Phoenix Feather (13 page)

“Truck 25, Primary Search west. Find me an uninvolved unit to attack the attic from on that side,” Frank shouted. “Engine 25, Primary Search east.” They needed to set up a line they could defend and hold back the fire while the ventilation team worked to redirect it. At the same time, they had to make sure no one was still inside those stores that would be inside the containment zone.

Trent took the nozzle, Sam pulled the hose, and they advanced toward the first unit on the right. The hoseline was to help them find their way back out since searching large department stores in a haze of smoke while crawling on the ground proved more difficult than if it were a residence.

“Watch the parapet,” Trent said over the radio. The unit next door looked close to a complete burn, its own parapet primed for collapse, and it could quickly take down the neighboring one with it.

“We’ve got flammables!” someone shouted over the radio.

“Hardware store,” Frank said. “Get a deluge set up and aimed at unit four.” The ladder truck’s pipe could shoot the water into the unit from a distance without endangering men should an explosion occur.

Trent’s jaw was set, his eyes grim, as he and Sam entered the store and navigated through a standard search pattern, counterclockwise against the wall. All the radio chatter and noises made it difficult to listen for cries from people still in the stores, and Trent had to focus with all his might. He and Sam searched the restrooms and employee break room; they were empty, so they backtracked their way out and over to the next unit. A brick smashed on the sidewalk. The masonry wall on the roof had been damaged, and bricks were falling loose and rolling off the parapet.

“Quick search!” Trent barked. “Let’s not get trapped in there when that parapet comes down.”

“Primary Search west All Clear,” came over the radio. The other team had cleared the structure to the left, which meant they were ready to begin fighting the fire. Trent hoped it hadn’t spread very far to the right; he wanted to get set-up to fight it too. The beast was not their only concern. The destruction it would wreak presented added dangers to the men trying to control it. Trent remembered all too well past experiences of firemen trapped under collapsed structures, choking on smoke as the air in their tanks ran out, the feeling of intense heat that could burn even before a lick of fire touched them. He had seen men injured.

“No one’s here,” he told Sam. Smoke spewed from the outlets. They’d have to go next door and hope that unit hadn’t been touched yet.

“Truck 25, pull out the ceiling,” Frank said. “How’s the ventilation coming?”

A sharp cracking snapped like thunder as the wood trusses could no longer sustain the pressure of holding up the roof, and they came crashing down like dominoes.

***

Aidan scooped a spoonful of No-Bake Cookie slop out of the pot and plopped it on a sheet of aluminum foil. She picked one close to being cooled and tasted it.

“Oh, these are good.” She looked at the pot on the stove and the foil spread out on the counters and table. “Maybe we should have made extra for us.”

Phoebe laughed. “I’m sure Trent will share.” Her smile faded. “Maybe I could set two aside for Chris. They’d probably last a few weeks, until he can eat more.”

“Go for it,” Aidan said, trying to sound as though it were a casual idea, and not one bred of sadness.

Phoebe’s cell phone rang, and she ran to grab it from the living room. She was always dashing madly after it since Chris was no longer living in the apartment with her.

“Chris!” Aidan heard her exclaim. “Is everything okay?”

Aidan finished scooping out the rest of the pot and put it in the sink to soak. She went into the living room.

“Why?” Phoebe grew quiet at whatever Chris had said.

Aidan gave her a questioning look.

“He says turn on the TV, Channel Two.”

Well that didn’t sound like an emergency after all. Aidan reached for the remote and pressed the ON button. The screen filled with an aerial shot of something on fire. The newscaster’s voice came over the footage.

“As you can see, Kirkwood’s Recycled Bookstore is completely consumed by flames.”

The footage switched to a woman standing next to the station’s news van with smoke billowing behind her as the newscaster continued.

“Is there any word on the trapped firefighters? Are they injured, and what is being done to rescue them?”

The woman shook her head. “We don’t know the condition of the men trapped inside the building, but if you look behind me…” The picture changed again. “You can see firefighters are working frantically to find a safe path to them.”

Aidan stood frozen in front of the television. The rest of the world faded into a blur. She forgot about Phoebe in the room and Chris on the phone. The fire was massive, glowing yellow, orange, and dark red, crawling, curling, and leaping like an entity writhing in the throes of death. Normally she found it beautiful.

“We don’t know if he’s even one of the men trapped inside,” Phoebe’s voice filtered through.

“What?” Aidan said, still distracted.

“I’m sure he’s fine.” Phoebe’s voice cracked at the pitch, rattling Aidan out of her thoughts and away from the TV. She looked at Phoebe and saw her clutching the phone to her chest, her knuckles white.

Aidan reached out and grasped her by the arms, searching her eyes for a semblance of level-headedness. “Talk to Chris,” she said.

Phoebe glanced at the phone. “Aidan…”

“I’m sure you’re right, that he’s fine. But Chris won’t be if you leave him hanging like that.” That seemed to work, because Phoebe lifted the phone to her ear and started talking again. Aidan turned back to the TV.

“For those of you just joining us, Kirkwood Plaza off of Clark and Baptist is in flames,” the newscaster said. “The fire was reported at 3:21 this afternoon in the back of Kirkwood’s Recycled Bookstore. Firefighters arrived shortly after that and began fighting the fire while people evacuated to the parking lot. At approximately 3:40, the structure began to collapse, trapping two firefighters. We have no information on their condition, and a rescue mission is underway.”

Aidan’s mouth pressed into a grim line. From the aerial photographs, she could see the large number twenty-five on two of the fire trucks at the scene, so she knew Trent’s Company was there. But where? Was he on the outside fighting the fire, was he part of the rescue mission, or was he the one needing rescuing? She wondered why this situation had never crossed her mind before. She knew he was a firefighter, and that such line of work was sometimes dangerous.

The detached reflection of a historian fell over her for a moment.
He’s a warrior.
He goes into battle with his armor and weapons against an untamed dragon. There is no fear and doubt, it just is.
Then the thought of him venturing into a treacherous lair and not returning carved out a pit in her stomach. She wanted to see him, to touch him, to know that he was real and not just some memory from a distant life. In that moment, she realized she wasn’t willing to leave him as a casual acquaintance, one easily replaced should he fade out of her life. She wanted him for the rest of this life, wholly and completely. She had never understood what a soul mate meant before. Now that she did, she wasn’t afraid of it. She had lived through wars and revolutions, nature’s disasters and journeys into the unknown. It was time for a new adventure.

“We’ve got men being carried out,” the newscaster suddenly said. “They’re being loaded into ambulances. Authorities refuse to give names and conditions until the families can be notified.”

“You can call his brother,” Phoebe exclaimed.

Aidan furrowed her brows. If Trent were injured, they’d call Bryan. If Trent wasn’t injured, Bryan could find out much quicker than she could. She went looking for the card he had given her so long ago for a different purpose. It was at the bottom of her book bag. She grabbed her phone and punched in his number at the station.

“Detective McCain.”

“It’s Aidan,” she said, suddenly feeling shy and unsure.

“Hi,” he said cautiously. “What can I do for you?”

“Is Trent okay? I mean, you would know.”

“Why wouldn’t he be okay?”

Aidan’s tongue stuck inside her mouth. He didn’t know? “The big fire…at the strip mall... They reported two firefighters trapped and injured, but not who.”

She heard shuffling and the sound of objects getting knocked over, and what sounded like Bryan barking at someone to get on the line to the Fire Chief.

“Are they still trapped?” he asked.

“No.” She glanced at the TV. “The news just reported that they were being taken to the hospital, but they wouldn’t have names until the families had been notified.” She paused. “I’m not family.” She could hear the tension in his breathing on the other end. Aidan didn’t know what to say; she could only watch and wait.

***

Bryan had the strong urge to pace, but the phone at his ear tied him to the desk. Jess came back from the Captain’s office where she had asked him to get in touch with the Fire Chief. Someone had turned on the TV to show the fire, which still blazed and had already destroyed a quarter of the strip mall.

“It wasn’t Trent,” Jess said, and Bryan felt a wash of immense relief. “He’s still out there fighting it.”

When he didn’t say anything, she gestured impatiently at the phone he still held.

“Aidan?” he said into the mouthpiece.

“Yes?” She was probably watching the footage on TV too.

“Trent wasn’t one of the firemen injured.” He heard her let out a long breath.

“Thank you.”

“Sure,” was all he could think to say in return. He waited for her to say goodbye and hung up. Then he grabbed his car keys and jacket. “I’m going to the scene.”

“Are you going to get Aidan?” Jess asked.

“Why would I do that?”

She rolled her eyes. “Because she’s just as worried as you, and she’d probably like to see that he’s all right for herself, just like you’re going to do.”

Bryan’s brow wrinkled. He was relieved that his brother wasn’t already in an ambulance, but the knot in his stomach still twisted because the remaining men were still fighting the blaze, and the dangers weren’t over until it was. Aidan probably knew that. Maybe Trent would appreciate seeing her…Bryan could tell that his brother was falling in love.

“Call and tell her I’ll stop by to pick her up on my way there,” he said, sounding more irritated than he actually felt.

Jess nodded, and he started to leave but turned on his heel at the door.

“Call me with her address?” he said sheepishly.

She nodded again and waved him off.

It was nearing dusk, and his car was cold, having been parked under layers of concrete all day. He knew that where Trent was, cold was not an issue. Bryan started the engine and pulled out. Normally he waited for the heat to start working, but that seemed unimportant right then. Jess called a few minutes later with directions to Aidan’s apartment. She also made a point of informing him how grateful Aidan had sounded when Jess told her he was coming to get her.

It took twelve minutes to get to her apartment, and she was already outside waiting. He pulled up alongside the curb and had to toss some fast food wrappers in the back before she hopped in. He waited for her to buckle-up, which she did quickly, and pulled out onto the street again. The heater finally began warming up the car, and she looked cold. He wondered if she had gone to stand outside right after Jess had called.

They drove in silence. The closer they got to the strip mall, the heavier traffic became. The darkening sky glowed a deep red—like blood. Bryan switched on his flashing lights, but not the siren, and maneuvered the car through the obstacles until he came to the far end of the mall’s parking lot. He and Aidan got out of the car and walked to the police line. He held up his badge and asked the uniformed officer about the progress.

“They declared it contained,” the guy replied. “Now it’s a matter of suppression.”

“Where’s the Fire Chief?”

The officer sighed. “Your brother’s out there, right? Detective, I sympathize, but I’ve worked lines like these before. It’s best to let them do their work and talk to them when it’s done.”

Bryan glared at the officer and considered pushing his way past him anyway, but he felt a gentle hand rest on his arm.

“He’s right,” Aidan said. “They have to finish.”

She said it with such calm, he wondered if she was in shock. A closer look at her face revealed she was alert and taking in the scene with the focus of someone studying it. He started at her eyes. It was as though the flames in the distance reflected in her pupils, melting with a fire already swimming in them. He fought the thrall and turned his gaze to what everyone else was looking at.

“It’s terrible,” he said.

“Unbridled power is,” she replied. “Thank you for bringing me.”

She sounded genuinely appreciative, which made him feel a twinge of guilt that it hadn’t been his idea at all. Trent might make him feel just as guilty. Or, Bryan thought grimly, Trent knew him better than that, and would suspect that it was Jess’s suggestion.