CHAPTER 12 - BRYNN
Injuries be damned.
The moment I hear fire, I leap to my feet and rush past Sarah, ignoring Grizz roaring my name. I can barely make out his voice because my mind is screaming so much louder.
Find Jovie!
Where is Jovie!
Nothing else matters as I shove through the staff door and out into the loading bay, heat and smoke slapping me in the face.
It shocks me for a second and I gasp, sucking in a breath of thick, putrid smog.
It claws at my throat and I cough hard, fighting a wave of vomit but continuing to stumble toward the stairs.
“Fuck!” Grizz curses behind me, followed by pounding boots and chaos. “Call the boys! Kev, grab the extinguisher!”
One step at a time, I pound up the staircase. “Jovie!” I cry out, but my voice is raw, eaten up by smoke. Still, I try again, louder. “Jovie!”
The smoke billows in toxic black clouds, curling toward the ceiling as the fire grows stronger.
The landing at the top of the staircase is already swallowed within the thick haze, and with the door to the apartment wide open, I already know it’s going to be less than minutes before the air in there is unbreathable.
An arm clamps around me, forcing me closer to the ground.
“Cover your mouth with your shirt, and crouch down,” Grizz growls into my ear. He stabs his finger at the bathroom that’s across the room, the door closed. “You check there, I’ll get the bedroom.”
He doesn’t wait, rushing forward without hesitation, while I scamper to the bathroom with my shirt covering my face and tear the door open.
“Jovie? You here? Jovie!”
The smoke stings my eyes, tears already dripping down onto my cheeks, but with a quick scan of the small space, I’m sure it’s empty. “Jo—” Her name gets stuck in my throat and I cough, my knees hitting the floor. “Jovi—”
“I’ve got her!” Grizz bursts from the hallway, Jovie with her arms wrapped suffocatingly around his neck, her face buried in his long hair that’s now flowing like a lions mane. “Brynn, we gotta go!”
I nod, unable to get any words out, but surging to my feet and leading the way. Grizz is on my heels, the two of us staggering out onto the landing. He yanks the apartment door shut behind him, and presses a steadying hand to my back, moving me toward the stairs.
“We need more water!” someone yells, rushing by us as we reach the bottom. The flames are still crawling through the loading bay, taking hold of anything and everything they touch. “Over here! Don’t let it reach the door!”
Bedlam rages around us as Grizz all but drags me out through the large open loading bay to the back of the building. The cold air hits me hard and I lean over, bracing my hands on my knees as I choke, my lungs screaming for oxygen.
“Mom!” Jovie calls out, wriggling in Grizz’s arms until he puts her on her feet. I instantly drop to my knees and open my arms. The hug she gives me is tighter than a vice, but it’s short. She pulls back after a moment, pushing my hair back from my face so she can see my eyes. “Mom, are you okay?”
She pulls down the piece of material that was covering her mouth like a makeshift mask, letting it hang around her neck. It was tied together at the back with a ponytail holder—not hers.
I clear my throat and nod. “I’m okay,” I try to reassure her, tugging at her hair with a smile. She nods and rubs my back gingerly, while my attention moves to Grizz. He stands silently watching, his hands linked together on the top of his head as he sucks in long, deep breaths of fresh air.
With his hands up, I can clearly see his torn shirt.
And I can’t help but be mesmerized by the way his hair is catching in the breeze.
It’s the first time I’ve seen it out, and I know for a fact, had this moment not been life or death, I wouldn’t be able to keep myself from having to feel it in my fingers.
The thunderous roar of engines is the electric jolt I need back to reality, and I glance over just in time to see three Harleys tearing toward us, their tires skidding on the icy road as they glide in off the street.
Hades is the first off his ride, his eyes frantically assessing the situation.
“They need water,” Grizz announces, his body already moving back toward the bay to help out. “We need to stop it getting into the damn bar!”
Hades, Axel, and Mac join him, the four of them getting just a few feet before I yell, “Wait!”
They all freeze, even Grizz, looking back at me like I’ve lost my damn mind.
“Snow!” I croak, pointing to the ground and the sludgy piles around us. “Use the snow. It should smother the fire and wet things down so they can’t ignite.”
If years and years working in a bar and kitchen had taught me anything, it’s that grease fires are fucking scary, and putting them out is a skill you have to learn—often the hard way. Not everyone knows that fire thrives on oxygen, and water isn’t always the best option to kill them.
Sometimes, you’ve got to get creative.
The boys don’t question me, Hades stripping off his club cut and laying it on the ground. The others follow, using their jackets, boots, and anything they can get a hold of to scoop and carry piles of snow, while Grizz rushes inside to get more people and supplies.
Everything in me wants to get up off the ground and help, but my body refuses to move. While the shot of adrenaline my body soaked up before kept me going, the effects are wearing off, leaving pain and panic as the main feelings circulating through me.
No doubt Jovie can feel it, her hand moving in slow, shaky circles on my back while she leans into me. “It’s okay,” she repeats, her voice cracking a little, but my soldier stands tall. “Grizz and his friends will put it out.”
I nod, fighting a wave of tears—thank you panic—and watching Grizz and his brothers move like a well oiled machine.
There’s no shouting, no alarm. Just rough, efficient teamwork.
Each man knows his part. He knows what he needs to do to fight a disaster, and anyone else from the bar who joins them is swiftly given a job.
They scoop and throw.
Scoop and throw.
And soon, steam is rising into the air instead of smoke, and the orange glow from inside is barely flickering, fighting to survive.
I take a deep breath, pulling Jovie closer and wrapping my arm around her shoulders as she coughs. “You good?” I question, searching her eyes for any sign of her trying to placate me.
Her nod is small and she presses into me. “I’m okay,” she murmurs, swallowing hard. “But I was scared.”
Honesty.
She’s alright, but could have done without.
“Me too,” I admit quietly, figuring it calls for one of those honesty is the best policy moments. “I’m glad Grizz found you so quickly.”
“Me too,” she murmurs with a twitching smile. “I like that he’s so calm…”
She lets the words hang, and I let out a breathy laugh. “Unlike me?”
“Well…”
Well, she’s not wrong, and I know I’m going to hear about it from him later with the way I ran off, my first instinct to get to my kid, no matter what.
I already know Grizz isn’t like that. He’s a man who assesses.
A man who is methodical—who doesn’t let emotions rule over actions.
And I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t nice to have someone so levelheaded to balance out my walking storm of motherly instinct and lack of self-preservation.
Protecting myself has never been the goal, because when your heart is walking around outside your body in the form of a small person, if I don’t get to her in time… I might as well go down too.
What I’ve never had is someone who cares enough to step in and get there first, because he knows that by protecting Jovie, he’s protecting me too.
“It’s out!” a deep voice calls from in the loading bay, the crackling of the fire gone, leaving the only sound to be the heavy breathing and sighs of relief from the people standing around outside.
They start to move toward the building, trudging back inside, ready to assess the damage.
Grizz is one of the last, the tension falling away from his shoulders as he scrubs a hand over his face, failing to wipe away the exhaustion in his eyes. He slips his club cut back on over his shoulders, bits of snow and drips of water falling from the hem.
He takes a long, deep breath before moving, but he doesn’t head for the bar.
He holds my gaze as he comes for Jovie and I.
And with it, something passes between us.
Something raw and wordless.
Relief.
Fear.
Something that feels dangerously close to need.
Maybe if my body would have allowed, I would have leaped up into his arms. Not caring about the streaks of soot that decorated his face, or the smell of smoke I have no doubt is settled into his clothes and hair.
I would’ve thrown myself at him just to feel that solid weight of proof that he’s okay.
We’re all okay.
But I can’t move.
My body is trembling and my arms are locked around Jovie as if my life depends on it.
Grizz crouches down in front of us, his forearms resting on his knees. Silently, he scans Jovie’s face and body before moving to mine, his eyes touching almost every inch of me before he’s satisfied.
Then he lets out a sigh.
“You two okay?” he asks, his voice low and scratchy. I nod in response. “Good, cos we’re gonna have words later about running into burning buildings.”
Jovie chuckles lightly and nudges me. “You’re in big trouble.”
Grizz’s mouth twitches at the corner. “Yeah, she is.”
The sound that escapes me isn’t quite a laugh, though I think I manage to disguise the soft sob with a cough and a shake of my head—blinking fast to expel the tears.
Grizz doesn’t call me on it, doesn’t tease or try to soften the moment.
He just stays there, like a protective wall between us and the destruction behind him.
It all fades into the background, and then and there, it’s just the three of us.
“Next time,” he says quietly, holding out his hand for me. “You let me run into the fire first, okay?”
I place my hand in his, slowly nodding, but he doesn’t move until he hears the words out loud.
“Deal?” he says sternly.
“Yeah,” I whisper. “Deal.”
And that’s the thing, he means it. It’s not an order, or a lecture—though I’m sure there is one to come. But for him, it’s a promise for the future, because Grizz is the kind of man who will always step into the fire first, just so the people he cares about don’t have to feel the flames.
He helps me to my feet, his arm circling my waist and lifting me those last few inches because, as I now remember, this all started with him demanding to know how I hurt myself earlier today.
“I’m gonna call the doctor and get him to check you out,” he says with a frown, noticing my discomfort before looking to Jovie. “What about you, Jon Bon? You got pain anywhere?”
She lifts her chin proudly, shaking her head. “I’m okay.”
He brushes his hand over her hair. “You did real good today, damn proud of you.” She beams up at him like he just handed her an Olympic medal. “Come on, lets get inside before you both freeze.”
With his arm around me, and Jovie leading the way back into the bar, I can’t help but feel another ache.
One in my chest.
One that’s a lot deeper than anything I’ve felt before.
One that feels a lot like falling.