by Amie Denman
Tony’s voice informed dispatch they were on scene with flames showing and at least one critical injury. Glued to the radio, Laura waited for more information. She heard volunteers and off-duty firefighters come in, talking in the bay. Tyler Ruggles, Kevin’s brother, was one of them. Laura looked out and saw him and Gavin taking off in the secondary pumper with two men in the back.
Over ten minutes went by before Laura heard Kevin’s voice on the radio informing dispatch the ambulance was leaving the scene en route to the hospital. He sounded calm, sober. Whatever had happened to the person, it had to be terrible if Tony had described the injuries as critical.
If I were there right now, what would I be doing?
Laura absorbed everything she heard on the radio and meshed it with the hours of classroom and practical instruction she’d experienced in the previous weeks. Would she have what it takes in an actual emergency? If she had to save a life, would she know what to do?
Another half hour went by, and she heard Kevin tell dispatch the ambulance would be returning to the scene. Did that mean there were other injuries, or were the firefighters at risk? Was Tony okay? She hadn’t heard his voice on the radio for what seemed like a long time.
Finally, nearing midnight, Tony radioed dispatch and announced they were leaving the scene. His tone was calm, but it didn’t have the notes of reassurance she had come to expect. It sounded more like resignation...as if he’d done the best he could and failed.
She waited, anxiously. Several volunteers who had manned the station in case of another call had stuck around, too. What was the protocol for a situation like this? Could she ask Tony or one of the other guys for details? He’d encouraged all the new volunteers to ask questions and listen, but did that apply right on the heels of an ugly fire call?
“What kind of a mess did you have out there?” one of the volunteers asked as soon as Kevin stepped down from the truck. Laura still had the portable radio in her hand, but she had given up her seat in the radio room. She was relieved that someone else had jumped in and asked the question so she could listen in.
“Crappy one. Half the house is burned out, and the guy who owns it blew off his hand with fireworks. His timing must have been way the heck off and he had only a stub left. Bleeding bad,” Kevin said. He shook his head, looking miserable but stoic.
The volunteer who had asked covered his mouth and ran for the bathroom. Kevin half smiled. “Troy doesn’t like blood and can’t handle the medical stuff, but he’s a great firefighter so we’re happy to have him around.”
Laura couldn’t help imagining what a long road the victim would have ahead of him. “Do you think the hospital can...reattach it?”
Kevin shook his head. “Sometimes they can, but in this case, we couldn’t find enough...parts.”
“Got hose to clean,” Tony said. “You okay, Laura?”
“Sure, yes.”
Kevin walked away and Tony looked seriously at Laura, scrutinizing her. “It’s hard at first, facing the terrible things that happen to other people or that they do to themselves.”
She nodded. She’d faced some terrible things...that morning the men had stood on her parents’ doorstep with the worst news.
“But you deal with it by knowing you’re doing the best you can to make things better,” Tony said. “Being able to do something takes the bite out of even the worst situation.”
Laura smiled for the first time in hours and felt a weight lift from her shoulders. “That’s exactly why I’m here,” she said.
Tony drew his eyebrows together and a question crossed his face, but then he looked as if he’d realized something. “Now I get it.”
When Laura arrived home that night, her sister was already in bed. Laura knew she would have to mend fences with Nicole the next day for choosing the fire department over her, but if she could put into words the way she felt, maybe Nicole would understand.
Maybe she would use Tony’s words, because they were exactly right.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
TONY HESITATED. HE’D been about to call Laura’s personal cell phone. If she had been a male volunteer for the department, he wouldn’t have batted an eye. If he had as much personal interest in her as he had any of his other firefighters, it would have been easier. But Laura did interest him. She tested him. She made him question his own motives.
These motives were pure. This phone call was not because he waited for Laura to walk into the room every night of training or sensed her presence wherever she was in the fire station. Or thought about her at night as he was trying to go to sleep. This phone call was good for Laura and the department in general.
He tapped in the number she’d written on her volunteer application. It was midmorning, the day after Independence Day. Would she be at work? He expected and almost hoped his call would go straight to voice mail. He tried to summon the courage that sustained him in the face of fires, accidents and disasters.
Laura’s voice came on the line, a question in her “Hello?”
“It’s Tony,” he said, even though he assumed she had caller ID and wouldn’t have answered the phone for just anyone. He hoped she wouldn’t.
“You’re calling from the fire station,” she said. “Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s fine. I’m calling to ask a favor.”
He wouldn’t ask for himself, but he was willing to stick his neck out for the department. He hoped Laura would say yes, but he didn’t want to make her feel obligated.
“Okay,” Laura said. “What can I do to help you? You don’t have to write a speech or a toast or something like that for my sister’s wedding, do you?”
He laughed. “Maybe a toast, but Kevin’s brother has speech duty. And the wedding is two weeks away.”
“Plenty of time,” Laura said.
Tony sat on the bench in front of the fire station. The friendly back and forth was throwing him off balance, so he focused on the concrete Dalmatian wearing a red fire helmet. The statue had been a gift years ago to the station and it sat right outside the front door.
“Are you available for lunch tomorrow?” he asked abruptly, suddenly wanting to get the question asked and answered before he got any more nervous.
There was a long pause before she answered, and Tony realized he’d steered the conversation in a backward, stupid way. What if she thought he was asking her for a lunch date?
“Actually, no,” Laura said. “I promised Nicole we’d have lunch tomorrow, and I can’t stand her up again after last night. She’s still mad about me joining the fire service and last night didn’t help.”
“Breakfast?” Tony asked.
“I think you should tell me what’s on your mind,” Laura said, her tone amused but curious. “And then I’ll decide which meals I could commit to.”
Tony smiled. Laura was savvy enough not to let herself get into a situation without knowing what was going on. That made him feel better about her general safety and well-being, even though he didn’t think of himself as dangerous. He swallowed. Were his feelings for Laura potentially messy enough to get in the way of her fire service? He didn’t want to be the step over which she stumbled. She deserved this chance.
“An interview,” he said. “With the local paper. A reporter saw you and Diane in the parade yesterday and started asking questions. When he found out that we have two female volunteers for the first time ever, he called the station and asked to do a story on you.”
“On me and Diane.”
“If she’ll agree,” Tony said.
“Have you asked her?”
“No. I started with you because I know you...”
Silence on the other end of the line did not help Tony after he left his words hanging. He meant to say he knew her better, but how would Laura interpret that?
“Are you asking me to call Diane and talk her into it?” Laura said
.
“I’m asking for your opinion and your help. Do you want to do this interview? Would it make you uncomfortable to be singled out because of your...because you’re a...”
“Woman,” Laura said. “And no, it doesn’t bother me. It just came out of the blue. I don’t know what Diane will say, but if you want me to, I’ll call her. I’m afraid she’ll balk at the special attention, but she might view it as good for the department. I’ll ask.”
“Thank you,” Tony said.
“You have to be there, too, of course,” Laura said.
“At the interview?”
“Yes. And the interview has to be at the fire station, not just some restaurant somewhere.”
Tony smiled, even though he knew Laura couldn’t see it. She had a strong sense of how things should be and wasn’t afraid to speak her mind.
“I can tell the reporter he has to bring lunch if he wants to talk to my hard-working volunteers,” Tony said. “And take pictures.”
“There will be pictures?”
“That’s what he asked for.”
He heard Laura sigh. “On second thought, tell the reporter he doesn’t have to bring lunch, but he does have to come to Tuesday night training and do a story on all the volunteers. Not just me and Diane.”
Tony hesitated. It really was a milestone for the department to include women for the first time in its hundred-year history. But Laura had a point.
“He may not like it,” Tony said. “But I’ll tell him that’s the deal.”
“Good. Will you text me what he decides to do?”
“Sure.”
After disconnecting, Tony called and gave the reporter his choices. All the volunteers or none of them. When the reporter quickly agreed, Tony knew Laura had been wise to suggest it. He pulled his personal cell phone from his pocket and texted Laura, who texted him back a smiley face. And he realized they’d just crossed a line into...friendship?
He didn’t know what to call it, and he certainly didn’t know what to do about it.
* * *
A FEW NIGHTS LATER, the reporter, Will York, showed up with a camera and a notebook just before class started.
“You picked a good time,” Tony said. “The classroom part is over, and we’re getting our hands dirty tonight.” He pointed to a wrecked car he’d had hauled in from the junkyard. The car had clearly been involved in an accident and remnants of an airbag spilled over the steering wheel. The frame appeared to be sprung and the car crouched on the concrete with only one thing left to give.
“Our new recruits will learn how to use extrication tools to get someone out of a damaged car,” Tony explained. “It’ll be loud and messy, and you’ll want to have your camera ready.”
Tony had already moved both ambulances to the front side of the station so the concrete apron at the rear could serve as a training ground. He’d also asked a few of his longstanding volunteers to come help. It would be good for the newspaper story to also show a previous class of volunteers, and good experience for everyone involved.
As the eight new volunteers arrived and suited up, Tony talked with each of them and gave them a friendly warning about the reporter. He had considered calling to tell each of them in advance, but learning to deal with curious reporters was a reality of the fire service. Tony told each person they didn’t have to give any statements unless they wanted to. Most of them shrugged good-naturedly, but Allen looked more grim and serious than usual. Laura already knew about the proposed article, and he guessed she’d called Diane, who didn’t seem surprised by the news.
“It’s hot, but you’ll need full gear,” Tony said. He put on his own turnout pants, coat and helmet, and waited while everyone suited up. He noticed the photographer taking pictures of Laura while she put on the protective clothing. Only Laura. Will York snapped dozens of pictures as she pulled up her turnout pants and slid her arms into her coat. He continued taking pictures as she snapped the coat shut and put on her helmet. Tony wanted to yank the camera out of York’s hand and tell him Laura wasn’t a museum attraction. She had the potential to be one of his best firefighters because she was determined and she paid attention. Was York taking those pictures because Laura was young and attractive?
Tony kept his irritation under control and hauled equipment off the rescue truck. Hydraulic jaws and cutters, airbags and saws. Laura and Richard helped carry the equipment over to the already-damaged car, and Tony noticed the reporter taking more pictures of Laura. He wanted to step in front of her and protect her from the exposure; he considered sending her inside on an errand of some kind just to remove her from the situation. But then he reminded himself he couldn’t protect her from everything, and she wouldn’t want him to.
“If a victim’s entrapped,” Tony said to the assembled volunteers, “your job is to get them out quickly and safely. Any time you can shave off between the accident and getting the victim to a hospital may help save a life, but there are serious hazards with car accidents to both the victim and the first responders. You have to secure the scene. Is the car still running? Is it in danger of rolling or flipping? Any fire or leaking flammable fluids? You have to think about potential sparks from the equipment you’ll be using.”
Tony went over assessing the scene for hidden or obvious dangers in detail, then demonstrated how to hook up and run the hydraulic jaws. The volunteers gathered around as he showed them how to use the jaws to pop open one of the doors. Tony noticed the photographer hung back in the crowd and didn’t take any pictures of him demonstrating the jaws. The article wasn’t about the chief, and he’d been in the paper plenty of times. He expected the camera to come out as soon as he invited class members to work together to pop open the other three doors.
The hydraulic jaws were heavy, and it was hot work in full turnout gear. Tony stepped back and watched the volunteers team up. Sweat rolled down Brock’s face as he and Allen forced a door open. Tony noticed Marshall helping Diane by lifting some of the weight of the tool as they worked together. Richard and Oliver started in on the third and last available door, but stopped and gestured for Laura and Skip to step up and take a shot at it.
When Laura’s team approached the car, Tony watched her every move. She used her strength wisely and efficiently, and determination furrowed her brow. Her cheeks were pink with exertion, but her expression of triumph as she and Skip popped open their door was going to make an amazing picture for the newspaper. The photographer stood on the other side of the car and captured the entire thing.
Tony didn’t know whether he wanted to grab the camera or let the reporter share Laura’s beauty and will with everyone in the Cape Pursuit region. He wanted to keep her all to himself, he realized with a heart-stopping suddenness, but she wasn’t his. And she never could be.
He cleared his throat and gathered everyone for the demonstration of the next piece of equipment, a hydraulic cutting tool. One of his older volunteers demonstrated how to cut the doorposts so that the roof could be folded back as Tony explained the procedure. The class of new volunteers took turns cutting doorposts, each of them making an individual attempt and cutting the posts in several places. Again, Tony noticed the photographer focusing on Laura.
Soon after, Laura came to stand next to Tony while others took their turns. Tony glanced at her, his voice low, and said, “Is that photographer bothering you?”
Laura turned her back on the rest of the people and the photographer so only Tony could see her face. “It’s making me uncomfortable because he seems to be taking pictures of mostly me,” she whispered.
“I noticed. Come into the station and help me grab waters for everyone,” he said.
As they went inside, Laura said, “I thought you told him the story had to be about all the volunteers, not just the female ones.”
“I did.”
“That’s not what he’s doing.”
“Believe me, I s
aw what he was doing.” Tony couldn’t keep the annoyance out of his voice, and he wondered what Laura would think had caused it. He didn’t like to see anyone made uneasy, especially someone he cared about.
Laura pulled bottles of water from the fridge and handed six of them to Tony. “I almost don’t want to go back out there,” she said.
Tony put his bottles on the table. He wanted to pull Laura into his arms and hug her, but that would make a bad situation so much worse.
“It’s not fair,” Laura said.
“No, but you deserve to be out there doing your job. Truth be told, you’re one of the best volunteers we’ve had in a long time. You’re smart, you pay attention, and you’re brave and dedicated.”
She shook her head. “When you say things like that, it makes me feel...”
“What?” he asked gently. He wished he could see inside her thoughts.
“Afraid,” she admitted, looking into his eyes. “Afraid of failing, of not knowing what to do and letting someone down at the worst time. Afraid everyone will find out I’m not as brave as I act.”
Tony felt his heart pounding. How many times had he had the same thoughts?
“Now I know you’re perfect for this,” he said. “You just described everyone on this department, but you were actually brave enough to put it into words.”
He wanted to tell her she was special to him and that he’d begun to care for her in a way that had nothing to do with the fire service, but now would be the wrong time. Heck, there would never be a right time.
“We’re going to go back out there, and I’ll tell that guy I want him to take lots of pictures of Marshall so the guys at the police station will give him crap about it.”
Laura smiled, warming Tony’s heart. She grabbed four bottles of water. “Let’s go,” she said.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“YOU CAN DO THIS,” Tony said as he put heavy tape over Laura’s mask. With each strip of tape, part of the world disappeared, and darkness made her feel more and more alone inside her fire gear. Was this what it felt like when Adam had finally given up running from the forest fire and pulled a fireproof blanket over himself? What were his final thoughts when he realized that, eventually, fire will always win?