Chapter 140: Car wreck
The accident scene was a complete wreck.
Killian slammed his car into park and jumped out.
His gaze immediately locked onto Kieran’s vehicle. Killian could feel him. Kieran was alive, but his heartbeat was weak. He could sense that his brother was trapped somewhere inside the wreckage, but he couldn’t determine exactly where. Killian ran. Then he noticed the passenger door. It was hanging open.
Eloise stood beside the wreckage, soaked through by the rain. Her carefully styled hair had fallen apart, dark strands plastered against her cheeks. Mascara streaked beneath her eyes, and her expensive dress clung to her trembling body. She was clutching her phone against her ear.
"Yes, please hurry!" she cried into it, her voice breaking. "He’s still trapped in the car. I don’t know how badly he’s hurt."
She looked up. Her eyes widened. "Killian!" She rushed towards him. "Killian, thank Goddess you’re here!"
She reached for his arm, but he stopped her with one sharp look. "Where is Kieran?" he asked.
"In the car," she said. "He is conscious. I don’t know what happened. He just lost control..." she cried.
Eloise’s tears continued spilling down her cheeks, and Killian’s jaw tightened. He had no patience for tears right now. Kieran was trapped inside a mangled car, and every second they wasted brought him closer to death.
"If you are conscious, Eloise, why is he still trapped inside?" he snapped. She flinched, then shook her head rapidly. "No. His leg is stuck. I tried to pull him out, but I couldn’t move him."
Killian was already moving. He reached the driver’s side and his expression changed. The impact had been brutal. The steering column was bent. The dashboard had collapsed inward, crushing the space around Kieran’s legs. The driver’s seat had twisted beneath him, trapping his lower body.
The airbag had deployed, holding his upper body against the seat. Blood covered Kieran’s forehead and cheek. More blood had soaked through his shirt. His face was frighteningly pale. The dark circles beneath his eyes were still visible beneath the blood and rainwater dripping through the shattered windscreen.
"Kieran." Killian’s voice dropped. There was no response. He could smell petrol. A lot of it. His wolf snarled. ’Get him out. Now.’
Killian’s eyes sharpened. He reached into the wreckage and dug his claws into the airbag. With one vicious slash, he deflated it. The pressure released with a violent hiss.
"Kieran," he called again, louder this time. "Stay with me."
Nothing. Killian shifted partially, his claws extending and his muscles tightening as the beast beneath his skin surged forward. He grabbed the twisted frame. Metal groaned and the people surrounding the accident fell silent, stunned by his strength. Killian pulled. The crushed frame shifted several inches. His teeth clenched. He pulled again. The metal screamed.
"Come on," he growled.
Another pull. The frame finally gave way. Kieran’s trapped leg came free. Eloise immediately reached into the car, trying to pull Kieran. "I’ll get him," she said, trying to pull him from the car as Killian reduced the pressure. Her heels snapped and she collapsed under his weight on the wet floor.
"Wait." Killian shoved the twisted metal aside and reached through the wreckage. "I’ll handle it."
He carefully slid one arm beneath Kieran’s shoulders and another beneath his legs. Kieran was completely limp. His head rolled against Killian’s shoulder. "Easy," Killian muttered, his voice suddenly softer. "I’ve got you."
He pulled his brother from the wreckage and carried him away from the leaking vehicle. Eloise followed, stumbling through the rain. A woman suddenly pushed through the crowd.
"I can help!" Killian looked up. The woman was drenched, her clothes smeared with mud. A small healer’s badge hung from a chain around her neck. "I’m a local healer," she explained breathlessly. "Let me examine him."
Killian had no time to argue. He lowered Kieran carefully onto the wet pavement beneath the shelter of a nearby awning, far enough from any danger. "Do what you can," he said.
The woman immediately knelt beside Kieran. Killian turned away. A child’s scream cut through the rain. His head snapped towards the overturned vehicle. The second car was still smoking.
"Help!"
Someone shouted.
"They’re still inside!"
Killian’s eyes narrowed. Through the shattered windows, he could see a small boy being pulled from the wreckage. He was soaked, crying so hard that his little body shook. "Mum!"
A woman nearby wrapped her arms around him. "Your mother is coming, sweetheart. She’s coming."
But she wasn’t. The boy’s mother was still trapped inside. Killian could see her through the broken windscreen. She was unconscious, her body pinned beneath the twisted interior. And the smell of petrol was getting stronger.
"Emergency services are almost here!" someone shouted.
Killian looked towards the approaching sirens. Too far. The smell was becoming overwhelming.
"Step back," he commanded.
His voice wasn’t loud. It didn’t need to be. The Alpha command rolled across the crowd. Every werewolf nearby instinctively obeyed. People stumbled backwards, making room. Killian approached the overturned vehicle. The driver’s door was badly crushed, the handle already broken. Someone shouted from behind him.
"Don’t bother! We tried opening it. It’s completely jammed!"
Killian ignored him. He crouched beside the wreckage and pushed his claws into the narrow gap between the door and frame. His muscles tightened. The metal refused to move. Killian growled. The petrol smell hit him again—strong, far too strong. His eyes flicked towards the leaking fuel beneath the vehicle.
"Everyone move back," he ordered. He hooked his claws deeper into the door. "Now," he barked.
The door ripped open. The force was so violent that it tore free from its hinges and flew several metres across the road. The crowd gasped. Killian immediately reached inside. His nose caught another scent—smoke, fuel, something burning. His wolf roared inside his skull as his tail stood in panic.
’Killian!’
His eyes widened.
"Get back!"
He grabbed the woman’s seat belt and slashed through it.
"Get back!" he screamed, this time loud enough to make everyone freeze.
Killian reached for the unconscious woman. And then he heard it. A faint crackle beneath the wreckage. His head snapped towards the underside of the vehicle. Fire. The flames raced along the leaking petrol. Killian’s eyes widened.
"Run!"
He barely had time to pull the woman towards him. The world exploded.
BOOM!