Page 85 of Hard Knock Hero

“He’ll wake up soon. Probably around the time of the shift change, unless someone comes to investigate the loss of power sooner, so we’d better get moving.”

We rushed out of the building. The lights were still bright around the jail and the sheriff’s department. It seemed like the guard had only switched off the power inside. But the sky was turning pale as well, the sun on its way up.

Trace led me across the street and toward a well-worn Jeep Wrangler. He was limping slightly. But I doubted he’d been injured just now. I figured it was a past injury, maybe before he’d left whatever secret work he’d been doing. Spy stuff. That tended to be dangerous.

“What about Jessi? Is she safe?”

“The sooner we get you out of here, the sooner she will be. We’re meeting her and Scarlett outside of town. Hopefully they’re on their way.”

We got in the Jeep, and I turned to him sharply. “Why wouldn’t they be?”

“They had some things to take care of.”

Then we heard a siren, and Trace perked up. A firetruck roared across the intersection in front of us. At the same moment, I noticed the dark streak of smoke in the dawn sky. It was coming from Main Street.

From the end of Main Street where the diner was located.

“Something’s on fire!” I yelled.

Trace pushed the accelerator, and we raced away from town. “It’s fine. That means Scarlett and Jessi finished their part of the plan.”

“Are you kidding me? What did you have them doing? You said you were going to look out for your sister.”

He glanced at me wryly. “In case you hadn’t noticed, you’re the one who needed rescue this morning. Not Jessi.”

“Thank you for that,” I said through gritted teeth. “It wouldn’t have gone well for me if you hadn’t shown up when you did.”

“Glad I could help. I owed you for taking care of Jessi before. But you should know that Jessi was willing to do anything to get you out of that jail. I couldn’t have stopped her. You mean a lot to her.”

My insides lurched. “She means a lot to me too.”

“Maybe. But you can’t give her false hope. I may not have been the best brother to her in the past, but this is me doing what I can to protect her. Out of everything in Hartley at this moment, you probably have the greatest power to hurt her. If you’re leaving, then make it a clean break. Don’t look back.”

I sank into my seat, holding my clenched fist against my mouth. Knowing andhatingthe fact that he was right.

* * *

I barely breathed until we turned onto a quiet, deserted road, and I saw a familiar truck up ahead.Mytruck. Owen pulled up behind its bumper. Jessi and Scarlett both jumped out. Scarlett was holding a rifle. She hung back, but Jessi ran toward me.

“You’re okay!” she cried.

I opened my arms. She jumped, grabbing me around the neck, her legs holding me at the hips. And I held her back. I held her like the only thing I could possibly need in the world was her. Right now, that was how it felt.

Don’t give her false hope, Trace repeated in my mind.

“I brought everything,” she said breathlessly. “Your duffel and phone and your wallet. Your truck was still in the bar parking lot, covered in snow, but we got it here.”

“So you went back to the diner?” I asked. “Isthatwhat’s on fire right now?”

I set her down, and she stepped back. Her hands went to my face, eyes searching mine. I held onto her waist, keeping her close.

“Not the diner,” she said. “That would’ve looked like we were destroying evidence. I set a fire in the building next door. It’s unoccupied, but it used to be a local newspaper office. Plenty of paper stuff to burn.”

I was incredulous as Jessi quickly explained. Trace had known they would need a diversion to break me out of jail. The fire was supposed to keep Hartley’s emergency services busy and their communication lines occupied. But Jessi had also needed to get my belongings and Mitch’s gun out of the diner. There would be questions when the state investigators arrived, but it had been the best she could do.

“Deputy Marsh had been sitting in her cruiser in the alley,” Jessi said. “Keeping watch over the diner. Scarlett boosted me up to reach a window on the side. I was in and out of my apartment fast.”

“What you did was insanely dangerous.”

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