Goodnight, Sinners (PAPERBACK)

An explosion shook the building.
Though they’d fought their own personal battle, the war still raged on the floors below them.
Shaun tried to blink the dust away, then realized it was catching in her eyelashes. Drywall, plaster and pulverized stone were floating in the air, coating everything around them.
“Jozef,” she croaked, rubbing her eyes. “We have to go.”
He was sitting next to his uncle’s body, a look of shell-shocked despair on his face.
He looked at her, and for a moment she doubted he recognized her.
“We have to go,” she urged again.
He shook his head and a cloud of dust lifted from his hair. His expression hardened as he gave a quick, decisive nod. He pushed to his feet and signed at her as he strode to her side.
She blinked again, trying to clear her vision enough to see what he was saying.
“No,” she said, moving away from his reaching hands. “I’m not going back into the safe room.”
He growled and moved toward her, his intent clear.
“I’m going with you,” she said stubbornly. “I’ve worked in battle zones. You have to trust that I can do this. I know how to stay out of the way and let the soldiers work. I just want to help.”
When he still looked indecisive, she snapped, “My mother could be bleeding out on the floor somewhere in this building. You’re taking me with you.”
He gave a curt nod and signed, you stay behind me and listen to every word I say.
“Yes, I will.”
Jozef grabbed a bulletproof vest from a hidden cubby behind the TV and thrust it over Shaun’s head, securing the straps against her sides. It felt strangely heavy, but it also gave her a feeling of security.