“I didn’t call her. She called me. Once it was out about that awful shooting, she called to make sure I was okay. When I broke down, she offered to speak to Kyle for me. She’s gone through all that trouble. Can’t you just humor me? You haven’t visited in six months. Patrick misses you too, ya know.”
Elise rubbed her temple. “I—”
“Please, Elise. Please, for me. Would you just come home? I know we didn’t lose Patrick in body, but we lost him in spirit. I don’t want to lose you too.”
This always happened. It was always her mom calling, making Elise feel like she didn’t have a voice in her own life. And as much as she wanted to stand up for herself, she was too exhausted to fight her mom at the moment. Between losing her home twice, thinking Bryan was hurt twice, and now basically being under armed guard, she didn’t have it in her.
“Fine.” Elise sighed. “I’ll come to Florida, if Kyle says it’s okay. But I’m not staying—”
“We’ll worry about that later, sweetheart.” Her mom’s voice was as bright as Elise had ever heard. “We’ll worry about all that once I have my arms around you and know you’re safe.”
“I’m not staying. Two weeks. That’s as long as I’ve got. By then, the case will be settled, the bad guys will be in jail, and I’ll be piecing my life back together. I may not have a lot of possessions left, but my heart is here.” With Bryan, but she’d hold on to that last part for now. She didn’t need her mom trying to weasel into her relationship.
A loud, long sigh came from her mom. “That’s all I want. You here and safe from those thugs. Just a little while.” The way her mom said it, it would be a fight at the end of the two weeks, but hopefully by then, she’d be in fighting form.
“There’s a flight out tomorrow, first thing in the morning. Kyle’s already got the number, and he’s getting things coordinated.” Her mom let out a tiny squeal. “I can’t wait to see you, Elise.”
This one last time, Elise would put her life on pause. After this, there would never be another reason to give in to her. Hopefully, Bryan would be understanding. She’d just make sure he knew she was coming back and that she was coming back for him. And she wasn’t leaving ever again without him.
Chapter 26
Arms crossed over his chest, Bryan leaned his shoulder against the frame of Elise’s bedroom door. “What are you doing?”
“There’s one good thing about having all your possessions burned up in a fire, I guess.” Elise chuckled. Bryan didn’t laugh, of course. “No packing. I’m ready to go.”
“Packing for what? We have an army of policemen guarding this place.”
When she’d finally returned to the living room the night before, he’d been fast asleep, and she didn’t have the heart to wake him. Not when she knew he’d need all the rest he could get for his shift the next morning.
She could’ve packed the night before, but she’d spent a few hours watching him sleep and going through the photos she’d taken for the calendar. In her expert opinion, he could have a calendar on his own and it would sell equally as well.
His alarm going off woke her too, and since she’d showered the night before, all she had to do was dress and pack. Which now left her with nothing to do except explain. She zipped the suitcase Sally had loaned her and turned to him.
The way he was looking at her, eyebrows knitted together and lips slightly turned down at the corners, almost broke her. “What?” he asked.
“I’ve got a flight to Florida booked. My mom wants me to come home until this blows over.” She hugged herself. “I just don’t have it in me to fight her.”
“So you’re just leaving? Just like that? What about standing on your own two feet? Not being invisible? I thought those things were important to you.” He straightened and closed the distance, wrapping his arms around her.
Nestling into his embrace, she fidgeted with a button on his shirt. “They are, but I didn’t realize until last night that I’m exhausted. I don’t think it hit me until I was talking to my mom.”
“So stay. Rest here.”
“I can’t. You don’t understand.” She lifted her gaze to his. “If I don’t go, she’ll just come here, and…I love her. My dad, my brother. I love them all, but I’d rather go to Florida than have her come here. That way she can’t decide to stay and help me get my life back together.”
He pushed her hair over her shoulder. “Let her come here. You’ll have me. I can—”
Pulling away, Elise sighed. “She thinks I’ll be safer there.”
His eyebrows knitted together. “How is going to Florida making you safer? The police department there doesn’t even know what’s going on. It’s safer to stay here.”
She raked her hand through her hair. “Kyle has arranged for protection there. Once the shoot-out made national news, his mom called my mom, and they worked it out. I’ve got a flight booked for this morning. He’s sending a patrol car for me, and I’ll be picked up by one there.”
Shaking his head, he set his hands on his hips. “That doesn’t make any sense. Just tell her no.”
Her shoulders rounded. Just the thought of another conversation made her want to crawl into a ball. “I can’t. Plus, I haven’t seen my brother in six months. If I go, I can stay there a couple of weeks while this whole situation resolves itself and then come back. She’ll be happy and out of my hair. It’s better this way.”
He took a step closer, his hands dropping to his sides. “Better for who? You or her?”
She turned her back to him and slipped her camera and laptop bag over her shoulders before picking up her suitcase. “For all of us. This makes everyone happy, and this way I don’t have to fight her when I don’t have it in me.”
Awkward silence filled the room until she faced him, and his gaze locked with hers. “I can’t say I’m happy, Elise.”
“Can we not fight about this? Please? I just said I don’t have it in me.”
Bryan tilted his head. “Not fight about it? I don’t want to fight, but I feel like I need to since I’m not sure I’ll see you again.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Never see me again? What gave you that idea?” Why would he think something like that? Visiting her parents and brother wasn’t a big deal.
“Really? I’d say packing every worldly possession and flying to another state gives a really clear idea. What happens at the end of your visit and your mom doesn’t want you to leave? You can take photos anywhere. There are beaches in Florida. You don’t have to live here. You don’t have to come back…”
She thought he’d finish the statement with “to me,” but he had to trust that she’d come back. If he couldn’t trust her, then whatever this was wouldn’t work. “Bryan, you’re letting your fears turn this into something it’s not.”
He blinked. “What’s that mean?”
“It means this is easier for you. Telling yourself I was never serious. That I never cared about you because it doesn’t fit in with your narrative of the unlovable Bryan who keeps getting his heart stomped on.”
He took a step back like she’d slapped him and lowered his gaze to the floor. “Right. Because it couldn’t be you. I mean, you’re invisible, right?” Turning, he paused as he reached the end of the hallway. “Despite what you might think, this isn’t easy for me at all.” He lifted his head and caught her gaze. “Have a safe flight.”
With that, he disappeared into the living room, and a second later the front door opened and then closed. It felt so final, but it wasn’t. He had to know she wouldn’t just leave him. Didn’t he? She sure hadn’t expected him to be so upset. Not enough to leave without so much as a kiss goodbye.
Before she could slump onto the bed, a knock came from the door. As she reached it, another knock came. “Ms. Richards? This is Officer Maddox King. Harris King is my brother. They said I should let you know so you’d feel safe.”
“Thanks,” she said as she opened the door. Maddox was tall and blond like Harris, and she found the family rese
mblance did comfort her.
The drive to the airport was quicker than she expected, but then again, it was early. Much earlier than she wanted it to be. Hopefully, the first leg of her trip would be quick, and then she could snooze on the long flight.
After reaching the airport, Officer King parked in the loading area and pulled her bags out of the trunk. He handed her the suitcase as she reached him. “Have a safe flight.”
“Thanks. I really appreciate the ride.”
“I’d have driven you even if it was my day off.”
She tilted her head, her eyebrows knitting together. “Why?”
Hearty laughter rumbled from his throat. “As I mentioned before, the reason they sent me is that you know my brother.” He wiggled his eyebrows.
Elise’s mouth dropped open. “Please tell me Kyle didn’t show everyone those pictures.”
“I think he used the conference room’s eighty-two-inch projector screen.” He tried holding in another laugh and failed. “They asked if someone would volunteer to drive you to the airport, and I couldn’t raise my hand fast enough. My next family get-together is going to be awesome.”
Elise groaned. “I’m gonna kill Kyle when I get back.”
“Get back?”
“Uh, yeah. I live here.”
Maddox shrugged. “Huh. From what I understood, you were headed home. Guess they were wrong.”
“Yes, they were.”
Elise would set her mom straight when she got to Florida. By then, maybe she’d have what it took to speak her mind. By then, maybe Bryan wouldn’t be so hurt and angry, too. Hopefully, he’d be willing to talk again once she got back.
Chapter 27
Bryan had started his shift with a heavy heart, and some twelve hours later, it had yet to get any lighter, especially knowing Elise would have long since touched down in Florida by now.
She’d said she was coming back, and he wanted to believe her. He did, but if she was willing to go through the trouble of involving the police department there, why would she need to come back? Him? Unlikely.
Truth be told, he didn’t want her coming back for him. He wanted her to come back for her. He wanted her to find her voice. That was something he couldn’t do for her. He loved her, supported her, wanted her, but until she found her voice, until she wasn’t invisible to herself, there was nothing he could do.
Manipulating her to stay would have been enabling her. He loved her too much to do that. Because he loved her, he knew it wasn’t the right time to tell her how he felt then, when she might think he was saying it to convince her to stay.
Her leaving hadn’t fit his narrative. Her saying it was easier for him was a knife in the heart and nowhere near the truth. It was killing—killed—him to let her go. He wasn’t afraid of it; he was heartbroken. He also knew that a relationship involved two people, and as long as her brother’s accident lived between them, it would never work.
“You need to get your head out of the clouds.” To punctuate the statement, Carlos trained the hose at Bryan’s feet for a few seconds.
“Hey! Watch it!” he shouted, jumping to avoid the high-pressure flow. “What’s wrong with you?”
“What’s wrong with me?” Carlos laughed, returning to hosing down the truck. “I’ve been talking for, like, five minutes, and you haven’t even so much as grunted.”
“Maybe I’m bored with what you’re talking about.” Bryan lowered the scrub brush and shook it at him. “Ever consider that?”
“Nope.” Carlos’s smile widened as he laughed and dodged out of the way of the soap flying. “Seriously, though, what’s up? You’ve been distracted all day.”
“Elise left for Florida this morning. I didn’t take it well.”
Carlos mouthed, Oh. “Yeah, I heard about that. I think Harris mentioned she was moving there or something. I’m not sure. You want to talk about boring? That guy is boring. I kinda zone out when he starts flapping his gums.”
Bryan nodded, his stomach twisting into a knot as his heart hit the floor.
So he’d been right. She’d left with the intention of staying in Florida. He hoped it was the right move for her. Just because his future with her wasn’t meant to be didn’t mean he wanted anything but good things for her. Maybe she’d find her voice there. Maybe someone she loved enough that she wouldn’t have any choice but to stand her ground.
The high-pitched ring of the bell broke through his thoughts as Gregg rushed into the bay. “A body repair garage near the beach,” he said over the wail of the siren as they all began gearing up. “The cops were making a bust. Something about an incendiary device going off. There’s a few of them inside.”
Already a blaze and with people trapped inside? This made getting there and getting the fire under control that much more urgent. As they pulled out of the station, black smoke cut the moon in half as it grew thicker and darker the closer they got.
The area was clogged with police vehicles. SWAT teams were running in all directions and poised atop buildings across the street from the burning garage. There was nothing quite as noxious as burning rubber, and the air was thick with the stench when they brought the truck to a stop and unloaded.
Jake Cutter, the officer who’d helped interrogate Elise, sat on the curb, a respirator over his face. “Kyle’s trapped in there!” He caught Bryan’s gaze and pointed to no one particular spot.
Already, there was one man half-covered in a sheet, clothing burned with bits of singed skin showing through holes. A moment later, a SWAT member joined them, explaining what had transpired so far.
Not just one incendiary device, but several had gone off. They’d yet to find the source, and each time one went off, several would go in rapid succession. With the smoke filling the air, it wasn’t easing to discern how large the building was, but Bryan guessed it to be much larger than they’d been led to believe.
“Is Kyle the only man trapped inside?” Bryan shouted over the chaos.
“Kyle and one of the two suspects. If we’re correct on the body count.” The SWAT team member nodded to the man under the sheet. “He’s one of them.”
The windows facing the street shattered, sending glass in all directions and forcing everyone to shield their faces. Gregg directed them to train one hose on the window and the other on the roof of the garage.
Carlos elbowed Bryan. “We can go through there.” He pointed to a door before running to the truck and grabbing the battering ram.
They ran to the door, pulling on their masks, and pushed their way through.
“We’re in here!” someone called from inside.
Bryan took in the surrounding area. Walls had begun to cave in, and the door where the voices seemed to be coming from was blocked. “We need the battering ram.”
Stepping out of Carlos’s way, he stayed ready to rush through as soon as the way was clear.
“Stand back!” Carlos yelled to the men on the other side. He smacked the door three times before breaking through.
The cries for help were louder now, but as Bryan charged through the door, he couldn’t see anyone. Smoke billowed in from farther inside the building, making it nearly impossible to make anything out.
“Help!” The screams were a little louder now, and he recognized Kyle’s voice.
“Over there!” Carlos hit Bryan on the arm and pointed to a hall leading to the left. They made their way down to the middle of the hall and took another left as the voices calling for help grew louder.
Another door. Blocked even more than the first. “Call in help. I’ll start working on clearing the debris.” Bryan ran to the first thing he could reach and pitched it as far as he could.
Just then, an explosion shook the building as a sharp crack like bones snapping rattled everything around them. Bryan and Carlos both looked up at the same time, trying to find the source.
Sparks of fire rained down around them, and Bryan knew what was coming next. Instead of taking the time to yell, “Move,” Bryan stepped back and the
n shoved Carlos in the direction they’d come before diving the opposite direction to avoid getting crushed. The metal beam slammed down between them, tearing a hole through the door and taking out most of the frame.
Bryan’s radio lit up with a string of curses from Carlos. “If you’re dead—”
“I’m not, and I’ve got a way in.” Bryan scrambled to his feet and crawled through into the room where Kyle was pinned beneath a large metal filing cabinet. The suspect lay unmoving a few feet from him.
“Can’t…” Kyle gasped, pushing feebly at the cabinet. “It won’t budge.” He coughed.
“Yeah, and now you’re trapped too,” Carlos said over the radio. “That metal beam is huge. It’s gonna take time to clear it. How’s your air?”
Bryan quickly checked it as he neared Kyle. “It’s fine. Kyle and the suspect are in here. I’ll work to get him free, and you get that beam taken care of.” He glanced around the room. “There aren’t any windows or other exits in here.”
“Stay alive. I have a score to settle with you.”
Ignoring Carlos, Bryan kneeled next to Kyle. He pulled out the extra mask he’d fit in his coat and cursed under his breath. When he pushed Carlos out of the way and dove, the mask had broken. Not having his own mask on could get Bryan reprimanded, but he’d take that over Kyle passing out on him.
Taking one last large breath, he pulled his mask off and slipped it over Kyle’s head. “Breathe.”
Bryan braced himself and pushed as hard as he could. The file cabinet wouldn’t budge. It was stuffed, and when he yanked on the handles, he found each of them locked.
The last draw of air he’d taken was gone, and he let it out, only to inhale smoke as he took another breath. He nearly choked, coughing on it, but managed to lean down to speak into Kyle’s ear. “Are you hurt? Anything broken? How about the suspect?”
Shrugging, Kyle took a long drag of air and then replied, “My right arm is pinned, but I can feel my toes. I think a few ribs might be broken. It hurts to breathe. The suspect is dead.”
Firefighter's Rescue (Bakers Beach: First Responders Book 1) Page 12
