felt something wickedly sharp dig into the sole of her shoe. Glass, she thought with a low hiss. Mila would have kicked it aside to spare others the bite of pain, but it was so crowded, she could barely move or—
She jolted as a light fixture up ahead suddenly dropped down, wrenching cries of alarm and pain out of the people in the line, making the tight crowd sway and stagger and jostle each other. If it hadn’t been for Dominic’s body shielding hers, she might have ended up with crushed feet or something else.
“The damn place is falling apart!” Dante shouted. “What the hell are the people at the exits doing? Surely they can force the doors open!”
Hearing a loud squeal, Mila looked to see a female frantically batting at her sleeve, where little sparks had burrowed. “Shit,” Mila muttered, the curse muffled by her tee. “We’ve gotta do something.”
“Yeah, we do.” Dominic coughed, tasting ash, phlegm, and fear for his mate. Dammit, he had to get her out of there. “Fuck the line, let’s move.”
His hand slippery with sweat, he gripped Mila’s, finding it just as clammy. Dominic forced his way through the crowd, not caring who he hurt in the process—his mate came first. He kept Mila close, sensing that Ally and his pack mates were close behind them.
Dominic didn’t make the turn that led to the side exit—the corridor was too slim and too cramped with people. So ignoring the shifters who swore and snapped at him, he kept on shouldering his way through the other line until he finally reached the rear exit.
The flames hadn’t yet gotten this far, but the air was still hazy with smoke. Even so, he could see that Jesse had managed to open the door and was standing in the outside ditch. But the wolf was unable to lift the hatch that would enable them all to get out.
Catching sight of Dominic, Jesse said, “The bastards have blocked it somehow, and I’m guessing they’ve done the same to the side exit, since the lines aren’t moving in either direction. The bastards are actually fucking laughing up there.”
“Laughing?” Dominic echoed. “Those motherfuckers think this is—” He cut off at the sounds of rabid growls, pained grunts, and muffled curses coming from outside.
Moments later, the hatch was yanked open.
Seeing Alex staring down at them, Mila smiled. “About damn time you got here.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Moving aside, Alex urged them out, grimacing at the plumes of smoke that rose from the hatch. “I called the pride; they’re already on their way.”
Coughing, Mila grimaced at the bodies splayed on the ground. Humans, her senses told her. Her brother had dispatched of them quickly and coldly. “Any more extremists?”
Alex nodded. “Some are covering the entrance, and some are sitting in a huge fucking van in the lot. They’ll come this way as soon as they realize you all got out. Although everyone’s coughing and hacking, they hopefully won’t hear you over the sound of the fire roaring and the alarm blaring. Be careful,” he added as more people climbed out, their faces stained with soot and tears. “There are snipers on the roof at the front of the building.”
“We’re on it.” A tall male muttered something to his friends, who then promptly shifted, shrugging off their clothes as they flew. Eagle shifters.
As Mila and Dominic helped the other patrons out, Ally, Dante, and the Phoenix Alphas apprised the escapees of the situation, urging them not to run off.
“I figure the snipers are there to shoot any firefighters who try to help—it’s something they’ve done in the past,” said Mila.
Dominic nodded. “With any luck, the eagles will kill every single one of the fuckers. Can you let people out of the side exit, Alex?”
“It’s best not to,” replied the wolverine. “Everything that happens in the alley echoes, so the extremists will hear if shifters start filing out of that exit. The humans will then go after them, guns blazing—literally. It’ll work better if everyone just comes out the back way.”
He had a good point, so they continued to quietly help the other patrons out. Ally took aside any who were burned or otherwise injured, and soon other healers joined her efforts.
A loud cry from high on one of the rooftops made everyone freeze, and a deep voice up there boomed, “They’re out!”
“Think there was any chance the extremists on the other side of the building didn’t hear that?” asked Taryn.