Page 40 of Horn in My Side

“I’m a guy. Trust me.” His expression quickly changed from lighthearted to stormy. “We’re here.”

As Jasmine turned her attention outside, her heart leapt into her throat at the scene before them.

It was pure chaos, to put it mildly. Half a dozen fire trucks took up the corner of the street where an apartment complex stood, thick, fat curls of smoke rising to the heavens as fire clawed at the blackened windows and walls.

Even from inside the car, her nose burned with the sharp stench of burning wood.

“Oh Mother Goddess.” An invisible fist wrapped around her chest and squeezed. “Mal . . .”

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Kap said, sounding confident. He parked the car in the closest open spot. “Stay in here, Jasmine.”

“But—”

“I said stay!” The low, unearthly growl from the tree giant sent a shiver through her. “I’ll ask around about him, okay?”

The loud slam of the door closing made Jasmine start.

She stayed in the cruiser, watching the blaze engulf the looming structure, her stomach twisting with worry.

The fire was much, much worse than in her imagination.

It was like a movie—no, a nightmare where she couldn’t do anything to stop the horrors. A crazed feeling ripped through her.

Calm down. Everything’s going to be fine. And—

A loud crack sent all the hairs on the back of her neck standing up. An involuntary gasp left her mouth as she watched the collapse of the east corner of the building, screams and shouts filling the air.

Jasmine flew out of the car like the devil was on her tail, running into the wave of people scurrying away, as if she were a salmon swimming upstream. She crossed over the cordoned-off scene marked ominously with red-and-white tape that read, “ FIRE SERVICE EMERGENCY PERSONNEL ONLY .”

Lost in a sea of identical uniforms and heavy, soot-streaked gear, Jasmine couldn’t tell which one of them was Mal. There were a few who were almost seven feet tall, but from their gait and stride, she could tell they were not him.

“. . . I can’t believe he went inside!”

“That orc must be crazy.”

The word “orc” perked up her ears. Turning to the direction of the chatter, she found two firefighters in full gear, braced against the side of a fire truck, exhaustion and worry etched on their dirty faces.

“Excuse me, did you say ‘orc’?” she called. “Was it Mal of Urduk Horde?”

“I don’t know his name,” one of them said. “He’s not from our ladder, though.”

“Did he make it out of the building?”

“Didn’t see him come out,” the other one replied.

Jasmine’s stomach turned to stone and moisture gathered at her eyes. But she gritted her teeth, fighting against the tears and wave of emotions threatening to overwhelm her. This was not the time to break down.

Spinning on her heel, she bounded toward the blaze.

With the confusion around her, no one noticed or questioned her presence.

As she drew closer, the familiar sight of the Dewberry Volunteer Fire Department truck came into view, parked closest to the building.

Her heart sprinted in her chest as she rushed forward, stumbling through the mess of firefighters and emergency workers.

The hiss of water and crackling flames only added to the panic clawing at her.

Oh Mother Goddess, ancestor spirits, please let him be all right.

“Jasmine! Jasmine!”

She whirled round. “Nick!”

The satyr galloped toward her, stopping a few inches away, his hooves kicking up dirt. “What are you doing here? This area is for emergency personnel only.” He reached out to put a hand on her shoulder. “Let me—”

“No!” She put her hands up defensively. “I want to see Mal. He . . . he made it out, right?”

“You know about—” He shook his head. “Damned idiot charged right in when he heard some lady and her two children were still trapped on the third floor.” He heaved a breath. “Tried to stop him, but he wouldn’t—”

“Just tell me if he made it out,” she interrupted, her fingers clawing at his arm.

“Huh? Well, yeah, he did.” Nick pried her hands off. “He did that magic umbrella forcefield thing and got out before that one section collapsed. Rescued the mom and kids too.”

The relief she felt was indescribable. “Where is he?”

“ EMT s should be checking him out. Jasmine, you really should—”

She was already dashing toward the group of ambulances parked behind the fire trucks, her vision blurring through the tears stinging her eyes.

A big indistinguishable blob appeared ahead, seated in the back of an emergency vehicle.

Wiping the moisture away with her fingers, she slowed her steps, her heartbeat slowing down to a normal pace as soon as her gaze landed on Mal.

“Mal . . .”

His head snapped toward her, his purple eyes bulging. “Jasmine? What are you—Ow!”

“Sorry, sir,” said the young EMT who was dabbing at a nasty scratch on his arm with a cotton pad. “If you could please sit still, I’ll be done in a second.”

“Er, yeah. Sorry about that.” He sent Jasmine a sheepish grin. “And thank you.”

“Just doing my job. And there you go.” With a last swipe of the cotton pad, the wound completely disappeared. “You’re very lucky, sir, that you got away with only minor cuts and burns.” He looked over his shoulder at Jasmine. “You should probably take him home, ma’am.”

“Y-yeah. Sure.”

Mal stood up, the ambulance bobbing up behind him. With his giant strides, he reached her in three steps.

She spoke first, scared to raise her voice above a whisper. “I heard the fire trucks . . . Clawdia said there was fire . . . Minerva told me about the apartment building . . . Nick said you went . . .”

Oh.

Mal’s big, strong arms came around her, crushing her against him. Pressing her nose against his chest, she took in a deep breath, not caring if he smelled like smoke and sweat. No, to her, he smelled alive .

“And you came all the way here?”

“I had to,” she murmured against his chest. “I needed to know you were safe.”

A soft rumble vibrated against her cheek as he said, “Let’s get out of here.”