Jess did as she was told, twisting the knob with both hands. It turned as if it were unlocked, but still didn’t open. She yanked on it again, but it wouldn’t budge.
“It’s not locked, but something is blocking it on the other side. I can feel it.” She took a step back and kicked the door. Still nothing. “If it’s bolted from the outside, we’re in trouble. Since you’ve got the gun, you gotta decide what to do, Jake.”
The bartender had control of their situation, but when she turned, the man’s face looked stark white. His chest heaving, Jake looked as if he were hyperventilating. And fear gripped her when she remembered seeing the strange metal brackets screwed to the door. They looked like antique clothes hooks, but now she knew they were more than that. Someone had locked them in, bolted the door from the outside.
“Who’s out there, Jake?” she pressed. “Who set you up?”
She could tell by the look on his face that she’d hit the mark.
“No, that can’t be…I didn’t kill her. I swear.” Fear replaced Jake’s crazed rage. “I never killed anyone.”
With the noise in the room, Alexa stirred and moaned, raising a hand to her head. Wincing in pain, she rolled to one side. “What…happened?”
Jess dropped to the floor near her and brushed back her hair. “Are you okay? Can you stand?” She helped Alexa to her feet. The woman was groggy and unsteady on her feet, but she quickly recovered.
“Jake was telling me about Mandy, but we got a more pressing problem.”
She pointed, and Alexa turned toward the door. When she saw the smoke, she shook her head. “This doesn’t look good for the home team.”
“Yeah well, Jake’s not thrilled with it either. Apparently someone considers him a loose end. He’s locked in here, too.” She took off her jacket and tossed it to Jake. “Shove this under the door. Maybe we can block the smoke.”
They were trapped in a windowless room. The fire would soon raise the temp to an unbearable level. And the air had already grown so hazy with smoke that Max had started to cough. Yet despite a fire burning the roof down over their heads, she thought about what Jake had said.
“Wait a minute. You said you never killed anyone?” She stared at Jake, and he shrugged.
“I lied…about the kid,” he admitted.
“What?” She turned her back on Jake and stared down at Seth. “If you’re jacking with me, I’ll…”
Jess raced to Harper and dropped to her knees. His head was turned toward the wall, and she couldn’t see his face. But she stroked his soft curls, something she wouldn’t have done with him conscious. He looked as if he was asleep. Tense and holding her breath, she placed a finger to the side of his neck. His skin was warm to the touch. It took her a moment to find it, but a faint pulse throbbed under her finger. And when she laid a hand to his chest, she felt the gentle rise and fall of very shallow breathing.
“He’s alive,” she cried, stifling a laugh as her eyes blurred with tears. “Seth’s alive.”
She turned him onto his back, cradling his head. His eyes fluttered, and he moaned. Pressed against her hand, she felt a large knot on the back of his head, and his hair was sticky with blood. The bartender must have been forced to slug him, not a smart move if he had intended to stage a suicide. All things considered, Jess found herself happy that Jake had a brain the size of a walnut.
But with Seth staying unconscious for so long meant he probably had a concussion or worse. He needed a doctor.
“Jessie?” Seth’s dark eyes opened, barely. He struggled to focus. And with the noise from the fire, she almost didn’t hear him. But his saying her name sent an adrenaline rush through her body that triggered a smile, despite their circumstances.
“I’m here, Seth.” She squeezed his hand. “I’m right here.”
“My father…”
“He’s here, too.” She grinned.
Seth shifted his eyes to gaze at his father, but Max surprised them both by reaching out a trembling hand. Harper took it, giving the man a weak smile.
“Very touching, but this ain’t gettin’ us out of here.” Jake jerked an arm toward the door, the one holding the gun.
But this time, Alexa had her fill of the bastard. She stepped between him and Seth, giving Jake a dose of reality.
“Whoever did this wanted you in the house when it went up,” the blonde began. “This isn’t about making Harper’s suicide look convincing. You’re the one they want dead, Jake.” She glared at him. “And you better decide whose side you’re on, ’cause the way I see it—if you put the gun down and help us out of here—we can put in a good word for you with the cops.”
“Jesus! You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Jake shook his head, but he finally shoved his gun into the waistband of his jeans.
“Tell me this, tough guy, did you pick this room yourself?” When he didn’t answer, Alexa shook her head. “Admit it. You got suckered. No windows. Bolted in. It’s a damned death trap.”
“No. You see, this was supposed to be the room where that Millstone asshole shot himself in the head,” Jake claimed with doubt in his eyes.
“No it’s not,” Jess interrupted. “And who told you he committed suicide? Max was the detective on the case, and he killed the bastard…rescued all the kids here.” When all eyes in the room focused on her, she added, “It’s true.”
“Bullshit! You’re a liar,” Jake spat. “How do you know so much?”
“’Cause I was one of those kids,” she admitted with her voice shaky. “Millstone died in the basement. I saw it happen. He died at my feet.”
“Damn.” Jake shook his head, finally getting the picture. “We’re dead meat.”
“Well, I’m not waiting around until I become one big s’more.” Alexa ran for the door and tried her luck, kicking a foot into the wood. She yelled and pounded on the door again and again, “Somebody…help us. We’re in here.”
She braved pissing Jake off and went looking for her weapon on the floor. When she found it, Alexa only gave the bartender a threatening glance before she yelled, “Fire in the hole.”
Seth made an attempt at shielding his father with Jess’s help. And Jake covered his head, cowering in a corner. Alexa nodded over her shoulder, then shot a few rounds into the wood around the doorknob and tried the door again. It moved, but not much.
“Damn it, Jake. Someone really doesn’t like you,” the blonde said. “Hard to imagine.”
Scared as he was, Jake still wasn’t talking about his accomplice, but Seth smiled as he watched Alexa.
“I like her. She with you?” he asked, grimacing in pain as he tried to sit up. “Help me up, will you?”
Jess hauled Harper to his feet and wedged a shoulder under him. She helped him sit next to his father and noticed the pain in Seth’s eyes. Every move must have hurt, but he tried not to let it show. Looking at Max, he clenched his jaw and wiped away a tear from the old man’s face with a gentle stroke of his thumb.
Seeing the love Seth felt for his father should have made her happy, but it didn’t. All she could think about was the vile consequence of Danny Ray Millstone. The bastard was dead and still claiming victims.
She forced a smile and put on a brave front for Seth and Max, but the last place she wanted to die was on High Street.
CHAPTER 26
When the smoke got so thick she could barely see, Sam got to her knees and crawled with her wet windbreaker tied over her mouth and nose. Her damp jacket had started to steam with the fierce heat. The only time she lifted the garment was to scream for Jessie, but it didn’t take her long to realize she had to conserve energy.
And with the fire getting worse, she was running out of time.