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It was time to talk to Miles.
She retraced her steps to the ready room and twisted the doorknob. It worked, but the door wouldn’t budge. She bumped it with her shoulder. Stuck.
Why was the door even shut? They always kept it open for callouts.
She turned on her heel and strode to the supply room. Her right hand grabbed the knob. “Booth, why’d you lock the?—”
The door wouldn’t budge. She slid her phone from her pocket and dialed Booth. Straight to voicemail.
“You can’t lock the doors around here.” She knocked her knuckles on the metal frame. “Open up.”
“What are you talking about? I wasn’t the one who locked the door.” The knob rattled and turned from the other side. “Let me out.”
“Just unlock it.”
“I’m telling you, it’s not locked. It’s stuck.”
“I tried the ready room door and it was stuck too.” Nova’s pulse kicked up. “This is too weird.”
A loud thud came from the other side, followed by a low grunt. Nova flinched. Booth wasn’t messing around.
“Nope, won’t budge. I’m locked in tight,” he said through the door. “Look around the casing out there. Do you see anything stuck?”
Nova ran her eyes around the edge. “Yeah. It looks like something’s wedged in there and broken off. A piece of wood maybe.”
“Listen to me.” Booth’s voice had the firmness of an officer giving an order. “Get out! You need to find a way out of the building! Now!”
Goosebumps raced up Nova’s arms. She could picture the blackened face and smell the woodsy char from the fire that had taken Earl’s life. She inhaled a deep breath.
Wait.
Why could she smell it right now?
This wasn’t a nostalgic moment. Nova whirled. Smoke wafted down the hall. “Booth, I see smoke. There’s a fire. The building is on fire.”
“Get out of the building right now!”
Booth couldn’t see her, but she was already shaking her head. “No. No way. I’m not leaving you trapped in there.”
A smoke detector let loose an ear-piercing shriek. Nova flinched. A second alarm blared. One after another, the daisy-chained smoke detectors triggered. The entire building had one screaming from every room.
“Nova? Can you hear me?”
She covered her other ear. “Barely.”
“I can knock the pins out of the hinges on this side. I’ve got gear in here. Go! I’ll be right behind you.”
“Okay! I’m leaving, but you better meet me outside in two minutes, and that’s an order.” One she prayed he’d take for once.
Somewhere in the building, there was a loud crash. A woman screamed.
Nova sucked in a breath. “Jan! She must still be in the restroom.”
“Go! Help her!”
Nova pulled her Nomex shirt on over her T-shirt. Thick black smoke filled the hallway. She yanked the fire extinguisher off the wall and raced for the ladies’ room.
“Jan! It’s Nova. I’m coming to you! Stay where you are if you can!”
