“What’s going on?”
“Just do it, Ezra. Please. There might be a bomb.”
I heard the squeal of brakes, the engine cut, and the door open and close. “Hold on,” he said, his voice distant. “I have to take you off the truck speakers.” There was a pause, and then, much more clearly, he said, “There. I’m out. What’s this about a bomb?”
“I had another vision,” I started, then proceeded to tell him about the delivery of Starfighter lilies and the memory of the stranger in white, how he’d used Ezra’s name in his ditty, and how he said I had three hours to find the bomb before it went off.
“Three hours?” Ezra sounded incredulous. “How could he know when you would get the vision?”
“Or she,” I said.
“Almost eighty percent of violent crimes are perpetrated by men, so let’s work on the assumption that this person is a guy. With a willingness to change the assumption with further evidence and facts.”
“Agreed.” As scared as I was for Ezra, I couldn’t stop the hint of a smile tugging at my lips.
“So, three hours...”
“I don’t know,” I told him. I snapped at Brady to get his attention. “What were the instructions on that order?” I asked. “You said it came in a week ago?”
Brady, who had been listening with growing anxiety, paled visibly. “A bomb?” he stammered. His hands began to shake, and he looked around as if expecting the van to explode any second. “Are you serious?”
“Yes, I’m serious,” I said firmly. “Now, what were the instructions on that order?”
“The flowers were to be delivered today at five o’clock sharp,” he said, his voice quivering.
“It’s only four-thirty,” Gilly said. “He’s early.”
Brady winced. “The smell of the flowers made me sick to my stomach.” He removed his hat and shoved it in his back pocket, revealing a thick, dark mop of hair that framed his face and made his blue eyes almost glow in contrast. “I have two other deliveries outside of town, so I decided to do this one first to get those lilies out of the van. It’s not a big deal, right?” He had a hangdog expression as he rubbed his face. “Don’t tell my boss. She insisted I get the order here at the precise time. The customer paid extra money for it.”
I nodded at Brady and let him off the hook. “Stay put. The police will want to talk to you when they get here.”
“Aw man,” he groaned, visibly distressed. “I’m gonna get so fired.”
I turned my attention back to my phone and Ezra. “Did you hear that? The delivery was supposed to be here at five,” I told him. “But the driver got here early.”
“If there’s a three-hour window, whatever is going down is supposed to happen at eight o’clock.”
“And we have three and a half hours to stop it.”
“I’ll be over soon. Hang tight, okay?”
“Don’t drive your truck,” I told him. “Not until you can get your bomb disposal people on it.”
“I’ve got one guy,” Ezra said. “I’ll call him as soon as I hang up. I’ll call Reese and have her pick me up. In the meantime, I’ll get some uniforms over there to go over the van and take statements.”
“Okay.” I was comforted knowing he was on his way. “See you soon.”
“I love you,” he said as his parting words.
“Love you back.” I disconnected the call.
Gilly’s gaze met mine. “Well?”
“He’s safe,” I told her. “For now.”
I hadn’t told Gilly about the vision before calling Ezra, but she’d overheard me relay the gist of it to him. “A homemade bomb? Cripes, this dude is a maniac.”
I glanced at Brady. “I don’t suppose you saw the person who made the order?”
