Relentless (Colorado Crimes Book 5)

Chapter 14

Natalie was pretty sure she ran into multiple people on her way out of the station, but she didn't care. Their lives were in danger and she needed to figure out a way to stop Santiago.

She picked up her phone to dial Raelyn's number, but an unknown one flashed across her screen and she answered. "Hello?"

"I told you not to tell anyone. I'm watching you."

Natalie shuddered and looked around. She didn't see anyone, but figured he was telling the truth.

"Don't tell anyone and I'll spare the firefighters' lives. For a while at least."

Natalie gripped her phone. This was not good. "You're not going to get away with ruining their lives. I promise."

The line went dead.

Natalie groaned and climbed into her Toyota Corolla.

~~~~~

Noah set out the chicken alfredo and garlic bread. "Food is ready!" He called out.

Like a stampede, he heard the loud stomping of feet all over the station and soon the kitchen was full. Noah backed up and let everyone dig in.

He wasn't really hungry.

He spotted the Captain enter the kitchen. "Hey Captain, grab some food!"

The Captain nodded at Noah. "Looks delish."

Noah's phone rang and he stepped outside to accept the call. The back patio was newly painted and held a gas fire pit and eight deck chairs surrounding it. There was a garden in the yard that some of the female workers liked to tend to when they weren't out fighting fires. "Hello?"

Damon was on the phone. "Hey Noah. I had a question for you."

"Sure, fire away."

"Well it's not really a question, more like a statement." Damon said.

Noah chuckled, "Alright. What is it then?"

Damon blew out a breath. "I heard about you and Natalie."

Noah sunk into one of the deck chairs. So word was getting around. Just great. "Who told you?"

"Raelyn. Her and Natalie are best friends, you know."

"I know."

"Here's the part where I actually had a question."

"Go for it."

"How much did you actually like Natalie?" Damon asked.

Noah shrugged, "Barely at all."

He was a terrible liar.

Damon choked on a cough, "What? Really?"

"No." Noah sighed. "It was really weird I'm telling you. I only knew her for about a few days, maybe two weeks but I was really starting to like her. A lot. She was different from all the other women I've met. And I liked that. But I guess I don't know what to believe anymore since she was lying to me the whole time."

"She had good intentions though." Damon persisted.

"What do you mean? Lying does not mean she had good intentions."

"She didn't want you to know that someone suspected you of handling counterfeit bills because she believed you were innocent-"

Noah pulled the phone away from his ear for a split second. "How did you know that is what I was suspected of?"

Damon didn't reply right away. "Raelyn."

"Oh. Who else knows?" Noah grit his teeth. Why were people talking about him behind his back like this?