Page 67

I’m getting my keys and running out the door, barefoot in threadbare pajamas, before I’m even consciously aware of it. I don’t bother texting him either when I slam my car into reverse, and the wheels tear up the road when I hit the gas and pull out of the complex.

I’m not thinking clearly, so it’s a miracle that I get to Rune’s street without causing a fucking accident, but I come to my senses when I see the lights in the distance and heavy smoke in the air.

My heart’s going a thousand miles a minute, and I remind myself that North said no one was hurt. Everyone’s fine. It’s all okay.

I reach the barricade and see that Lex is on duty. His eyes widen as I roll to a stop. “Park here,” he tells me. “You can go up. Rune and his kid are in the back of the ambulance.”

My hands shake as I put my car in park. “North said no one was hurt.”

“They’re fine,” he promises as I climb out. He sets a heavy hand on my shoulder. “Looks deliberate though. The fire started outside the house. He’s shaken up, and we’ve got a black-and-white out looking for his ex.”

Rage skates up my spine. “Are you fucking serious?”

“We don’t know for sure it was him. Teddy was working with the cops to get a lead.”

God bless Teddy. I feel even worse about what we did in his office now. “Thanks, bud. I’m gonna…” I thumb toward the ambulance, and he nods, waving me off.

Bits of gravel dig into my bare feet as I rush toward the ambulance, which is parked out of the path of the smoke. It’s clear that the team has the fire out already, but I catch North’s eye behind his mask, and he gives me a nod as he helps Kelsey wind up the hose.

I shoot him a wave as I finish crossing the distance between the grass and the ambulance, and my heart gives a lurch when I see Elio on a stretcher inside and Rune sitting on the edge, looking down at his feet.

“You’re not hurt,” I gasp as I get close enough.

His eyes snap up toward mine. “How did you know?”

“North,” I tell him.

Rune mouths something that looks like ‘fuck’ and nods. “Yeah, okay. I think I asked for you. I was panicking.”

I shuffle closer and wince as something cuts into my foot just below my toe, but I quickly ignore it as I lean in toward the stretcher. “Hey, kid.”

“You didn’t rescue me tonight,” he says with a pout.

Hopping up into the back, I shuffle over and take his outstretched hand. “Sorry. I wasn’t on tonight, but my team knew I’d want to be here. They called me.”

Elio blinks slowly. “Neal did it.”

My heart stutters in my chest again, and my gaze whips over to Rune, whose eyes are still on his feet. I say nothing. There’s nothing I can say in this moment that will be helpful or productive.

What I really want is to track that fucker down and beat him within an inch of his life.

“Did you see him?”

“No. But…” Elio sighs. “It was him.”

There’s more to this story, but I can tell Elio doesn’t want to say it, and it’s not my place to push him. I brush a few locks of hair off his forehead. “You feeling okay?”

“Yeah. Dad got us both out before the smoke got dangerous. They’re trying to see if they can rescue my chair and my other supplies.”

“The fire started outside the guest room,” Rune says from where he’s sitting. “Where I was sleeping.”

I close my eyes and breathe through my next tidal wave of emotions. “How long did the truck take?”

Rune laughs. “Two minutes. I got Elio out, and I was already dousing it with the garden hose. Whoever lit the fire,” he says with a sharpness I haven’t heard from him in a while, “didn’t know what they were doing.”

Elio lets out a huge yawn. “I’m tired.”

I brush a hand over his hair again. “Why don’t you get some rest, okay? I’m sure you’ll be released soon.”