He looked out the window at Jack Faulkner and wondered if he should tell him. The earlier text messages weren’t a secret—was there any reason to keep these hidden? He’d probably lose this phone too, but hell, he’d lose it anyway when he got to the police station and they booked him.

Arrested. Michael swallowed. He kept thinking of his brothers, waiting for him to go in front of a judge so he could get them out of that group home. An arrest record would definitely throw a wrench in those plans.

Especially if his new lodging was a jail cell.

His phone vibrated again. Michael stared at the woods. Sweat collected between his shoulder blades despite the arctic chill in the air.

“It’s gotta be him,” Michael said. “He’s f**king with me.”

“Can you break the cuffs?” Tyler said. “Steel comes from the earth, right?”

“I can try.” Michael flexed his wrists against the restraints. The edge bit into his skin, but he used a little power, feeling it out. He could barely get a read on the cuffs. “The more processed something is, the harder it is to manipulate.” He paused and looked at Tyler. “If I break out of here, there’s no coming back from that.”

He’d be a criminal—and he’d have no chance of getting his brothers back.

Tyler looked back at him. “Do you think we’re safe here?”

“I have no idea.”

Tyler glanced at the woods. “What about everyone else?”

The radio in the front seat crackled to life again. A man’s voice, talking about the brush fire, giving orders to survey the scene.

Then a woman’s voice responding, agreeing to check the woods.

Michael froze. “That’s Hannah.”

“Your girlfriend?”

Michael didn’t even respond to him. He threw power into the cuffs, and though they flexed from the tension, they didn’t break. He kicked the door, trying to get the fire marshal’s attention.

Marshal Faulkner looked over, but didn’t stop his conversation with the police officer.

Michael kicked the door again, then slammed his shoulder into the window. “Stop her!” he called. “You have to stop her from going into the woods!”

The man looked aggrieved. He opened the door. “What was that?”

“Hannah,” said Michael. “She’s going in the woods. You need to stop her.”

Jack’s expression tightened, but he didn’t move. “Why?”

Michael gave another pull on the handcuffs. The steel gave a little, bending under the pressure. “Whoever started these fires is hiding in the woods. Stop her.”

If anything, the fire marshal looked exasperated. “There are cops in those woods, Mike. They haven’t found—”

“Damn it, listen to me.” Michael swung his legs out of the car. “You need to—”

His feet hit the ground, and he stopped short. He could feel the potential for danger again, even from here. They were all in danger. Not just him and Tyler—everyone here, on the scene.

Bring anyone who makes you feel comfortable.

This guy didn’t have a problem killing cops and firefighters.

“I need to what?” said Marshal Faulkner.

“Stop her. Them. All of them. Whoever is in the woods. Right now.”

“Mike. I’m telling you the police are already searching the woods, and there’s no one there.” His eyes narrowed. “What happened? You’ve been in the car for fifteen minutes. What else do you know?”

“You know they’re not just after me,” Michael said, his voice low. He pulled at the cuffs again. The steel flexed a bit more, but not enough for him to slide his hands free. “You know they’ve threatened Hannah, too. You need to get her out of the woods.”

Jack held his eyes for a moment longer, and then he reached into the front of the vehicle to grab his radio.

Michael kept his feet on the ground. The earth practically trembled with possibility. If his brothers were here, he had no doubt they’d be able to sense more through the other elements.

His phone vibrated in his pocket again.

A gun fired somewhere behind the house. The fire marshal swore and dropped beside his open door. The radio went crazy with reports and requests for assistance.

Shots fired.

“Fire,” said Tyler. “He’s trapping them with fire, too.”

“Hannah!” Michael flexed his wrists, throwing more strength into it. Almost—almost . .

“This’ll hurt,” said Tyler. “Brace yourself, Merrick.”

“What? What are—” Then Michael cried out. The handcuffs were burning, searing into his skin.

Another gunshot fired behind the house.

The cuffs snapped. Michael ignored the shouts behind him. He ran.

CHAPTER 22

As soon as he crossed the tree line, the woods turned into a war zone. The underbrush blazed with fire, creating a dense covering of smoke, hiding everyone from view. Random gunshots fired, and Michael pressed his back against a tree, getting low, trying to orient himself.

Too many people crowded the woods now, and he couldn’t get a grasp on who was an ally and who remained an enemy.

He knew Hannah was out here, though, and right this second, that’s all that mattered.

His cell phone vibrated in his pocket again, and Michael jerked it free. Half a dozen messages were lit up on the preview screen.

His eyes read them each in quick succession.