Page 49 of Heart Thief

“We decided our best course of action would be to move the table out onto the football field and blow it in place.”

“But, how did you get it out the door?” My stomach feels sick thinking of Zane in this situation, risking his life to save the lives of others.

“We asked the firemen to widen the door opening. They politely declined and lent us their rescue saw. Don’t blame them one bit, that nerve agent is nasty stuff. We’re equipped with protective gear to handle it, they’re not. So, we cut the doorway to widen it. Then we cut the legs off the table and placed the enclosure on an audio/visual cart. We very slowly walked that baby outside until it was in the center of the football field, as far away from any buildings as possible. But then we were faced with another issue.”

“What was that?”

“As soon as we fired the shot, it would break all the glass in the surrounding buildings.”

“Oh wow.”

“Something had to be done so people wouldn’t get hurt. So, they evacuated all the nearby houses. I felt bad for the residents.”

“Why not move it someplace else to blow it up?”

“G-series nerve agent is nothing to fool around with. Moving it is a dangerous task and we’d already moved it as far as I was willing to move it. The amount in that enclosure could’ve killed every student in the school and everyone who came to render aid. By blowing it in place, the problem is over quickly. Then, all they would have to deal with is broken glass.” He casts me a knowing glance. “In the end, they were happy to deal with broken glass.”

“I imagine so.”

“We set to work. We laid a bed of explosives in a slight depression and put the enclosure on top of them. Then we added more on top, rigging them all so they’d blow at the exact same time. When we fired the shot, the whole thing disappeared in one bright flash. As did all of the aforementioned windows.”

“Fair trade.”

“Exactly. Once the shot area cooled down, we tested to ensure that the nerve agent was completely gone. It was and our work there was done. We hopped back onto our helicopter and had the pilot make a pit stop at McDonald’s on the way home. Had myself a couple of breakfast burritos. So good. But not as good as a proper dinner. Thanks, Mila.”

“Hold on. You went to McDonald’s via helicopter?”

“I did. It was way too much fun.”

“You guys are crazy. But, wow. You really did save the world today. Or at least one community.”

“Yep. Felt good too. I love this job.”

Zane polishes off the rest of his dinner. “That really hit the spot. I think I’ll grab a shower and hopefully I won’t fall asleep standing up. If you hear a loud thunck, it’ll be me hitting the shower floor. Please save me so I don’t drown.”

I’m glad the lights are low, because I know my face turns bright red at the thought of seeing him in the shower in all his glory.

I shake my head to erase the visual.

“Mila?”

I move my hair away from my face. “Yeah, okay. No worries, I’ll save you.”

His eyes follow the movement of my hand. He flips on the light and I squint at the brightness.

“Where’s your ring?” he asks.

I look down at my hand. He finally noticed. “I took it off. I’m giving it back to Ryker.”

“Why?”

“We had a talk. I told him I didn’t think we were going to work out.”

“What did he say?” Zane is wide awake now.

“He asked me to give us a chance when he returns home. I couldn’t make that promise, though. Other than that, we’re pretty much over.”

He’s silent for so long, I think he’s not going to respond. “I’m sorry. That must’ve been hard.”

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