Chapter 12 #2
Reaching up to squeeze the button on the mic dangling at the center of my chest, I blink fast, trying to adjust to the smothering darkness, hating the answer I have to give her. “I don’t think so.”
I step deeper into the void, my boot bumping up against something heavy as I pull out a tiny penlight. It doesn’t move or make a noise, but my skin still goes cold. I switch the light on, fear gripping my throat until I see the soiled mattress at my feet.
I exhale a little easier as I scan the space, finding nothing but filth and nightmares. I squeeze the microphone again. “She’s not here. The basement is empty. I’m sorry, B.”
I continue looking, listening for any sign of movement above me as I seek out something that might indicate who’s behind this or where they’ve gone next.
In the farthest corner of the basement, a small room is walled off from the rest of the space.
I step around mattresses and blankets, moving over trash and piss buckets on my way to investigate.
Inside is what appears to be a ransacked office of sorts. An old desk sits in the middle, and papers are strewn all over the place. I go straight to the desk, searching the surface for a flash drive or a hard drive. Hell, I’d settle for a fucking hand written list. Anything for me to go on.
The only warning I get that I’m not alone in the basement is the gentle scuff of a shoe against the cement floor.
I go still, clicking my light off immediately and sending the room into complete darkness.
There are no windows in this area, and since it’s blocked off, even the sparse bit of illumination coming through the open cellar doors doesn’t quite reach. I’m relatively well hidden.
For now.
Holding my breath, I strain to listen for any sound that’s out of place.
And when I fucking hear one, it’s not the careful, quiet, whisper of a noise I’m expecting.
It’s a wet sounding whack, followed by a deep grunt and a heavy thud.
I spin toward the source, weapon drawn.
“Shit.” Becca’s voice is whispered. “I think I might have hit him too hard.”
I quickly holster my pistol then click my pen light back on, shining it toward the floor before lifting it to Becca’s cringing face.
She holds the hammer I armed her with as she stands over the giant man heaped at her feet.
A pool of blood expands across the dirty concrete floor as it leaks from the nasty head wound caving in a sizable chunk of his cranium.
The gun he was likely in the process of pointing at me lays close to one lifeless hand.
“Too hard is relative.” I crouching down, looking the man over before reaching a gloved hand into his pocket and pulling out his wallet. Sliding his ID free, I turn it to face Becca, shining my light onto the card. “Look familiar?”
She squints, staring hard. The drop of her shoulders answers me before she does. “No.”
I turn it back toward me. “Me either.”
Except…
I shift it, angling the card one way and then the other. “Shit. It’s a fucking fake ID.” The seal that should be refractive is flat. I stuff the card back into place before replacing the wallet where I found it. “Fuck.”
“We’re sure he was a bad guy though, right?” Becca shifts on her feet, eyes going to the hammer she still holds.
“We’re sure.” I’m hopeful her question means she didn’t get a good look at this place. If she had, she wouldn’t be worried about killing the prick who did his best to sneak up on me. “Come on. Let’s go see what’s up—”
The ground under my feet and the house around us trembles as an explosion rocks the floor above our heads.
My ears are ringing so loud I can’t hear anything as chunks of subfloor rain down.
A small hand grips my arm, fingers digging into my shirt as I’m yanked toward the double doors we entered through.
As the house continues to shudder and shake, the scent of smoke begins to taint the air. I don’t know what went off above us, but it was powerful. And I don’t think the structure is going to sustain its weight much longer.
Becca is a quick thinker, but her short legs limit how fast she can move. I scoop her up, my longer strides eating up the distance between us and the night air. I take the steps two at a time, emerging from the basement as a deafening crash sounds behind us.
Becca peers over my shoulder, her arms gripping me tighter as I run faster. “I think the floor just caved in.”
The floor caving in is the least of my worries.
Right now I need to get us the fuck out of here before the authorities start showing up.
Even with all the destruction that explosion will do, eventually they’ll notice there’s a body in the basement.
I don’t want any of that suspicion pointed Becca’s way.
After quickly dumping her into the passenger seat, I start the engine and drive as fast as I can without drawing attention. Everybody remembers a car racing away from the scene of a crime.
And some people would consider what just happened a crime.
A sudden realization has my stomach bottoming out. My head snaps Becca’s way. “What did you do with a hammer?”
She lifts it up between us. “I didn’t want to leave it there because it’s got my fingerprints all over it.” Becca wrinkles her nose. “I didn’t technically want to have to bring it either since it’s got his brain goo on the other end, but I didn’t see an alternative.”
“You did the right thing.” I look her over, making sure she’s not hurt in any way. “But we definitely need to get you trained on firearms. I only have so many hammers.”