Eyewitness

Chapter Six

The bathroom exploded. Bits of tile and plaster rained on Devon’s head as she hunched over Michael to protect him from the fallout. The smell of gasoline flooded her nostrils and her eyes burned.

Whimpering, Michael reached for the lock on the door. She knocked his hand away and then clutched it in remorse. “Wait.”

She placed her hand against the metal door of the stall. It warmed her palm. The fire must be on the other side, leaping in anticipation.

The bathroom contained two stalls, and she and Michael were in the one farthest from the door. She dropped to her hands and knees and peeked beneath the stall. Flames licked up the walls of the bathroom, blackening the mirror.

“This way.” She crawled into the next stall, dragging Michael with her.

Someone banged on the bathroom door. “Devon! Devon!”

Gasping, she dragged herself to her feet and pressed her body against the stall door. The fire was raging outside of this stall, too. How could they get to Kieran? How could he get to them through the locked door?

“We’re here, Kieran! I can’t get to the door.”

Gunshots rang out, and she screamed. Her throat felt raw.

Another gunshot. A thump. A whoosh of air as the door burst open.

Kieran’s voice cut through her fear. “Is Michael okay?”

“He’s with me.”

“Good. Pick him up. Push open the stall door as hard as you can and keep moving forward. I’m here. I can get you out.”

She grabbed Michael and hoisted him in her arms. He clung to her neck, eyes wide. She backed up to the toilet and coiled her muscles. She kicked out one foot and the stall door slammed outward.

Kieran appeared amid the smoke, holding his shirt or sweatshirt out to her. “Duck in here. Hurry. Don’t look around.”

She hunched forward, clutching Michael to her chest and burrowing into the clothing Kieran held out to them. He wrapped the material around their heads and yanked them outside.

When the sweatshirt came off her head, Devon gulped in lungfuls of air. Kieran scooped Michael from her arms and with his hand at the small of her back, propelled her forward. “Keep moving.”

She stumbled alongside Kieran out to the street as sirens pierced the air. He grabbed her arm and pulled her toward a grassy strip bordering the sidewalk.

When they were clear of the building and the smoke, Devon spun around to face the scene. Two fire engines had pulled up alongside the stucco office building. Firefighters hauled equipment and hoses from the trucks as the bathroom continued to belch black smoke.

She shuddered and sank to the grass. Kieran crouched beside her, bringing Michael with him. Michael clung to Kieran’s neck, his eyes squeezed shut.

“What happened in there, Devon?”

Running fingers through her sooty hair, she said, “I don’t know. We were in the stall and I heard the window break. Two seconds later, an explosion rocked the bathroom. The flames took off immediately. I-I think the stalls protected us from the fire and the explosion.”

“Probably.” He gazed at the firefighters’ activity with his dark eye narrowed to a deadly slit. “Did you see what came through the window?”

“What came through the window?” She shook her head, trying to clear the smoke from her brain. “I didn’t see anything come through the window.”

She pressed her hands against her bouncing knees, and Kieran ran a soothing hand down her thigh. “I think someone threw some sort of homemade bomb or explosive device through the window.”

A cold terror seized every muscle in her body. Somebody had tried to kill her…and didn’t care that she had her little boy with her?

Kieran massaged her shoulder. “The ambulance is here. You and Michael are getting checked out.”

“I’m okay.” Except for the shockwaves reverberating through my body. She clapped a hand over her mouth. “What about you? Did you get burned?”

“A little on my hands.” He held his strong, capable and amazingly steady hands in front of him. “Let’s get you two checked out, and maybe one of the firemen can tell us what they found.”

She rose to her feet, holding Michael’s hand, and immediately grabbed for Kieran’s arm as her knees wobbled. Kieran put one arm around her and scooped up Michael with the other.

The building’s tenants and occupants stood staggered on the sidewalk watching the action. Elena ran up to them.

“Oh, my God. Are you all okay? When we saw the smoke coming from below, Kieran took off like a shot. I hadn’t even connected the noise and fire with the bathroom.”

“We’re fine, Elena. It looks like the fire didn’t progress out of the bathroom, so the building’s okay.”

“Who cares about the building? As long as you and Michael-” she turned to Kieran “-and Kieran are okay.”

“I think they’re fine.” Kieran pointed to the EMTs. “But they’re going to get checked out.”

Still carrying Michael, Kieran grabbed Devon’s hand and led her to the ambulance. “These two were in the bathroom when the fire started. I pulled them out.”

The EMTs went into action, checking her and Michael’s vital signs. She told them about her scratchy throat and one of the EMTs sprayed a numbing agent against the back of her throat. Michael got some drops in his eyes, but they didn’t seem to be any worse for wear after their close call.

What did it all mean?

Chief Evans rolled to a stop in his unmarked car and sauntered toward the first fire engine. “You boys have this under control?”

The fire captain said something to the chief and then gestured toward Devon. Great. Showtime.

Chief Evans ambled toward her, seemingly in no hurry to get to the bottom of the fire. Or the attempt on her life. “Devon Reese?”

“Yes.” The EMT held up the eye drops and she shook her head.

“I’m Chief Evans.”

“I know.” She tipped her chin at Kieran. “And this is Kieran Roarke.”

The men shook hands and Evans said, “I’ve heard of the Roarkes, and I just met your brother, the FBI agent.”

“You weren’t chief when I lived here.”

Kieran’s voice hovered halfway between a statement and a question, but Chief Evans had no reason to question Kieran’s memory. “I was one chief after Ms. Reese’s father, but his reputation lives on.”

This trip down memory lane was all well and good, but the chief had a crime to solve. “You can call me Devon, or call me lucky since I was in that bathroom with my son when it blew up.”

“Michael?” Kieran rubbed a black smudge on his very white face. “Do you want to stay here in the ambulance while your mother and I talk to Chief Evans and the firefighters?”

The EMT gestured to a cot in the back of the ambulance. “We want to run a few more tests on him. He looks fine, but he could’ve inhaled some smoke.”

“I’ll stay with him.” Elena hopped on the back of the ambulance next to Michael, and he scooted closer to her.

Kieran purposely strode away from Michael, out of earshot.

Before Devon even got started, Chief Evans snapped his fingers. “You were robbed yesterday, weren’t you?”

“Yeah, I was and I’m wondering if that has something to do with the fire in the bathroom.”

He cocked his head, his brows creating a V over his nose. “Really? You’ll be happy to hear we found your purse-no money, but the thief left your driver’s license.”

Maybe it had been a simple theft. “Do you have it with you?”

“No, it’s back at the station. So what happened here today?”

“My son and I were using the restroom, just finishing up in a stall, when I heard the window smash. Almost immediately there was an explosion and a fire.”

“Sounds like a Molotov cocktail to me.” This time Kieran’s voice held no note of uncertainty. He may have forgotten the details of his life, but his military knowledge and skills hadn’t suffered.

Chief Evans twisted his head around to study Kieran. “Are you an FBI agent, too?”

“No.” Kieran’s hands curled into fists. “But I know a lot about explosives.”

“I suppose the arson investigators can tell us more.” The chief jerked his thumb at the scorched-out bathroom where the firefighters had already doused the flames in the small enclosure and were tromping through the ruins. “How’d you get out?”

“Kieran dragged us out.”

“You are lucky.”

Actually, luck had nothing to do with the rescue and Kieran had everything to do with it. “I don’t feel very lucky with someone trying to kill me.”

Chief Evans sucked in a breath. “Is that what you think?”

She raised her eyes to the sky. “Let’s see. I’m the only one in the bathroom with my son and some lunatic throws some kind of bomb through the window. Yeah, I’d say someone’s trying to kill me.”

Kieran snorted, and the chief shot him a look from beneath his heavy eyebrows. “Maybe the perpetrator didn’t realize you were in the bathroom, Devon. Maybe someone in the building was the target or the building itself.”

“The building was a target?”

“We’ll look into the owner, insurance, debts and so on. Also, the office next to the bathroom belongs to an attorney, a family-law attorney. He could’ve been the target of an irate spouse or parent.”

She stole a look at Kieran and his unreadable expression. Even without the eye patch, she didn’t think his emotions would play across his face. Made it hard for her to read him, and she’d never had that problem before.

“I definitely think I’m the prime target here, Chief. This happens a day after someone breaks into my car and slashes my tires?”

“Someone stole your purse and vandalized your car. It’s a big leap to murder.” Chief Evans’s jaw tightened. He seemed more interested in refuting her suspicions than investigating the crimes against her. Could she help it if her father had left a pair of big shoes to fill?

Maybe the thief had murder on his mind yesterday, too, but Kieran’s presence at the beach had stopped him. She crossed her arms and dug her fingers into her flesh. And the teenagers’ presence had stopped him last night.

The chief coughed and flicked a handkerchief out of his pocket. “Any reason why someone would target you for murder?”

Devon licked her lips, fingers digging deeper. “A woman was murdered in my apartment building in the city. Th-that’s why I brought my son down to Coral Cove.”

The chief’s nostrils flared and his eyes lit up. “You witnessed the murder?”

“No.”

“Then why would the killer follow you down here?” He straightened his cuffs and blew out a breath. “We’ve had enough murders in Coral Cove to last us the next fifty years.”

“Maybe this guy doesn’t realize you reached your quota.”

“My men have been canvassing the area to see if anyone noticed anything. The window was on the side of the building, so he could’ve gotten away down that alley.” He stuck out his hand. “We’ll be in touch, Devon.”

Both she and Kieran shook hands with him and turned away.

“By the way.”

Without turning her body, she cranked her head around. “Yeah?”

“I heard your brother, Dylan, is applying for my position when I leave.”

“Yes.”

“I suppose the folks in town will like having a hometown boy back in the saddle.”

She shrugged. “I guess.”

Especially with a current chief who seemed more concerned with the city’s image than protecting its citizens.

As they hurried back to Michael, Kieran leaned in, almost touching her ear with his lips. “Does he have an inferiority complex or something?”

“Sounds like it. I don’t know him well. He took over as chief after my mom moved, so I’ve just seen him around when I’ve been down on visits.”

“I don’t like his style, but I have to admit he made a few good points.” He held up his hands when she turned on him. “Let’s see what he comes up with regarding ownership of the building and that attorney. Hell, it could be some angry client of Elena’s.”

She wiped her clammy hands on the back of her shorts. It could be. She hadn’t witnessed Mrs. Del Vecchio’s murder. If she had, she would’ve already told the police. The killer had to realize that. What could he want with her now?

Unless he figured she was too spooked to ID him. And he wanted her death as insurance she never would.

THE EMTS HAD RELEASED Michael with the caveat to watch his breathing and to bring him to the hospital at the first hint of a cough.

Not even a fast-food lunch of burgers and fries could wipe the guarded expression from Michael’s eyes. They’d explained the fire as an accident, but she didn’t know how much of that story Michael had swallowed. Devon hadn’t gotten a chance to ask him about his session with Dr. Elena. One step forward, two steps back.

On the car ride back to her mom’s house, Michael’s gaze had rarely left Kieran’s face. He’d probably memorized every feature and every line. Maybe he was picking up tips on keeping a poker face because now Devon couldn’t read Kieran or Michael.

“I think a nap is in order, don’t you, Michael?” She leaned into the backseat and brushed his forehead with the back of her hand. “Are you sure you’re okay? How are your eyes and throat?”

“Okay.”

“Good. I’m okay, too. Pretty scary stuff but we’re both fine now.”

When they got out of the car, Kieran took a position by the front door, crossing his arms and leaning against the doorjamb. But his casual stance didn’t fool her. His hard muscles remained tense, his one visible dark eye bright and alert as if he planned to take flight at any moment.

Michael marched up to Kieran and patted him on the kneecap. Kieran stuck out his fist for a knuckle bump and Michael’s small hand met his. “No problem, buddy.”

Devon’s brows shot up. These two had trouble communicating with her but seemed to read each other’s minds. She held out her hand, wiggling her fingers. “You need that nap.”

Michael grabbed her hand, and they ambled down the hallway to her brother Dylan’s old room. After she tucked Michael in and left the bedroom door ajar, she returned to the living room where Kieran had taken a seat in the breakfast nook, his dark dangerousness incongruous amid her mother’s cheery yellow pitcher and flowered tablecloth.

“So what was that all about?” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder at the front door. “Some secret code?”

“He was thanking me for getting you two out of that bathroom.” Kieran stretched his long, denim-clad legs in front of him. “He’d been thinking about it on the ride home, sizing me up.”

“I’m glad you were there, Kieran. I expected Michael to go off the deep end after the explosion and fire. He was obviously upset, but not as much as I expected.” She pulled out the chair across from him and dropped into it. “I think it’s because you saved us.”

A muscle twitched in his lean jaw. “Bad timing.”

“The explosion? When is a Molotov cocktail flying through a bathroom window not bad timing?”

“I meant all of this. Me. You. Michael.”

Her blood ran hot in her veins, and she had to hook her feet around the legs of the chair so she wouldn’t shoot out of it. “Well, I’m sorry I couldn’t present you with the perfect son at the perfect time.”

His tanned skin flushed a dark red, and his single eye glittered. The fingers he’d been drumming on the tabletop stilled. “Michael is perfect.”

She swallowed the lump in her throat. “This reunion… It’s nothing how I dreamed it would be.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t present you with the perfect fiancé.”

A hot tear splashed on her cheek. “You are perfect, Kieran. You’re alive and that’s all I ever prayed for.”

“I’m not the same man who left Coral Cove over four years ago.”

She grabbed a napkin from her mom’s colorful ceramic napkin holder and blew her nose. “I’m not the same woman. Maybe you don’t realize that because you don’t remember enough about me. But believe me, I’ve changed. People change.”

Kieran slid a finger beneath the elastic band securing the patch around his head. He peeled up the patch. “I’m damaged.”

Unflinching, Devon studied his eye. She reached out and dabbed the red, puckered skin with the pad of her fingertip. Kieran’s breath blew hot against her palm. The spiky, black lashes that formed a crescent high on his cheekbone stirred.

“Can you open it?”

His lid twitched, and he opened his eye, showing a sliver of black iris. “Not much.”

“It’s too soon to tell whether or not you’ll see out of that eye again. But if you don’t,” she shrugged, “I can’t imagine that stopping you from doing whatever it is you want to do, Kieran. Nothing ever stopped you before-not your dyslexia when you were a kid and not a two-hundred-fifty-pound linebacker. A little eye injury is not going to bring you down now.”

He laughed, not the booming, infectious sound from his former life but a short, sharp staccato, as if he was unaccustomed to the practice. He slipped the patch back over his eye. “Has anything ever stopped you before? I showed you my eye to scare you off, and you take a clinical look at it and dish out the Pollyanna advice.”

She slumped back in her chair. At least he’d admitted that he was trying to scare her off, but why? She’d been through nursing school and had been an RN for several years. Did he really think an inflamed eye was enough to send her running for the hills?

Did he think she’d reject him because he was blind in one eye? But she hadn’t, so why push her away?

She had changed. She’d learned to tackle issues head-on, and she had no intention of shying away from this one. She straightened her spine and planted her feet flat on the floor.

“What is it, Kieran? I’m not bothered by your eye or the fact that you may permanently lose your sight. In fact, the patch… Well, it’s kind of sexy.”

He lifted one brow and murmured. “Pollyanna.”

Grinding her heels farther into the wood floor, she said, “I want to know. If you don’t love me anymore or think you can’t learn to love me again, let’s have it. I can take it.”

That was a total lie. If he admitted he couldn’t love her, she’d fall apart…just not in front of him and not in front of Michael. She’d never fall apart in front of Michael.

Kieran’s expression never changed. He shifted in his seat and opened his mouth, but whatever he’d started to say was drowned out by a wail from Michael’s room.