Chapter 19
Great. Now everyone knows what just happened. I even announced that Beast is the King of Orgasms. Could I have been any more obvious?
I clear my throat, trying to dislodge the idiocy.
Beast glares at everyone and they scurry, taking off into the rain, running to the trucks. Before I die of mortification, I’m jerked into motion, and then I’m suddenly jogging.
Beast has my wrist clamped in his oversized hand. If I didn’t know what was pulling me, I’d swear I was hooked to a team of horses. The man is as strong as a locomotive.
He picks me up and shoves me into the back seat of a black truck before climbing in beside me. As the engine roars to life, Belle glances back at me from the front passenger seat.
I reach for her arm. “You okay?”
She nods tightly, but her pale skin tells me she’s feeling as upset as I am.
I sit back and watch Beast methodically pulling gear from his bag. A respirator. Gloves. Glasses. An ammo clip.
Talk about boy scouts. These guys are prepared.
He pops something into his mouth.
“Is that your radio system?”
“It is.”
“Aren’t you afraid you’ll swallow it?”
He smirks as he fills his pockets with medical supplies. “It clips onto one of my back teeth.”
“Fancy.”
His eyes flash to me. A silent pulse of heat reverberates between us.
I clear my throat, with burning cheeks, I try to focus on the rain, but every exhale he makes causes my skin to tingle.
I need to stick my head outside to cool off before I start smoking up the inside.
Beast squeezes my thigh. I turn to look at him just as Evan calls out from the driver’s seat. “Where are we leaving the ladies?”
“With the rescue command center.”
“Can’t we help?” I ask and earn myself a fierce scowl.
“It’s not safe. You’re not digging. Since I can’t keep an eye on you, I want you to stay with the oversight team.”
“But—”
He cuts me off as he drags me across the seat toward him. “Don’t argue. I need my head in the game. I can’t be worried about you. Someone’s life is at risk right now.”
“I could help…”
“Yes, you can. By doing what I say.”
The town is not far away. After bumping over the broken dirt road for a few minutes, Evan parks next to a cluster of rescue vehicles. As we pile out, a man passes Beast’s team yellow hard hats.
Thankfully, the rain is just a drizzle now. Belle and I stand to the side as other men join Beast and his team. There’s a mix of young local men and some strong-looking members of other aid organizations too.
Everyone”s faces are masks of grim determination.
There’s a hush over the whole area. The only sound is the bark of a rescue dog somewhere within the crumbling structure.
Beast meets my gaze through his clear protective lenses. “Stay here. I want you as close as you can be to the supervisor of the earthquake team. I’ll be back.”
My eyes prick with tears. I grab his arm. “Please be safe.”
“Will do my best.”
His gaze falls to my hand. The skin on his arm goosebumps below my fingertips.
When he looks up and meets my eyes, his expression has gone stone-cold. “If anything happens to me and my team, you need to promise me you’ll take your staff and leave. Get to a safer area as quickly as you can. Don’t fuck around with local security, it could go badly.”
A shuddering breath rushes out of me. “Don’t talk like that.”
“You don’t know their motivations.”
I shake my head. “I was talking about you. Don’t talk about anything happening to you.”
“Remember. Stay with the supervisor.”
He glances at the remains of the stone and concrete building. It was an old building, like most of those in Santa Rosa. There are mountains of broken rubbish everywhere.
A rush of fear chills my insides.
I squeeze his arm one more time, feeling the strong, steady rhythm of his pulse. He’s not even afraid.
“I’ll be waiting.”
He takes in my features, tracing his gaze over me quickly, then pulls away.
“Let’s get this done,” he tells his men.
As a group, they stalk toward the building. A member of the extraction team waves eagerly for them to follow.
Whew. I don’t know how long I’ve been holding my breath, but I feel woozy. My insides are trembling. I’m scared stiff for them.
Belle nudges my shoulder. “I can’t believe they’re just going in there without any special training.”
“Maybe they’ve done it before.” I say a silent prayer. “I’m sure the experts know how to use volunteers like them.”
We watch in silence as Beast, Justice, Evan, Scout, and Truck, climb over a treacherous area. They move fluidly. Quickly, but carefully. One by one, they clamber over a narrow pile of debris and disappear behind a broken concrete wall.
I shiver and lean against Belle. “They’re so brave. I hope they save whoever is stuck and come back in one piece.”
I’m still in the same place an hour later when I hear my name.
“Camile!”
It’s our FamFind guys making their way slowly up the uneven road using the beam of a flashlight to guide their way.
Brian’s winded and damp with perspiration when he reaches us. “We came to help.”
I frown at them. “It’s a little late. They’ve been in there for a long time now.”
They glance between themselves.
Hm. Weird. Were they avoiding helping?
“What have you been doing?”
“We stopped by the trucks to check on things, and while we were there, we went through all the things that were damaged by the fire.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Damn. I forgot to look for some wooden crates with blue straps. Ralph asked about them.”
Pembrook makes a sour face as he wipes his sweaty forehead with the back of his arm. “They’re not toast, but they ain’t good.”
“As in?” I prompt as a ball of lead settles in my stomach.
He shrugs and holds up his palms. “Burnt pretty bad, but still holding together.”
“What’s in them?” Belle asks as she takes a seat on a rock. She stretches her legs out and moans. “Sorry, my feet are killing me from standing so much today.”
I shift on my feet. I’m tired too, but I feel guilty sitting down while the men are digging. I don’t share this with Belle, because I don’t blame her for wanting to rest. It could be a long night.
I try to refocus on the conversation and not on the unease that’s gnawing at me. “What’s in the crates?”
Brian fidgets with his hat. He’s nervous about something. His stress is in his tone too. “They have weird labels. Just some symbols. Our company logo is on the side. I was actually wondering why you had them loaded.”
I stiffen and glance at Belle. “I didn’t have them loaded.”
She harrumphs. Her forehead creases as she looks at the three of us. “Who did, then?”
I wrack my brain for the loading roster. It’s my job to know exactly what’s deployed, used, and returned. The financial documentation falls on me.
“I thought they were on the regular supply list.”
“Oh, that kind of box is always on the truck.” Pembrook scratches at his head and studies the toes of his boot. “You know, come to think of it, I’ve never opened one that looks like that. I’ve seen them, but I’ve never actually used what’s in them. Never needed what’s inside. I guess William used to request them.”
His last remark makes me perk up. William is the man I replaced. I never met him, but I have a file on him.
“What would William have wanted in the inventory that is different from what we normally use?”
“Good question.” Belle looks up at the night sky as she thinks. “I’ve never thought about that?—”
A voice crackles over a nearby radio. “Command, come in. Over.”
Everyone freezes and spins toward the speaker sitting on a nearby table.
The call comes through again. “Command, this is Rescue Unit Three. Can you hear me? Over.”
A man wearing a white hard hat and a blue jumpsuit rushes to the earthquake team’s tent. It’s the supervisor that Beast pointed out earlier. He hunkers down in front of a complex-looking communication system.
My insides squeeze.
Please let it be good news.
“Command here. Proceed with SITREP, Unit Three. Over.”
“There’s been a collapse. Multiple injuries. Minor and serious. Requesting the medics STAT. Over.”