My inner omega was panicking, because he had to be in the house somewhere. I couldn’t leave him. There was no way Wilder would have left without me.
Something creaked to my left, something that distinctly sounded like a wall about to buckle, and I hurried away, closer to the front door in the living room, still crawling with one hand holding my shirt over my face.
Crash!
Glass shattered, making me scream and flinch, and I shot my attention to the windows on the far wall, which were now in hundreds of pieces. The fire on the outside of the building was getting worse, and I frantically looked around.
The hallway to the kitchen was glowing, flickering red and orange like I’d left a candle burning, but I knew I hadn’t. It had to be worse over there.
I had no idea how long it’d been, how long I’d been asleep before I noticed the smoke. Guilt raged inside me. Why had I decided to take an afternoon nap? If I had been awake?—
No. This wasn’t my fault.
Who the hell would want to do something like this?
At the front door, I checked the knob again and then pulled it open, sticking my head out into the fresh air and sighing as clean oxygen flooded my lungs.
Everything inside me told me to get out and get as far away from the burning building as possible.
Except the one part that was saying I needed to find Wilder.
A cell phone was also a good idea. I needed to call dispatch and get fire engines here as soon as possible. In my panic, I had left mine buried in the nest.
I sucked in another breath, using it to steady myself as I wiped the tears from my eyes and looked back inside the living room. Determined, I left the door open behind me as I crawled back along the floor, searching in the dark for any sign of Wilder.
It was all so quiet, and it occurred to me that I hadn’t heard the fire alarms go off. I looked up at the ceiling, remembering where the smoke detector was. Sure enough, the thing had been ripped from the ceiling.
Well, that quickly rid me of the vague hope that the fire was a freak accident.
Whoever had set fire to the house wanted us to be trapped inside, didn’t want anything letting us know about the danger.
My stomach rolled, Baby Boy inside squirming, and I couldn’t stop myself from assuming the worst.
Oh God… Is Wilder…
I shook myself, not allowing myself to finish that thought as my eyes burned with renewed tears. No, he couldn’t be. I was going to find him. I just needed to think.
Come on, Hailey. Think.
Flickering along the hallway to the kitchen got my attention, and I cursed. Of course. Wilder was a snack fiend. He was always close to the kitchen.
I crouched even lower, nearly dragging myself across the floor toward the kitchen. The heat grew as I got closer, and I coughed several times as the pungent smell of smoke increased.
Whoosh!
Something loud and strange sounded from the kitchen, and I hurried toward it. As I got there, I saw Wilder on the floor as fire consumed the back wall. It was so bright and hot, I flinched back, terror pumping through my veins. He was unconscious… or, at least, I hoped he was only knocked out.
Oh God, oh God, oh God.
The light of the flames reflected off Wilder’s skin. It appeared as though he was still breathing, but I couldn’t be sure. There was no time for second-guessing, though. I needed to get him out of here. There was blood on his face, flowing from somewhere hidden by his hair.
I rushed to him and scooped my arms under Wilder’s shoulders, using all my strength to flip him over onto his back. Standing between his outstretched arms, I grabbed hold of his wrists and started pulling.
It took several seconds before I got him moving, and I knew once I did, I couldn’t stop. I needed to work with the momentum, but fuck. Wilder was a big guy, and I was heavily pregnant, almost eight months.
No. He’s my alpha, and I’m not letting him burn in here.
Screaming, I dug my heels into the floor and pulled. Inch by inch, foot by foot, I slid Wilder along the floor, so damn grateful it was wood and not carpet, and gradually made it toward the front door.
