Page 138 of Controlled Burn
“Brooks,” she said flatly.
McKenna's expression darkened. “Wouldn't be the first time.”
Talia held the folder in her hands like a matchbook.
Her smile curved—slow, sharp, lethal.
“Then let's strike.”
If the district burned?
She'd make damn sure the ashes spelled her name.
Chapter 49
Hellmouth
The warehouse looked calm from the outside.
Smoke curled from shattered windows like warning signs. A single flame licked the siding, taunting them with its restraint.
But the second they breached the front entrance, the illusion shattered—heat swallowed them whole.
Talia moved fast—second nozzle, hose in hand. Maddox was just behind her, sharp and silent. McKenna called orders from the street.
Watts was supposed to cover the rear. She wasn't moving.
"Move!" Talia barked, slamming her shoulder hard enough to snap the rookie out of it.
Watts flinched, stumbled inside. King followed close, sure-footed and focused.
Inside, the world was an inferno: chemical-fed—old oil drums, paint cans, aerosol cans popping off like bullets. Everything was burned and dirty. The smoke was thick. The heat too fast. Flashover territory.
"Main line left. Check for wall breach," Talia called, her voice steady through the mask's comms.
"Copy," Maddox responded.
King took the rear. Watts hovered like a liability.
Talia advanced into the dark.
Then the ceiling groaned—and fire dropped like a guillotine.
"Back out!" she shouted, dropping low.
King yanked Watts flat. Maddox pivoted, shielding the exit with a wide spray. Talia hit the floor, dragging the line, crawling toward the breach.
They made it out. Barely.
On the street, she yanked her mask off last. Her face was soaked in sweat, skin flushed and shaking from the heat. She bent forward, elbows on knees, head swimming from exertion—not smoke.
Her stomach heaved. She stumbled into the alley beside the rig, tore her helmet off, and vomited hard onto the wet asphalt. Her throat burned, body trembling, tears stinging her eyes.
Dean saw it. Saw her doubled over in the shadows, her small frame shaking against the brick. And for a split second, his chest hollowed with a thought he'd never let himself speak—If I'd lost her in there…
Watts crumpled to the curb, crying.
McKenna crouched beside her, calm and clinical. But when she looked up at Talia over Watts's slumped form, her eyes were made of steel.
