Page 101 of Mountain Void

The relief that hit Charlie was overwhelming.

“Careful with him,” she begged.

“She and the boy need to go to the hospital,” Lorenz said. “They breathed in a lot of smoke.”

“You’re all going to the hospital.”

Lorenz looked around him. “Thanks for bringing in the cavalry.”

“And Adrian’s team. That was some foresight on my part, huh,” Ry said. A group of firefighters decked out in their bright orange uniform rushed around them. One of them stopped to speak to Lorenz.

“Glad to see you in one piece, Van der Berg.”

“Careful in there, Moreau,” Lorenz rasped. “It went up in flames fast, even before the roof collapsed.”

The big man nodded. “We’ve got this.” He moved off, barking orders towards the others.

Beau approached, moving easily through the snow. “Have you ever flown in a helicopter, Théo? Tristan is the best pilot there is. He might let you sit in front with him and help him.”

Théo’s face lit up. “Really?”

“Really,” Beau said, taking the boy by the hand. “Come with me, I’ll introduce you to him.”

Ry guided Lorenz toward a fallen log, but Lorenz resisted half-way down.

“Make sure Pelletier goes in a different helicopter,” Lorenz said, looking at Beau and Théo’s retreating forms.

“Of course,” Ry said, easing Lorenz down the rest of the way. “Wait for me here. I’ll be back in a moment.”

Lorenz patted the empty space next to him.

“Charlie,” he said. “Sit with me.”

Her knees were still shaking violently. Maybe sitting down was a good idea.

“Are you hurt?”

The question almost undid her.

She rubbed at her eyes with her sleeve, willing the tears away.

“Charlie. You’re scaring me.” He took her hand gently in his. “Are you okay?”

Charlie turned to look at him. His head wasn’t bleeding anymore, but dry blood streaked the entire side of his face, disappearing into the collar of his shirt. His lips had gone pale beneath the light stubble on his jaw.

“I’m scaring you?” she asked, gritting her teeth. “You’ve been beaten up, shot, and you’re … you’re worried about me?”

“I’m always going to worry about you, Charlie. You’re the most important thing in my life.”

“You’d better not be about to die on me,” Charlie muttered, sliding closer to him. When his body sagged, she did her best to hold him up.

Within moments, Ry was back. “Okay. Let’s get you on that helicopter. Unless you want me to go find the stretcher?”

“No stretcher,” Lorenz said, but he leaned heavily on Ry, all the way to the helicopter.

“Charlie. How are you feeling?” Tristan asked. He lowered his voice. “The boy’s already inside. I’ll keep him with me during the flight so Ry can take care of Lorenz.”

Charlie nodded, looking around for Lorenz. He was sitting back on one of the side benches. Ry was beside him, pressing something against his back. Lorenz hissed quietly through his teeth, but otherwise didn’t react.