From Substitute To Queen

Chapter 144 Chapter 144 Third Person POV The black SUV's engine roared like a wild beast as it barreled toward the convenience store. Caelan spun around. His body moved before his mind could process the threat. Every instinct screamed danger as the massive vehicle bore down on them through the plate glass windows. He threw his arms wide, reaching for Sable with desperate urgency. His muscles coiled, ready to use his own flesh and bone as a shield against the incoming devastation. Sable's eyes met his in that split second.

She saw the fierce determination there, the way he'd already accepted his fate to save hers. The man she loved was about to sacrifice himself for her without hesitation. "No! Caelan!" The words tore from her throat as she shoved him with every ounce of strength she possessed. Rather than let him die for her, she'd gladly face the impact herself. The SUV crashed through the glass entrance. Windows exploded inward, sending crystalline shards flying in every direction. The entire front wall collapsed in a cascade of glittering destruction.

Metal screamed against metal as the vehicle's fuel tank ruptured on impact. Gasoline spilled across the floor in spreading pools. Electrical wires, severed by the collision, dangled from the ceiling like deadly serpents. Sparks danced where live wires met the growing puddle of fuel. Seconds later, fire bloomed with vicious intensity. Orange flames raced along the gasoline trails, transforming the store into an inferno. Thick smoke billowed upward, and the temperature spiked dramatically. Caelan's body slammed backward into a metal shelving unit.

The sharp edge caught his spine with brutal force, tearing through fabric and flesh. Blood soaked through his shirt as he crumpled to the ground, consciousness flickering. The impact had knocked the wind from his lungs. His vision blurred, darkness creeping in from the edges. Sable absorbed more of the collision's force. A massive refrigerated display case toppled, pinning her legs beneath its weight. Blood trickled from a deep gash across her forehead as she lost consciousness, her body going limp. The flames crept closer to where she lay trapped and helpless.

Darrell spotted a gap in the wall of fire - a narrow opening where the flames hadn't yet reached. He pulled off his jacket, pressed it over his nose and mouth, then bent low and charged into the smoke-filled chaos. "Sable! You in here? Answer me!" He shouted between coughing fits, his voice hoarse from the toxic air. The heat was overwhelming. Sweat poured down his face as he navigated the debris-strewn floor. Then he saw her-trapped beneath the fallen cooler. Darrell grabbed the edge of the heavy unit. The muscles in his neck strained as he lifted, veins bulging along his throat.

The metal edges cut into his palms, but he ignored the pain. Fire licked at the spot where Sable lay; a few more seconds and she'd be burned alive. With a grunt of exertion, he managed to raise the cooler just enough to pull her free. Her body was limp in his arms as he lifted her, her head falling back against his shoulder. O Q M III O < 1/3 11:53 Fri, 22 Aug Chapter 144 Behind them, the heat wave rolled through the store, Caelan's eyes snapped open as debris rained down around him.

His vision swam, and his head pounded, but through the haze he could see Darrell carrying Sables unconscious form toward the exit. Raw fury exploded through his chest. "Put her down! His voice came out as a harsh rasp. Get your hands off her right now!" Darrell didn't even slow down. "Shut up! I'm saving her life!" Caelan struggled to his feet, swaying as pain shot through his injured back. "She's my wife! I don't need your help!" "Look at yourself! Darrell snapped without turning around. "You can barely stand up, let alone carry anyone!" "I don't care!" Caelan stumbled after them.

"Give her to me!" 89%1 Darrell finally turned, his eyes blazing with frustrated anger. "You can barely stand! How exactly are you planning to carry her?" Caelan suddenly realized that his right hand was shaking uncontrollably, and his left arm was useless. Even if he managed to reach Sable, he couldn't lift her weight in his current condition. Fire crept closer to where they stood. The temperature was becoming unbearable. "You want her to die in here?" Darrell's voice carried desperate urgency.

"Because your pride is more important than her life?" Caelan's teeth ground together as he forced out the words: "If anything happens to her-anything at all-I'll kill you myself." Darrell sneered. "I'm the one keeping her breathing right now. You couldn't even protect yourself." They stumbled toward the exit together, Darrell bearing Sable's weight while Caelan followed behind on unsteady legs. As they passed the destroyed SUV, its alarm system shrieked into the night air. The driver's side airbag had deployed and deflated, revealing the person slumped behind the wheel.

Caelan's step faltered as light from the flames illuminated the man's profile. "Wait... His voice caught in his throat. "That's..." The face was familiar-devastatingly so. Marcus Blackwood, his own father, sat unconscious in the driver's seat. Blood trickled down his temple from where his head had struck something during the crash. The front of the vehicle was completely crushed, trapping him inside. Father? Caelan's voice cracked with disbelief. "Why...

how could it be you?" Marcus's chest rose and fell in shallow breaths, but his eyes remained closed Carlan stared for a moment longer, his mind reeling, then forced himself to keep moving. He had to get outside first. Then he d figure out how to process this nightmare Darrell emerged from the burning building with Sable cradled against his chest. He knelt on the concrete outside, carefully placing her on the ground and using his jacket as a pillow beneath her head. Come on, Sable," he murmured, checking for a pulse at her neck. Wake up... please wake up..?

Caelan dragged himself out behind them just as sirens wailed in the distance. Ambulances and fire trucks were already racing toward the scene. 2/3 M III O < 11:53 Fri, 22 Aug PM. Chapter 144 A ཊཱི 89% "There's someone still trapped inside," Caelan told the first paramedic who reached them. "In the vehicle. He needs immediate extraction." Chapter Comments LIKE Write Comments < SHARE 89% From Substitute To Queen