Trickster [Aidan Hunter series book 1]

Chapter 10

Louis looked at the bomb. "Oh, shit."

"Can you defuse it?" I asked.

"Let me see. Get it off him first."

I carefully removed the bag from David's shoulders. Louis had brought a small toolkit with him, from which he took out a pair of wire cutters.

I glanced at Henry. "Take him to Martin. His safety takes precedence."

He nodded. The child clung onto his water bottle as he took my partner's hand. While making his way out, Henry carried the child in his arms.

"Be careful," he said before leaving.

"I will," I replied.

Louis observed the bomb, delicately handling the wires. The timer had reached two minutes and forty seconds. I watched intently, my pulse racing. I wasn't keen on getting blown to bits.

Outside the window, I saw David running into Martin's arms, who picked him up and hugged him tight with a sigh of relief. He then handed his son to the care of the two officers who accompanied him. He also checked on the other children, making sure they were safe as well.

I brought my attention back to the bomb. I was happy we could defuse it, but it seemed too easy. The Trickster usually liked to make things complicated, and would most likely have predicted that we'd stop the bomb. Maybe there was more to this.

"What do you see?" I asked.

"Well... Cutting off the power supply should do the trick."

"I don't suppose it's the red wire."

"It doesn't matter what wire it is. I only have to disrupt the circuitry. No power. No explosion. I just need to make sure it doesn't have a secondary timer or a second blast cap that would set it off."

"Great. What if this thing has a detonator?" I asked. "Who's to say the Trickster or someone won't detonate it right here?"

Louis looked at me. "Well, there's a high possibility of that happening."

"So, I guess we need to—"

Henry's yell sounded outside. "Get down!"

An abrupt barrage of gunfire ensued. Louis and I ducked as bullets shattered the windows of the bus and ricocheted off its metal walls. Shards of broken glass fell to our feet. Louis protected the bomb, lest a bullet hit it.

I spotted four black SUVs outside, each with about five gunmen standing near them, armed with machine guns. We barely had time to react.

"We need to go!" I yelled.

We kept our heads down as we ran out of the bus. Martin and the others were nearby, using nearby cars for cover, while Louis and I stayed near the bus. It was the only thing protecting us from the gunfire, but I doubted it would last long.

Broken glass crunched under my heel. Bullets ripped through the bus, peppering it with holes. I cowered every time one of them hit too close. I checked on the others. Henry was nearby, nodding to let me know he was okay.

On the streets, panicky civilians screamed as they ran to safety. Some of the vehicles in the vicinity tried to escape and ended up colliding into each other, while others managed to escape.

"We need to get the detonator," Louis said. "If there is one."

"There should be," I replied. "He won't let us go that easy."

"Wait, what detonator?" Henry asked.

"I don't know. We have to find it," I said.

He stood, shot down a couple of gunmen in his line of sight, then ducked again. "Something tells me the Trickster has it."