I held her close for a moment, glad that she was still alive. I took her face in my hands and looked into her eyes. They were full of fear, but there was something more. I didn’t quite know what it was, but it made me want to protect her, to do whatever it took to make sure we made it out of this nightmare.

“Come on, we have to find that bomb.”

We scrambled to our feet, running up the stairs to the third floor. The door, of course, was locked. I stepped back to the very edge of the landing before I charged forward, ramming my shoulder into the door. It splintered apart and jabbed into my skin, drawing blood, but I didn’t care.

The ticking of the bomb was deafening. It filled my ears and echoed through my mind.

Tick, tick, tick.

“Do you have any idea where it is?”

Lauren shook her head. “I tried to find it, but I couldn’t figure out where the noise was coming from… I figured that if I managed to escape, I’d be able to warn people to evacuate.”

“That was never going work – at least not completely. The police would’ve arrested you, and they would’ve taken their sweet time assembling a bomb squad. The only way we can stop this is by finding the bomb and defusing it ourselves.”

“Do you know how to do that?” she asked, her voice shaking.

“It’s been a long, long time since I’ve touched one, but in theory, yes.”

“I don’t really like the sound of that.”

“Well, it’s the only shot we’ve got. Now, come on, start looking. A bomb is big. It’ll need space.”

Lauren nodded. Soon, we were scouring the place, trying to find the source of the ticking, but it seemed that no matter how hard we looked, we just couldn’t find it.

Where had he hidden it?

I tore the place apart, pulling off chunks of the drywall in some places.

Ring! Ring! Ring!

My phone’s ringing nearly gave me a heart attack.

I fished it out of my pocket and answered.

“Good news. I have Frankie.”

I sighed in relief. “No sign of Dean?”

“No… or of a bomb. I got some of the dogs coming out here to check, but from what I can tell… this is just a regular old barn.”

“How’s Frankie?”

“He seems fine. I’m bringing him home now. What about you? Did you find Lauren?”

“Yes… she’s here with me. But we have a problem. There’s a bomb, but we can’t find it… if it blows… part of London will go along with it.”

“Well, you’ve got to find it. Think like Dean. Where would he hide it?”

Suddenly, it dawned on me.

“What is it?” Lauren asked, running after me.

“Frankie is okay,” I told her, knowing that was what she wanted to hear.

“But, how…?”

“I sent Cruz to go get him. He was safe and sound.”

Lauren started to cry, relieved that her baby was safe. “Thank God…” she whispered to herself before looking up at me. “What about us?”

“We’re going to make it through this. We have to.” I said, pulling out an old computer from the closet. I wedged off the side paneling, expecting to find a bomb on the inside, but all I found was a Bluetooth speaker playing the constant loop of ticking noise we had heard this whole time. “I can’t believe it…” I exclaimed, turning it off.

“So… there was never a bomb? It was all a trick? What for? Why did he just put us through hell?”

“Because… it was a trap… a way to lure me out…” Slowly, I turned around, and there he was.

He started to clap, a grin plastered on his face.

My rage got the best of me as I charged forward, determined to make him pay for everything he had done.

At the very last second, he closed the door, letting it slam into my body. I crashed into it, head-first, causing stars to circle around my vision. I stumbled back, disoriented.

Before I could compose myself, Dean reappeared, holding a smartphone in his hand. He tapped the screen and suddenly, a red dot appeared on Lauren’s forehead. “Don’t you dare…”

“You know, I would consider my next move very carefully if I were you. If my finger leaves the screen, then the gun goes off, and your girlfriend’s brains get to decorate the wall.”

“You’ll have to get through me first,” I said, standing in front of her.

“I was hoping you’d say that.” He moved his finger slightly to the left before removing it from the screen.

My heart stopped as the deafening bang of a gunshot rang out. The bullet whizzed past my ear and disappeared into the wall behind me.

“You can’t win this time, Franklin. I have you exactly where I want you, but let me prove to you that I’m not as bad as you think I am.” He stepped forward, his eyes burning with hatred. “I threatened your baby, yes, but I didn’t actually hurt him. I know he’s safe and sound with your boss. I expected you would try to outsmart me. Now, I’ll give you the opportunity to save your girlfriend. I’ll let her walk out of here unscathed if you get down on your knees and surrender.”

“Don’t do it!” Lauren protested, grabbing hold of my arms. “You can’t…”

Dean just laughed.

I just shook my head. There was no other choice. Dean had won.

Slowly, I dropped to my knees before him.

“That’s it. Now, put your hands behind your head.”

I did as I was told, swallowing my pride for the sake of Lauren’s life. Frankie needed a mother, and I would be damned if I took that away from him.