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Letting her bloom with the help of others was one of the many ways I could show her how deeply I loved her. Even if it was a bit unconventional.
And the fact of it being so unconventional did spark a hint of uncertainty and doubt in my heart at times. But that was what happened when things were new and unexplored. This was new territory to navigate, and as long as I kept an open mind, I wasn’t nervous about what came around the corner. I just wanted Brianna by my side.
“Guys! We’ve got a problem!” Elijah shouted from his room before his footsteps thudded through the cottage. He ran into the kitchen with the laptop, his breathing puffing in and out. “Rebels say a bomb has been planted near their base. It could make the parking garage collapse right on top of them if it goes off!”
Everyone stood from the table, making it jostle. Fluffy eggs, crisp bacon, and golden potatoes were left abandoned as everyone grabbed their gear. My heart pounded heavily as my brain started to work, unfolding a plan in my mind as everyone met me on the porch.
“Alright, Mo and Andre on me. We’re going to handle the bomb. The rest of you need to establish a perimeter around us and make sure we’re not walking into a trap,” I told them before turning to Brianna. “We’ll need your translation skills, but I don’t want you anywhere near that bomb.”
“I’ll have to be close,” Brianna urged me before grabbing my arm, her eyes locking with mine. “I’ll be fine, but we need to go. We can’t let all of those people die!”
Her words kicked me and everyone else into gear. As terrified as I was for her safety, she was as determined and ready as everyone else, and I wasn’t going to slow us down when we had work to do. That was why all of us were here.
“Let’s go!” I said before turning and leading everyone into the city.
Aziel, Emmett, Erick, and Bowie took the lead, checking the area with their guns raised as we approached the site of the bomb near the rebels’ base.
“Clear,” Erick told us before everyone started to fan out to create a perimeter.
Brianna stayed close to my side before pointing ahead.
“There’s Andric!” she said.
My heartbeat thumped in my ears, nearly muffling her words, but I caught sight of the dark-haired rebel as he carefully made his way to us. My eyes swept over the empty area, but it didn’t take me long to see an odd-looking box about fifty feet away from the entrance of the parking garage. The bomb had to be contained in there.
Brianna and Andric started talking back and forth in Vlasic. Andric moved his hands in animated motions, fear gleaming in his eyes as he gestured to the bomb and then the parking garage.
“There are no sightings of enemies in the area, but they suspect someone dropped it off not too long before they messaged us. They took a quick look, and it’s a general IED with a detonator,” she explained to me, Mo, and Andre.
Andre nodded as he patted his Kevlar vest.
“I’ve had bomb disarming training,” he said.
“We’ll assist,” Mo spoke up as he nodded to me.
I turned to Brianna.
“I’ll keep Andric informed through you. If we can’t diffuse it, we’ll need to evacuate the rebels,” I told her. The air felt ten times hotter than normal knowing that a bomb could go off at any moment.
Brianna nodded and spoke to Andric, while Mo, Andre, and I carefully made our way to the cardboard box.
Andre peered into the box as Mo and I gave him a few inches of space. He had more knowledge than anyone else on bombs. His eyes suddenly grew wide.
“Anyone got a flashlight?” he asked.
Mo grabbed a flashlight out of his belt and shined the beam into the box.
My heart jolted to a stop at the sight of a black, cylinder-shaped IED with visible wires hooked to a small radio. The bomb was scary enough to look at, but I finally saw what Andre was staring at.
A digital clock with ten minutes left.
“We have to get moving,” Andre said as he quickly dug around in his belt for a pair of wire cutters. He flexed his hands a few times as he knelt down, making sure he was steady as he continued to inspect the bomb.
I turned to Brianna.
“There’s a timer for ten minutes!” I shouted.
Brianna’s jaw dropped.
“Ten minutes? We need to get out of here!” she yelled back, sheer terror making her pitch hike up.
I shook my head and motioned to Andric.
“Tell him!” I told her before turning back to Andre. “Do you have enough time?”
Andre carefully moved the wires a little, leaning a few inches closer to look at the radio.
