Page 45 of Storm of Stars
I stepped forward. My hands hovered uselessly. Where could I touch him that wouldn’t hurt? But the truth was, pain was inevitable. He needed help more than comfort. I slid my arms beneath his torso, the searing scent of burnt flesh making my stomach turn. Briar gently took his legs, and Bex supported his head with both hands, her jaw clenched to keep herself from breaking.
We moved together, quick but careful, toward the bus. I didn’t know what waited for us there, hope, maybe. Help, I prayed.
Inside, the driver sat behind a thick cage of plastic. When I asked where the medics were, he didn’t respond. Not a word. Not a glance.
We laid Ezra across one of the bus seats, his body so still it made me feel like screaming. I reached for his neck, fingers searching desperately.
“I can’t feel a pulse,” I whispered. My throat burned from the words.
The engine growled to life, and the bus lurched forward.
Only six of us remained.
Maybe.
I looked down at Ezra, my teammate, my friend. Then at Bex, pale and trembling, blood soaking her pant leg. She could barely stand on her own. How much longer could she hold on?
She leaned over Ezra, her fingers clutching his, her tears falling freely. “Please,” she whispered. “Breathe.”
She bent and kissed him, soft and desperate.
“You have to give him CPR,” Devrin said suddenly.
We all turned to him. The bus was eerily silent. He met Bex’s gaze, calm and steady. I hated it. Hated him for what he did to her in the canals. I nearly lost it when Bex let him win the trial he wanted, felt the rage boiling in my chest like acid.
But then I remembered the talent show. The way his music had echoed through the room as he playedThe Moth. Like it or not, he had stepped up when it counted. He was a part of the Runaways, tangled in it just like the rest of us. And in this moment, when Ezra was slipping away, we needed every ally we had.
Even Devrin.
“What’s that?” Bex asked, panicked.
“It’s a way to keep his heart beating,” Devrin said. I’d heard of it before, in passing, but our Collective never placed high enough in medical trials for me to ever have learned it.
“Can you do it, Thorne?” she asked, eyes pleading with mine.
I froze. “I—I don’t know how. I’m sorry.”
Bex’s shoulders shook. She looked to Devrin. “Tell me. Please. Tell me how.”
He met her gaze and nodded slowly. Despite everything he’d done, everything I still held against him, in that moment, he was the only one who could help us.
“You have to pump his chest, and give him rescue breaths,” Devrin said, still seated, his voice eerily calm. We all stared at him, wide-eyed. It didn’t make a lick of sense to me, and judging by Bex and Briar’s silence, it didn’t to them either. “And you need to do it fast. If he’s out too long, he’ll lose oxygen to his brain.”
That sent Bex into a full-blown panic. I grabbed her shoulders, trying to steady her, then turned to Devrin.
“Help us,” I begged. “Please.”
His eyes locked on mine, and for a long, breathless moment, he didn’t move. Silence swallowed the bus. Fear wrapped itsfingers around my throat. Was he going to help or just sit there and let Ezra die?
My heart pounded. Every second felt like a scream.
“Please,” I said again, my voice cracking.
Still nothing.
Then finally, he moved. A small nod, almost imperceptible, and Devrin slid down onto his knees beside me. Relief slammed into my chest, but there was no time to feel it.
I had to drag Bex back, her hands clutching Ezra like she could anchor him to this world. She resisted, but I guided her just enough, giving Devrin the space he needed. She hovered close, trembling, watching every move like her own life depended on it.
