Page 95 of Lethal Game

She felt a wave of overwhelming despair.

Then she saw a shoe in the hallway, next to a guestroom. It was a man's loafer, like the ones her father always wore. It could have been left by a guest. Or…

Her father had told her he would try to leave a clue.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

"The shoe," Alisa cried out, pointing to the screen. "That's my father's shoe. Jason needs to get in that room. That's where the bomb is."

Kyle gave her a sharp look, then got on the radio, relaying the message to Jason.

She watched on the monitor as Jason backtracked. Savannah also came into view from the other end of the hallway.

The door was locked.

Jason kicked it open and ran into the room with Savannah behind him.

"What's happening now?" she asked in frustration as they disappeared.

Kyle's hands flew across the keyboard as he picked up the feed from the bodycam on Jason's vest.

"VP is here," Jason said at the same time they saw the vice president strapped in a chair.

The older man was panicked, his face red and blotchy, as he cried out for help.

As Savannah ran forward to cut him loose, Jason's camera turned to the man lying on the ground in a suicide vest.

She clapped a hand to her mouth. "That's my dad. Is hedead? Is he dead?" she cried out, knowing Jason couldn't hear her.

She watched him put his fingers on her father's neck.

"He's alive, but he's unconscious," Jason said, then carefully unzipped the vest to reveal the timer on the bomb, which was at ten minutes, twelve seconds. "We need to disarm the device fast. I need a tech now."

Commands barked across the radio. The nearest tech was on the second floor. It would take several minutes for him to get there. That was too long.

"The code," she said suddenly, her father's words ringing through her head. He'd told her the code just in case. "I have the code, Kyle. My father gave it to me."

Kyle gave her a sharp look. "What is it?"

Her breath was coming so fast she was struggling to breathe, but she had to pull herself together. She was their only chance. "It's 061764032296*#&."

"I have the code," Kyle said into his microphone. "It's from Alisa."

"Go," Jason said.

Kyle relayed each number slowly and precisely as Jason's confident, calm fingers hit the keypad on the timer. Each number ratcheted up her fear.

What if she was wrong? What if she had given him the numbers and symbols in the incorrect order? Would the bomb go off early? Or would he have to try new combinations as the time ticked down?

When Jason punched in the ampersand, her breath caught in her throat. They waited for something to happen, but the clock kept ticking.

Eight minutes, fifteen seconds…

"I don't think that worked," Jason said. "Should I try it in a different combination? Alisa? Are you there?"

"She's here," Kyle said, looking at her.

"That was right," she said, staring at the timer on the screen. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."