Page 68 of Rejected Pretend Mate

Ayden grabbed Cayden by the front of his outfit. "Enough! Now is not the time to be yelling. We need to get inside! So, either get your head on straight or sit your ass down and stay out of the way!"

He quickly let go of Cayden and looked at me. "Are you prepared to be in there and make the right decisions!? If not, you stay down here as well."

I nodded, knowing I could. I would. If she was inside that building, I would bring her out.

Miles and Lucas went up the truck's ladder. Ayden, Thomas Owen, and I headed inside. As we entered the building, I tightened the helmet into place.

"Owen and Thomas, you guys clear out the second and first floors. Weslie and I are going to the third floor. I will intercom if we need you up on third."

We hit the stairs and started up them. I felt my heart race, and my mind was a disaster. She had to have been out of the apartment. She said she was going out. But why didn't I see her? She would have known to leave the apartment if a fire had started. Or at least to go onto the patio if she couldn't.

Owen and Thomas slipped out the door for the first floor while Ayden and I continued up the stairs.

"You okay?" Ayden asked.

"I feel like I want to vomit," I grumbled back, feeling my stomach twist up more with each step.

Ayden was silent for a moment but glanced at me. "I know the feeling."

I took a deep breath as we continued to climb, ignoring the pain in my legs and lungs.

When we finally reached the third floor, smoke completely filled the space. It was seeping into the stairwell, and Ayden grabbed the door.

"We move quickly."

I nodded.

He pulled the door open, and the apartment was dark. We could see the fire at the other end of the hallway. It had filled over half the space.

I looked at the apartment doors and found two of them were opening, meaning whoever was there got out. I looked at our apartment door, and my eyes zoned in on a large rock shoved under our door's handle.

"What the fuck is that?" I asked, stepping closer to the door.

I grabbed the rock and wiggled it free. I turned the handle and pushed the door open. Our apartment was filled with smoke, and the heat was starting to soak through my suit.

"Fuck, we need to move fast."

I scanned the hallway, and Ayden headed down it while I slipped into the kitchen and scanned the living room. And then I spotted her. She was lying on her stomach with her phone in her right hand. Her chest wasn't rising or falling.

"Ayden!" I screamed for him as I lurked forward, dropping onto the ground next to her. I turned her, growing frantic.

"April! April!" I shook her, taking in her pale expression and her closed eyes. She looked lifeless, and I couldn't breathe.

"April!" I screamed louder, feeling my voice crack as I placed two fingers on her neck.

"Does she have a pulse?" Ayden asked, stopping next to us.

I shook my head. "No!"

Ayden turned towards the balcony and unstrapped his ax. He took a swing, and the glass door shattered.

"Crane up here, now," Ayden said into the mic and turned back to me. "We need to move her." I picked her up and moved her over towards the door. I was careful of the glass as we got onto the balcony.

"I'll search the other apartments," Ayden said as Miles helped me get April onto the crane. I yanked my helmet off and climbed on. I leaned over, tilted her mouth open, and started CPR on her.

"Shit," Miles said as he brought the crane down. "She doesn't look good, Weslie."

"Shut up!" I yelled as I continued giving her mouth-to-mouth. "Breath, April. Breath! Just take a breath in, please."

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