by Kathryn Shay
“I, um...Grandpa.” As soon as she said the words, she was ashamed of herself. But she couldn’t seem to assert herself with him.
“Ah, yes, his resentment of me is intense. You’re afraid he’ll find out.”
Holly nodded.
Then her mother did what she always did before the big upheaval in their lives. She put her daughter first. “Look, honey, if going with me to yoga makes your life harder, I don’t want to do it.”
“I do, Mom. I want to see you more. Do things together.”
“You do?”
“Yes.”
“Then how about if we don’t tell anybody what we’re doing?”
“You’d do that for me?”
“And a lot more...”
Now, her mother tugged on Holly’s shoulder. Everyone was standing. She leaped up.
The class got progressively harder. By the time savasana, or corpse pose, came around at the end, she and her mother both practically fell on the mat.
Since the yoga room was off the gym proper, they had to walk out through that area. There seemed to be a lot of buzz in the air, and people were running around and squealing. “Something’s going on here,” she said to her mother.
“Yeah, I can see that.”
“Holly?”
She turned to see Joe standing behind her. And of course, he looked...virile in one of the gym T-shirts, with the logo that read, “The Weight Room.”
“Hi, Joe.”
“What are you doing here without me?”
“Excuse me?”
“I mean, I thought we were going to do this workout stuff together.”
“Oh, did you want to take yoga?” She said it with a smile because she knew that he wouldn’t.
“Yoga?”
“Yes, that’s what we were doing.” She gestured to Vanessa. “You remember my mother, don’t you?”
“Yes, Madam Mayor.”
“Joe Santori, of course. You rescued my parents from the fire and helped Holly.”
“Uh-huh.”
Holly asked, “What’s happening here? Everybody seems on edge, or really excited.”
“Chelsea and Jake had their baby today. A little girl.”
Holly felt jealous. She’d been thinking about babies, and marriage and happily-ever-afters.
“So,” he said changing the subject. “Do you want to work out now?”
“Are you kidding? I’m so sore I couldn’t pick up a two-pound weight.”
“From yoga?”
“You think it’s namby-pamby like my walking?”
He gave Holly a flirty grin that melted her insides. “Maybe I thought that.”
“Not tonight,” Holly answered his question. “Nice to see you, Joe.”
“Yeah, you too.”
Over her shoulder, she called out, “Tell Chelsea congrats from me.”
Holly and her mother left the gym to go to their respective cars, and reached Holly’s first. Vanessa stopped. “Joe Santori likes you.”
“He says he does.”
“What do you mean?”
“He asked me out. I said no. Then he tricked me into coming here with him that day I met you at FAN.”
“How’d he do that?”
After Holly explained the situation, her mother reached out and squeezed her arm. “Oh, honey, you’re more than enough for any guy. He’d be lucky to get you.”
“Thanks, Mom, but no. Not this one. Someday I’ll find a guy who likes me as I am, no matter what baggage I have.”
Her mother froze. “You’re talking about Linc.” An incredible look of sadness came over her face. “That was my fault.”
“No, it wasn’t. I’ve given this a lot of thought over the years, and if Linc really loved me for myself, for who I am, he wouldn’t have broken off our relationship no matter what happened with you and his dad.”
“Do you mean that?”
“I do.”
Spontaneously, her mother hugged her. “Thank you.” When they stepped back, her mom added, “And if you’ve gotten that far in believing in yourself, why are you not enough for Joe Santori?”
Holly didn’t answer.
“Think about it, dear.”
* * *
Holly thought about her mother’s comment all the way home and as she entered her house that night though the garage door. She found her grandfather in the kitchen. Waiting for her?
“Grandpa, hi.” She took off her hoodie and dropped the yoga bag on the floor, then crossed to him. “You and Grandma are usually in bed by now.”
“I waited up.” He glanced toward the mudroom. “You went to a yoga class, your grandmother said.”
“Yeah. It was great.”
“You grandmother didn’t tell me this, but I have a feeling you went with your mother. Am I right?” His voice was full of disapproval.
She sat down at the kitchen table and, when he joined her, she took his hand. “Yes, Grandpa, I did. I was keeping it from you to avoid a confrontation, but no more. I’m sorry if my seeing my mother hurts you, but your grudge against her hurts me, too.”
“This isn’t a grudge against her.”
“What do you mean?”
“Never mind, I didn’t mean to say that. I just don’t want her to hurt you again.”
“If she does, she does. Parents and kids hurt each other all the time.”
When it sunk in how that applied to him, he looked sad.
So she asked, “What’d you do tonight?”
“Grandma and I went for a ride. She wants to start looking for apartments.”
Holly knew this time would come. “No house?”
“She says she’s tired of taking care of one. Besides she wants a community of folks our age to socialize with.”
“That sounds wonderful, though I’m not in any hurry for you to leave here.”
“I don’t want to make friends.”
“Because of Doug Pierson?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, Grandpa.”
“Besides, your father came over tonight. He asked again for us to live with him. I’m thinking of doing that.”
“I’d miss you. And truthfully, Grandpa, Dad’s going to keep filling your head with grief against Mom.”
Her grandfather stood. “Well, maybe that would balance out your views.”
“Don’t you miss your daughter?”
His eyes turned bleak. “I do. But the risk is too great. Best you remember that.”
“What’s life without risk, Grandpa?”
“Calm.”
When he left to go to bed, she fixed herself decaf tea and went to her room. And felt like a hypocrite. She wouldn’t risk seeing Joe, yet she wanted her grandfather to risk letting her mom back into their lives.
If you’ve gotten that far in believing in yourself, why are you not enough for Joe Santori?
In truth, she missed him. She pictured him at the gym tonight. She’d been hit by a strong physical longing when she saw him.
Hell, why wouldn’t Holly be attracted to him? She hadn’t had sex with anybody in five years. How pathetic.
* * *
The call came in while Group 3 was eating breakfast. Joe’s crew grumbled at the interruption, but Joe let it go since they were quick to get on the road. As they sped through the streets, he turned to the back seat. “I got a bad feeling about this one. So be careful.”
“Ah, the ominous hunches.” This from Hildy, but she wasn’t joking. Joe knew things. Sometimes he got a gut reaction about fires and as soon as he heard the details, that warning had come to him.
“Listen to him, girl,” Norm warned from the driver’s seat. They’ve borne out.”
“I know, I wasn’t criticizing. I’m ready, lieutenant.”
“You, Tully?”
“Yes, sir. I, um, didn’t know about your hunches.”
“They’re a good thing.” Norm again. “Keeps us on our toes.”
The warehouse fire was rolling as they pulled up next to a pumper. T
he guys on Engine 9 were busy slapping water on the east side of the building. One other company arrived, making this a three-alarm fire. Which meant the danger level was high.
Joe bolted off the truck and found the captain who was running Incident Command. “What can we do, Cap?”
“There’s a door in the back that leads to offices. We don’t know if anybody’s there, but you guys can check. The fire should be knocked down in that area.”
Joe hopped back on his rig, gave the team details and they drove to the rear of the building, where they parked. At the entrance to the warehouse, Joe said, “Follow me in.” He reached for the handle and found it locked. “Use the rabbit tool, Grant.” The hydraulic device would pry open the door.
Hildy stepped forward and popped it.
Holding the thermal camera, Joe went inside first. The smoke was black and thick, which meant something noxious was stored here. The others would be blind. “Preston and Tully, turn on your glow sticks.” The flexible, one-time use light sources were being tested out with some firehouses.
Heat slammed into them and Joe dropped to his knees. They followed suit. Slowly, he crawled along the sooty surface. The floor was thick with debris. Inch by inch they made their way down to where the offices started. After nearly five minutes, Joe felt a wall in front of him. He stood and...
The floor opened up.
Joe fell through the hole. He landed hard on his back.
His head slammed into the hard concrete.
The world went black.
* * *
Elementary school teachers had breaks when the students were scheduled for specials. During that time the kids went to gym or to the music room. In late morning, Holly walked into the teacher’s lounge to get some tea. There weren’t many people in here, and the TV droned in the background, which she glanced at. The caption at the bottom of the screen read, “Firefighters trapped in basement of a warehouse.”
For a second, Holly froze. Then she moved close to the set and turned up the sound. A male anchor spoke while the split screen showed an angry fire in progress. “If you’re just joining us, a warehouse on Oak Street broke into flames, sending first three, then five trucks to the scene. It’s still blazing, but the crew of one of the rigs that went into the back to search for victims fell through the floor to the basement. Other firefighters have been called to rescue them.”
The camera panned to the parking lot. She saw Truck 8 idling. It was Joe’s company.
“Oh, my God.”
“Holly, what’s wrong?”
Her hand over her mouth, she turned to see Greg had come up to her. “T-the fire...that’s Joe’s station house.”
“Joe Santori? Your neighbor?”
“Yes. A group of firefighters fell through the first floor to the basement.” Saying the words aloud made the situation worse.
“Don’t they work in shifts?”
She nodded.
“Maybe he isn’t on today.”
“I don’t know his schedule.”
Gently, he put his hand on her shoulder. They stared at the TV screen. A camera drew out for a panorama of the building and all Holly could see was ugly black smoke billowing from the top and the windows. Then the screen went full to the anchor. “We have here fire spokesperson Battalion Chief Mills. “Who fell through, Chief?”
The stone-faced man pushed back his helmet. “We don’t release the names of firefighters in danger.”
“How would the fall have happened?”
“The fire might have started in the basement. The floor burned through, and when the group stepped on that spot, it gave way. The warehouse is old, too.”
“So they’re trapped.”
Mills’ eyes narrowed. “No, they fell through. Only minutes ago. We’ll get them out.”
“How will you do that if the floor’s gone?”
“We have a team on the upper story cutting a hole through that floor. They’ll rappel down two flights.”
“How long will that take?”
Exasperation now. “As long as it takes!” The chief walked away.
The anchor’s brows arched. “Tensions are high here, of course. We should hold these firefighters close to our hearts.”
Next to her, Greg said, “At least there’s help coming to whatever shift it is, Holly.” A pause. “I think gym will be over for your class in five minutes.”
She turned to him. “I have to go back without knowing if Joe’s there?”
His face registered surprise. At her intensity over a neighbor? But he said, “Um, no. You stay here. I’ll ask the VP to get coverage.”
“Thanks, Greg.”
Holly dropped down on a chair because her legs were too weak to hold her up. Those firefighters could die! Joe could die! The notion was untenable.
* * *
Joe awoke to something hard pressing against his back. The space around him was pitch-black. Where was he? Trying to moderate his breathing, he listened. A cacophony from above penetrated the fog of his mind. He was in a fire. He fell through. The others might have, too. Into the radio he said, “Check in, team. Did you fall with me?”
In a bit, he heard, “Preston here. We all fell. I’m okay.”
Grant said, “I’m okay. Black as hell down here though.”
“Tully?”
“Fine. Not a scratch.”
“Murray, check in.”
“Nothing.”
If anything happened to one of his crew...
In minutes, light from above pierced the blackness. “Santori, can you hear us? See us?”
He took off his facemask and yelled, “Yeah, we’re all down here.” He sat up and moaned loudly. “Murray hasn’t checked in. Mur-ray!”
No answer.
“He isn’t responding,” Joe yelled. “Get him first.”
Through the light, he saw a body coming down, then drop in front of him. “Joey, it’s me, Jake.”
“Find Murray, he’s not answering.”
Scarlatta shined the light to the area around them. “Murray’s right here.” Jake took a few steps and bent down. “I can’t tell if he’s injured. We’ll have to get a backboard to haul him up.” He turned to the others. “Meanwhile, you’re all going one at a time.”
“I’m staying.”
“No, Lieutenant Santori, you’re not. You might be hurt worse than you think. We don’t want to get side-tracked with you.”
He held his tongue.
First, Norm was hoisted up. Then Hildy and last Tully.
“Are you sure...”
“Up, and that’s an order.”
Reluctantly Joe obeyed Captain Scarlatta. Fitting the harness around him took every ounce of strength Joe had. He hurt all over and jostling on the way up didn’t help. Someone got him under the arms and laid him down.
“You okay, son?” Ben Cordaro.
Joe struggled for breath. “Sore as hell, but that’s all.”
“You’re going on the next ambo.”
“No—”
“Please, Joey. Do as you’re told.” There was worry, not anger, in his voice.
The medics arrived. They lowered the rigged-up backboard.
“Let me know how Liam is,” Joe called out.
“Will do,” Ben promised.
The ambulance held him, Norm, Tully and Hildy, along with one other person, who was out cold. “Who’s he?”
“The guy inside the office.”
At least a victim was rescued.
* * *
Holly went back to her class when the firefighters in the basement were rescued. The anchor confirmed they were from Joe’s house, but she still didn’t know if he was working. She finished her lessons, and managed to supervise the children’s exit, get them on the bus. When she walked back to her class, she saw the vice principal coming toward her. “Hi, Holly. They released the names of the firefighters that were hurt. I wrote them down for you.”
He handed her a list.
Her eyes misted.
“Is your friend on there?”
“Uh-huh.”
“At least he’s safe now.”
“Thank you, Tom.”
When the VP left, she went into her room and picked up her phone. Please let him be all right. She turned the device on and punched in his number. It rang several times. When she was about to hang up, she heard, “Hello,” in a gravelly voice.
“Oh, thank God. Are you all right?”
“I am. And I hope this is who I think it is.”
“It’s Holly.”
“Glad to hear your voice, babe. And yes, I’m sore as all get out but I was examined and released.”
She bit her lip. A tear escaped. Then, “I was so worried.”
“I’m fine. Mighty fine to hear you were concerned.”
“Of course I was. Are your group members all right?”
“Three of us are. Liam got a nasty bump on the head because his helmet came off. We’ve been sitting with him, but his relatives came, so I’m heading home.”
“I’m so glad. Do you need a ride?”
“No. I’ll get somebody to drop me off at the firehouse to get my car. Want to come over to my house and take care of poor, injured me?”
She chuckled. “You’re incorrigible. But yes, I’ll come over and bring dinner. Anything else you need?”
“Just you, sweetheart.”
Chapter 12
* * *
Mid-afternoon on Monday, Chase walked into the hospital. The waiting area reminded him of the night he met Vanessa here. It had only been six weeks ago, but it seemed like a lifetime.
He saw the guys huddled in a group, grimy, exhausted. He’d bet every single one of them in the fire was here, even though they’d been dismissed from duty.
Scarlatta saw him first and headed over. “Hey, Chief.”
“I got updates all day, but I’ve been busy at the scene. No injuries except for Truck 8, right?”
“Right.”
“How are they?”
Minor burns for Preston and Grant. Not a scratch on Tully. “Santori’s got bumps and bruises and he’s sore as hell but they didn’t admit him. Murray’s still in there.” He nodded to the ER door.
“He okay?”
“Yeah, he’s got a bad bruise on his head. They’re watching for concussion.”