AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Finn is a hard ass. Since the day I met him, he's been one tough son of a bitch, willing to go toe-to-toe with anyone. He's survived shootouts, stab wounds, and a hit from the Mafia. He doesn't take any shit and isn't scared of anything. That fearlessness isn't what I see in his gaze as he stares at me, though. The only thing swirling through his brown eyes is sympathy and regret.
And that about brings me to my fucking knees.
"You can't go in there," he says.
"She needs me," I growl, even though I know he's right. I can't fucking go in there.
She trusted me to protect her, to keep her safe, and I fucking failed her. If she's in there…Fuck. If she's in there, it's already too late for her. She's dead.
Oh God, Mila.
I drop to my knees as the thought breaks me wide open. A strangled sob rips from my lips. My stomach twists and heaves.
I lean forward and vomit right there as pain like I've never felt before tears through me, eviscerating me. It's torture, shredding me apart cell by cell. Every little bit of air in my lungs expels in a rush. My heart fractures, cracking in half.
She trusted me, and I didn't keep her safe.
Her name erupts from my lips in a broken groan, so fucking loud, it hurts to hear it.
"Shit," Finn curses, and then he's on his knees beside me, his hand on my shoulder as I fall apart.
One of the other officers standing around says something to him, but I don't hear him. I don't hear much of anything. Don't feel anything but pain. Mila's name echoes through my head over and over, each recitation decimating another piece of me. Her smile plays through my mind, ripping through me like a wrecking ball.
"Roman," Finn says, his fingers digging into my shoulder. His voice sounds far away, distorted.
I turn my head in his direction, staring blankly.
His mouth moves, but no sound comes out.
And then I hear it.
Her.
"Roman," she whispers, her voice shaking.
My mind spins, trying to make sense of the fact that her voice whispers my name when her body is somewhere inside the house still burning in front of me.
Finn says something else, but I don't hear that either.
"Roman."
I flick my gaze upward, over Finn's shoulder.
Mila stands behind him, tears running down her face, leaving streaks in the grime smeared across her cheeks. Soot clings to her hair and clothing. There's a bandage wrapped around one arm, and someone has draped a blanket across her shoulders. Her green eyes are wide and full of pain, her bottom lip quivering.
"Mila," I whisper her name, fucking terrified that she's not really standing there, and I'm just imagining her. Terrified that she's burning up in the house, and I'm too fucking late. Terrified that this is some new hell, conjured up by my mind to punish me for not keeping her safe.
"Roman," she cries and flings herself at my chest.
Her little body hits me hard, knocking me on my ass. Without conscious thought, I catch her, wrapping my arms around her so tightly, I'm crushing her to my chest…fucking terrified she'll turn to mist and slip away.
She trembles and shakes in my arms, sobbing into my neck.
I bury my face in her hair and pull her closer, trying to crawl inside her. The stench of smoke and soot clings to her, the acrid smell burning my nose. Her familiar peaches scent lingers just below those harsher odors, though. That intoxicating scent hits my system like a shot of adrenaline, jarring me back into reality.
This isn't a dream. It isn't a figment of my imagination. She's real, and she's in my arms.
She's safe.
