Page 38 of Protecting Kelli
Mark was out of his seat and out the door before anyone could blink.
The manager was obviously waiting nearby, and Smiley gestured him into the office.
“Errol. Who is he? Where can we find him?” Kevlar asked, the second the man stepped back into the room.
“His last name is Brown. He was hired about a month ago, and he just got out of his probation period. I can give you his home address. He didn’t show up for work today, which is why I didn’t bring him in with Mark. I’ll get you the info you want right away.”
Kevlar watched as the manager shuffled through some papers in a filing cabinet against the wall. It struck him this was the reason Tex couldn’t find much information on the employees of the company, because they still kept paper files.
But they were on the right track. He suddenly felt it in his gut. They just had to locate this Errol Brown and find out what happened after Mark had left for the resort with the others. They were getting answers, but every minute that went by was one more minute that his friend and teammate was in danger.
It was possible both Flash and Kelli were alreadydead…but Kevlar didn’t think so. Whoever had called in that ransom request was a coward. He suspected they’d stashed them somewhere, hoping they’d just die. That they could get their money, then disappear.
His fists clenched as the manager gave Safe the information they needed on Errol Brown. They’d find Flash. The alternative was unacceptable.
Flash had meant to open one of the cans as soon as they’d gotten the candle lit, hopefully get some food into Kelli…but somehow they’d fallen asleep instead. He had no idea what time it was. The darkness skewed his sense of time and, of course, neither of them were wearing a watch. To his huge relief, the candle was still flickering when he woke up.
And he wasn’t just relieved because they still had light; that flame still flickering also meant there was sufficient oxygen in the bus. He’d been a little worried about that when Kelli brought it up earlier but didn’t want to admit it.
There was air getting in somehow, which was one more thing he could cross off his “oh shit we’re screwed” list. He was trying to stay as positive as he could, for his sake and Kelli’s, but it was difficult.
Looking down at the woman in his arms made Flash feel crazy protective. She’d done an amazing job of staying calm. Other than her one moment of weakness when she’d cried in his arms, she’d held up remarkably well.
He could still picture the way her face flushed when she admitted that she had to pee before they’d fallenasleep. They’d decided the opposite corner of the bus would be the best place to relieve themselves, because the whole thing was just slightly tilted down in that direction, and their waste wouldn’t flow toward where they sat now. It wasn’t ideal, but Flash hoped they’d be out of here before the smell became an issue.
They’d settled into the slight indentation where the bus driver’s seat once sat. Flash was getting used to holding Kelli in his lap. She felt right there, fit against him as if she was made for him.
Once she let down her guard, she’d immediately fallen into a deep sleep. The metal of the bus wasn’t comfortable in the least, but Flash wasn’t about to move. He’d act as Kelli’s pillow, because keeping her comfortable and upbeat was vitally important.
It struck him that this must be how his friends felt about their girlfriends and wives. He’d always been protective, but with this woman, those feelings were in overdrive.
Kelli shifted in his arms, and Flash waited for her eyes to open. Her hair was tangled and matted in the back where her head wound had bled. She had dark circles under her eyes, and her face was filthy from whatever crud was down here in this damn bus, but honestly, he’d never seen anything as beautiful as her big brown eyes when they opened and immediately locked onto him.
“I thought it was a dream. A bad one,” she said softly.
“What? Waking up in my arms?” Flash quipped.
That earned him a smile. Each and every time he could get her to laugh or smile felt like a victory.
“No. That’s the best thing about this. Being with you. The candle’s still lit,” she said, changing subjects abruptly.
“Yup. And one more thing to add to the positive pile.It’s burning evenly and slowly. Heckle and Jeckle left us the perfect long-lasting candle. Idiots.”
The giggle that left her lips made Flash mentally put another tick mark in the “I made her smile” list he was compiling.
“You need to use the facilities?”
She frowned and shook her head.
Flash didn’t like that. Not peeing meant she was dehydrated.
“Right. I don’t know about you, but my stomach is eating itself. How about we check out those cans?”
“With our luck it reallywillbe dog food,” Kelli murmured, but she shifted off his lap.
Flash held her hand until she had her balance, then they both walked the few steps to where they’d left the box. He reached for the bottle of water and handed it to her. “Small sips,” he warned. They’d already cracked the seal the day before—at least, by now, heassumedit was the day before—and they’d each taken one large swallow. It wasn’t enough, but even with water dripping into the bus, he didn’t want to take the chance of them running out. Besides, at least he knew the water in the bottle was clean; the last thing he wanted was either of them getting diarrhea after drinking from an unknown water source.
He was also a little suspicious that there was water dripping inside the bus in the first place. Upon inspection, he guessed their kidnappers might have set it up somehow, to make sure they didn’t die before they’d gotten their money. The water just looked too clean to be leakage of rain or some other naturally occurring source through the soil.
