Search Me(17)

I held my breath, trying not to move a muscle. Fear like I had never known before reverberated through every fiber of my being. Next to me, Maddox crouched just as still. Even in that moment, I thanked my lucky stars he had shown back up. I couldn’t imagine having to face all of this alone.

“Now listen. I know somebody is out here. If you’re that hot, sweet thing from this afternoon, I definitely want to get my hands on you.”

Maddox tensed and edged himself closer to me—as if he were enacting a barrier between Jensen and me. His reaction made my already pounding heart beat a little faster as a wave of tenderness for him washed over me. I was brought out of my thoughts by the sound of crashing boxes. The only thing that separated us from Jensen, his thugs, and the same fate as Maudie were wall to wall crates of jams, jellies, and drinks.

It wasn’t a comforting thought.

Jensen’s voice rang out again. “All right, be as stubborn as that old bitch. There’s three of us and one of you, so we’ll turn over every crate and box until we find you.”

When I noticed Maddox eyeing the double doors leading to the parking lot, I asked, “Think we should try to outrun them?”

He shook his head. “It doesn’t have a silent alarm. The minute we go through it, everyone in a mile radius is going to know exactly where we are. So there’d be no way we could get up the hill to Maudie’s without them seeing us. We need a distraction until the cops get here, but give me a second to come up with a plan that’ll keep those ass**les and their guns away.”

I wracked my brain with what could cut us off from Jensen and his men. Something that would buy us enough time to get the map from Maudie’s safe. My eyes honed in on the box in front of me. Two words stood out to me among all the ingredients. Contents Flammable.

“Got a lighter?”

Maddox gave me a look like I’d completely and totally lost what was left of my mind. I rolled my eyes and jerked my head toward the box. When I could tell my plan had registered in his mind, I asked, “Too much of a distraction?”

He gave me an incredulous look before grinning. “No, actually I think it’s batshit crazy enough to work. I’m impressed with the wheels turning in that head of yours, Squirt,” I shot him a death glare before he peeked his head over the top of the crate. “Okay look. There’s a box of matches and some lighter fluid in the tool drawer. You start pouring some Mountain Brew while I go get them.”

I nodded.

“If Jensen or any other of those assclowns get close to you, don’t wait for me. You just start running like hell. Got it?”

“Okay,” I whispered.

Keeping as low to the ground as possible, Maddox maneuvered himself towards the middle of the warehouse where a rolling tool chest sat beside a forklift. Jensen and his men were pushing and shoving crates across from where Maddox was. As I reached into the box for some bottles of potent Mountain Brew, I silently thanked the packagers for not making it with a cork. I unscrewed the lids, and then started pouring a steady stream all around the box. I grabbed two more bottles from the boxes and positioned them towards the back door.

I started back for more bottles when I heard, “Stop!”

Freezing, I peeked around the side of the box. The shorter henchman pointed in Maddox’s direction. “Hey, there’s someone over there.”

The world slowed to a crawl as Jensen lifted his gun. In a flash, I hurled one of the empty bottles in my hand toward the far side of the warehouse. It crashed into the wall causing Jensen and his men to whirl around.

“Over there!” the henchman shouted. Jensen fired a round, and I threw another bottle. When they turned in the direction of the sound, I stepped out to throw again. But then Jensen jerked his head back and saw me.

“Well, well, look what we have boys. A pretty, armed assassin.”

I froze in fear as Jensen trained his gun on me. I couldn’t run, and I couldn’t scream for help because that would have given Maddox’s location away. Not to mention the fact we were out of town in the boonies meant it would take longer for the police to arrive.

Basically, I was utterly and completely screwed.

As Jensen and his men started towards me, Maddox shoved the tool chest with all his strength. It went careening straight for Jensen. It knocked him to the ground while his men scrambled.

Maddox raced up to me. He started squirting the lighter fluid over the crates of Mountain Brew. Then he tore out a wad of matches and struck them against the base of the book. A flame sputtered blue to red and then orange.

“When this goes up, start for the door,” he commanded before flinging separate matches onto the alcohol streams.

They sparked blue as they careened along the floor, gaining momentum. When the flame reached the box, it and the surrounding crates exploded into a fiery orange ball with curling black smoke. It took only a few seconds for the back of the warehouse to be engulfed. “Now!” Maddox shouted.

I shoved the backdoor open, causing the alarm to blare loudly. I didn’t have to glance behind me to see where Maddox was because he appeared at my side in an instant. Frantically, I scanned the parking lot. “Your Jeep?”

“I left it at Maudie’s and walked.” He gestured to the ridge in front of Maudie’s house rather than the gravel driveway. “This way.” Our feet slipped and slid through the mud from last night’s downpour. More than once, I lost my footing and fell face first into the grass. Each time, Maddox jerked me back up and kept us going.