Page 25 of Savagely Scarred

It is complete and utter chaos right now. Fire fighters running around, dragging hoses and yelling orders. Police officers keeping the public back and taking statements from the hostages. Ambulances are on sight as well, the paramedics checking everyone for injuries.

And the coroner pushing the charred remains of the main in the flannel shirt.

Lorenzo pulls me aside while the rest of our squad escorts the other suspect to the patrol car that will be taking him to jail.

“What the fuck was that, ese?”

“What?”

“What do you mean what?! You just fucking stood there frozen, staring at the fire. I could see the flames in your eyes, but that’s it. You weren’t in there.” He taps the side of his head.

He grips my shoulder hard and steps closer to me. Lowering his voice, he continues, “We could’ve died.”

“I’m sorry, man. My head is all over the place. It’s no excuse. I fucked up,” I mutter.

His arm drops and he takes a step back. “Dios mío,” he whispers. “It’s June.”

“Yeah.” I sigh, unstrapping my helmet.

“I mean this in the nicest way possible. But you need to get your head out of your ass, Sergeant.”

“I’m trying.”

“Try fucking harder,” he demands before hopping into the back of the truck.

I remain silent the entire ride back to headquarters, ignoring the conversations around me. I catch Liv glancing at me every so often, concern written on her face.

Even though I’ve been going through this every year, I’ve never reacted like I did today. Fire has always been my trigger, but it’s never made me falter on the job. Not when other people’s lives depend on me.

This time though, there are additional complications thrown into the mix. Her psycho ex that we haven’t heard from yet. And now a possible serial killer targeting women who look like my girlfriend. Whether they’re the same person has yet to be determined.

When I catch her eyes again, the corner of my lip twitches. She gives me a small smile before resuming her conversation with Dorian.

If I lose her—if she dies, I pity any soul who finds themselves in my war path.

Chapter Seven

Olivia

“Why don’t you work here instead?” Dorian asks Ava, gesturing towards the bar at Russo’s. “The owner isn’t an asshole.”

Ava slumps back into the booth beside Enzo and sighs.

“I would never make it on time for my shifts since Saks is uptown. Especially, if Anna has me working late. I’m fine.” She waves a dismissive hand.

But she doesn’t look fine. The dark circles under her eyes tell a different story. She’s exhausted. Her black hair isn’t as shiny and well maintained as it usually is. Ava is a perfectionist. The only time I see her hair less than flawless is when I know she’s stressed out. I think other than her party Saturday, this is the first night she has had off in weeks.

I grab my third slice of pizza and take a huge bite, the grease dribbling down my chin. Sage slides a napkin over to me while taking a sip of his beer.

“You work up an appetite today?” He grins wickedly.

“Apparently,” I say after I swallow.

He leans into me and whispers, “Wanna burn off those extra calories when we get home?”

I can feel heat rising to my cheeks. I shove my shoulder into him and chomp down on the pizza again.

“Holy shit!” Dorian yells while looking at his phone. He turns it around to show us the video he has pulled up. “Someone took a video of you guys crashing through that window and it has over a million views.”