Yeah right. Easy for them to say. Their heart wasn’t threatening to hammer its way out of their rib cage.
One intruder slipped. Landon’s gun followed the movement while the other intruder lunged forward, flinging something at us.
“Duck!” I shouted.
Landon fired off a shot as he ducked the flying sledgehammer. Flipping head over handle, it sailed past him, headed straight for Beth. Grabbing her arm, I yanked her out of its path and into me. We both went down, landing hard on the wet pavement.
The intruders bolted.
Landon fired off another shot, but with Beth half on top of me, I couldn’t see what was happening. Feet shuffled against the pavement, and Landon appeared and helped Beth up.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“Mercy saved me,” Beth said. “She pulled me out of the way and took the brunt of our fall.”
Landon offered me his hand. “You okay?”
I let him heft me up as I took an inventory of my body. My left hip, butt cheek, and arm felt sore from the impact, and there was a hole in the side of my tights, but nothing felt broken. “I think so. My bag cushioned my fall.” I pulled it up with me, hoping my laptop had survived.
In the chaos, I’d dropped my phone. I scanned the immediate area, spotting where it had slid across the sidewalk as Landon scooped it up and put it to his ear. He gave a description of the two intruders and the direction they were heading, saying he’d clipped one in the arm. Sirens closed in on us, and as he finished the call, three cop cars sped around the corner and parked in front of the school. Car doors opened, and orders were shouted.
Landon lowered his gun and my phone, setting them on the ground before all three of us raised our hands in the air.
Once the police had cleared the building, we went inside to give our statements and assess the damage.
My hands shook as I took in where the electronic check-in kiosk had been smashed to pieces, as had the reception computer. Together, they’d cost a small fortune to replace, but they weren’t what made my blood run cold. No, that horror was reserved for Adina’s flower vase and picture frames, all of which were shattered on the laminate flooring.
The destruction didn’t make sense.
Landon sidled up to me, and I was so out of it that I didn’t even object when he draped his arm over my shoulders and pulled me into him. His scent wrapped around me like a blanket as he said, “It’ll be okay. This can all be replaced.”
“Burglaries have been on the rise in this neighborhood,” one of the two cops who’d stayed behind said. “Do a walk-through and make note of everything they took for your insurance company.”
Landon pulled away and studied the area. “The muddy boot tracks don’t go any further than the reception desk.”
“It doesn’t look like they took anything,” I added. “But why would anyone break into a preschool just to trash it?”
The cop shrugged and leaned against the desk. “You deal with any pissed-off families lately?”
“None angry enough to do something like this.” The whole situation felt surreal. Would I wake up and find out this had all been some bizarre nightmare? As much as I fervently hoped so, my dreams were never this vivid.
Or pointless.
A restoration company arrived to secure the door with plywood and offered a quote for the other repairs. I gave them my email address and left them to work while I finished up with the police. Once the report was complete, the cops turned to go, but Landon reappeared.
“That’s it?” he asked. “That’s all you’re gonna do?”
“We’ll search for the perps, but as I told Ms. Foster, burglaries are on the rise in this area.”
“This wasn’t a burglary,” Landon said. “It feels like targeted destruction. The bastards were carrying sledgehammers, for chrissake. They came in here just to bash shit up. Children will be arriving soon. There has to be more you can do to ensure their safety.”
The cop eyed Landon. “Do you know who did this?”
“No. But my mom and Mercy are working here, and I’m afraid for them. What are the chances of these goons coming back?”
“We can increase patrols in the area.”
Landon didn’t look the least bit appeased, so I stepped between him and the cops before he said something to make the situation worse.
