The Ex-Wife's Burning Elegance novel Chapter 1308

Gibson had been smart enough not to burn just one building, which would have been a dead giveaway. There were fires everywhere. The rented warehouse complex was massive, consisting of three long rows. Stella, Haynes, and Foreman each took one.

Suddenly, the sounds of explosions and gunfire erupted from one direction.

Haynes's face grew grim. "That's it. Joshua and Keen must be over there." He turned to the others. "You two search the other rows. I'm heading that way."

Stella knew that if Haynes and Joshua teamed up, the chances of rescuing Keen would be highest. She didn't argue.

"Alright," she nodded.

Foreman agreed as well.

***

Inside the burning room, the bomb's timer hit thirty seconds, and an insistent beeping began. Joshua knew Gibson had done it intentionally to create psychological pressure and force a mistake.

But Joshua remained unnervingly calm. He identified one of the wires and swiftly severed it with his dagger.

The fire was now raging, fed by the flammable materials Gibson had strategically placed. In just over a minute, the room had become a vortex of smoke and heat hot enough to melt steel.

Keen's eyes streamed with tears from the smoke. For the first time in his young life, he felt the chilling proximity of death.

"Mr. Joshua," he whispered.

Yet Joshua remained calm and composed. With ten seconds left, he identified the second wire and cut it.

Keen's body went rigid, his breath catching in his throat.

At eight seconds, the countdown on the screen stopped. The bomb was disarmed.

By now, the room was an obstacle course of burning debris. The cloth over their mouths was doing little to filter the thick, toxic smoke. Keen's head spun, and his consciousness began to slip away.

Joshua scooped him up and ran for the door, some twenty meters away.