Page 28 of Ransom for His Secret Son

Then Brody smelled it.

Smoke.

Not the faint, lingering scent of something distant. This was close.

Brody’s instincts kicked in before his brain caught up. He took aim, scanning the office.

“Move!” he barked, pushing Langley toward the door while Remi was already at his side, her weapon drawn.

Because this wasn’t just a fire. Someone was trying to stop them. Maybe even kill them. If so, the fire hadn’t been set by the person who had his child. That person wanted him alive, wanted him and Remi to track down Tarrant.

So who was doing this?

Brody intended to find out.

He shoved Langley ahead of him, Remi covering their backs as they sprinted down the hall. The fire alarm kept blaring, a shrill, piercing wail that vibrated in his skull, and the stench of smoke began to fill his lungs.

He didn’t see an actual fire, but the smoke was certainly real enough. And the smell warned him that it might be mixed with some kind of chemical. Something deadly. Something that could maybe overpower them if they didn’t get the hell out of there.

They burst through the exit, slamming into the cool night air. The rush of oxygen hit hard, mixing with adrenaline that made Brody’s skin buzz.

Then, he heard a sound he sure as hell didn’t want to hear.

A gunshot.

Chapter Eight

The bullet slammed into the building, sending fragments of brick and dust scattering into the air. Remi hit the ground hard, dragging Langley down with her as Brody dropped beside them, his gun already in hand.

“Stay down!” Brody barked, scanning the parking lot for movement.

Remi was doing the same thing, but she didn’t see anyone. Someone was out there, though, and judging from the angle of the shot, the shooter was maybe on the roof of a law office directly across the street.

Smoke billowed from the building behind them, thick and pungent, stinging Remi’s eyes and burning her throat. Going back inside wasn’t an option, not unless they wanted to choke on it.

Langley was panicking, his breathing ragged, eyes wild with fear. “We’re going to die!” he shouted, his voice shrill and cracking.

Before Remi could shut him up, he scrambled to his feet, trying to bolt toward the street.

“Damn it,” she hissed, lunging after him.

She caught a fistful of his collar and yanked him back down just as another shot rang out. The bullet slammed into the pavement where he’d been standing a heartbeat before. Langley crumpled, trembling, his face pale with terror.

Brody was already on his phone, his voice clipped and sharp as he spoke into it. “I’m Sheriff Walker from Lost Canyon. I’ve got an active shooter and a possible fire at Melborn Medical Center. We need immediate backup. Shots fired. Requesting San Antonio PD assistance now.”

Remi’s heart pounded in her chest, and the adrenaline burned hot in her veins. The gunfire wasn’t random. Someone wanted them dead. And that meant she and Brody might be close to finding answers.

Or finding his son.

Someone clearly wanted to stop that.

Another shot cracked through the night, sparking against the pavement just inches from where Remi’s hand had been. They were sitting ducks if they remained where they were. So she grabbed Langley by the arm and dragged him behind the metal sign at the entrance to the medical center.

Brody scrambled in after them, crouched low, his gun steady as his gaze fired around them. “I don’t have a clean shot,” he muttered, saying the words like profanity.

No, he couldn’t return fire. All they could do was wait and try not to die while they figured out a way to stop this SOB.

The cold metal of the sign pressed against her arm as Remi leaned out so she could try to pinpoint the shooter. Her breath was coming out in quick bursts, her pulse slamming in her ears, and every muscle was twisted into knots. They were in the middle of a fight for their lives, and she didn’t even know who was trying to kill them.