“Bleach?” Micah frowned, pointing at the block lettering on the drum. “Why would two huge containers of bleach be sitting in the middle of the floor like this?”
Nick held up a hand. “Everybody stop talking and moving around. Listen.”
The room went quiet, and at first, Zan heard nothing. But gradually, a soft tick, tick, tick reached his ears. It was the one time he regretted that his hearing had returned.
Edging forward with Hammer, the commander carefully lifted a lid on one of the drums. Zan joined him as he set it aside, and they all peered down. A tangle of wires and a black box with a red digital readout met their shocked gazes. The numbers were counting down.
14 . . . 13 . . . 12 . . .
“Shit!” Nick shouted. “Clear the fucking building! Go! Go!”
He and Zan stepped back and let the others out first. It was a sacrifice that would cost them dearly.
They ran. Zan’s heart thundered in his chest as he sprinted for the outer doors, knowing he wouldn’t be fast enough. He could see the exit, so close. Saw the rest of his Pack and a group of vampires burst outside. He had a split second to feel relief that they’d made it—
And then the force of the detonation hit him from behind, hurling him into the air. He slammed into something hard, slid to the ground, the pain in his torso and skull hardly registering through the noise. The building came down all around him, pinning his body to the floor. All he could do was cover his head with his arms. Pray this wasn’t the end.
He wanted to see his mate again. Selene.
The word whispered through his mind, and he felt it connect with hers. He hadn’t meant to actually reach out. He didn’t want her to be afraid, didn’t want her to be in his head if he died. She was tough, but that would be too much.
Zan? What’s wrong? What’s happening?
It was a trap, he sent to her. There was a bomb and it went off. Baby, we need help.
Oh my God! Are you all right?
He paused, struggling to breathe through the dust and debris.
Zan? Her voice in his mind was starting to panic.
I will be. I love you, baby.
Were you caught in the explosion?
I’m trapped. But I’ll keep until help comes.
You hang on. Do you hear me?
Yeah. Love you.
A buzzing started in his head, and his brain swam. As hard as he tried, he couldn’t hold on to consciousness. With his mate’s cry of alarm fading, he went totally under.
Love you, Zan said. He sounded tired, hoarse.
She started to reply, but felt him fade. “No!”
But the connection had been severed. Her heart leaped into her throat as panic threatened to take over. She started to run from the room she shared with Zan, but realized she was naked under one of her mate’s T-shirts. She had wanted to be ready to seduce him when he returned. Now she just prayed he’d come back safe.
Quickly she dressed in jeans and one of her own T-shirts, and pulled on running shoes. Then she dashed into the corridor, shouting for help. One of Tarron’s soldiers rounded the corner, obviously seeking the source of concern.
“Get as many of your men together as you can,” she gasped, grabbing the man’s shoulders. “They walked into a trap, and there was a bomb! Hurry!”
The soldier eyed her skeptically. “How do you know—”
“My mate is with them, and he contacted me through our link. Please, we have to go!”
“On it.” The vampire bolted in the opposite direction.
Heading for the wing that housed the infirmary, she poured on the preternatural speed. In a matter of seconds, she reached the hospital, yelling at the top of her lungs. “Noah! Melina!” As she shouted again, the two of them jogged from somewhere in the back, followed by Victor Archer and a female nurse. The vampire doctor looked just as alarmed as his own nurse and temporary staff.
“What is it?” Melina demanded, grabbing Selene’s arm.
“The men were led into a trap,” she informed them, pulse tripping. “There was a bomb in the motel, and it detonated. They need help.”
Noah’s face turned white. “Nix.”
Melina snapped, “If you’re going to be of any assistance to your mate and the others, you’ll have to keep it together. Can you do that?”
He nodded, making a visible effort to keep control. “I can.”
“Good.”
“We’ll take two ambulances and meet you all out front,” Victor said. “We need to hurry.”
Selene would have preferred to ride with them, but she needed to make sure the vampires were mobilizing and let them know the medical staff was coming as well. She found them out front, assembling and loading themselves and weapons into three vehicles.
Spotting the soldier she’d spoken to in the corridor just minutes ago, she marched up to him. “Dr. Archer is coming around with their transports. I’m riding with you.”
He opened his mouth to possibly refuse, then reconsidered. “Fine. Just stay out of the way when we get there.”
Like that would happen. But she wasn’t about to say that and risk being left behind.
The twenty-mile ride was the longest she’d ever endured. Every minute was fraught with fear because that was another minute her mate was trapped in the rubble of the motel. Unless the others had managed to dig him out. Please, let him be safe!
But he hadn’t contacted her again, and that filled her with terror. Wouldn’t he have let her know he’d been rescued? She knew the answer. As they pulled into the parking lot and she got her first glimpse of the devastation, cold sickness gripped her stomach. The building was in shambles, little more than the outer walls still standing. Vampires and Pack team members were everywhere, tending to the injured.
She spotted Tarron and Jax first, standing at the edge of the debris field, bent over, tossing aside bricks and Sheetrock. It struck her hard that they were looking for more victims, and her breath caught. They looked up as she rushed to them.
“Where’s Zan? Is he all right?”
Jax’s face was pinched. “Selene, you should have stayed at the stronghold. There’s nothing you can do here.”
Instantly, her internal alarm went off, and she reacted, shoving the wolf in the chest. “Fuck you, Jax! Where is he?”
“Easy,” he said, his tone gentle. “We haven’t found him yet.”
“What? But he contacted me! You should have found him by now!”
“We’re doing everything we can. But . . .”
“But what? Don’t hold anything back from me,” she warned.
His voice was tortured. “He and Nick were bringing up the rear. They didn’t make it out before the bomb went off. And now they’re both missing.”
She stared at Zan’s best friend, trying to process the last part of what he’d just said. “Missing? They have to be here somewhere. I spoke to Zan through our mind link. He said he was trapped.”
“I don’t doubt he was at one time. But we’ve been over almost every square inch of the grounds and we haven’t seen any sign of them yet.”
Shaking her head, she looked out over the rubble. Cast her senses along their bond and tried to feel him. Zan? Honey, I’m here, and they’re looking for you and my dad. Are you still there?
No answer. Zan? The lack of response was more frightening than her mate saying he was trapped. Feeling helpless, she glanced around and saw Noah wrapped tightly in Nix’s arms. She couldn’t help the bolt of envy that shot through her at seeing the men reunited and immediately felt shitty about it. Truly, she was glad the others were safe to return to their loved ones. But she wanted hers safe, too.