Chapter 25

Maggie was getting nervous as the athletes of each country began to walk into the stadium in turn. There was so much excitement around her, but at the same time, she was acutely aware Hunter hadn't returned.

"Stop staring at the door, lass," Grant whispered.

Maggie was about to look away when the door opened. "There he is," she whispered back as she saw several people exit, including Hunter and Kane. However, they didn't come her way. They slipped away into the crowd headed in different directions. Except for one woman. "Who is that?" Maggie asked Grant.

Grant glanced casually and then smiled. "That's my wife, Val, and she looks pissed. It's either because she knows I'm going to make her leave if there's credible danger or she's hungry. The wee bairn has been giving her quite the cravings and you haven't seen hangry yet until you see a pregnant woman who can't get her peanut butter-smeared bacon."

"I'm Maggie. What's going on?" Maggie asked the second the woman stopped by them.

Maggie listened as Val told them about their idea of the bombs' locations. Maggie frowned and cursed. "It'll take them thirty minutes just to walk the length of the stadium with these crowds. How are they going to search everywhere?"

"We need help searching," Gage said almost absently.

"Yes, we do," Maggie said, pulling out her phone and shooting off a long text message.

Val frowned. "What did you just do?"

"We have friends and family here. I've asked them to help."

"I don't like it," Val grumbled. "But what I would like is some gelato. Come on, before you make me leave, let's grab one. You too, blondie."

"If she's going, I'm going. I'm her brother, Gage."

The woman smiled then. "Like a shotgun gauge?"

Gage nodded. "And Maggie's real name is Magnum."

"Great baby names. Put them on the list, babe. Much more original than Remington. Now, baby weapon needs ice cream."

There was a gelato cart in the staging area. The poor worker looked ready to pass out as Maggie and her group approached them. Suddenly, Val's nose twitched. She lifted her nose in the air and inhaled deeply before spinning on her heel. She sniffed the air as the rest of them shared a confused look.

"Do you smell that?" Val asked, looking around.

"What?" Grant asked.

"Diesel fuel."

Maggie sniffed the air but didn't smell anything until someone walked by and caused the air to stir. Then she smelled the faint traces of it. "Yeah. So?"

"Could be the bomb maker. Hunter told us that the smell doesn't wash off well." Val sniffed the air, walked four feet in one direction, turned around and faced the other direction. "This way." Grant chuckled but kept his mouth shut as they all followed Val. Her nose twitched, and suddenly she stopped. "That man, right there. I can't believe I've turned into a pregnant bomb detection sniffer, just like a freaking Labrador."

"If you capture the bad guy, I'll get you a treat." Grant couldn't resist and Val elbowed him in the stomach for it. Grant didn't seem to mind. Instead, he pulled out his phone. "Group photo," he said as he held up the camera.

There was zero percent chance of them being in the photo. Grant sent the photo off and a second later he received a text back. "It's Hamid Saeed, the bomb maker," Grant said, all joking aside. "Val, time to go. Now."

"But I didn't get my gelato," Val grumbled, but she listened, surprisingly. "After you kill them all and dismantle the bombs, I want two scoops of chocolate."

"You got it, babe." Grant kissed her and watched her walk off quickly.

"This can't be easy, putting your life on the line like this," Maggie said quietly.

"You could leave too, lass. I know your man would appreciate it."

"If I leave, who has his back?" Maggie asked, watching the international criminal scope out the area. "Plus, if he's here, one of the bombs must be close. He's probably checking them one last time, right? He's moving up to the main level," Maggie said as she took a selfie of her and Gage so that she could watch him with her camera.

Maggie snapped the shot and texted it out. She instantly got replies. Her friends and family were on it.

* * *

Hunter and Kane split up the second they were out of the hallway. Hunter caught sight of Maggie, but he couldn't stop. The faster he found these bombs, the faster she'd be safe.

Hunter strode through the main floor where all the vendors were selling things ranging from stuffed animals to flags to merchandise. T-shirts, jackets, posters . . . everything you could think of was lined up along the main walkway circling the stadium.

Stuffed animals didn't require generators though, so he discounted the storage containers for stuffies of the mascot. But, keeping gelato cold did require a generator and storage. So did the food stands. There was no built-in storage behind the vendors. Instead, they were packed in as tight as they could be in more of a street festival feel. Behind them were storage containers of various sizes that they shared. Generators sat between some of the storage containers.

His phone buzzed and he glanced down at the text from Maggie. It wasn't just to him though. It was to a list of people from Shadows Landing—all the people who happened to be at the ceremony tonight. It was a text asking for help and telling them what to look for.

Hunter stopped in his tracks. Now he'd have to protect the people of Shadows Landing while hunting down terrorists and bombs. Just great. Before he could put away his phone, Hunter got a text from Grant. They'd found Hamid Saeed. Then a text came through of a photo with a location in the upper right of the photo. He was on the move and heading right for Hunter.

Hunter sent a text to tell everyone to back off of Hamid. Just to keep Hunter notified if they see him. Hunter grabbed a baseball cap from a stand and walked with his head down toward the location where he thought Hamid would pop up.

Found the first bomb. I want an apple pie for it. Waiting for orders.

The text came from Kane with an exact location.

Hunter looked around and saw Mr. and Mrs. Bell rushing toward him. Hunter looked at the location again and then looked at where he was standing. It was almost the exact same spot, just on the opposite side of the stadium.

Hunter scanned the crowd and saw a food truck. A worker was going into the open storage container behind them and pulling out food supplies. The distance the worker walked to the back of the storage container to get those supplies was not the full distance of the container.

"Hunter, what's going on?" Clark asked as they joined him.

"See that shipping container? I think there's a bomb behind a false wall. Pretend to order food and look around for anyone else watching the area."

Mr. and Mrs. Bell looked nervous, but they did what he said. Hunter scanned the area from a distance and caught sight of a man watching the food stall. Hunter slid through the crowd until he was able to come up behind the man.

The man sensed him, but Hunter stopped him from turning around by putting his hand on the man's shoulder and squeezing it tightly. "Keeping an eye on your bomb?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," the man answered, but he also didn't try to turn around. That wasn't the standard reaction to hearing about a bomb. Most civilians would instinctually shout, "Bomb?" and freak out. This man didn't and that told Hunter everything he needed to know.

Hunter knew it was coming. He could have used a gun, but he didn't want any bystanders hurt. The man spun, trying to break Hunter's hold. Hunter pushed when the man thought he was going to pull. It knocked the man off balance. Hunter dropped a shoulder and plowed the man into the ten foot tall costumed mascot—Augie the Holy Cannoli. Augie for Caesar Augustus. Holy representing the Vatican, so the mascot was an honorary bishop complete with an oversized bishop's mitre, the headdress bishops wear, perched on top of the cream-filled cannoli, representing one of Italy's most beloved culinary creations.

The three of them crashed into the merchandise table, breaking it and causing them to all fall a second time to the ground. Augie lost his bishop's hat as the man and Hunter landed on top of him. The man in the giant cannoli cursed in rapid fire Italian and flailed around like an upended tortoise, unable to get up as Hunter slammed his fist into the terrorist's face.

The fight was on. Punches were exchanged, people were filming, and Clark and Suze were doing all they could to prevent other people from interfering, including security who was shouting at everyone in the area.

Hunter had to finish this and finish it now. Hunter pulled a knife from his waistband and holding the blade flat, shoved it between the man's ribs and into his lungs. The man didn't scream, but the cannoli did. Augie cursed, wiggled, and screamed for help. Hunter got off of the man and security swarmed him. He didn't have time for this. He had a bomb to disarm and two more bombs to find.

Hunter unzipped his jacket and around his neck was the all-access security pass Veronica had gotten for him. "Don't call this in. Say it was a drunk and disorderly fight and the men have been escorted from the premises," Hunter said quietly as the guards ran his name and security clearance.

"Yes, sir," the lead guard finally said, leaning down to scoot the dead man off the Holy Cannoli.

"Bless your heart," Suze said, holding out her hand to help the mascot up. "What a shame that man tripped and fell right into you, knocking himself unconscious. Too much vino," she said, shaking her head as she stepped in front of the knife still sticking out of the man's chest as Clark tossed his jacket over him, hiding the evidence.

Third bomb found. Man watching from three o'clock. Elizabeth texted.

Fourth bomb found. Timmons says some guy giving off bad vibes is about twenty feet catty corner from the bomb. Hunter smiled at Gator's text.

Hunter pulled up the locations as Suze sweet-talked everyone around them, spinning a story that the man had harassed her after having too much wine and security had come to her rescue.

"You don't have much time," Clark told Hunter. "Everyone has their phones out."

Hunter cursed and pulled his phone back out. Get into position behind the sentries. We need to take them out simultaneously before they can warn whoever is setting them off.

Dalton and Kane responded with knife emojis.

Gator responded by asking if the pretty woman was with them or if she needed to be fed to the gators and then he asked if Italy had alligators.

She's with us, Hunter responded.

She's too pretty to get messy.That was all Gator said and Hunter had to assume he'd take care of business.

Make your moves in two minutes.Hunter scanned the area, keeping his eyes open for Hamid Saeed as Hunter approached the container. "Clark, search the man's pockets for ID and also any phones."

The cannoli mascot was now up and his oversized white stuffed hands were trying to give Hunter the middle finger, but he only had four fingers, so it was a little difficult. He settled on the traditional Italian F-U sign with his arms. Suze gasped and shoved him backward, sending the cannoli stumbling into a woman holding two cups of gelato. Augie's big hands landed right on the woman's breasts. The woman in turn, shoved the frozen treats into the very small eye holes and screamed.

The "drunk" fight between the two men was forgotten as everyone turned to see the woman pull back her leg and kick the cream right out of that cannoli.

"I got a phone and a badge. It says he's working concessions," Clark said. "I saw a crime show where they used the dead guy's face to open the phone and look, it worked."

Hunter took the phone and went straight to the open tabs. Nothing. Next, he went to the contacts list. There was only one phone number listed. He was about to send the number to his contact to see if they could identify the owner of the number when a text message popped up from that number.

Ten minutes until the American delegation walks and then we leave. Is everything clear?Hunter read the text that was written in Arabic before responding that everything was clear.

"We have ten minutes," Hunter said, sending out a text to the others telling them to go on the takedown, to reply to any text from the unknown number, and then to evacuate.

Kane responded with a middle finger emoji.

Dalton sent a GIF from the movie Armageddon, where the astronaut was riding a nuclear weapon.

"Mr. and Mrs. Bell, you need to leave now," Hunter pleaded.

"We're not leaving without our children," Suze said in a tone that left no room for argument. Hunter thought she sounded remarkably similar to how Lydia had back at the church.

"Then go get them and get the hell out of here so I can focus on dismantling four bombs."

Clark cocked his head and looked around as if he were thinking. "'Then we leave.' That's what you said was in the text, right?" Hunter nodded. "Then the person who can set off those bombs is here. We just have to find him."

"I'll give you five minutes to get Maggie and Gage. But then I want you to leave. Deal?"

Suze patted his cheek. "Such a nice boy. Now, go take a look at that bomb. We'll see you soon."

They walked off hand in hand and it wasn't until Kane called his phone that Hunter realized the Bells hadn't agreed to anything.

"What?" Hunter asked as he answered.

"I have eyes on the bomb. It's an ANFO with a cell phone acting as the blasting cap attached to cast boosters by wires. There are enough cast boosters here to light the ANFO into the next century."

"Hold on. Let me see." Hunter walked around the table and into the storage container. "How did you get into the container?"

"Hidden lever top left corner."

Hunter felt around and then pushed the small metal piece he felt. The door unlocked and Hunter was able to pry it open and slip inside. He paused and took a deep breath. This was a lot of ANFO. Just one of these would be detrimental, but four? Four was a statement. There would be nothing left of the stadium. Everyone and everything would burn.

"Disarm or evacuate?" Kane asked right as Hunter got a call from Gator.

Hunter merged the calls.

"This pretty lady looks madder than a wet hen. What do you need me to do?" Gator asked.

"Have everyone call on video. I'm going to walk you through disarming the bombs." Hunter hung up and began an examination of the bomb. Bombs didn't need to be complex to be deadly. This was fuel and fertilizer with a cell phone. Yet, it could kill everyone here.

"What do we do?" Dalton asked once Hunter had everyone on video.

"You need something to cut the wires. A very sharp knife will do."

Suddenly a huge hunting knife was on the screen as Skeeter handed it to Elizabeth. "I never leave home without it."

"How did you get a knife in here?" she asked.

"I put it under my hat. They never wave those wands over your head."

Skeeter had a point.

Kane and Dalton were soon ready and Hunter held the camera to the device. "There are two ways to detonate this kind of bomb. A timer, which we don't have here, or a command detonation. That means someone has to call this cell phone to detonate the bomb. There are two ways to disarm it too. Get the people who will call the bombs or cut the wires. We're going to cut the wires."

"There's several wires," Dalton pointed out. "Which do we cut?"

"We're doing this down and dirty. Cut them all at the same time," Hunter instructed.

"That doesn't seem very safe. Shouldn't it be a specific wire?" Elizabeth asked.

"Not in this case. If it were a timer, it would be different. Here, the only thing that will set it off is if this cell phone rings so cut the wires."

Hunter slid the knife he'd gotten from the vendor under the wires and took hold.

"Well, that was easy. I'm kind of disappointed," Gator muttered.

"Take the cell phones with you. Now, let's find the person holding the switch."