Mom slips her hand from underneath mine and moves my tank top aside. Blood flows freely from her stomach, and nausea climbs up my throat. She holds my hand, her grip tight despite her blood-slicked fingers.
“Remember what I said in the car, okay? I love you.”
I bite my lip to hold in the sob as I feel her lifeblood spilling from her and coating my knees.
“I love you too, Mom.”
“My sweet girl. I need you to do one more thing, okay?”
I nod several times, my gaze darting between her eyes. “Anything.”
“Find Auntie Sloan and tell her it’s time.”
“I-I don’t understand.”
“She’ll know. Just tell her. It’s important.” Mom brings my hand to her mouth and places a single kiss on my palm before she curls my fingers over it.
Something inside me fractures then. How cruel is this world where the only affection I can remember my mom freely giving is while she’s bleeding out in the middle of some rundown, crumbling building?
I squeeze my fingers into my palm hard enough to feel the bite of my nails into my skin.
I curl my torso over her, tears dripping from my eyes to land on her chest. Her chest that’s rising and falling slowly—too slowly.
I nod frantically. “Of course. I’ll find her right away.”
Mom exhales. It’s an awful sort of sound, wet and foreboding.
Cold sweat breaks out all over my body, and I feel paralyzed with fear. I can’t get her down three flights and out into safety by myself. I need help.
I need someone to help me!
Her gaze darts over my shoulder, and a small smile curls up the corners of her lips.
My shoulders tense, but a quick glance over my shoulder settles my fear that Liam or anyone else is behind me.
“Oh, Aidan. I’ve missed you,” she whispers, still staring over my shoulder. Goosebumps skitter across my spine and my sinuses burn.
“Mom? Mom, look at me.”
She looks at me then, a single tear sliding down her temple and a smile on her face, her eyes sparkling. “Your father’s here now. He’s come to take me home, but it’s not your time, Lainey. So, you need to leave.”
“Wh-what?” I whip my head behind me. No one is there.
“It’s not your time, Lainey. But it is mine, and I’m ready. Find Auntie Sloane.” Another tear slides down her face, but her smile never leaves her lips.
The floor rumbles and a crash sounds in the hallway, stealing my attention from my mother for a single moment. When I look back, my mother’s gaze is still upon me.
But there’s no life shining from behind her hazel eyes.
There’s no life inside her at all.
I stand up in one violent motion. My breaths come fast and heavy, my adrenaline all but tapped out. I scrape my fingers through my hair as I spin around, taking in my surroundings.
The fire from the first floor crawls along the entire side of the building, visible through the broken walls. Wreckage from the building lies all around me, intermingled with the broken dreams of a girl who just wanted to be loved.
They stole that from me. From her.
I tilt my head back, clenched fists, and muscles taut. And I scream.
I scream out the injustice of it all. I mourn over what was and what could have been. I lament my heartbreak over my official orphanhood.
I expel my grief into the summer sun until the only thing left is rage.
Muscles trembling and tears rolling down my cheeks, I make a promise to myself that I will have my vengeance.
And I will wreak havoc on everyone who had a hand in the destruction of the girl I used to be.
I was remade in the cabin in the woods. And I’ve been forged in this fire. And like a phoenix, I will rise anew.
Chapter Three
Wolf
I cross the threshold with my brother, and heatwaves greet us. Not enough to make the space impassable, but enough that I know we need an alternate exit.
The fire to the right of us is manageable for now, but fires are unpredictable, and it could race across this space in two minutes flat.
We pause, shoulder to shoulder, both of us scanning the area for our girl. I look for her shock of red hair in the smoky air that’s filling up the space. I glance at Rush just as he turns his head to look at me, both of us able to communicate without words what our next step is.
A perk of growing up and spending most of our waking hours together, I guess.
With the fire to the right of us, we head toward the staircase, wading through all the pieces of the broken building littering the floor. It’s not until my foot is on the first stair that I notice it.
“Oh, fuck. Look.” I tip my head toward the top of the staircase. The one that’s not fully attached to the second-floor landing.
“Goddamnit,” Rush grits through clenched teeth.
I blow out a breath and take the steps two at a time. My brother is hot on my heels, and we both jump over the broken and missing stairs. When we get to the stair third from the top, I look over my shoulder at him.
“It’ll be just like that Indiana Jones movie.”
“I’m more worried about how we’re going to get down. Now jump, asshole. I don’t like the way the floor is swaying,” Rush says as he looks around.
I focus on the staircase—or lack thereof—in front of me and run the last three steps before leaping across the gap and landing on the floating platform.
I hear Rush land right behind me, but I keep my momentum going and jog up the second flight of stairs. We reach the third-floor landing when the building groans, and part of the roof crumbles, landing with a deafening thump.
We cover our heads out of instinct, and it takes me a moment to realize that my ears are ringing.
Yet, somehow through that, I still hear it.
A sound filled with such sorrow and grief that the world pauses to listen. And for a single moment, my heart seizes in fear. But when my soul aches, I know it’s Red. She’s the one pouring her grief into the atmosphere.
I don’t know what it means, only that the alternative is much, much worse.
Rush and I run down the hallway, glancing through the half-collapsed walls, searching for our missing piece. We follow the sound of her anguish and find her in the middle of a room.
Head tipped back and fists clenched, hair wild and whipping around her in the breeze, blood coating her hands, clothes, and legs.
Raw and vulnerable, like she’s shedding her exterior to let everyone see the tangled mess of pain she is on the inside.
She’s never looked more beautiful.
I get to her a second before Rush does. I reach out to snag her hand, and she doesn’t even startle. Red opens her eyes and looks right at me when I tug her into me.
As if someone pulled a plug on a drain, she deflates against my chest, all the fight leaving her in an instant. Rush steps in close behind her, effectively holding her up.
I slide my free hand into her hair and hold her against my chest as she curls her fingers around the fabric of my tee.
My gaze goes over Red’s shoulder to the body next to her. Lana lies on the ground next to Red, eyes open and chest still. Fuck.
“As much as I want to stay like this forever, we gotta go, baby girl. We can’t stay in here,” I murmur into her hair, flicking my gaze around the open space.
I feel vulnerable as fuck, and I can’t tell if it’s because the whole goddamn building is threatening to collapse, or because the fuck that led my girl here is still lurking somewhere, or because my girl is fragile right now and my fierce desire to protect her is overwhelming on the best of days.
As if the universe is listening, the building rumbles again. Not big enough for me really to start losing my shit, but enough that I know we need to leave now. While we still can.
Urgency slams against my ribs, and I reluctantly push away from my girl. Her eyes are wide and bloodshot, but she’s still here. She hasn’t gone
into shock yet.
“Okay, Wolf. But I’m not leaving her.” Red nods to Lana.
I know I’m not some expert on parent stuff, but this whole situation leaves a bad taste in my mouth—rancid and sour. I don’t know what the hell really happened between them, but we don’t have time for a Q and A right now.
I nod a few times and step back. Red spins to hug Rush, and after a moment, he pulls away to take off his dark gray tee and pull it over Red’s head. He whispers something to her as he helps her put her arms in the sleeves, but it’s too low for me to hear. Bending at my knees, I scoop up Lana—my would-be stepmother and maybe even my one-day mother-in-law.
Her body is still warm, but her blood is starting to coagulate. It’s cool against my tee, and I’m reminded again why I usually prefer black. Easier to conceal bloodstains.
I’m not sure if I’ll ever get used to the feeling of carrying around a dead body—not that I make it too much of a habit. There’s a reason people use the term dead weight. It’s accurate as fuck. Stiff enough so she’s hard to maneuver and heavy enough that I can’t carry her easily.
“I think I saw a back staircase at the end of the hall,” Rush says. I follow behind him and Red, adjusting my hold on Lana, so she’s now in bridal-style.
For as familiar as I am with death and dead bodies, I’m not sure anything could’ve prepared me for the feeling of carrying the body of my girl’s ma—estranged or not.
Old feelings of abandonment and rejection threaten to climb up my throat, but I shove those fuckers down where they belong. Red’s an orphan now, but she doesn’t need parents to have a family.
We’re her fucking family now.
A tornado of emotions swirls around, and I can’t pin down a single one. I’m trying to conjure feelings of sorrow for the woman in my arms, but from what I’ve seen and learned, I’m not sure she deserves it.
With my eyes on Red in front of me, I realize that’s not my call to make. My throat tightens, and I realize with a jolt that I’m not used to this foreign feeling creeping up my throat. Worry.
I’m fucking terrified for Red.
Not only because some creepy fuck is after her, but she just watched her ma die not too long after she realized her da was dead. And I’m fucking worried about what that’s going to do to my girl’s emotional state.
Rush leads us to a stairwell at the back of the building—the side not already collapsed. This high up, the hot breeze swirls around us, sending heat from the fire and dust from the broken concrete into the air. The effect creates a mini-tornado, and I pray to whatever god is listening that it doesn’t turn into an actual fire tornado. I saw that shit on a video once, and it was horrifying.
We make it to the second-floor landing before we encounter a problem.
“Fuck.” Rush rakes his hand through his hair.
Three steps are blown out, leaving a substantial hole in the staircase. And unlike the situation with the other staircase, jumping down in the middle of this staircase is a lot harder than jumping above with a landing.
“Well, shit. Rush, hold Lana. I’ll jump first.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Rush says over his shoulder. “I’ll go first. Then Alaina. Then you’ll hand Lana to us, and then you’ll jump.”
“We’re wasting time.” Red looks between us, her fingers tapping an irregular rhythm against her thigh.
Rush looks from her to me as he climbs the few stairs until he’s at the far edge of the landing. Red and I move to the side, so Rush has a clear path. He runs down the stairs and leaps over the hole. The toe of his sneaker misses the edge of the stair by a hair, and he pitches to the side, the metal railing catching him in the ribs and shoulder. His hands reach out and grip the railing, stopping him from falling.
“Jesus, Dec!” Red yells. Her hands shoot out into the air as if she’s trying to help him.
“I’m fine. I’m fine.” Rush waves a hand in the air as he takes huge gulps of air and spins around to face us. “C’mon, baby, your turn. I’ll catch you, okay?”
Red backs up to the top of the stairs, biting her lip the whole way. Before she moves, she looks at me. “You sure you’re okay with Mom?”
“I’m fine, Red. Now jump, and let Rush catch you, okay?”
She nods and backs up another few steps, so she’s standing on the far edge of the landing like Rush did. The building groans and I hear what sounds like another wall collapsing, sending tremors along the wall I’m leaning on. Sweat beads on my brow and I bring up my shoulder to wipe it off.
Red runs down the stairs and leaps over the hole, landing perfectly in Rush’s arms. He’s braced against the railing, one foot on the stair below him for balance.
“Good girl.” Rush kisses the top of her hair before he lets her go.
I bite my lip as I think about the logistics. The missing stairs are simply too big to toss Lana over—there’s no guarantee gravity won’t work against us and take her down to the floor below.
So, I do the only thing I can think of on limited time. I back up to the landing and readjust the hold I have on her, so she’s over my shoulder. It’s not the most dignified, but I don’t have the option of being picky. And I think Red’ll forgive me.
I run down the stairs and launch myself over the gap, catching Red’s gasp and Rush’s curse as I land on the stair below them. I can’t slow my momentum enough, and I’m not trying to break my ankle, so I ride it out and run the rest of the way until the landing.
“What the fuck, Wolf? You could’ve gotten seriously hurt.”
“Ah, but I didn’t. Let’s move. I’ve got a bad feeling about this.” I continue down the stairs to the first floor landing, Red and Rush hot on my heels.
We make it to the first-floor without incident unless you count the shaking floors, walls crumbling, and growing fire an incident. Urgency pushes at me, and it only increases when I hear the ear-piercing sirens so close. They must be in front now.
I spy an emergency exit next to the stairwell, and I kick the door open before I stride outside. A gust of hot air greets me, and even if it feels like I’m breathing in hell, it’s fresher than the smoky dust shit from inside. I adjust my hold on Lana, so I’m carrying her bridal-style again, doing my best to ignore the way her blood has soaked the left shoulder of my shirt.
I inhale as I walk away from the building, looking over my shoulder to make sure Red is behind me. Rush quickly takes the lead, and Red moves next to me, none of us speaking.
“Oh my god—Maddie!” Red stops, her mouth falling open.
“She was out front when we came. She’s fine. C’mon, little bird, we can’t stay here,” Rush says as he places a hand on her lower back, nudging her to move. He leads us around the side of the building that’s not on fire. Still, we all give the building a wide berth as we walk around it in the narrow space between this building and another abandoned factory.
I eye the factory to the right of us and then look to the warehouse we just left, apprehension skittering along my spine.
“Let’s pick up the pace, yeah? I don’t like how close these walls are.” I raise my voice. The sirens are nearly deafening from right here.
Rush looks above, and I can tell from the tension in his shoulders that he just realized what I did. If the exterior wall comes down in pieces, the likelihood of either getting trapped or crushed is high.
“Aye. I can hear voices up ahead.”
“How can you hear anything over the sirens?” Red clamps her hands over her ears as she keeps pace with Rush.
Finally, we clear the building and walk into the street. A dozen firefighters and cops greet us.
A pair of EMTs run toward us with twin looks of concern on their faces. “Jesus. We didn’t think anyone was in there! Are you guys okay?”
Behind us, firefighters shout directions to one another, and someone shuts off the siren, but they leave the lights on. Blue and red lights flash across Red’s face, but her gaze never strays from mine.
“Where
’s Sully?” she asks, turning her head from side to side. “And Maddie.”
“Sir, I need to take her now,” the female EMT says as she walks in front of my face, blocking my view of Red.
Anxiety gnaws on my nerves and crawls underneath my skin. I shift to the side to keep Red in my line of sight. I know my brother is around, and he’ll protect her—I know that—but I can’t stop the feeling from swelling inside my chest, making it hard to breathe.
The EMT moves so her face is right in front of mine again. “Sir, she needs medical attention.”
“She’s already gone,” I murmur, craning my neck around the EMT’s face, so Red stays in my line of sight. Some of the anxiety calms when I see Rush within an arm’s reach, but I know I won’t be able to take a breath until she’s within my reach.
“Sir, please. I really need to examine her. There’s . . . a lot of blood.”
I refocus on the EMT, giving her my full attention. Whatever she sees on my face has her taking a half step backward. Can she feel the fear and worry and rage warring inside me? I haven’t even begun to process the shit that just happened—and I haven’t forgotten that Red went in guns blazing without us either.
She’s going to give me premature grays, and that’s saying something considering my line of work.
I let the EMT and her partner take Lana from my arms, never taking my eyes off of Red as she talks to another EMT. “Wait here, kid. I’ll be back to check you out.”
A cop walks into my line of sight, chest puffed out and eyes narrowed. “Wanna tell me what you were doing in that building, son?”
I glare at him. “I’m not your son.” The words are low.
The cop steps closer to me, close enough for me to read the shiny badge. The scent of body odor and stale coffee wafts off him in waves as the sun beats down on us. “What did you just say to me?”
His pathetic attempt at intimidation only irritates me. I relax my stance, letting my hands drop to my side and ignoring the way my blood-soaked shirt sticks to my skin. I glare at him like the obstacle he is. “I said I’m not your fucking son. And I don’t have time for this. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
Sully: An Irish Mafia Romance (The Brotherhood Book 3) Page 2
