“The hotshot crew is fine, though,” she says, her voice a little gentler now.“Working like animals, but fine.”
I smile, and a warm wave of relief washes over my whole body.I hadn’t even realized how worried I was until right now.
“Thanks,” I say.
“And Robbie over at the checkpoint into Eaglevale reported an old guy in a pickup truck driving out about fifteen minutes ago,” she says.“Dunno what you said, but it worked.”
“I invoked the ghost of his dead wife is all,” I mutter.
Jennifer shrugs.
“Well, now he’s not dead in a cabin,” she says.“Go hand out blankets and wet wipes.Nice butt will be fine.”
I stick my tongue out at her, and she laughs.
ChapterThirty
Hunter
Into the afternoon,the storm picks up speed.The winds get faster and sharper, and I can feel the updraft while I’m just standing still, watching the forest.
Worse, smoke is billowing upward as the wind sucks it skyward, yellow wood smoke against blue-black storm clouds.
We take a quick break, and I turn on my phone to snap a few pictures, because it’s striking, almost beautiful.There’s no service, or I’d send them to Clementine, just to let her know I’m okay, still here, taking photos.
That I’m thinking about her, even if I didn’t get to follow through with my promise to jerk off while I’m doing it.The rock she gave me is still safe, in a pocket that zips shut so it won’t fall out.I wish I’d given her something, but it just didn’t occur to me.
Next time.
Silas and I are taking a quick break when the radio crackles, and he answers it.
“Briefing on the beach,” says Porter’s voice.“Report immediately.”
Silas and I look at each other, then practically swallow the rest of our granola bars whole, grab our gear, and head back.We can both tell this isn’t good, even if we were both expecting the storm to change things around.
When we get there, there’s a dozen guys from the crew geared up and heading off.Everyone is busy, with the frantic energy that always accompanies a change in plans.
Porter looks tired.His skin is nearly gray, his eyes look sunken, and he’s even grouchier than normal.
In that moment, I don’t envy the guy his job.Even if I think he’s an asshole sometimes, he’s responsible for making sure a whole crew does their job and doesn’t die in the process, not to mention the well-being of the people whose houses we’re trying to save.
Making the wrong decision iseasywhen you’re faced with steep mountains and raging wildfires and storms that seem to come out of nowhere, and it’s easy for that decision to be deadly.For once I’m glad that I only have to follow orders.
“Casden, Dewar, there you are,” he says.
I want to point out that we were nearly a mile and a half away, but I know it’s not the time.
“We’re gonna leave the Eaglevale firebreak where it is,” he says to us.“Air support thinks that between what we’ve already done and water drops, we’ve got it handled.”
As if on cue, a tanker plane flies overhead, and Porter gives it a few moments until he can be heard again.There’s another dozen guys readying equipment on the beach, handing tools, packages of food, ponchos, and water bottles back and forth.
Porter points at them.
“Dewar, you’re with them,” he says to Silas.“There’s a place a mile up you can cross the river.We can’t let the fire burn over the ridges to the south of here.Thomas can fill you in.”
We both turn and look at the tall, steep peaks in the distance.Once the fire gets there, it’ll be hard to keep contained, since fighting it on nearly-vertical terrain is pretty much impossible.Plus, with winds like this, fire travels downhill almost as fast as it travels uphill.
“Got it,” Silas says, nodding.He claps me on the shoulder and then walks to the group.
