Page 100 of Where There's Smoke
“Melody?” a familiar voice shouted as a fully suited firefighter ran over to us. I would recognize that giant frame anywhere.
“Rune!” I greeted with a nod. “The building is empty, but it's going up quickly.”
“We’ll have that under control in no time. Is she all right?”
“A few small burns, but her airways look good,” I said, my eyes raking over her again. There was soot in her hair, and there were streaks on her face from the tears she had shed over the rescue.
But she was holding her hand in front of her, and I needed to get a look at that. “Melody, I need to see.”
She gave me her hand slowly, and I gently peeled away the blanket she was holding. Angry red welts on her palm and forearm made my stomach clench. I had a feeling the one on her palm was from trying to open a door that was too hot.
“These are bad. Come on. We need to get to the EMT.”
I resisted saying anything more in the moment, but mentally, I was already plotting the fire-safe doors we would be installing in the new rescue.
And a state-of-the-art sprinkler system.
Hell, any fire preventive measures we could take, we would.
It would be a very cold day in hell when I allowed our girl to be at risk ofanyfireeveragain. Fires were a part of life, and they happened occasionally, but I was going to make sure Melody was not at risk.
“Shit, that looks bad,” Rune hissed, looking down at her palm.
“I-I’m fine,” Melody insisted, tugging her hand back.
Rune turned to me, brows raised. “I’ll leave you to deal with that while I help the others put out the fire. You may want to get her home—Hailey isn’t opposed to a house visit.”
“I don’t need—” Melody started to say, but I cut her off.
“How would you feel if it was me who was burned?” I pointed out. That stopped her complaining. She sagged, her body going lax. “That’s what I thought. EMT, and then we’re getting you home.”
Taking her home was definitely a priority after she got that wound looked at. She was probably beginning to come down from all the adrenaline of the fire, and that burn was going to start hurting—a lot.
Our pack mates were standing by one of the fire engines, talking to Dylan, who was organizing how they would approach putting out the fire. As none of us had gear, we had to stand back and let the others who had their breathing apparatus and fire gear do their jobs.
It was hard to be on the sidelines, but Melody was my top priority. And as Sam and Elliot ran over to us, I knew it was the same for them. Someone had tried to hurt our omega. That fucking brother of hers, and he needed to spend the rest of his life behind bars while I made sure Melody would never be harmed or trapped in a fire again.
But first things first, our girl was hitting up the EMT. Hand burns were a special concern because of how they could heal improperly, and I wasn’t taking any chances with her. Not a single one.
Chapter 48
Melody
“Should I feel special, getting a house visit?” I asked as Hailey, one of Sunny’s friends and a medical professional who helped out the fire stations a lot, wrapped a bandage around my wrist.
Sitting on the bed in the pack bedroom in our house, wearing my comfiest pajamas while she changed the bandage on my hand that the EMT had applied, I thought about the shelter, about how I had watched it burn for a second time.
About how my brother had fully intended to let me burn with it.
“I didn’t get a house visit,” Sunny said from where she was sitting crossed-legged at the end of the bed, Dotty in her lap, nibbling on her finger.
Hailey shook her head, not looking away from the task at hand. “Nottrue. I came to the firehouse when you were sick!” she declared, shaking her head.
“Yeah, but you're always going to fire stations to help the firefighters who do dumb things, like forget their masks. I never got a house visit…”
“You got a house visit after you gave birth!” Hailey chuckled, shaking her head as she steadily switched the bandage.
I watched the two women interact with a smile, even if it was a small one.
