Shane crouched between the wall and the reception area counter just at the edge of the hallway. When he heard footsteps approaching the door, he had grabbed his toolkit and raced to the other end of the corridor. Now he waited, his gun aimed at the door, ready for Cal Winters to walk through.
It has to be him. He has to be the only one here.
Shane told himself that, but then remembered that Cal had help escaping Alaska. So maybe it would not be Cal. Shane had to be careful then. If it was a second man involved in the kidnapping, a gunshot might alert the other.
There's only Cal. Shane was sure of it, even as he kicked himself for not asking Kim and Kayla.
On the far end of the hall, Shane heard a noise. The doorknob was turning.
Then it stopped.
An instant later, loud screams echoed through the entire building.
Shane entire body froze. Damn it, he silently shouted. Steve must have jumped the gun. What the bloody hell had he done?
From inside the room down the hall, Shane heard Kayla cry out. "Steve!" She must have recognized the voice too.
Shane raced forward toward the hangar door, then stopped. Kim and Kayla were still locked in that room. Shane had to make a split-second decision, even as Steve's screams continued to echo through the building.
He'd want Kim and Kayla safe. Shane knew Steve well enough to know that he would do anything to make sure Kayla was safe. "Bloody hell," Shane muttered, hating that he was stuck making this choice. But Kim and Kayla had to be the priority. Silently, Shane thought, Forgive me, Steve.
Setting his gun on the floor, Shane pulled his lockpick out of his pocket and inserted it into the lock. But even as he began to work, he heard Kayla's voice right outside the door. She sounded inconsolable.
"Steve!" she shrieked. "Shane, please help him!"
"I'm going to get you out of here first." Shane tried to focus on the lock and get the pins to move, but he could not shut out Steve's screams. They continued to reverberate through the hangar.
Kayla's cries continued also. "Leave us," she yelled, and Shane could envision her tears. "Help him, Shane. He's hurt . . . . He could be dying." She sounded like she was in so much pain. "Please help him. You didn't save him just to let him die now. I can't lose him now. Not again."
Shane hesitated, torn between doing what Steve would want and doing what Kayla asked. She was right. He had seen Kayla's suffering.
After everything that had happened, Shane could not let Steve die now. Then an idea flashed in Shane's head. "Kim?" he asked. "Do you remember what I showed you about opening a lock?"
"Yes," Kim said.
"Then do it and get out the window." Shane slid the lockpick under the door. Then he remembered the explosives. "Use the window. The door's rigged. Don't touch it."
Turning, Shane picked up his gun again and moved toward the hangar door. He realized that Steve's screams had stopped. Shane just prayed the silence did not mean what he feared it meant.