They tried not to jostle the man too much as they lifted him, then secured him to Seb's harness.
"Hudson--"
"Go. Now." Hudson pulled on the line. "Get them out of here," Hudson called up. The harness was lifted, and Seb threw out a hand. Hudson caught it. He kissed Seb's palm seconds before Seb's hand was out of reach.
"I love you," Hudson said, loud enough for Seb's ears alone.
"I love you," Seb choked out, doing his best not to give in to his emotions. His jaw clenched, and his eyes never left Hudson's as he was pulled up.
Hudson backed up against the closed doors as the lift dropped several more feet. Urgent shouts filled the doorway above them and behind Hudson. Seb was just about up when the last cable snapped. Hudson gasped, tears blurring his vision as Seb and Bill were snatched up and pulled through the doorway seconds before the lift sped by. Seb's horrified scream pierced Hudson's heart, and he pressed against the doors behind him, his eyes shut tight. Air whooshed around him, and he lurched back, landing with an "oomph." He was pushed onto his stomach, his body shielded as the horrifying sound of crushed metal and snapping wires met his ears, a cloud of dust and spray of debris bursting around him.
When the noise and dust settled, the body moved off him, and Hudson lifted his head. Dom lay on his back catching his breath.
"Fuck."
Hudson blinked at him. "Dom?"
"Don't ever... scare me... like that... again," Dom panted.
Hudson grinned like an idiot before throwing himself at Dom and hugging him tight. Dom laughed, wrapping an arm around him.
"You're welcome," Dom murmured. "Now get off me before the boss man gets any crazy ideas."
Hudson couldn't help but laugh through his tears. He stood and helped Dom to his feet. "Is Nina okay?"
Dom nodded. "Yeah. She was by the front doors when the blast hit."
Seb called out, and Dom shouted back, "He's okay."
Seb came to an abrupt halt at the bottom of the stairs, his stunned, tear-filled gaze on Hudson. As if snapping out of it, he broke into a run, reached Hudson, and threw his arms around him in a crushing hug. He lifted Hudson off his feet, squeezing him again before he put him down. Seb pulled back and cupped Hudson's face.
"I thought I lost you."
Hudson shook his head, unable to speak. He could see how much Seb wanted to kiss him, but they were surrounded by agents and emergency personnel. There was so much still to do, people needing help. Seb swallowed hard.
"Go get yourself checked out. I need to get back."
Hudson nodded, his heart swelling when Seb smiled before running off, shouting orders into his earpiece as he hurried up the stairs.
As expected, it was chaos upstairs, but the explosion had been smaller than Hudson originally believed. It had destroyed the floor above the vault toward the back exit, but other than that, the rest of the building was intact. When he reached one of the EMTs, he smiled at the tall wolf Therian.
"Hi, Mikey."
"Hudson," Mikey greeted, returning his smile. He patted the back of the truck. "Have a seat, and let's get a look at you."
As Mikey inspected him, Hudson asked about the casualties. Dozens were injured, several in critical condition, but so far only a couple of known fatalities.
"You're good to go," Mikey proclaimed. "Maybe now I can tell that guy you're okay and he'll stop calling me."
Hudson frowned. "What guy?"
Mikey shrugged. "Some guy's been calling me like every ten minutes asking about you. Don't know how he got my number." Mikey smiled wide. "Looks like you got yourself an admirer."
"Or a stalker," Hudson mumbled. He thanked Mikey and went in search of Sergeant Maddock, whom he found by Destructive Delta's BearCat.
According to Maddock, Recon agents confirmed that the man who'd collapsed with a bomb strapped to his chest had been trying to send a message. Mr. Pruitt had been arrested previously for vandalism and property damage. The man had a deep loathing for Wall Street and corporate America, which he'd shared with the world through his blog. As of a few months ago, his blog posts had spiraled from rants to unhinged threats. The comme
nts spurred him on, urging someone to do something. Pruitt had decided he'd be that someone.