Deadly Heat (Deadly #2)(44)

Kenton let his gaze sweep over the crowd once more.

“Watching,” Monica reminded him.

Watching—and taking aim at the firefighters. At Lora.

“He set the whole damn thing up,” Kenton said, voice low. The pieces were clicking into place. “He called because he wanted credit for this kill.”

But how the hell had he done it?

Fucking bastard. Kenton jabbed his index finger at the crowd. “Make sure those cops interview every person in the crowd. No one leaves the scene without getting clear from the uniforms.”

The broadcast had been designed to lure Phoenix to him, but the guy had screwed him. The killer had gone right after the rescue units.

This is for the Bureau bastards.

The perp had gone right after Lora.





CHAPTER Nine


Need a ride?”

Lora glanced up at the deep voice and found Kenton standing just past the hospital emergency room doors.

It had been one hell of a night. After getting the all-clear from the docs, she’d stayed around, hoping for good news on Wade.

Kenton stepped closer to her. “Lora?”

“A ride?” She cleared her throat. “Yeah, that’d be good, thanks.” It beat catching a cab.

They didn’t talk again until they were in his car. He cranked the engine, and it roared instantly to life, but then his fingers tightened around the steering wheel, knuckles flashing white.

“Uh, Kent? What’s—”

A muscle flexed in his jaw. “He went after you.”

“No.” It had to be some mistake. “It was the kid, I saw him.”

“It was Phoenix,” he said, and a shiver skated down her spine. “Michael Randall was in Meadows Rehab when the other fires were set. Phoenix used him. I don’t know how yet, but he set that boy up as—”

“Bait.” Her eyes drifted to the ambulance that had just raced past them.

“Yeah, f*cking bait.” He shifted gears, and the SUV shot forward. “How’s your man?”

Lora took a deep breath. “He went into cardiac arrest about an hour ago.”

“Lora…”

She swallowed and tried to breathe nice and easy. Real hard to do. “He’s stable. For now.” She wasn’t sure how long that would last. The docs hadn’t looked or sounded hopeful. And Wade had a wife in there, pacing the sterile halls. Newlyweds. “He’s got burns—second and third degree—on his face and chest. Randall… he just went after him. Ripped at him as the fire burned.” I couldn’t get to him fast enough. Not with the flames and the walls falling.

“I’m sorry.”

So was she. Sorry she hadn’t moved faster. Sorry she hadn’t yelled out her warning sooner. “Randall had set an accelerant trail all over the house. He was just waiting for us to go in so he could light it.” And trap us inside. Because he’d wanted them all to die.

“I wanted Phoenix to come after me. Not you.” Kenton took two turns and then a hard left. Her house wasn’t far now. She wanted to shower, to wash away the grime and soot.

Laura’s hands pressed against her thighs. “How… how did he get the kid to kill himself?” An image flashed in her mind of another fire. Randall and that smile.

He’d fought her when she tried to pull him out of the flames. He’d screamed, “No, no, I want to see!”

This time, he’d seen everything.

“We’re gonna check to see if there’s any connection with Meadows Rehab. Maybe Phoenix met up with the kid there.” The rumble of his voice filled the car. “Sure seems like Randall was willing bait.”

Her head turned slowly as she leaned back against the seat. So tired.

Another trap. Only this time, the victim had wanted the flames.

“Using the boy was a mistake,” Kenton said. Another turn, then a couple more blocks, and she’d be home. “The boy is gonna lead us to Phoenix.”

Lora exhaled. “Phoenix is a sick freak. And the fires—they’re just getting worse.”

The SUV slowed down. She could see her house. Surrounded in dawn’s light, the white paint gleamed. Kenton braked, and her fingers reached for the door.

“Lora…”

She glanced back at him.

“I want to come in.” His voice was demanding, with an edge of—

Fear.

Lora understood. He’d been watching. While the fire burned and death came, he’d been outside.

Her head moved in a slow nod. She wanted him there with her.

Her steps were slow as she headed for the door. The keys in her hand trembled just a bit. Kenton followed her, close enough for her to feel his warmth.

Then they were inside, and she could finally breathe. She could draw in a deep breath and not taste her own fear.

“I—I’m going to take a shower.” First. Because she didn’t want to touch him like this. But she did want to touch him. She needed to push away the death and grab life.

He caught her hand. “Is there room for two?”

There was lust in his eyes. But need, a deeper, darker need, shone there, too. The same need she felt, coursing through her blood.

“Yes.” A simple answer that meant so much more.

Staring at her, he removed his weapon. He secured the gun by tucking it inside her desk drawer.