Page 2 of Freeing Souls

“Over here!” I say as I move closer to the sound and pull back a table flipped and cracked in the center. “It’s Axe!”

I can hear people moving closer as I pull back the table and then lift a piece of a bike engine from his leg. “Can you move?” I ask him.

“Jackson? Jackson! Oh my God! Are you alright?” Presley’s cries grow louder as she approaches and gasps in horror at the sight of Axe. He is still half buried under debris, with smoke, dirt, and blood splattered all over him.

Axe coughs harder and then shakes his head violently, “Get her back.” He glances at someone else behind me. “Get her away from this shit,” he growls.

I focus on my task at hand, trying not to think about how badly he might be hurt and how we still don’t have Ryker. I know it has likely only been minutes since the explosion even happened, but it feels like hours as I continue to pull crap away from Axe.

“Don’t you dare touch me, Rage!” Presley screams at him. There’s a grunt from Rage, and then Presley’s pleas and yells slowly fade as she is pulled away.

“I think I have some broken ribs.” Axe grimaces as he slowly moves his hand to his stomach.

“Okay. Can you move? Or should I get some guys to carry you?” I ask.

“I don’t need to be fucking carried,” he huffs and very slowly sits up. Placing my hand on his back, I help guide him as he curses and holds his stomach every time he coughs more.

“Move slowly!” Brielle yells as she approaches my side. “If you can walk, just go slow. Did you pass out?”

He nods slightly. “Yeah. Hit my head on something really fucking hard. It’s pounding.”

“Okay. We called 911, so you’ll have to go to the hospital.”

Axe huffs again and then asks, “The others?”

“They’re still looking for Ryker and Sugar. Let’s just worry about you right now,” Bri explains.

“Bri–” Axe hesitates.

We each take a side of him and help guide him over the rubble and out to the parking lot where he can wait for the ambulance. “What?” she asks, furrowing her brows.

“Atlas...” Axe breathes heavily.

“He’s not here right now. He and Linc went out. Linc is back and helping look for the others, but Atlas isn’t back yet.”

“Bri–” Axe coughs and shoves away the water Bri tries to give him as he takes a seat on the ground. “He came back, Bri. He’s in there.”

“What? No. His bike isn’t here.” Bri glances around the parking lot again.

“His bike was at the front. It’s probably ruined under all the shit that fell.”

I see the moment panic sets in—her features tighten as her eyes frantically search the area. She must spot something she recognizes, because she gasps, and tears roll down her cheeks as she prepares to book it back across the lot. Before she can,I grip her around the waist and hold her back as sirens grow impossibly loud.

“Let me go!” she screeches as she fights my hold.

“Bri, just wait. I know, I’m scared too, but we–” My words get cut off on a grunt when Brielle brings her foot down on top of my own, stomping as hard as she can. My grip loosens, and she takes off across the lot.

“Atlas!” she screams. Before I can catch back up to her, a firefighter grabs her and pulls her back. She fights him and screams for Atlas, which draws Linc’s attention from where he was searching towards the back of the garage.

“Atlas?” he questions loudly.

I nod. “Axe said he was out here.” My eyes move away from Linc to check on the others. Cade and Harley are searching under shit while Harley heaves and calls out for Ryker. A few other guys are searching for Sugar, and now we have firefighters coming in to search, trying to pull us away from the danger zone.

I don’t know what this feeling inside me is, this numbness, refusal to accept what is, but I don’t know how to make myself go. Harley needs me. Cade needs me. Ryker needs all of us. But he’s not out here. He just isn’t.

I felt denial when Harley and Cade were taken by David all those months back, but it was nothing compared to this. It all just felt like a dream. Being able to get behind a computer and hunt them all down helped center me, but that isn’t an option right now. Right now, Ryker needs us all out here, searching for him.

But I don’t move.

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