Brantley didn’t get to finish that sentence, because the world exploded around them, the force of the blast coming at them knocking them back.
Travis slammed into his SUV, the impact sending him on his ass. His ears were ringing, his shoulder screaming from being jarred. It took a moment for his brain to catch up, to catalog what had happened, to tie it all together and make sense of it.
JJ’s house had exploded, the brick, wood, and glass turned into projectiles.
The noise seemed to go on forever, a cacophony that rang in his ears. The roar from the flames, the repetitious blare of a smoke detector, his own harsh breaths, and the shouts coming from people spilling out of their houses.
As he got to his knees, Travis looked around, instinct having him check for anyone injured. He saw Reese crumpled on the ground a few feet away, unmoving. Brantley was on his other side, pushing to his feet but moving slowly, unsteadily.
“You okay?” Trey asked, hurrying to his side.
“Yeah. You?” Travis answered, his own voice sounding muffled in his head.
“I’m fine. Brantley? You good?” Trey called out, turning toward his brother.
Brantley nodded, then moved faster than most men Travis knew the moment he noticed Reese on the ground. The man was on his knees in a second, gently touching Reese, obviously checking for injuries.
Travis became aware of neighbors rushing over to check on them, a couple on the phone, likely calling 911. Some on their phones being assholes and recording the destruction.
“Sir, I’m a nurse,” a woman said as she approached. “Are you injured? Do you need medical attention?”
Travis could only shake his head, continuing to watch the way Brantley hovered over Reese. He could see real fear on his cousin’s face.
“Help them,” Travis told her, his words muffled inside his head like he was speaking underwater.
Time seemed to slow as the woman marched over, knelt beside Brantley. She said something that had Brantley taking a deep breath, sitting up straighter but never taking his eyes off Reese. Travis sat there, observing the chaos. The house had been leveled. Everything around it destroyed. The bushes that lined the front charred, the little SUV in the driveway—JJ’s he assumed—smashed by debris raining down on it.
It was a fucking mess.
As he got his bearings, Travis discreetly took stock of the people standing around. Most of them were shoulder to shoulder, muttering to one another, likely gossiping about what had happened. There would be half a dozen rumors spreading through their small town before the day was out.
“I’m good,” came a garbled response, drawing Travis’s attention.
He glanced over, saw Reese sitting up, a gash on his forehead sending a river of blood trailing down his face.
“She tried to kill us,” Travis said, speaking to himself.
This had to be Juliet Prince. Based on what he knew of her, she was crazy enough to blow up a house and anyone in it. Which meant she was the one who had texted him, lured him. Probably had intended for the house to blow up with him inside of it.
Was she doing it? Was she playing them like puppets? Looking at it rationally, it wasn’t difficult to put the pieces together. Probably wouldn’t take much for her to find out who Travis was associated with. She would likely recognize Brantley and Reese since they’d been on the news after Kate’s rescue. The task force had gotten some press lately. She could easily tie the team to the governor.
Had he not given her enough credit? Here he’d thought they were dealing with a vengeful woman, but this… This spoke to something else entirely.
Travis shook his head, managed to get to his feet as the sirens grew nearer, flashing lights already blanketing the houses as an ambulance pulled up.
“Fuck,” he groaned, pulling out his phone.
Wouldn’t take long for Gage to get wind of what had happened, and he needed to call them to let them know he was all right before they came looking for him.
“Please tell me you’re not involved in whatever just happened,” Gage said without so much as a hello.
Evidently he already knew.
“I’m fine,” he assured him. “Brantley and Reese and Trey are fine. That bitch blew up Jessica James’s house.”
There was a brief pause, then, “You know for a fact it was her?”
“You’ve got a better explanation?” he snapped defensively.
