No Reason to Run (6 page)

Chapter 11

Shane took note of
the hour on his watch for the tenth time. According to the schedule he’d
checked on his phone, a bus to Charlotte would leave shortly. It was the only
bus going to North Carolina this early. He wasn’t sure why he still waited. It
wasn’t like he needed to physically watch the bus depart to know she got off
safely. His cell chirped. Tempted to ignore it, he answered with a short.
“Yeah?”

“Code princess
engaged, sir.”

Shane froze, his
gaze moving from the clock on his dash to the entrance of the bus station. He’d
programmed the code for Olivia prior to leaving his home. He expected her to
shred his card in defiance or use it once if only to request instructions on
how to pay him back. Never once did he contemplate her actually using the emergency
code he’d set for her. He’d informed his PA Diana only moments ago to reach him
immediately if the code was used.

What the hell could
have happened in a half hour to cause the stubborn woman to ask for help? He
stared at the entrance of the bus station as if he could see inside. Thoughts
ran through his mind when flames suddenly shot from the roof of the building
followed by an explosion of sound. He tensed in disbelief watching people pour
from the doorway. “Holy fuck.”

He lunged from the
car barely shutting the door behind him. He listened to the snap and crackle of
an out of control blaze followed by several loud booms implying structural
damage.

“Sir?”

Diana’s voice
penetrated the ice he’d wrapped around his emotions the minute the explosion
went off while he bumped into people as he ran toward the smoke and flames. His
heart pounded in his chest. “Is she on the line? Do you have her, Diana?”

Christ, fear like
never before ate at his gut.

“The line is open,
sir, but no response.”

Which could mean anything.
He shoved hard at a man blocking his way. Too many people were scrambling
around. Screams and terror filled the air. It reminded him too much of his last
mission with his team. He didn’t need any reminders of that cluster fuck.

Sweat broke out on
his temple. A sharp pain shot up his right thigh. His bad leg protested the
strain. Shane ignored it to study the crowd. Where the hell was she? “Olivia.”
He yelled out her name, looking in the face of every blonde woman going by.

A security guard
stopped his mad flight by stumbling in his path. Shane turned on his heel and
snatched him by the uniform shirt. “What the hell is going on?” Sirens could be
heard in the distance.

The guard stuttered
and tried to break away. His face paled as Shane used his hold to shake him.
“What happened?” He repeated harshly, heart in his throat.

“Bomb. Some fool had
a bomb.” The guard pushed against Shane’s chest until he freed himself. Shane
let him go. The man continued without a backward glance.

Police units roared
to the front, sirens blaring and parked with a squeal of brakes. Soon they’d
block off the scene and he wouldn’t be able to get closer. With determined
steps he strode forward. No one was stopping him from going in and finding
Olivia and her daughter.

“I have her, sir.”
Diana spoke in his ear.

At the entrance, he
felt the heat against his skin. The air smelled of ash and burned metal.
Diana’s words had him hesitating. “Repeat that.”

“I have her, sir.
I’m patching her through.”

The line hummed and
he heard Olivia’s voice. “Shane.”

She sounded shaky
but alive. Alive was good. “Where are you, princess?”

Steeling himself
against the smoke, he pulled the collar of his shirt over the lower half of his
face. He shouldered through a few more fleeing people.

“There was an explosion.
The man.” Her choppy words broke off with a cry.

“I need you focused,
princess. Are you and Chloe okay?” The little one would be traumatized by this.
The thought renewed his intensity as he surged forward.

The inside of the
bus station revealed pure mayhem. People scattered in every direction, two
bodies on the ground definitely not moving. A bus turned on its side. Glass and
concrete rubble everywhere he scanned but his gaze continued to search for one
woman carrying a child. His eyes began to burn. Shit, he had to find them soon.

“We’re. Fine.” She
gasped and choked each time she spoke.

“Where the fuck are
you?” The layer of calm he used to get through in the past was remarkably
absent. He considered the possibility of a secondary incendiary device. They’d
all be screwed then.

A hand grabbed onto
his arm. Shane jerked and turned around.

“Here.” Olivia stood
beside him, a pale bruised mess, her body trembling. She held Chloe in her
arms.

Frightened blue eyes
peered up at him from her shocky face. A shudder of relief ran through his
body. Without question, he wrapped his arm around Olivia’s shoulders and
directed them back toward the exit. The crowd lunged forth jostling them as
they approached the narrow hall leading to the outside. The kid cried out and
Shane tightened his hold.

Smoke billowed
toward the ceiling. A cart of some sort engulfed with flames shooting from it
lay on its side. The inside of the building sustained serious damage. Stores
collapsed on themselves and rapid mini explosion followed in succession.
Fucking
chaos.

“Almost out, Chloe.”
He heard Olivia’s raspy voice murmur followed by a cough.

“I’ll call back
later, D.” He ended his call with his assistant and gave his attention to the
two in his grip. “Hold my shirt, princess. It’s gonna get rough.”

Shane used his free
arm to push and clear a path. Determined to get them all out of here, he added
force to steam roll them through. Fresh air hit his face none too soon and they
were out on the walk way. He inhaled deeply tasting ash in his mouth. Fire
trucks had joined the row of police cars. Yellow clad men rushed past.

A familiar face
dressed in turnout gear headed for Shane. Brody McKenna walked with a brisk
stride, his yellow helmet under his arm. “They hurt?” He stopped in front of them,
the frown on his face showing lines of strain. Other firefighters raced pass.

 “Princess, let’s
get you and the kid checked out.” Shane tried to pull back but she had a death
grip on his shirt.

Her face buried
deeper into his chest and her fist thumped his stomach. Fortunately, her body
pressed close enough to make the blow ineffective. “
Chloe,
I told you.”

Shane smiled.
“Right.” Looking down at the top of her daughter’s head, he said, “Come on,
kid. Face up so we can check on you.” He intentionally needled Olivia in hopes
of kick starting her spirit.

Instead, Shane got a
surprise. “I want Mr. Snuffles.”

Chloe titled her
head and her tearstained face met his. Dirt streaks marred her cheeks and he
felt unchecked rage building. Her wounded blue eyes blinked at him and her
lower lip poked out in what even he had to admit looked cute.

It also marked her
first comment to him directly. “Did you leave a toy on the bus?” Remembering
the destruction inside and the possibility of the toy escaping unscathed, had him
cringing.

Her head shook back
and forth. “No.”

A small line of
blood ran down her temple. “Brody, they both need medical attention.” Olivia
protested but never lifted her head up. Brody attempted to gently pry Olivia’s
arms loose. Shane winced as her nails clenched and bit through the fabric of
his shirt to pierce his chest.

Brody tugged again
and received a solid kick for his efforts. As odd as the situation was, Shane
found himself grinning. “Easy, he’s a public servant doing his job.”

Brody gave Shane a
glare for his laughter.

“I’m fine.” Olivia’s
statement was muffled in his chest.

Picking up on her
mother’s emotions, Chloe’s tears turned into a wail which cut off abruptly from
a hacking cough.

“Chloe needs to be
seen, Olivia.”

Her head flew up
fast as she pushed back to see Chloe. Shane moved his jaw out of the way just
in time. A tremor ran through her body. He took the opportunity to reach for
Chloe in her slackened hold and transferred the little girl to Brody’s waiting
arms catching mother and daughter both off guard.

Chloe screamed and
Olivia struggled to move away.

“Mommy.”

Her little arms
reached over McKenna’s yellow clad shoulders but he was quick and hustled over
to a parked ambulance. Shane let go and Olivia chased after the pair. An EMT
caught up with her. Olivia dodged the emergency worker, her attention on
getting to her daughter. When the man grasped her arm above the elbow, she
shoved him hard. He must have increased the pressure because the two looked
like they were grappling in a wrestling match. Olivia’s arms slapped around,
fighting the attempt to get her settled.

Brody had an easier
time of it. He won Chloe over by making funny faces and had her calmly sitting
on the edge of the truck while he swabbed the cut on her forehead.

Shane came behind
Olivia and waved off the frustrated attendant. “As soon as Brody’s done he’ll
take care of her, too.” The man nodded after cutting Olivia an evil stare.

Firefighters exited
the building with men and women huddled under their arms. The flames spread
over the roof of the building but more firefighters had hose aimed over the
blaze.

Brody placed a small
butterfly bandage on Chloe’s cut. Shane ran a soothing hand down Olivia’s back.
“Chloe’s going to be alright.”

She looked at him
with blank eyes and Shane cursed under his breath. “Sit.” He gently applied
pressure to her shoulders causing her body to follow the motion.

Brody seated her
next to Chloe and Olivia immediately wrapped an arm around her daughter. They
both looked terrified. Shane squatted in front of them ignoring his friend
while he attempted to figure out what the hell happened and if it connected to
the threatening text she received.

“Olivia, I want to
ask you a couple of questions.”

She coughed and put
her hand on her throat. Brody wrapped a blood pressure cough around her arm.
“He had a bomb,” she blurted.

“Okay.” Shane pulled
her hand away from her throat and rubbed her fingers. “Did you see which bus?”
Was it the bastard she was running from?

Her head moved in
the negative. “No. Maybe, I don’t know.”

“It’s okay. Did you
notice anything about the person with the bomb?”

“He…he was just some
guy in a suit. And then he left his briefcase and the poor coffee guy.” She
broke off as tears ran down her cheeks.

Shane tightened his
hold on her hand and scooted closer until he practically rested between her
denim clad thighs. He used his free hand to rub her leg. “It’s okay. Take a
deep breath.” Her chest rose and fell but her eyes still darted around watching
the emergency personnel rushing to help other people. Some injured more than
she and Chloe. A lot more. “Oh, God, Shane. He…” Unable to finish, she turned
to Chloe to make sure she wasn’t listening.

Chloe licked a grape
lollipop and talked a mile a minute with Brody. She wasn’t listening to their
conversation at all. Brody had two nieces and the girls loved him. It didn’t
surprise Shane that Olivia’s daughter would gravitate to the calm firefighter.

He moved his hand
from her thigh to her waist and caressed her hip. “Try not to think about that
part.” Doctors had told him that often enough during his recovery when he came
home in pain from his injury. Didn’t matter though. At night in the dark all
those thoughts you tried not to think about during the day would rear their
ugly heads.

Olivia leaned
forward slightly, pressing into his touch. Her vanilla scent teased his
nostrils. “What else do you remember?” He kept massaging her with the firm
touch of his hand. Grounding her with sensations.

Another deep breath.
The rise of her chest in the tee shirt brought his attention back to her
breasts. The pink tee strap top from earlier now sported a small tear visible
above where his hand rested. She faced him and her mouth wobbled. “The coffee
attendant chased the guy in the suit. Everyone watched because he ran with the
briefcase. He just wanted to do a good thing and give back the briefcase.”

Her tone trailed off
on a soft hiccup. Shane looked up at Brody who watched Olivia closely. Brody
removed the cuff from her arm and slid a plastic mask over her face, the strap
catching on her hair. She winced and tugged on her hand in his grip. Shane let
her go but instead of adjusting the strap like he expected, she grabbed his
shoulder.

“It’s just oxygen,
miss.” Brody paused and glanced between the two of them a question in his eyes.

“Her name’s Olivia
and the kid’s her daughter, Chloe. Olivia, this is Brody.”

“I wanted a coffee.”
The mask muffled her voice but he figured out the words.

“Shhh. We’ll talk
later.”

No longer distracted
by her candy, Chloe jumped from the truck and came towards him. “Mr. Snuffles
in your truck.” Her hands gestured wildly. “Man go boom.”

Shane held still
aware of how closely everyone waited but Chloe crept closer and leaned her
weight against his side. Her head brushed her mother’s hand on his shoulder.
“Go back your house?”

Chapter 12

Olivia couldn’t
believe it. Someone used a bomb at the bus station. One minute she’d been
watching the cart attendant chase the guy and the next. God, she breathed
deeply. The poor man was dead now. Both of them, she assumed, since they’d been
standing so close together. There could be others dead. The bus parked in the
spot had been full. Those passengers waiting to go wherever they planned.

“Olivia.”

Shane’s voice pulled
her from the fog of memories. She glanced at him, reassured by his presence.
Chloe leaned on him, her head nestled on his shoulder. He seemed to take it all
in stride. Muscles poised for action while he maintained his awkward stance
practically kneeling between her legs. The heat of his body warmed her chilled
limbs through the denim. Even in this position, his height put them eye to eye.

His eyes weren’t
cold now. Glowing with concern, the gray color lightened like the sky after a
mid-day storm. Olivia pretended she belonged to him. Pretended it was alright
that she and Chloe absorbed the strength his presence emanated. It was the only
way to contain her rising fear. She’d once wanted to belong to Brian in that
way.
Enough.
She had to quit fantasizing.

She pushed the mask
up from her face though she’d enjoyed the burst of air pouring into her starved
lungs. “Your wife is lucky.”

The fireman standing
over them snorted while pushing the mask back in place. Olivia peeked at him
from the corner of her eye. He wore a smile that revealed a dimple in one lean
cheek. His green eyes flashed with humor.

“What?” Shane
appeared aghast.

Chloe jerked but
Shane reached up and rubbed her daughter’s back until she settled. More of
Chloe’s weight slumped forward as her daughter literally climbed into his lap
drawn to the safety he represented.

“Your wife,” Olivia
forced herself to repeat. The green-eyed monster took a huge bite out of her
but she continued. “She’s lucky to have you.”

“Princess, you’re
nuts.” A grin curved his lips upward. “I told you last night I’m not married.”

Heat warmed her
cheek. She couldn’t recall what he’d said exactly but the feminine touches in
his home denoted some sort of female visitor.

“Man, it’s all that
girly decoration your mom and Eden set-up.” Brody chuckled. “Your place looks
like a fu-“ He stopped the curse in time but Chloe’s eyes stayed on Shane.
“Your place looks like a funny woman lives there.”

Olivia snickered at
the substitute wording. She appreciated his tact. “Eden?” Shoving the mask up
once again, her look questioned them.

“Shut it, Brody.” At
last Shane’s growl was directed at someone else.

“Hold still.” Brody
flashed a light in her face. Poked at her some more. “How do you feel?
Breathing okay?”

She nodded waiting
for a response to her question.

“Eden’s my sister.”
Shane rose to his feet, shifting Chloe in order to secure her over his
shoulder. His hand cupped Olivia’s elbow bringing her to her feet. She swayed
slightly and caught both men frowning.

“Brody?” Shane kept
his eyes on her but spoke to his friend.

Brody removed the
mask entirely and grasped the back of his neck. He sighed. “You already know my
recommendation.”

“McKenna, get over
here.” The deep voice rang out drawing their attention.

Several firefighters
gathered in a circle with police officers huddled nearby. Olivia noticed dogs
in vests with a few of the uniformed men. Brody turned and waved a hand in a
waiting gesture.

“Take her in and get
them both looked at, Shane.”

Take them in
.
Olivia gasped. “No. I’m not going to the hospital.” She couldn’t. Hospitals had
records. Brian would find them. Both her hands landed on Shane’s chest. Her
fingers brushed Chloe’s legs. “We can’t.” She locked eyes with him as the gray
orbs misted over.

Brody gaped at her
reaction but she paid him no mind. Shane had to listen to her.

His hard stare
searched her face. Frustration flashed across his features. “I’m taking them
home, Brody. The lady doesn’t want to go to the hospital.”

Olivia swallowed
thickly. Shane wasn’t going to force them.

“If you’re sure
she’s fine.” Brody brushed a light hand over Chloe’s tangled curls. She never
stirred. “Chloe seems fine to me.” His brow quirked in Olivia’s direction. “I
don’t like this one’s cough. If either of them experience dizziness, double
vision or vomiting, you take them to the hospital and I don’t care what
she’s
worried about.”

“McKenna.” The voice
roared with impatience.

The men shared a
mutual look Olivia couldn’t decipher. “They’ll talk with her later.” Brody
slapped Shane on the back and walked to join the growing circle of uniformed
personnel.

“Let’s go.” Shane
turned on his heel and headed for the parking lot.

Olivia hesitated.
“Do I need to talk to somebody?”

Shane kept walking.
“Brody will call me for arrangements. He knows that’s the way to reach you
right now.”

She trotted to catch
up missing the warmth of his touch. Olivia eyed the devastation around her, the
face of crying people and absorbed the reality of a bomb exploding. This
couldn’t have anything to do with her. Brian didn’t even know she was in
Virginia. Police and firefighters alike nodded at Shane, some calling out his
name in greeting as they walked by but Shane’s stride never slowed down as he
acknowledged them with a lift of his chin.

They arrived at his
car in the same spot where he’d dropped them off. Olivia waited while he opened
the rear door and slid Chloe in while securing her seatbelt. Mr. Snuffles sat
in the back where they’d left him. Chloe snatched the toy up and hugged it to
her chest. Olivia didn’t blame her. Right now she’d like something to cuddle.
She eyed the man at her side. Or someone.

Shane opened the
door for Olivia next and she gratefully sunk into the cool leather seats. She
expected questions but instead of closing the door he went to one knee in the
space between the passenger door and her seat.

“Are you really
okay, Olivia?” His large hand cupped her jaw turning her face toward him.

The gentleness in
the move renewed her tears but she refused to let them fall. “No hospital,” she
murmured over the lump in her throat. This time the rasp had nothing to do with
the smoke and everything to do with the man rising to his feet after giving her
a final stare.