36. Blake
Blake
I pull up at my apartment and see my worst nightmare come to life and play out before my eyes. A cop car and ambulance pull up at the same time, just as Wade arrives.
“Fuck, we need a fire crew here now!” he yells, but I ignore him and head straight toward the building, flames be damned.
“Jesus fucking Christ, Blake, wait for the fire department,” Wade snaps, snagging my shoulder, but I shrug him off violently.
“Callie and Marcus are inside. She called the police ages ago. Where the fuck were they?” I shout at him.
“There was a massive pileup on the interstate,” he answers with remorse.
I know I’m being unfair, but I don’t have time for this shit right now. I pull away, but he grabs my arm again.
“You need to wait,” he orders, but I yank my arm free.
“And if it were Olivia in there?” I ask, watching as his face shuts down.
“Fuck!” He looks at the building, then back to me, knowing I’m going in with or without him, even if I have to knock the fucker out to do it.
“You do exactly what I fucking tell you to do. I don’t need you trying to be a hero and getting yourself killed in the process. Do you know where they are?”
“In the back of the closet, in the panic room. They won’t burn, but they will suffocate from the smoke as the vent is connected to the main apartment.” I lead the way, taking the stairs two at a time with my gun drawn.
The door to the living area is ajar, thick black smoke pouring through the crack as I kick it the rest of the way open with my booted foot. The roar of fire drowns out any other sound coming from inside. My eyes water from the noxious smoke, the heat licking over my skin. I pull my T-shirt up over my nose and press my body against the far wall. The fire seems concentrated on the right-hand side for now, but it won’t take long for this whole place to be engulfed.
I make my way toward the bedroom with Wade just behind me. Movement in front of me has me halting and my gun aiming at none other than Christian.
“I knew you’d come for her,” he says smugly before a cough racks his body. “She watched me kill her mother, you know. Stood there as I slit the bitch’s throat right in front of her eyes. And she did nothing to save her.” He indicates to the floor to his left.
I glance over quickly, not moving my gun from its target. My stomach drops at the sight of Brenda’s lifeless eyes staring back at me. I feel sick thinking about the added mental scars Callie will be burdened with. As if she hasn’t already endured enough.
“The building is on fire, you stupid fuck. We will all die here if you don’t get out of my way,” I tell him, needing to get to my girl.
“Oh, I know, I’m banking on it. Callie and I would have been perfect together, but she wouldn’t come out. Something tells me she’ll come out for you though.” His face twists in disgust before smoothing out as he looks at the phone in his hand.
Lifting his eyes to mine once more I see his face is now perfectly blank. The saying “the lights are on but no one’s home” springs to mind.
“If I can’t have her though, no one can. Nobody gets to take what’s mine.” His meaning becomes clear as he looks at the phone in his hand again.
“Fuck, it’s another bomb,” I hear Wade shout from beside me, clearly understanding what Christian’s implying.
We don’t waste time. Both of us open fire, our aim true as bullets tear through Christian’s body, making him dance like a marionette before his strings are cut. He collapses to the ground, the phone dropping to the floor beside him.
Wade makes a run for it, picking up the phone and checking the screen. “It’s not on a timer. He needed to hit a button to arm the bomb, assuming we’re correct and didn’t just shoot an unarmed man,” he snarks at me, yelling for an assist through his radio.
I don’t wait around. Running to the back of the room and into the bedroom, I move straight to the closet, where the air seems thankfully clearer. I hear sirens outside over the roar of the flames and pray it’s the fire department.
“Callie, Marcus,” I yell, banging on the door even though I know neither of them can hear me. I wave to the monitor with big, sweeping arm gestures, but the door remains locked.
I pull out Wade’s phone, which is still in my pocket, and dial Callie’s phone, but it rings and rings. I call again and again until finally, it picks up.
“Callie? Callie, it’s Blake, baby. I need you to open the door.”
I hear a mumble and a groan as Wade appears beside me with a fireman decked out in his protective gear.
“I need you two out of here now,” the guy yells, but neither Wade nor I move.
“I’m not leaving without her. Callie, open the door.” Still nothing, but I swear I can hear the sound of someone breathing heavily now.
“Callie Ward, you open this door right this second or so help me god, I’ll spank your ass so hard you won’t be able to sit down for a week,” I command, refusing to lose her now I’m so close.
There’s a loud beeping sound before the door finally opens, revealing Callie in a bra and jeans, covered in blood from head to toe.
“Holy fuck,” I breathe out, half in horror, half in relief as she collapses into my arms. I scoop her up, and that’s when I see Marcus on the floor behind her, lying unresponsive in a pool of blood.
“Go, we’ve got him.” Wade shoves me aside to make space for him and the firefighter to get past.
For the first time tonight, I do what I’m told. I have to get Callie out of here, and I can’t carry them both. Marcus would kick my ass if I tried. I have to trust Wade to bring him out safely.
Making my way out to the main room, I tuck Callie’s face into my shoulder, trying to shield her as much as possible.
The smoke is thicker now, making it impossible to see clearly as it billows around us. I can just make out the sound of glass shattering as the windows explode, blowing their glass outward, likely covering the people below.
Coughing and spluttering, I try to make my way outside, completely disoriented, as I cradle my precious cargo tightly in my arms. I move as fast as I can, ignoring the pain in my hip when I collide with something. I spot another firefighter just in front of me. He grabs my arm and hauls us to the exit.
As soon as we clear the building, we’re swarmed by paramedics and police. I ignore everyone, making my way to the back of one of the ambulances. One of the paramedics holds the door open for me, so I lay Callie down reverently, then step out of the way so they can work on her.
“Sir, can you tell me what happened?” a second paramedic asks, taking in all the blood covering her.
“I don’t know,” I tell them honestly, coughing and choking as I try to speak. She didn’t say anything about being injured when I spoke to her, only telling me about Marcus.
The guy places an oxygen mask over my face, and I greedily suck in lungfuls of air.
“Looks like a bullet clipped her shoulder. It looks pretty superficial to me. I don’t think all this blood is hers.” The guy working on her speaks up just as Wade and the firefighter emerge with an unconscious Marcus being dragged between them, their shoulders bracing his weight.
Medics swarm them as I turn back to the guy talking to me. “It’s not all hers,” I confirm, lifting my mask and watching with my heart in my throat as they place my best friend on a gurney and lift him into the ambulance next to ours. They don’t hang around, slamming the doors closed behind them before tearing out of the parking lot with sirens blaring.
I send up a silent prayer, willing to barter away my soul if necessary, as my head bows under the weight of impending grief.
My grandmother. My best friend. The woman I love.
Please, God, just let them be okay. Take me in their place. I’ll come willingly, but please don’t take them from me.