Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 131455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
The sight of it stops me dead in my tracks. The windows to either side of the front door are blown out, and the table next to it is in pieces. The artwork blasted off the walls, and a glance toward the living room shows the same thing happened in there—even the big flat screen was knocked off its mounting and is now on the floor.
All that rushes passed me in a blur as Callum sprints through the house with me in tow. I don't think I take a breath until we're outside again, where Romero's car is flying up the driveway.
“What the fuck happened here?” Tatum jumps out of the passenger seat while Romero barely has the car in park before flinging the door open.
“Where were you?” I can't believe that with everything going on, that's the first question I have as Tatum runs toward me.
“I was just out.” After hugging me, she stares through the open door into the house. Her mouth hangs open briefly before she whispers, “What happened?”
Callum clamps a hand over her shoulder and turns her toward him. “Were you expecting a package tonight?”
Her brows draw together, her gaze darting to the destruction again and again like she can't make sense of it. That makes two of us. “Yeah? I think so. It was supposed to come today.”
“Where was it from? Where did you order it from?” Callum barks.
“Are you accusing me of doing something wrong?”
“That's not what he's saying,” Romero insists as he joins us, standing at her side. “Whoever sent it either made a big mistake, or they always intended to send you a bomb.”
“A bomb? I ordered a couple of bras, for fuck's sake!”
It's Dad who cuts through the growing panic. “It's obvious what happened.” A change comes over him—his eyes go narrow, unyielding, and now I see the longtime detective. Like he slid back into the role. “Whoever did this must have intercepted the UPS truck. It would be best if you had your men search nearby. They could have killed the driver and left the body somewhere. They placed the explosive in the box and left the mailing label intact to make it look legitimate.”
With his hands on his hips, he turns in a slow circle. “You can't see this place from the street. They could have used a timer, or someone might have remotely detonated it after a certain amount of time. How long would you say it was?”
Callum shrugs. “Five minutes?”
“That sounds about right. Was the box heavy?”
“Not very. You saw it. I practically tossed it onto the table.” His eyes close, brow furrowing like he's in pain. “I fucking tossed it.” My blood runs cold at the thought. What if it had detonated then and there? I could have lost the two most important men in my life.
“Who would do this?” Dad demands.
“Who do you think? The same fuckers who took them.”
Callum must not see the effect his words have on us, but Dad does. He wraps an arm around me, draping the other over Tatum's shoulders. She wraps her arms around herself and tucks her body close to his while I do the same.
By now, Callum's men are swarming the house, searching for any signs of further damage. The two men posted to the front gate come running up the drive, both shouting excuses before they reach us. “It looked legit! The guy had ID and everything!”
“It was a regular UPS truck,” the second guard insists. Both of them look scared to death, pale-faced and jumpy.
“Oh, it looked legit? Did the person have an ID?” Callum's fist collides with the second man's jaw, knocking him on his ass. Tatum lets out a whimper while I flinch at the sound of bone crunching. I'm surprised Dad doesn't react, but then he looks like he wants to take a turn throwing fists, too, his nostrils flared beneath steely cold eyes.
“Come on, beating the shit out of these guys isn't going to help.” Romero pulls Callum back while he snarls and curses at the two guards. “We've got to think about what to do next. Whoever did this, they'll be in the area. They're going to want to see the outcome.”
“A fucking bomb. They sent a fucking bomb! To my home! These motherfuckers. I'm going to skin them alive.” Callum takes Romero by the shirt collar, pulling him close. “And you're the one who wanted to be cautious. You're the one who thought I was moving too fast.”
“Dad, stop!” Tatum begs. “It's not his fault!”
Callum shoves him away, snarling, but Romero only brushes himself off. “Blame me all you want, but that won't change what needs to happen now. We need to make sure they're safe.” He nods toward Tatum and me.
“I'm not going anywhere.” I don't know where that came from—the words poured out of me before they were a conscious thought.