Page 12 of Night Hawk
He eyed his brothers, and they relaxed a bit. All except Drake. She figured him for the family bad boy, bucking rules and tending toward the wild side.
“Just like I thought,” Clay said. “Let’s move on.”
She smiled her thanks at Clay. He’d always been so supportive when they’d worked together. He was a total charmer, but underlying it all was a sincere heart, and she’d had a hard time resisting him. If her father hadn’t died, would they have gotten together?
Didn’t matter. Her dadhaddied. When he’d appeared unexpectedly on their op, she was ogling Clay instead of putting her focus where it should’ve been. She’d only looked away for a few seconds, but that was all it had taken.
Clay sucked in a sharp breath and turned back to his brothers. “Okay. We’ll get started once Sierra has finished all the photos. We’ve divided the building into quadrants. We’ll team up and search every inch of this place.” Clay shared their assignments.
“Let me guess,” Drake said dryly. “You’re partnering with Toni.”
One of the brothers snickered, but she didn’t see which one.
“Let’s get some gloves on so we’re ready to act when Sierra is done,” Clay said.
“A word alone before we do,” Aiden said.
Aiden was the eldest, and she expected Clay would readily follow him, but Clay glanced at his watch instead. “I know what you’re planning to say, and you can warn me anytime to not make this personal. I’d like to get this place processed, so let’s move.”
Clay jerked his head at Toni, telling her to follow him. She forced out a smile for the others and trailed Clay toward the building. Should she mention what had just happened with his brothers, or was it better to keep quiet? Quiet. She would let him take lead in any conversation.
They passed the roaring generator powering the lights and creating a sharp glow from the basement stairwell.
“We’ll hold here until Sierra returns.” Clay stopped at the head of the stairwell.
Of course, he’d taken the quadrant with the storage room. Under normal conditions, she would be glad he’d chosen the place that should have the strongest lead. But, man, she didn’t want to go back down there. Not even if Clay had already hauled the pail out to his Jeep and locked the snake in. Snake or no snake, she couldn’t predict her reaction when they reached the janitor’s closet.
It took every ounce of her willpower to stand there and wait for Sierra. But Toni was a professional. She wouldn’t bail. At least not yet.
Sierra soon climbed the stairs and lifted her camera strap from around her neck. “I’ll grab my field kit and get to work in the closet first. You’re clear to move around the building.”
Clay led her down the stairs, the smoke barely lingering after Griff sucked it out with a big fan. The light revealed faded blue walls with flakes of paint waiting for any movement to go flying into the air. They hit the basement’s concrete floor painted a dark gray and worn in the middle. She forced her feet forward. Step by step. Closer. Closer. Her heart rate kicked up.Thump. Thump. Thump. Pounding like a drum. Her breathing grew shallow in already irritated lungs. Labored.
A cold chill swept over her. Her hands got clammy.
Stop it. The snake isn’t even in there. Keep moving. You can do it.
Her feet didn’t listen, and her footsteps faltered.
Please. I don’t like this. You know I like to be in control. In charge. Not needing anyone.
The only person in her adult life she’d been indebted to was her father, who’d taught her to be self-sufficient. To live her faith by helping others for sure. But asking for help? Never. And now she was beholden to Clay for his rescue from the snake and fire, and she didn’t like it. Not one bit.
He turned, his gaze landing on her face and holding, his eyes filling with compassion.
And that look. He thought she was weak. Needed help. And she did.
Oh, God, why? What’s going on? Why are You letting this happen?
“Let’s split up. I’ll talk to Sierra, and you head toward the back to search for leads.” He offered her a flashlight.
She grabbed it like a lifeline, clutching the cool metal and letting the raised switch press into the tender flesh of her palm to distract her from the open closet door, where big Klieg lights illuminated the room.
She got her feet moving, hurried past the closet and around a corner to an area shrouded in darkness. Flicking on the flashlight, she took several cleansing breaths and let the stress evaporate with each exhale of air. She concentrated on the area where the hallway opened into a small room with an arched doorway.
She flashed the light beam over the space, finding the same painted floor, but the walls were made of rust-red bricks. Shelves lined three of the walls, holding various sized paint cans, but the brick on the walls had crumbled to the floor, a mound of bricks and dust at the base of the studs.
She stepped closer and shone her light into the void. She took a good look, gasped, and stepped back. Her heart galloped into top speed.
