Page 68 of Into the Fire
“No. No—move!”
A deputy stood in front of him as he struggled to remain on his feet, his body beaten and exhausted from the brawl.
“Levi, you can’t go in there!”
“Get the hell out of my way, she’s still in there!”
The man did not step aside.
“Jess!” Levi yelled, making eye contact with his brother, eyes pleading. He didn't need to say anything else.
Jess briefly struggled internally with what to do. The last thing he wanted to do was to send his big brother running into the fire, but he knew what Levi needed. Emery. He wouldn't be okay, not if she wasn’t okay. “Fuck,” Jess said as he slammed a sideways shoulder into the deputy, knocking him out of the way.
Levi shoved past with more strength than anyone expected and disappeared into the inferno.
Inside, Emery slowed, choking on the thick smoke. The last horse reared again, pulling against her grip, but she held steady as her lungs fought for breath. She smacked the horse on the rear, and finally, the gelding shoved past her, bolting through the smoke, and Emery collapsed right after, crumpling into the stall, lungs refusing to cooperate.
The smokewas everywhere.
Then, Levi’s boots slammed over the scorched aisle, eyes burning, heart hammering.
“Emery!”
He spotted her in the last stall, unmoving.
“No, no baby, no! Come on…” He dropped to his knees beside her, pulling her up into his arms. Her skin was warm, damp, her face streaked with sweat and soot. Her breathing was shallow—too shallow.
He didn’t hesitate. He lifted her, shielding her with his body from as much of the smoke as he could and carrying her out.
They burst through the open side gate as the barn groaned behind them, the last remaining part of the roof collapsing inward with a roar of fire billowing into the dark sky.
Jess ran, meeting him halfway, pulling Emery gently from his arms and heading straight to the ambulance while Levi stumbled beside them, refusing to leave her side as the EMTs lowered a gurney.
“I’ve got you,” he whispered, voice cracking,brushing soot from her face. “I’ve got you, baby…”
Emery’s eyes fluttered open just a little, lashes thick with ash, pupils sluggish.
Levi caught her hand and kissed her knuckles. “You’re okay,” he said softly, voice raw. “You’re safe now.”
Emery's lashes fluttered once, her fingers giving the faintest twitch around Levi’s hand, and then her eyes rolled back, and she went limp. Her breaths were slow, a wheezing stridor breaking through each shallow inhale that was ragged from the smoke.
The EMT monitoring her vitals looked up sharply. “She’s out again. Oxygen is way too low. We need to get her to the hospital now.”
Another medic was already pulling the gurney toward the ambulance. “Pulse is thready. Let’s move!”
“No, no—Emery!” Levi’s voice cracked like a whip in the chaos.
One of the paramedics grabbed his shoulder. “You riding with us?”
“Damn right I am.” He didn’t let go of her hand for a second. As the gurney locked into place inside the ambulance, Levi climbed in and slumped back into the corner to give them room to work, but still gripped her hand like a lifeline.
She didn’t respond.
Her face was pale, too still, the oxygen mask fogging faintly with each faint breath.
The medic was adjusting the flow, pressing two fingers to the side of her throat to monitor the strength of her pulse. “We’ll keep her stable. Just hang on.”
But Levi barely heard him.
