“Yes, we gotta push you through these. And we’ll have to start it sooner rather than later, because you know I have to be up early forwork.”
“Yeah, that’sright.”
He sounded disappointed, and I was bummed too. I didn’t want to be on the clock when Dax was here. I was only working a few days, since I was still under contract with Hacksmore, but it would have been nice to be able to cherish every moment with Dax…to have him without having to work around my job and all theevents.
“Well, at least I have Nance and Keeg to keep me company,” Daxsaid.
They’d planned to have a little day date at Willow Brook Park, something they’d done occasionally when Dax was intown.
“Thank you for spending time with them,” Isaid.
“I like spending time withthem.”
I could tell he meant it too, and like so many other things with Dax, he couldn’t know what hearing that meant tome.
Mac jumped up, putting his front legs on me and looking at the ball in myhand.
“I think he wants you to throw it,” Daxsaid.
“Why? So he can watch me fetchit?”
We attempted to get Mac to fetch a few more times before returning to my place to spend another magical eveningtogether.
* * *
Zedand I moved through the dense smoke filling the air. My sweat was a blanket covering my body. My breath only warmed my face mask even more as we searched upstairs through the east side of the two-story home for possiblevictims.
To think that less than twelve hours earlier, my biggest worry had been trying to pin Dax to the bed to finishBridget Jones: The Edge of Reason…and then pinning him to the bed for a whole other deliciousreason.
When we’d arrived on the scene, the neighbors said it was a family with kids and that the mother usually stayed at home during the day. No sign of her outside, but with a car in the drive, we’d headed inside to take a look forsurvivors.
Zed and I used thermal imaging cameras to guide us through the space, cautiously navigating the second level, moving as fast as we could. Beau’s voice came over my two-way radio, letting me know we were running low on time before they had to run the lines. As usual when we had a high probability of a survivor, the crew wanted to give us a minute to search, considering if we ran the hoses too soon, the steam was liable to suffocate anyone in the house faster than the smoke that was already billowing through thespace.
As we headed into the master bedroom, I caught something on my camera. Sure enough, even over the sounds of cracking and crushing surrounding us, I could hear what sounded like a womancoughing.
I alerted the guys on the radio, and they prepared for a window removal since we were rapidly losing the west side of thehouse.
A crashing sound, like thunder, came from nearby, and I turned, searching for Zed, but only seeing the smoke. I knew he had to be in the room, but fuck if I could seehim.
“Floor broke. I’m stuck,” Zed said over theradio.
My feet froze inplace.
“We’ve gotta run these hoses, guys,” Beau’s voice came through. “Zed,Jace?”
I could hear the house being fucking torn apart, and it only became more difficult toconcentrate.
“My leg’s jammed, and I can’tsee.”
I could tell Zed was panicking. The worst thing we could have had rightthen.
“Don’t move,” I radioed to Zed, iterating what I was sure he already knew, but felt he had to be reminded of to keep from totally losingit.
The smoke was too thick for me to see for shit without my camera, so I turned it and caught Zed’s image on thescreen.
“Zed, Jace?” Beaupressed.
We didn’t have muchtime.
