“What if we win?” I hum pointedly. “What will your excuse be then?”
A flash of vulnerability etches his previously surly expression. I recognize it well. It’s the same face I used to make when I’d think about Rook and Velle, and how I knew what I wanted, but it made me so fucking nervous. Because of howrealit felt.
I witness him swallow. His lips part, and I think maybe he’s going to tell me the truth. Tell me what he’s so afraid of…
But a powerful boom of thunder shakes the ground. It’s so strong, concrete is rattling around us.
“He shouldn’t be out there,” Jasper grunts, rushing to the door. “Fuck your phone.”
I nod in agreement. But before he can open the door, a symphony of thuds and cracks sings from outside. Jasper and I share a look.
And then something crashes.Loud, andviolent.
An explosion that rocks the walls and rumbles the earth. Velle’s motorcycle tips over. Jasper yanks me out of the way just in time, before it can fall on me and break my fucking leg.
My heart is galloping, and there’s a ringing in my ears. Jasper is covering me with his body like a blanket, shielding me from hunks of stone falling from the ceiling.
The boom is over in seconds, but the vibration seems to last minutes.
“What… the fuck?!” I cough.
What the shit was that??
When he finally pries himself off of me, we look around, then at each other. Eyes rounded in shock and fear.
Dust hangs in the air, both of us coughing as we straighten.
“What the hell, man?!” Jasper barks. “What was that?? It sounded like someone just dropped a bomb!”
“It can’t be…” I mumble, so twitchy with unease, I feel like I’m seizing.
No. No no no… It wasn’t a bomb. The Ivory wouldn’t do that… Would he?
Would he really blow up the prison out of spite??
It seems mental, but then the guyisa few cards short of a full deck. My thoughts are spiraling as Jasper and I stumble to the door. He yanks on it… But it won’t budge.
“Fuck,” he growls, pulling with all his might. “I think it’s stuck.”
“Is it safe to be in here…?” I mutter nervously, looking up at the ceiling.
This place seems sturdy but, like the prison, isn’t exactly up to code.
Who’s to say it won’t collapse on us from… whatever the hell that was!
Jasper isn’t paying attention to me at all. He’s too busy fighting the damn door, which refuses to open. “Simon??” He hollers, banging his fist on the metal over and over. “Simon, are you out there? Please answer me…”
“You gotta keep it down,” I’m shivering so hard my teeth are chattering. “The Ivory’s guys could hear…”
“Fuck that. Simon?!” He keeps shouting, punching and kicking the door. “Are you okay?? We’re stuck—”
“Jake,” I whisper aggressively enough to stop him before he breaks his fucking hand. “Calm down. Take a breath.”
His head is shaking back and forth. “No. Fuck that… He could be hurt. He could be…” He covers his face with his hands. Visibly trembling. “You were right, okay?? I… I think I love him, and I need to make sure he’s alright. If he gets hurt and I didn’t tell him—”
“Stop.” I grab him by the shoulders. “He’s fine, you hear me?? He’s a fucking badass, just like you. That’s why you guys work. Right??” He stops his sputtering long enough to nod, brows furrowed in the most sincere concern for someone else I’ve seen in a while…
Since the night Velle’s mom died.
