Read Wayward Hearts Online

Authors: Susan Anne Mason

Tags: #christian Fiction

Wayward Hearts (6 page)

BOOK: Wayward Hearts
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With any luck at all, she wouldn't even dream—especially not about Jason.

 

****

 

Jason checked his pager and his cell phone to make sure both were still on. He'd been on call for the Kingsville Fire Department for the past eight hours and now looked forward to a hot shower and the comfort of his bed.

He ran a hand over his gritty eyes and checked the time on the clock of his truck. Twelve thirty. He should make it back to Rainbow Falls by 1:00 AM. With any luck, his mother would be asleep.

He blew out a weary breath. Maybe the time had come to get a place of his own. He hated the thought of leaving, but once he became a fireman full time, he'd be working crazy shifts, and his mom didn't sleep well, waiting to hear his truck in the driveway.

His thoughts turned to Maxi as he swung the vehicle onto the country road leading into town. Soon he would pass by the Norths' farm. Would he see any lights on, or would Maxi be long asleep?

Darkness spread out before him, broken only by the long beam of his headlights. Above him the stars winked a silent greeting. He felt like the lone person alive on the planet.

A sudden flicker up ahead caught his attention. For a moment, he thought it a trick of his imagination until the flicker became a red glow. He craned his neck to see better, his instincts kicking into high alert.

Fire!

He hit the accelerator hard to get closer as fast as he could. Fear gripped his insides the minute he realized where the light was coming from.

The North farm was on fire.

Jason slammed down his foot on the accelerator and pulled out his cell phone. He punched in the speed dial number for the Kingsville Fire Department.

“It's Hanley. Fire on rural road eight. Charlie North's place. Looks like the primary burn is the barn. I'm going to check the house. Meet me there.”

Gravel flew as the truck roared onto the side road leading to the property. His pulse pounded in his temples.

Please God, let Maxi and her mother be all right.

Jason watched the flames shoot from the barn as he jumped from the barely parked vehicle. Thank goodness the chicken coop was far enough away not to be affected. Not so, the main house. Smoke wisped up from the roof of the house. His blood ran cold. The fire had spread, probably from embers blown over in the wind.

He bolted up the porch stairs to pommel the front door, calling out for Bernice and Maxi. He tried the handle, knowing it would be locked now that Maxi was home.

With no response to his banging, he took a run at the door and hit it hard with his shoulder. Pain radiated through his arm, but the door didn't budge. Fear closed his throat.

You're a firefighter, Hanley. Slow down. Think logically.

Jason turned, picked up a wooden chair from the porch, and ran to the front window. He heaved the chair with as much strength as he could muster into the pane of glass. Shards flew everywhere. He leapt through the jagged opening, mindless of the sharp pieces that tore at him. He seemed to be moving in slow motion as he ran into the hallway. Shooting a glance toward Bernice's main floor bedroom, Jason hesitated for a split second. Then, at the sight of smoke in the stairway, he bounded up toward Maxi's room.

Perspiration beaded on his forehead and dripped down his spine. The smoke got thicker as he ascended, burning his nostrils and throat. Black mist, like evil tendrils, swirled around him. He coughed, trying to cover his nose and mouth with the crook of his elbow. Somewhere in the house, Shep barked. He tried to call Maxi's name but choked instead. Acrid fumes stung his eyes and blurred his vision, further hampering his ability to see. He crawled his way along the wall to her door.

Relieved the handle wasn't hot to the touch, Jason pushed into the room. Through the haze, he could only make out vague shapes. He felt his way to the bed, groping until he hit a lump.

“Maxi.”

She didn't move.

Running his hands over her, he found what felt like a shoulder and shook. When there was still no response, he gathered her body, blankets and all, into his arms and staggered to the door.

Dear God, don't let me be too late.

The smoke was much thicker on the second floor than below. As he made his way down the stairs, his vision improved. He found the front door, unlatched the lock and pushed outside. Coughs racked his body while his lungs fought for fresh air. Dropping to his knees, he laid Maxi gently on the grass. He swiped at the tears blinding him, desperate to see if she were breathing. The fact that she wasn't coughing sent off alarm bells inside him. He found a weak pulse, further adding to his anxiety.

Life and death decisions had to be made. Raising his head, he looked back at the house. Shep stood on the porch, barking in frantic staccatos. Bernice was still inside, but he had to get Maxi breathing first.

He couldn't lose her. He
wouldn't
lose her.

Determination strengthened his resolve. Hopefully, Bernice had more time, since the smoke wasn't as bad on the main level. Right now Maxi needed oxygen. He checked her airway and began mouth to mouth. His hands shook as he held her face and blew.

Please God, let her breathe.

On his third attempt, Maxi began to cough. Then she gulped in large quantities of air.

“Thank you, Lord.” Relief made his muscles weak.

Her arms flailed as she regained consciousness. Gently, he held her by the shoulders.

“You're going to be OK. Stay here. I have to get your mother.”

He raced into the house, dimly aware of sirens approaching.

Minutes later, he returned carrying the frail older woman. The fire truck and ambulance had just pulled up. Men spilled from the vehicles. Jason brought Bernice right to the paramedics.

“She needs oxygen. So does Maxi over on the grass.”

One of the men tried to put a mask on Jason, but he pushed it away.

“The women first.”

Suddenly the smoke took its toll. Jason bent over, hands on his knees, gasping air into his straining lungs. When the ground stopped spinning, he raised his head and went to find Maxi.

True to her stubborn nature, she was on her feet, refusing the paramedic's offer of an oxygen mask. Her desperate eyes sought Jason. “Where's Mama? Is she OK?”

She took a few unsteady steps toward him before her legs gave out, and he caught her.

“I think so. They're looking at her now.” Maxi's colorless lips matched her pale skin. “You need oxygen.”

“I have to see her first.”

There was no use arguing with her. She was as stubborn as a spreading fire. He half carried her to the ambulance, motioning for the paramedic to follow. Once Maxi spied Bernice lying on a gurney, she pushed out of his arms.

“Mama.” Her croak turned into a cough. “I'm here, Mama.”

Bernice's lids flickered open for a moment. She gave a brief smile before they fluttered closed again.

“Is she all right?” Maxi asked the attendant.

The man, in his forties with a brush cut and a no-nonsense attitude, avoided her question. “We need to get you all to the hospital.” He nodded at Jason. “You too, sir.”

As much as he hated it, Jason knew the guy was right. Plus he wanted to make sure Maxi received treatment. She'd been unconscious for who knew how long.

Before she could protest, he grabbed her by the waist, hoisted her into the ambulance, and then climbed in after her. With the adrenaline waning, exhaustion crept into his body like water trickling through a dry creek bed. After Maxi was settled, he let the attendant place the mask over his face, then leaned back, waiting for the ambulance to take them away.

 

 

 

 

6

 

Maxi fought her way through dense fog, battling for breath. She had to find Drew. He was in this maze somewhere. She coughed, unable to find air. Heat singed her eyelids.

Fire!

She shot up as a scream ripped from her throat. Strong arms pulled her close where a steady heart thumped under her cheek.

“It's OK. You're safe.”

Jason
. Relief spilled through her. Everything would be all right now.

“Where's Drew?”

She felt him go still and pulled back to look at his face. Under his tousled mop of hair, sympathetic eyes watched her.

“You were dreaming, Max. Drew died a long time ago, remember?”

The confusion in her brain refused to clear. “Where are we? What happened?”

Jason held her shoulders. “You're in the hospital.” His voice was low and calm. “A fire started in the barn and spread to the house.”

Oh God, no. Not another fire.

Adrenaline surged through her veins. Where was her mother? She tried to push Jason away and get out of bed, but he kept a hand on her shoulder.

“Your mom's going to be fine,” he said, as though reading her mind. “She suffered some smoke inhalation. Not as much as you, but because of her illness, they want to keep her for a day or two.”

Tears blurred her eyes, partly from gratitude, partly from the force of what they had escaped. They both could've died. “How—how did we get out?”

She fought to recall any detail, any tiny scrap about it. All she remembered was waking up on the grass with someone pushing an oxygen mask over her nose.

“I got you out.”

She wiped the moisture from her cheeks and stared at him. His face was grim; his jaw clenched tight.

Jason had saved them?

“You? How?” Her throat burned with every word.

“I was on my way home and saw the flames in the distance. I didn't realize it was your place until I got closer.” He shrugged but the look on his face told her just how bad it had been.

“So you came and got us out?”

Jason looked uncomfortable. He shifted on the bed beside her. “It's what I'm trained for.”

Maxi tried to comprehend the magnitude of what he had done, scrambled to find the words to express her gratitude, but all she could do was cough. It was an effort to get the air into her lungs.

“You saved our lives,” she murmured. Her body began to shake, as though she was cold, which she wasn't. It was most likely from the shock of almost losing her life. Of almost losing her mother so soon after her father.

Jason pressed her back against the pillows and rang for the nurse. A heavy-set, middle-aged woman appeared at the door seconds later.

“Our patient's awake, I see.” She bustled over to check Maxi's vital signs. “Back on the oxygen you go, miss,” she ordered, and attempted to replace Maxi's nose tube, which had come out during her struggles.

Maxi put up a hand to stop her. “I want to see my mother first.” She couldn't rest until she saw Mama's condition for herself.

The woman darted a look at Jason who nodded.

“I'll take her.”

“Only five minutes. Then I want her back here.”

In the room down the hall, Bernice lay still beneath the sheets of her hospital bed. A little too still for Maxi's liking. Jason wheeled her chair to the side of the bed, and Maxi reached to take her mother's hand. The skin was paper thin and cool to the touch. Bernice's lips had a bluish tinge, her cheeks looked almost gray. Maxi swallowed hard to quell the tears that threatened again.

“I want to talk to her doctor.” It hurt her raw throat to speak.

“I'll see if I can find someone.”

It registered in the dim recesses of her brain that Jason was being far too accommodating. He usually argued with her about everything. Did that mean her mother's condition was worse than everyone was letting on?

When Jason left, she laid her head on her mother's arm, longing for her to wake up and tell her everything would be all right. “Please be OK, Mama. I can't lose you, too,” she whispered.

A few minutes later, Jason returned with a different nurse. This woman was tall and slim with short dark hair and a kind air about her.

“Your mother will be fine,” she assured Maxi. “We've sedated her, so she'll rest. Because of her illness, though, we're going to keep her for a couple of days of observation.”

Maxi sensed no deception, just honesty. The tension in her shoulders eased a fraction. “Thank you.”

“If there's any change, I'll come and let you know.” The woman flashed a warm smile. “Now I think you should get back to bed yourself.”

The last bit of energy drained from Maxi's body. All she could do was nod. She felt the wheelchair moving, was vaguely aware of being lifted into bed and the oxygen tubes attached before she succumbed to oblivion.

 

 

 

 

7

 

Jason ran his hands through his hair in disbelief as he surveyed the ruins of the Norths' barn. Nothing left but a pile of ashes and part of one wall. This would delay the sale of the farm for sure.

The first light of dawn peeked over the rolling hills of the property as Jason turned toward the house to see what state it was in. Kingsville fire chief, Steve Hamilton, descended the porch stairs as Jason approached. Fatigue etched the lines of Steve's face. He was probably finishing the tail end of the midnight shift.

Jason strode over to him, noting a dejected Shep lying on the porch.

“Hey, Steve. How bad is the damage in there?”

Steve looked up from his clipboard, his face grim. “Main floor's not bad, but the second story will need extensive repairs. The roof over the far bedroom is gone.”

Maxi's room.

“Lots of water damage, too,” Steve continued. “Looks like Charlie let the batteries wear out on the smoke detectors."

Jason shook his head, not wanting to think ill of the dead, but it was typical of Charlie. “So the family won't be able to come back yet?”

“Not for a while, I'm afraid.”

Jason tried not to think about telling Bernice and Maxi they were homeless for the time being. “Any idea how this started?”

BOOK: Wayward Hearts
10.34Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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