Page 82 of Shadow Redemption
“I guess you drew the short straw for the first guard shift.” Ruth wrapped both hands around her tea mug.
“Nothing I do to protect you is a problem.” Ben led Ruth to the couch and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. After grabbing the remote, he channel surfed until he found a baseball game and turned the volume down low. When Ruth finished her tea, he tucked her close to his side, her head resting on his chest. “Relax for a few minutes while we watch the game.”
“I’ll probably fall asleep,” she murmured.
“If you do, I’ll carry you to your bedroom.” After he had a chance to hold her for a while. He craved the feel of her in his arms.
“You love showing off those amazing muscles.”
He chuckled. “Caught me. Push everything else out of your mind and be in this moment with me.”
Ben focused on the game, banking on his body heat to lull Ruth to sleep. Within minutes, Ruth was limp in his arms. He settled deeper into the couch as he watched the Rangers trounce the Dodgers.
An hour later, he lifted Ruth into his arms and carried her to her bed. After tucking her in with a light kiss to her forehead, he left, leaving the door cracked in case she had another nightmare.
Taking up his watch at the French doors, he listened to the progression of the game while he scanned for trouble and considered what was likely to come. Davidson would come if he wasn’t already circling.
By the time Trace arrived for his shift, Ben still didn’t like the odds. Him facing danger was one thing. He didn’t want Ruth in the line of fire. She meant too much to him.
“Ruth’s been okay?” Trace asked softly.
“So far.”
“Good. Rest, Ben. I’ve got this.”
He stretched out on the couch, closed his eyes, and dropped off to sleep.
Some time later, an alarm blared in the hallway. Ben frowned and swung his feet to the floor. “The fire alarm.”
“I’ll check it out,” Trace said, heading to the door as Sam and Joe entered the living room, weapons in their hands. Sam had her mike bag slung over her shoulder. “Stay here.”
Ben knocked on Ruth’s door and eased it open. “Ruth, wake up.”
“What’s wrong?”
“The fire alarm is going off.”
She gasped. “The hotel’s on fire?”
“Trace is checking. We stay in place until he tells us if this is legitimate.”
“I’ll be right there.”
By the time she walked into the living room, Trace was back, his expression grim. “Looks legit. Smoke’s pouring from the laundry room on the ground floor on the east side of the building. Hotel guests are evacuating and the fire department is en route.”
Joe frowned. “I still don’t like it. Could be a trap.”
A knock sounded on the door.
Trace peered through the peephole and opened the door for Nico.
“Sit rep.” He scowled when Trace told him what he’d learned. “We’ll evacuate, but stay alert for trouble.”
In the hallway, Ben steered Ruth toward the back stairwell, away from guests streaming toward the front stairwell.
“Why aren’t we following everyone else?” she whispered.
“If this is a setup, we’ll be expected to follow the crowd. We don’t want to make the trap easier to spring.” He stepped into the stairwell first to check for threats. Satisfied for the moment, Ben tugged Ruth into the dimly lit interior.