter where he looked in the sea of faces, not one had a look of guilt. How was he supposed to track down the person who’d destroyed his home when he couldn’t see any inkling that someone here had done it? Grant refused to believe it had all been one great big coincidence.
Unfortunately, Grant would have to wait until the firefighters determined what had started it. He’d have to let his life remain hanging in the balance which made him want to hold his son even tighter.
A sheriff’s car, complete with flashing lights and a siren, drove onto the property. The siren turned off but the lights still spread their colors around the area, from the shrubs to the trees to reflecting off people’s faces. Bella jumped from the car and hurried toward them.
She grabbed Grant’s upper arms and gave him a once-over. “Are you okay?” she demanded before moving to examine Nick. She touched his face, his hair, and grasped his hand. “Were you hurt? Any problems with breathing?”
Nick ignored her questions, his eyes locked on the firemen as they finished up their job. “Do you think I could be a fireman one day?”
Bella glanced up at him from where she crouched in front of Nick. “You don’t think he’s in shock, do you? Maybe you should take him to the hospital.”
Grant didn’t need to be told what to do. Nick was his son. The boy hadn’t appeared to be all that upset. If anything, he was enthralled with the process of taking care of the RV. Grant shook his head. “I think he’s fine. What’s more important right now is figuring out who?—”
“Oh my goodness!” Charlotte’s petrified voice broke through the awkward silence of those around him. She hurried toward them and pulled Nick from Grant’s arms and away from Bella. “My poor boys.” As she hugged Nick, she gazed up at Grant. “Your RV. It’s so terrible. I can’t imagine how you must be feeling… homeless.”
Grant bit his tongue. She was only trying to show her sympathy for his situation, but all he heard was how he was now without a home—and so was his son. “We’ll be fine. It’s just an RV. I’m sure I can file a claim and get a replacement sooner than you might think.”
His pointed look to Bella was more than enough to keep her quiet. They both knew he could walk right onto the lot in Billings and get a new one without having to wait on insurance to fulfill their claim.
Charlotte hugged Nick to the point the boy squirmed. “You poor kid. I’m sure you were just so scared.”
“I want to see the firefighters—” Nick mumbled as he attempted to pull away from his grandmother’s vise-like grip.
“Nonsense. You shouldn’t be out here with all this chaos. You need rest. It’s getting late. I’m guessing you should stay home from school tomorrow, too. And of course, you can stay with Nana as long as you need. Wouldn’t that be nice? You can have your own room?—”
“That won’t be necessary,” Grant interrupted as he pulled his son from his grandmother’s claws. “We’re going to find a place to stay in town.”
“What?” Charlotte shot to her feet. “You can’t be serious.” Her face nearly turned purple, indignation coming off her in waves. “You can’t take Nick away from me. I’m his grandmother. If you take him to town, he’s going to see me less and less.”
“I doubt that,” Grant shot back. “It’s not like we’re moving out of state.”
Though that idea was becoming more appealing by the second. Bella had been right about this one thing. Nick could have been seriously hurt. If he’d been doing his homework in the RV, then Grant would have lost him, too. He wasn’t about to let that happen. Nick was his priority.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about. You’ll see. First, it will be missed dinners. Then a week will pass with excuses about homework or you being too tired to bring him by.”
