Run to Ground(102)

Panic started crawling under her skin, and Jules forced it back, taking long, shaky breaths until she could think again. She couldn’t allow herself to freak out. All that would do was waste time and ruin any possible chance of getting out of there. Despite her pep talk, she could feel the irrational fear building, pushing against her lungs and not letting her get enough air.

Breathe, she told herself, biting the inside of her cheek until the pain shocked her out of her panic. There is plenty of oxygen in here. There is nothing to be scared of. Sherry and her gun were gone, and Jules was still alive. The worst was over.

Why, though? If Sherry wanted to make Theo pay, why hadn’t she shot Jules, killed her? Jules had been unconscious, at Sherry’s mercy. Why wasn’t she dead? As nauseated as this thought made her, Jules forced herself to think, to figure out what Sherry was planning.

Her gaze settled on the cake box, the same box Sherry had brought into the diner. Her mind jumped to the barn, to the reverberations of the explosion shaking the ground, to the leaping flames consuming what little was left of the building. Jules couldn’t take her eyes off the innocuous-looking box.

“Crap.”

* * *

“Jules!” The lowered blinds cut off all the rays from the rising sun, so only the low lighting kept it from being pitch-black inside the diner. His gaze hunted for Jules even as he moved away from the broken glass and lowered Viggy to the floor. “Jules!”

There was no answer. He needed to find her. First, though, he needed to find the bomb—if there was one. There was no sense running around, blindly searching for Jules and getting all three of them—Jules, him, and Viggy—blown sky high in the process.

“Search.”

Viggy stared at him, crouching a little, his tail starting a slow descent between his legs. As the dog’s tail lowered, so did Theo’s hope. He crouched in front of Viggy and slid his hands over the furred head and down to his scruff. Theo buried his fingers in the fur and loose skin on either side of Viggy’s neck.

“C’mon, buddy.” He laid his cheek flat against the top of his dog’s head, felt the ridge of his skull and the movement of his heavy, nervous panting. “I know I don’t deserve it, that I’ve sucked as a partner. Do it for Jules, though—for Jules and Sam and Ty and Tio and Dee, okay? They need you to come through for them right now.”

He lifted his head to see Viggy in almost the same position, although he’d stopped panting. The dog stared as Theo stood, trying to pretend his legs weren’t shaking as he walked over to one of the booths and pointed to the side of the bench seat. “Search.”

Viggy didn’t move. The two stayed locked in their frozen positions, staring at each other, and a bead of sweat trickled down the side of Theo’s forehead to sting his eye. When the dog took a step toward him, Theo had to force himself not to jump. Instead, he stayed still, his pointing finger shaking with adrenaline and tension.

With each of the dog’s hesitant steps forward, Theo held his breath. Finally, finally, Viggy was close enough to touch. Theo didn’t put out his other hand, though. Instead, he remained locked in place, muscles quivering with tension, as Viggy, his partner, stretched to sniff the seat where Theo was indicating.

“Good.” The word came out in a shaky rush of relief—more than relief. “Good dog.” Theo moved to point at another spot, this time on the bench across from the first, and Viggy checked it but didn’t signal that he’d detected any trace of explosives. Steadily, they moved around the room, searching, and Viggy’s tail started to rise, then wag. By the time they reached the counter, Viggy was acting like he had when he’d played ball with Dee—a happy dog that loved what he was doing.

When Theo moved to point at one of the cupboards lining the wall behind the counter, Viggy didn’t follow. Instead, he stayed by the door to the kitchen, looking at Theo and dancing impatiently.

Theo didn’t hesitate. He shoved open the door and let Viggy into the kitchen. Without waiting for any direction, the dog moved quickly through the kitchen, heading directly for a heavy door in the wall, snuffling along the bottom.

It took Theo a few seconds longer to weave through the workstations, shelves, and bins to get to the door. He yanked on the handle. At first, he thought it was locked, but then the heavy door reluctantly released its seal and opened.

Cold air flowed out of the small, dark room, and Theo reached for the flashlight on his belt as Viggy rushed inside.

“Viggy? Is that you? Theo!” It was Jules’s voice coming from the shadowed corner of the cooler.

Utter relief flowed through him at the sound, and he directed his flashlight so he could see her huddled form. He took what felt like his first full breath since spotting her Pathfinder parked outside. “Jules, what are you doing in here?”