Page 10 of Chain Reaction
Yet he still couldn’t believe Raven was here. In Lantern Beach. His gaze kept wanting to seek her out.
He lifted a prayer, asking for focus.
Someone had planted a bomb at the site where another bomb had already exploded.
Jake had seen a lot of things in his career but never that. He’d originally assumed this had all been a tragic accident.
But now that didn’t seem to be the case.
The earlier situation could have turned out so much differently, as could have the situation this afternoon.
Someone was playing with fire, and he didn’t like it.
And why Lantern Beach of all places? It was such a peaceful little island.
It was also where the Blackout headquarters was located. Was someone sending them a message? Or was Jake reading too much into this?
Maybe there was no connection at all. It was too soon to know. He needed to keep investigating first.
He needed to search for blast effects—shrapnel patterns, which could determine the type of explosive used. He’d look for burn marks and shockwave damage. He would need to swab for nitrate, ammonium, and other explosive compounds.
Then he’d search for wires, batteries, blasting caps, and remote triggers—on top of explosive casing.
As he knelt down to examine some of the rubble, the hairs on his neck suddenly rose.
He stood at full height, his body stiffening as he glanced around.
He knew this feeling.
Someone was watching him.
Since Cassidy, Fire Chief Holland, Officer Leggott, and Raven were behind him, he focused instead on the dunes in the distance—dunes with sea oats waving in the breeze.
He saw no one.
Slowly, he scanned the neighboring houses. This home had been raised high on stilts to protect it from flood waters. The other houses looked much the same, covered in weathered cedar siding with pitched roofs and multiple decks and balconies all facing the water.
Thankfully, it wasn’t tourist season yet, so no one had occupied the surrounding residences.
One of the houses had a swimming pool and deck along with a small shed to keep pool toys. Now, the area was littered with charred pieces of wood and black shingles.
Nothing caught his eye.
He surveyed the horizon where the ocean met the sky, searching for any boats.
Nothing.
There was still no sign of whatever had caused his guard to go up.
Jake shifted his gaze back to the dunes.
That was when he saw him.
Someone crouched in the sea oats thirty feet away.
He hadn’t been imagining things. Someone had been watching him from afar.
“Hey!” Jake started toward the man.
