At Delgado’s, Holden had been disappointed and relieved to find that Grace had gone home early. It was about time that Xavier stopped taking advantage of her kindness and started closing more often.
He was headed to her place to let her know face-to-face that Todd would be in custody tomorrow without it tying back to her. Any evidence collected would not be associated with her and the attention would be elsewhere.
Namely on him and the sheriff’s department. They had a job to do and the investigation steered them to Todd. He was the one who had lied about his alibi and got caught, resulting in the warrant. In the search, he’d find Emma’s missing necklace and the forensics from his bike would match the paint that had transferred to the rented vehicle. None of which would have anything to do with Grace.
Getting her involved beyond taking her statement had been his mistake. Now he’d rectify it.
As he turned on to Old Mill, the smoke caught his attention first. There was a lot of it.
Coming from Grace’s place.
He sped down the gravel road, his back tires spitting loose rocks as he swerved, the truck threatening to fishtail. Through the trees lining the road, he caught sight of the flames. Dear God. The whole cottage was on fire.
A call came through on his cell. It was the station. He stabbed the answer icon on the screen. “Listen to me. There’s a fire at Grace’s place.”
“We know.” Ashley’s voice was grave. “First two emergency calls that came in only gave the address. We didn’t realize the house was hers. Then Grace just phoned in. She’s trapped inside,” she said, sending his adrenaline into overdrive. “In the bathroom. The fire department is already on the way.”
Grace was trapped. But she was alive. For now.
He yanked the wheel, whipping into Grace’s driveway, and the cottage came into full view. A brilliant orange-and-yellow blaze lit up the black night. Nearly the entire house was engulfed in flames, including the roof.
Even Grace’s car was on fire.
His heart stuttered at the sight. The fire department wouldn’t reach her in time.
In front of the house, he slammed on the brakes, threw the truck in Park and jumped out. He opened his back door, dug into garment bag and fished out his old T-shirt. Reaching up front, he grabbed a bottle of water from the cup holder.
He hopped out, moving toward the burning cottage while he soaked the T-shirt with the water.
Choking smoke and unbearable heat radiated from the inferno. The roar of the fire was deafening. Climbing the porch steps, he covered his nose and mouth with the T-shirt. Glass suddenly broke, spraying outward as the windows burst and molten gold flames lashed out.
His feet faltered to a halt. But only for a moment. He kicked open the front door.
Crackling, wild flames clawed out to meet him. Searing heat licked his skin. His lungs burned. Still, he rushed inside to get to Grace.
A raging fire had swallowed the living room. Flames danced up the walls, across the floor and furniture. Fiery chunks of the ceiling crumbled in front of him, raining scorching sparks in his one path. And the insufferable heat was hot as hellfire, pushing him back outside.
He stumbled onto the porch, patting his sleeves where sparks and embers had landed, igniting his jacket.
There was no way through. He wasn’t wearing the proper clothing and shoes for the job, but he had to reach her somehow.
He screamed on the inside with no choice but to backtrack off the porch. Keying his radio, he contacted the station. “How long until the fire department gets here?” he yelled over the crackling howl of the fire.
“Seven minutes.”
Grace was running out of time. Once the roof timbers burned through, the entire ceiling was going to collapse and that would be the end. The roof was already on fire and could go at any second. She didn’t have that long to wait; she needed help, right this second.
Panic skittered up his spine, threatening to consume him, but he persevered.
The bathroom.
She’s in the bathroom.
Remembering what Ashley had told him, he took off for the right side of the house. He snatched the ax from the tree stump that she used to chop wood and bolted to his truck. It was still running. Throwing it in gear, he sped around to the other side where the bathroom was located and pulled up in front of it.
There were no windows. But there was a vent. It was only six inches in width and length, but it was the best place to start.
He hopped out and climbed up on top of the truck’s hood. That gave him the extra height he needed to reach the bathroom vent that was connected to the exterior wall.
Not wasting any precious time, he swung the ax, smashing into the vent. Hurry, hurry, hurry. A few good whacks and he had ripped clean through it, tearing the entire unit out.
“Grace!” He looked through the opening. It wasn’t quite big enough for her to fit through, yet, but he could see her.
She peered up at him from the tub from beneath a wet blanket. “Holden!” She climbed out.
“Stand back,” he warned, not wanting bits of flying debris to cut her.
Sirens were in the distance. Still a few miles away. They would be there soon.
But he would have her out by then.
He swung the ax with all his might, again and again, chopping away at the wall, making the opening larger. His hands were slippery with sweat and fear, his heart hammering in his chest. Each devastating swing brought him closer to her. He slashed at the wood in a frenzy. Faster and faster. Not slowing to catch his breath. With only one thought pounding through his brain.
Save Grace. Get her out.
If necessary, he’d tear down the wall with his bare hands. One way or another, he would get to her.
Once the hole was big enough, he reached through. “Come on!”
She dropped the bedspread and rushed over to the toilet. Thankfully, she was wearing socks, which would somewhat protect her feet from sharp debris. Standing on top of the toilet, she took his hands and he hoisted her up until he could get a hold of her under her arms. With a firm grasp, he pulled her through the hole in the wall.
He lowered her to the hood and brought her against his chest and wrapped his arms around her. He was finally able to breathe, just like Grace. Her body went limp against him, but her arms tightened around him. Caressing her hair, he held her close and would for as long as she allowed.
Even outside in the fresh air on this side of the house, the smoke was overwhelming. The wind didn’t carry it away so much as whipping the smoke up, making it hard to breathe standing so close to the fire.
Reluctantly, he let her go. Then he took off his jacket and put it around her. “We’ve got to get back from the house.” He jumped down from the hood and held up his arms to her.
He helped her climb down, but before her socked feet touched the cold, hard ground, he lifted her into his arms. Hurrying around to the side of the truck, where his door was wide-open, he set her down on the driver’s seat. She shimmied over the console to the passenger’s side, making room for him.
Throwing the truck in Reverse, he sped back away from the house and into the driveway. Just as they reached it, giving them both a view of the entire house, the burning roof collapsed with a nerve-wracking crash.
Thank God he’d gotten her out in time.
Grace could’ve still been inside. The firefighters inbound could have as well, creating a life-and-death situation for all of them.
What would have happened to her if he hadn’t already been on the way to see her?
He glanced over, meeting her eyes.
“You came. If you hadn’t...” A single tear escaped and rolled down her cheek. “You got me out in time.”
“I would do anything for you.” It was true. He hadn’t realized it until now, but he would take on any pain, any burden for her.
Her smile was breathtaking as she reached for him, and he leaned over, pulling her to him.
“I almost lost you,” he whispered. The words, their meaning, resonated through him, scaring him in a different way. But being this close to her, his head spinning and his heart racing too fast, he dismissed it as residual adrenaline from the fear of coming so close to danger and within a hair’s breadth of having her snatched from his life. “Do you know how the fire started?”
She shook her head. “I dozed off. When I woke up, the cottage was burning down around me.”
He held her closer, tighter. Smoke inhalation was deadly. It was the number one cause of death related to fires. Without an alarm, most people never woke up when smoke filled a house. It numbed the senses, causing deeper sleep. If she hadn’t awakened...
He shuddered to think of it.
“The smoke detector never went off?” he asked, pulling back to look at her.
“No. I don’t know why. I had one installed after I moved in.” She coughed with a wince. “And I tried to open the bedroom window to get out through there, but it had been nailed shut.”
“What?” Someone had deliberately tried to trap her in the house and set it on fire?
“Did you release Rodney?”
“No. He’s still sitting in a cell.” Writing her an apology letter. “It couldn’t have been him.”
But someone had done this. Perhaps the same person who had run her off the road and slashed her tires.
Sirens blared, red and white strobes flashed, as the fire engine, with the welcome scream of its horn, and an EMS vehicle pulled up past them, stopping near the house.
Firefighters raced to grab the hose, though the cabin and her car were beyond saving. In full gear, one hurried in their direction.
“I’ll be right back,” Holden said, and Grace nodded. He climbed out to speak with the firefighter, who just happened to be his brother.
“Hey, what happened?” Sawyer asked.
“I was on my way here when I saw the cottage on fire.”
Sawyer looked him over, his jaw clenching. “You went inside?”
“Yeah, how do you know?”
“There’s soot on your face and clothes. Burn holes in your hat. What the hell were you thinking? You could’ve been killed.”
Holden hadn’t been thinking at all. His actions had been driven by pure instinct. “She was trapped inside. I had to get her out. If I had waited, she’d be dead.”
Sawyer grunted, putting a boatload of frustration into the sound before he turned and whistled to one of the EMTs, waving him over. Then he hustled to the passenger’s side of the truck with Holden right behind him. He opened the door and stood up on the footrail. “Hey, there, I heard you had a close call inside.”
She nodded.
“Can you talk?” Sawyer asked. “I know the smoke and heat can hurt your throat. Can you tell me your name?”
“Grace.” She swallowed like her throat was sore. “Grace Clark.”
“So you’re the one Holden is always going on about. Now I can see why my brother was reckless enough to run into a burning building.”
Embarrassment sliced through Holden. With his family and his friends, he was a talker, like his mother. Perhaps he was guilty of oversharing, but no one could ever accuse him of being a closed book.
“Brother?” Grace asked, flicking a glance from Sawyer to Holden. “I thought you said all your brothers were in law enforcement.”
“I don’t like the sound of that rasp. Don’t talk,” Sawyer said. The EMT came around to the passenger’s side, carrying a medical bag and blankets. Sawyer took the kit from him, pulled out an oxygen mask and fit it to her face. Next, he attached a small device to her finger. A pulse oximeter that measured the amount of oxygen in the blood. “To answer your question, I will be,” Sawyer said. “I recently graduated from the fire marshal academy and I’m waiting to start in the position.”
Once Sawyer began work officially as a fire marshal, he would be a sworn-in law enforcement officer, straddling the line between firefighting and police work, mostly investigating the causes of fires. Such as this one.
Which begged the question, who on earth had started it and why?
The EMT handed Holden a blanket.
“This is Pete,” said Sawyer to Grace, trading places with the EMT on the footrail. “He’s going to get your vitals and see if you need to go to the hospital.”
She nodded as Pete draped a blanket over her legs and then he took out a blood pressure cuff.
Sawyer put a hand on his shoulder and hauled him a few feet away. “Any idea how the fire started?”
“Not for certain, but I think you’ll find signs of arson,” Holden said. “See if her smoke detectors were tampered with. They never went off. Also, she said the bedroom window had been nailed shut.”
“I take it the window wasn’t like that before tonight.”
“No nails in it when I was there last night.”
Sawyer quirked a brow. “Two nights in a row, huh?” his brother said with a wink, and Holden wanted to explain that it wasn’t like that, but he decided not to waste his breath. “You better wake Mom and tell her what’s going on before she hears it from someone else. Word spreads like wildfire. No pun intended.”
His brother was right. Their father wouldn’t be upset if he didn’t learn about the fire until tomorrow because no one was hurt, but their mother preferred to be the first to know.
Since Pete was still examining Grace, listening to her breathing with a stethoscope, he took out his phone and got it over with.
When he was done filling her in, she said, “Thank heavens everyone is okay. Sawyer will get to the bottom of it. Poor Grace. She lost everything. You’re bringing her to the ranch, aren’t you?”
He hadn’t thought about it, but that made sense to him. “Yeah, I suppose.” He watched the firefighters trying to put out the blaze, the hose arcing a cascade of water onto the cottage.
“Will your friend be staying with you or in a guest room in the main house?”
Holden knew what she was really asking. “I don’t know.”
“I suggest you ask her and see what she wants.”
“I will.” All that mattered was Grace’s comfort and safety.
“Holden, I need to tell you something and I want you to really listen to me.”
“Okay. What is it?”
“You are loyal and steadfast. An honorable man who keeps his word. Just like your father. But the best thing about you is your heart. It’s so big and you’ve got so much to give. It’s time to move out of the shadow that Renee and Jim left behind. The people of this town have a long memory and will not soon forget until they have something more salacious to sink their teeth into. But you can’t wait for them to give you permission to move on with your life. You deserve to be happy. Now. All you have to do is stop fighting it. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Holden looked over at Grace. Their eyes met, and his heart squeezed. “Yeah, Mom. I think I do. Thanks.” Pete was wrapping up with Grace and Sawyer was moving in, putting a hand on her arm. “I’ve got to go.”
Hanging up, he strode over to his truck. He slid in close to Grace, nudging his brother aside and replacing Sawyer’s hand on her arm with his own.
“The oxygen saturation level in her blood is normal. Her pressure and pulse are both good,” Pete said. “Her airway sounds clear, and the oxygen mask seems to have helped. No more cough. But if it returns or she starts wheezing or gets a headache, I’d recommend taking her to the hospital for a chest X-ray.”
“What about Holden?” she asked. “Aren’t you going to examine him, too?”
“I’m fine,” he said. “I was only inside a few minutes.”
Sawyer knocked his cowboy hat off and caught it. “Your Stetson doesn’t look fine.” His brother thrust it against his chest and Holden took it, looking at the burn holes from the falling embers. “If you start coughing or—”
“I know the drill,” Holden said.
With no further need for Pete, the EMT left them.
“Since you’re homeless, I take it you’ll be staying at the ranch,” Sawyer said, his gaze bouncing between them.
Grace shook her head. “I don’t want to impose. I could always stay at the B and B, since I don’t have a car to get to work.”
“The B and B will add up,” Holden said, and with a grimace, she nodded in agreement. “We also don’t know who tried to kill you by setting the fire.”
“No place safer for you to be at than the ranch,” Sawyer said.
There was a security system. His entire family would be there, they had ranch hands living in the bunkhouse, and they were all armed.
“I guess.” Grace sounded uncertain. “If you’re sure it wouldn’t be an imposition.”
“It’s no trouble,” Holden reassured her. “You can stay with me in my apartment or in a guest room in the main house. My mother would love to have you close. Riddle you with questions. Stuff you with food.”
She laughed, and there was no sweeter sound to his ears. “That seems like it might be a lot.”
“It will be,” Holden and Sawyer said in unison.
She flashed a gut-wrenching smile. “I’m fine staying with you.”
Sawyer gave him a discreet wink. “I’ll see you later tonight, Grace, in about eighteen hours, for the Powell Christmas Eve gathering. I should have some answers for you both about the fire by then.” Sawyer patted her blanket-covered knee.
Holden swatted his hand off her leg and closed the door. “See you later and keep your hands to yourself.”
His brother waved him off. “Make sure she hydrates.”
Holden climbed in behind the steering wheel and backed out of the driveway.
Grace stared at the burning cottage. “I can’t believe it’s all gone. The house. My car. Everything I brought with me from my old life.” She turned to him. Fresh tears glistened in her eyes. “All my things.”
“Everything you lost is replaceable. All that matters is that you’re safe.”
“That we both are.” She whisked the tears away and sniffled. “Someone tried to kill me. Almost succeeded, too. I could’ve died in there.”
“It might’ve been the Iron Warriors.” Maybe Todd didn’t think a threat was enough.
“They’re not behind this. If it had been them, they would not have left any doubt in my mind that they caused the fire. Of that, I’m sure.”
She had a point. The MC wanted their victims to know they were responsible.
“We’re going to find whoever is behind this. Make sure they don’t hurt you again.” He held out his hand to her across the console and she took it, interlacing her fingers with his.
They had both survived, and he could no longer run from his feelings for Grace Clark.
All this time he thought he had simply been falling for her. His brain constantly reminding him of the reasons he couldn’t be with her...but it was too late. He was invested. As strange as it sounded, what was in his heart for her far exceeded like and had careened into the dangerous territory of that other four-letter word. He was already a goner.
He wanted Grace to be a part of his life, with all her strength, beauty and determination. If she would have him. To be an anchor for her, that person to keep her from drowning or getting lost in a storm. Everyone needed that and he wanted to give it to her.
His love for her was a fierce thing that he was no longer capable of fighting.