Page 69 of Colton’s Inferno

Aiden’s heart pounded. He went back to the door and turned the knob. It didn’t move. “Lucy,” he yelled. “Wake up.”

Panic coated his tongue. He lifted his foot and kicked at the lock. The door swung open. Gas fumes rolled out in a wave.

Aiden rushed into the living room. Lucy lay on the sofa. Her lips were pale. He lifted her into his arms and carried her outside. He laid her on the lawn and pressed his fingers to her wrist.

Nothing.

He shifted his fingers and tried again.

Still, nothing.

He gripped her other wrist, pressing his fingertips into her flesh.

He couldn’t find a pulse.

Chapter 18

Kneeling on the damp grass, Aiden adjusted his grip on Lucy’s wrist. She lay beside him and was eerily still. His hands began to tremble. He swallowed down the rising grief and panic. He was a firefighter. A professional. He’d dealt with situations like this before. He had to push aside his emotions and focus on the job.

He inhaled. Exhaled. Lifting her wrist once more, he pressed his fingers onto her veins. For a moment, there was nothing. Then, he felt a flutter.

He moved his fingers under her chin. There he found the jugular vein and the slow thumping of her pulse. Her chest rose as she drew in a breath.

She was back.

Rocking back onto his heels, he was exhausted. His shoulders slumped and his eyes burned. Aiden blinked hard.

He needed to call 9-1-1 and reached into his pocket for the phone. It wasn’t there.

Dammit.

It was still in his car.

“Lucy.” He gripped her wrist. Her pulse was stronger. “I have to get my phone. I’ll only be gone for a second.”

He squeezed her arm once more and rose to his feet. He jogged to his car and pulled the passenger door open. The phone sat in the cup holder. He grabbed the device and entered 9-1-1.

The call rang twice.

“Emergency Services,” said an operator. “This is Trey. How may I help you?”

“Trey, it’s Aiden. I’m at the Five Steers Ranch.” He kicked the car door closed. “I have an unconscious female.” He paused. What else did he know? There’d been the faint stench of gas when he opened the door. “Possible carbon monoxide poisoning. I need an ambulance and a fire truck.”

Trey repeated everything that Aiden had said, confirming that he understood the message. “I’ve dispatched both.”

“Thanks, man,” he said.

That’s when he saw it. There were two furrows in the wet grass. To him, they looked like tire tracks. He followed the channels with his eyes. They led into the woods that lined the road. Several small trees were bent. Several more had snapped in two. Aiden wasn’t a forensic specialist, but to him, it looked like a car pulled into the tree line.

Was this another attempted murder?

Trey had said something, but Aiden hadn’t been listening.

“Say that again,” he said.

“I asked if you needed anything else.”

“Yeah,” said Aiden. “Get in touch with my brother, Callum. Tell him I think the killer is responsible for the gas leak.”