Chapter Twenty-Two
The moment the explosion rocked the building, Navi’s heart almost stopped.
Finn was down there. She had to get to him.
Even though the mountain lion was preparing to lunge, Navi didn’t give a damn. She bolted toward the back of the warehouse, tearing across the linoleum. Fear flushed through her body in one deadening sweep. She’d just found her mate. She couldn’t lose him now.
The breezes rifled through her fur as she soared past the stacks, racing through this massive warehouse at breakneck speed. If the meth lab had exploded, they’d be lucky to find any survivors. Cold sweat prickled over her. Hell, forget survivors below—they’d all be lucky to escape the inferno to follow.
Navi skidded to a halt in front of the staircase leading to the basement. She squinted, her eyes burning in the wake of the smoke that roiled out from the open door. Yet no one emerged. Protocol would have her getting Sierra, unlatching the front door and making her escape with the papers in this place before it went up in flames.
Protocol be damned.
She summoned her power, drawing the water from the earth to pool at her feet. Navi focused all her will into the motion, ignoring the roiling smoke and the insistent beat of fear ramming into her. Once she’d gathered pools of water, she stepped down the stairs, sending trickles ahead of her, hoping and praying they’d combat the fire, not do worse damage.
She padded down the steps, the gusts of heat drying out her fur with every step closer. Even though she couldn’t see much beyond the choking gusts, flames flickered, ones that would spread in a heartbeat.
The clouds in front of her moved. Navi squinted, trying to make out the figure in front of her, if friend or foe emerged.
A wolf she’d recognize anywhere stepped through the doorway. Finn.
Navi stamped her foot on the ground, her heart squeezing so tight with relief it could burst. Jer stumbled out right behind him, clutching the doorframe as his chest rattled with coughs. Navi caught her mate’s gaze and nodded toward the front of the warehouse. They’d have time for reunions later. Right now, they needed to get the hell out of this burning building.
Finn loped up the steps, halting every time he huffed from the smoke and chemicals he must’ve inhaled. Jer followed close behind and Navi took the lead, making sure to keep her pace measured so she didn’t lose track of them.
They’d reached the top of the basement steps when another boom quaked the meth lab.
Flames licked the timbers of the doorframe and traveled up the steps.
Finn surged forward, faster, and Jeremiah kept up as best he could on two legs. Despite the need to rush itching Navi’s hind legs, she waited until they’d taken off across the warehouse and followed in the rear. The heat from the flames prickled her skin and if they waited around any longer, they’d be trapped in this warehouse while it burnt to the ground. The first creaks and groans began of beams from below while the flames licked them up.
Navi surged along with the other two and they booked it across the warehouse.
When they emerged past the stacks to the front where she’d left the other Landsliders, the front door was swinging open, and Sierra was the only one remaining, shifted to her human form. The alpha was grabbing any stacks of paper she could, but she whirled around when they burst into view. Once she caught sight of them, Sierra gripped the papers she had in her hand and abandoned the task, breaking into a run toward the front door.
Finn’s ragged breaths troubled her and Jeremiah suffered the same, coughs exploding from him even as they kept pace. Not like any of that would matter if they didn’t escape in time.
Sierra had reached the front door by the time they closed in on it and Navi wasn’t stopping for anything. The creaks and groans from the back of the warehouse increased and, when she paused to glance back, the amount of noxious smoke through the place had tripled within seconds, spreading in their direction. Finn and Jeremiah followed Sierra out through the exit and Navi came out last, nudging the door shut behind her with a slam.
The cooler night air hit her lungs and her chest throbbed as she wheezed in response. The moment they made it near the perimeter of the warehouse, Finn hacked up crud onto the gravel and Jeremiah bent over and began hurling. She could barely smell anything and her throat felt coated, like she’d swallowed acid for the last hour. Her fur was singed and the skin beneath tender.
Navi shifted into human form, the transition slower than normal. On top of her depleted energy from tapping into her powers, the aftermath of the explosion had left her sore. As her fur changed to skin and she shifted onto two feet, her injuries throbbed and patches of her skin were sensitive from the heat. Even with the accelerated healing powers of her kind, she’d ignored the gouges she’d received in there during her fight, and Finn would take even longer to heal.
She hadn’t made it a few paces toward the Challenger before hands wrapped around her. Navi was too exhausted for a fast reaction time, but she didn’t need to worry—she knew who held her tight. Finn’s chest pressed against her back and, despite the way her skin ached, she sank into his embrace, the relief soaking through her.
Navi turned around to face him and her eyes heated at the sight of her mate standing in front of her. She traveled her fingers across his skin before she could help it while she examined him for injuries. He’d sustained some intense burns along his arms, along his back, and a couple of areas leaked blood. She’d bandage him up when they got out of here, but first she needed to place a call to the emergency services again. The firefighters would have a field day with this one.
Finn circled his arms around her and drew her tight to him. She didn’t wait for him and pressed her mouth to his, just as anxious to feel his touch in the wake of the battle they’d fought. She could barely taste him or even feel his lips with how raw her skin was, but the simple act sent shuddering relief through her.
This was what she’d been terrified of, what Akio dealt with every time his wife joined him on a mission. As much as the explosion had struck her dumb with fear, she trusted Finn to fight by her side. If they’d weathered this, she had faith they could brave the challenges they would face on the road. As she stared into those tender eyes she’d come to know so well, she saw a future so beautiful it made her heart break.
Sierra approached, dropping the stack of papers on top of the Challenger in front of them. “Between letting those slimy bastards run free and getting cues on what Kendricks might be up to, I chose the latter. I hope there’s something in here you can use.”
Navi shook her head, breaking away from Finn to grab the stack of papers. “You made the right call. Not like I expected any less from a Red Rock.” She glanced to Sierra, Finn and Jeremiah who gathered around the car while the warehouse crackled and blazed in the background. “I’ve traveled through many, many cities and I can honestly say I’ve never met a pack like this. You’re a remarkable crowd.”
Her eyes locked with Finn’s. She’d traveled all across the East Coast on Tribe business, but those words held true when it came to him. Navi had had one-night stands, friendships and even attempts at relationships crumble to pieces. As Tribe, she was never able to sustain anything lasting. However, for the first time in her life, she allowed herself to hope again. Because all those mistakes, all those failed relationships didn’t hold a candle to the connection that blazed stronger than the fires in the distance between her and Finn.
They could hop from state to state, from one hotel to another, but the distance no longer mattered, because Navi had found her home.