Page 53 of Forged By Fire

The situation was deteriorating quickly. He needed to buy them some time and then pray that an opportunity would present itself.

“Jacob. Look at me.” Clint’s voice brought the other man’s attention to him. “You haven’t killed anyone yet. You can still come back from this.”

“No.” Jacob shook his head as he sneered. “I don’t care. Drop your gun. Now.”

If Clint put his gun down, he had no doubt Jacob would shoot him, then he would be of no use to Leslie or Cindy and the kids. Right now, Jacob wanted to hurt Leslie more than he wanted to kill her. And while he might not care if he died once his point had been made, he certainly didn’t want to be stopped now.

Clint’s best option was to wait and pray for an opening to take the guy out. “I’m not going to do that.”

Jacob growled as he clenched the lighter in his hand. The small flame cast an eerie orange glow on Leslie’s face. She squeezed her eyes shut.

Please, God, give Leslie strength and keep her head clear. Calm Jacob. Help me to know what to do when it’s time.

When Leslie opened her eyes again, her gaze snappedto Clint’s. There was no fear, only determination as she spoke.

“Jacob. I know I can’t even imagine the kind of pain you’re going through. I get that you want to make me pay for what happened to your wife. But think about what you’re doing right now. Are you really going to burn an innocent woman and her children to death? They have nothing to do with any of this.”

“Shut up!”

He must’ve pressed the gun against Leslie’s head even harder because she flinched and balled up her fists.

Clint continued to breathe evenly, keeping Jacob in his crosshairs. If only he had a clear shot, he’d take it in a heartbeat.

Leslie’s eyes snapped open again. She looked at Clint, and while he wasn’t sure what she was going to do next, it was clear she was prepared to react if she had the chance.

“Jacob,” she began, her voice even. “We both know you don’t really want to do this. Come on, put the gun down.”

The gunman’s brows bunched as pain and anger marched across his face. “I don’t care who’s in there.” He threw the open lighter on the ground by the front door. He must’ve poured an accelerant there because a fire immediately came alive across the whole entrance. “Just like you didn’t care that my Marissa was in that apartment building.”

In that moment, Jacob twisted slightly away from Clint, moving the gun from Leslie’s head and pointing it at the door of the house.

Clint took in a steady breath, held it, and squeezed off the shot.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

The moment Jacob moved the gun from Leslie’s head and started to wave it at the door, she knew it was now or never. She dropped to the ground at the exact same time a gunshot echoed through the night.

She couldn’t tell where the shot came from until Jacob’s body crumpled to the ground in front of her. His gun hit the pavement and skidded into the grass.

Flames danced as they quickly devoured the kerosene and engulfed the door, side of the house, and the porch railings.

She heard Clint’s voice before she saw him approach. He reached a hand down to help her to her feet. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. We need the fire department. I can’t use a hose on this, not with the kerosene.”

“I’m on it.” He dialed 9-1-1 on his phone and gave the address. “I need an ambulance and a fire truck at my location. We’ve got a residential structure fire with three individuals trapped inside.”

Clint grabbed Jacob’s arm and pulled him away fromthe blaze, then knelt to put a hand to his neck. There must have been a pulse because he turned the man over and secured his hands behind his back with a pair of handcuffs. “He’s alive, but I’m not sure for how long.” He retrieved Jacob’s gun and put it in his waistband for now.

Leslie pictured her sweet nieces sleeping in their beds, completely unaware of what was going on. And Cindy—the terror of not knowing what was happening to her girls.

“I can’t wait, Clint. I’m going in through the back door to get them out.”

He gave a grim nod. “Let’s go.”

At the back door, Leslie reached for a rock nearby and used it to smash the glass. Carefully, she reached through and unlocked it before pulling the door wide open.

The fire alarms were blaring, although the only smoke visible in the kitchen was a thin layer moving along the ceiling as though it were a living creature slowly stalking its prey.

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