Claim - Page 60

Beau answered instantly.

“Bell?” Urgency underscored his voice. “Your alarm just went off. What’s wrong?”

“Beau. God, Beau.” I swallowed, then coughed. “Fire. There’s a fire.”

“What?Fuck.” I heard him moving around. “Get outside, but stay with the crowd. Carr could be using this to lure you out.”

“Beau, I can’t open my door. It’s stuck.”

He cursed. “The window?”

“It won’t open, either.”

“I’m coming, Bell.”

“He did this.” My hand clenched on the phone. “Carr is behind this. There are innocent people here and he set the house on fire. Others could still be trapped in here as well.”

“I’m coming,” Beau said. “Stay low. Put a wet towel over your head.”

A sob escaped me.

“Bell?”

“I heard you.” I lifted my chin. “I’m a survivor, Beau. I’ll be here, waiting.”

“Good girl.”

The call ended, and I had to fight the crushing sense of aloneness.

Towel. I needed to wet a towel. I raced to my tiny bathroom, grabbed a towel off the rack, and put it under the faucet. Once it was wet, I wrung it out and wrapped it over my head. Then I found the corner of the room with the least amount of smoke, and sat down, pressing my knees to my chest.

Beau was coming. I just had to hold on.

25

BEAU

Idrove as fast as I could toward Bell’s place. The engine of the Mustang roared as I pushed for more speed.

Reath sat in the passenger seat beside me. Colt’s truck was behind us, with Colt driving and Dante riding with him. Without hesitation, Dante had left his nightclub on their busiest night of the week. I’d called Kav, and he was on his way as well.

All I could think about was Bell. She was trapped in a burning building.

I stepped on the gas pedal, and took the next corner fast.

Reath braced himself. “Take it easy, Beau. Don’t kill us.”

“She doesn’t have much time.”

“You’ll be more help to her alive.”

I gritted my teeth and focused on the road. As we screeched onto Bell’s street, I saw a crowd had gathered. I also saw the flames. My gut clenched.

I jerked to a stop near the burning building. Half of the house was engulfed.Fuck. My throat was tight. Bell was in there.

I shoved my door open and rushed toward the house.

Halfway up the path, Reath grabbed my arm. “No.”