Hooking my thumbs in her belt loops, I dragged her forward so she was flush against me. “Then why are you leaving? Or why aren’t I coming with you?” I didn’t understand. The two of us seemed to have an easy, relaxed relationship. Maybe it wasn’t the epic love of all time, but I did love her. I didn’t want her to go.
It was like she read my mind. “I love you, Russ, so much. But there’s something better out there for you than me. And because I love you, I’m stepping aside so you can have it.”
Okay, that made absolutely no sense to me, but what else could I do? “Thanks for being there for me when I needed you,” I said. “You helped me get through a really difficult time.”
“I know. And I hope your difficult times are behind you now.” Hugging me tightly, she laid her head against me. “This is so much harder than I thought it would be.”
Blinking away tears that were gathering in my own eyes, I agreed. I hadn’t realized exactly how much I’d grown attached to having her presence in my life. “I love you. Be safe, and don’t be a stranger.”
“I love you, too,” she whispered again, tears falling as she stepped away from me. “Don’t hate me, okay?”
I snorted. “I couldn’t hate you if I tried.”
“Yes, you could. Under the right circumstances.”
Opening my mouth to ask her what she meant, I was interrupted by Dylan.
“I double checked everything on your tow bar. Your car is locked in there good for your trip.”
“Thanks so much. I appreciate it!” She moved toward the U-Haul and climbed inside.
“Don’t forget to take wide turns and give yourself plenty of time to move over in traffic,” I called after her, suddenly nervous for her to be doing this by herself.
She laughed. “I will, Russ. Breathe. Everything is going to work out just fine.”
I wasn’t sure the erratic beating of my heart agreed, but I stood there as she closed the door, giving her one last wave. She started the truck and drove away without looking back, and I watched until she was out of sight.
“You doing okay?” Cami asked, stepping beside me.
“Strangely, I’m not. I didn’t think it would be this difficult. She was good for me.”
Cami nodded. “She was.”
“I just don’t know why it didn’t work out for us. We got along great, you know?” I glanced at her briefly, before taking Piper from her and cuddling her against my chest. “Uncle Russ needs some baby loving,” I cooed to the pretty little girl and she smiled. I kissed her cheek. “You are growing up way too fast.”
“I agree with that,” Cami said, slipping her arm around my waist and the two of us walked over to where Dylan was waiting by our vehicles. He took Piper and buckled her into her car seat.
Sighing heavily, I cast my gaze back down the street, wondering if I might catch one more glimpse of Misty, even though I knew I wouldn’t.
“Don’t be sad,” Cami said. “Yes, you guys got along great, but she wasn’t the one for you. She did the right thing by letting you go, so you can have what you really want and need.”
Turning around I gestured to the street. “Do you see the women lining up to catch me?”
Cami laughed. “Actually, I do.”
I looked, again. “Then you better give me whatever you’re smoking, because I’m telling you, no one is there.”
“Give it time, Russ. You’ll see.” She walked around the passenger side of the Camaro and opened the door, sliding in beside Dylan. “See you at home.”
I lifted my hand in a slight wave and watched them drive away. Long ago I’d given up on trying to decipher Cami’s cryptic messages. When she wanted me to know what she meant, she’d tell me.
Hanging my head, I walked back to my truck, my life suddenly feeling empty once again.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Russ
Cracking open a beer, I sat in front of my television watching a baseball game. Okay, watching might have been stretching it a little. It was more like I was staring at the screen trying to figure out the mess that was my life and how I’d managed to let not one, but two, amazing women slip through my fingers.
Maybe I wasn’t cut out for relationships. Maybe I was meant to spend eternity as the third wheel to Cami and Dylan. I could be like their really old adult child they adopted. Hell, in a few more years I’d end up in diapers—just like Piper—and I’d fit right in. No one would even notice. Of course, that would mean Cami and Dylan would probably be in diapers then, too. I shivered. That was gross.
Something had to give though. I wondered what Misty would think if I just happened to move to New York. Maybe if I were in the area, she wouldn’t be opposed to continuing our casual relationship. Maybe then it would develop into more.
Oh, hell. Who was I kidding? She’d made it pretty clear that we were done. She’d been gone for a week and the only text I’d gotten from her was one saying she made it safely and would be busy settling in. There had been nothing else since then. We were done. She had moved on—literally.
And really, I was okay with it. Yes, it hurt. Yes, I missed her, but it had been nothing compared to what I’d felt after losing Evie. I was still feeling that one; and honestly, I was doing my best to not think of her at all, because it was just too damn painful.
I lifted my beer to my lips just as a series of tones went off from my hand held radio. Jumping up, I realized that they were the tones for my company—and we weren’t even on shift. Immediately after that set, two more sets of tones went out, calling the other off-duty companies, too. Something bad was going down. Running to my bedroom I grabbed my shoes, keys and wallet.
“General page, general page, all companies, general page.” The dispatcher’s voice came through the radio right as I busted through my door, finding Dylan exiting the house from the kitchen door at the same time.
“Ride with me?” he asked breathlessly and I nodded, both of us racing toward the Camaro.
“All ambulance and fire units are needed for a massive structure fire at the Community General Hospital. Repeat all ambulance and fire are needed at Community General Hospital for a massive structure fire. Please implement disaster scenarios at this time. This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill. All off duty crews please report in with your gear. Be advised this is a large fire and patients are being evacuated from the structure.”
“Holy shit!” I said, slipping on my boots as Dylan practically peeled out onto the street. “What the hell happened?”
“Copy, massive structure fire at Community General Hospital. Engine One is enroute.” Sonny’s voice came over the radio from the on-call crew at the station.
“Engine Two is enroute, also.” The backup crew came on as they rolled out.
“Copy Engine One and Engine Two. Enroute time is nineteen hundred.”
“Medic One and Medic Two are rolling, Code Three.”
Goose bumps flooded over my skin as I listened to all the apparatus leaving the building. I knew we were in for a long haul with this one.
Dylan screeched up to the station, throwing the car in park and we ran inside, slipping into our turnouts as the rest of our crew pulled up and began dressing, too. Dylan was ready first, hopping on the truck and firing it up as we all climbed inside.
I jumped into the passenger seat, beside him.
“Let’s roll!” he called out to the rest of the crew. “You can finish suiting up on the way.” No one hesitated, immediately jumping on-board as he grabbed the radio. “Dispatch, this is Engine Three. We’re enroute to Community General.”
“Copy Engine Three. Enroute time nineteen hundred and six, please switch to secure channel four for more instructions.”
“Copy Dispatch, switching channels.”
“I got it,” I said, wanting him to keep his eyes on the road. He handed the radio to me. “Engine Three tuning in for command instructions.”
“Engine Three, this is command.” The chief’s voice crackled through the radio
. “We need your crew to suit up for an interior strike. It’s looking like a gas leak caused an explosion. The gas company has cut power, but the fire is roaring pretty hot on the right wing of the building.”
“The right wing? Isn’t that the emergency room?” I asked in horror, staring over at Dylan and he nodded grimly. Nerves shot through me. We knew people in there. Friends. Coworkers. “Roger. Gear for interior attack. Where do you want us to stage?”
“You’ll be staging on the left side of the building. We will send a crew to run your truck. We need all of you inside evacuating patients as quickly as possible. An emergency tent is being set up in the parking lot of the medical offices, next door. Any emergent patients will be transported by helicopter and ambulance to other facilities. Your job is to get every last patient out and to that staging area. Copy?”
“Copy, evacuate all patients to staging area.”
“Once you get everyone out, then we’ll look at moving you to interior attack, if needed.”
“Copy.”
“Wilcock, this is your show, son. Make me proud,” Chief Daniel’s added, and Dylan’s jaw tightened as he nodded.
Briefly clicking back to the main channel, I radioed the dispatcher. “Engine Three is on scene.”
“Copy Engine Three. Nineteen Ten.”
I wrote the time down and immediately switched the radio back to the operations channel. Jumping out, I noticed Anderson, from the on-duty crew, running toward us.
“Give me your command board, Wilcock,” he ordered as he approached. “Chief wants me to keep track and run your truck so you can go inside with your crew.”
Dylan didn’t question him at all, simply reaching behind the seat and grabbing the white board with the Velcro tabs on it. He quickly peeled off his smaller nametag and placed it under “Interior Search and Rescue.” The rest of us did the same.
“I want everyone in full masks and gear. We have no idea what’s happening with smoke in there. Once we get inside, we need to search and retrieve those who are in the most danger from the fire first. Dawson, grab the extra fire extinguishers, too.” Turning to Anderson, Dylan continued. “Get someone to drop and prime the hose off this truck and run it to the building, just in case we need it.”
“I’m on it,” he said, quickly getting on his radio and asking for more help.
The adrenalin caused Dylan’s voice to rasp. “Command, Engine Three crew is entering the building from the north doors. We have five men all together. Anderson is running the truck.”
“Copy Engine Three. Be safe and work fast.”
“Save the world,” Dylan said to me, seriously.
“Save the world,” I replied back.
The five of us rushed into the building, mass chaos greeting us. People were running everywhere, shouting orders, crying, and desperately trying to get patients out of the structure.
“Give me that,” Dylan said to a police officer holding a megaphone, snatching it from his hand. “Listen to me!” he shouted into the amplifying device. Barely anyone looked at him. Ripping his mask off, he shouted again. “Listen to me! We’re here to help you, but we need your cooperation, please! I just need a second!”
Finally, people started turning toward him.
“We need everyone to calm down and act in an organized manner. I know the hospital has disaster protocols you’ve all been trained for. Follow those protocols; do them quickly, but efficiently. We need to avoid any more injuries. We want to get these patients out in an orderly fashion. Who is in charge in here?”
“No one.” One of the nurses spoke up, tears streaking down her face. “The doctor in charge was with a patient in the part of the building that exploded.
“Okay, listen up, everyone. From now on Nurse . . . ,” he paused, looking at her nametag. “Nurse Ritchey is in charge. If you have a question about what to do, ask her.” He stared at Nurse Ritchey. “You up for this? It’s show time.”
She nodded and he handed her the megaphone.
“Tell me how to get to the patients who are in the most imminent danger from the fire.”
“Go to the end of the hall and turn left. At the end of that hall is a set of double doors. That whole hallway is right behind where the fire is currently burning. A couple rooms from the west end have been evacuated already, but that’s it.”
“That’s the ICU, isn’t it?” I asked, as I listened to the directions she gave and she nodded. “They need to stay on all their machines, if at all possible.”
Shit. This wasn’t going to be easy. “How many patients are left on the floor?”
“It holds twenty, so eighteen if they’re full.”
“All right. We’re on it. You start evacuations in this area.”
Not wasting another second, the five of us ran down the hallway, following the directions she’d given us.
“Russ, you’re with me,” Dylan ordered. “You other three go left. Start at the rooms furthest away and work your way back to this point. Make sure you get medical personnel out with you, too.”
I was surprised to find the nurses still at their stations, wearing masks to try and combat the smoke that was filling the area, terror in their eyes.”
“You!” Dylan pointed to one nurse. “Go with them and tell them everything they need to bring. And you!” He pointed at the other nurse. “Come and do the same for us.” She kept in step with us as we went to the right.
Glancing briefly at her nametag, I saw her name was Sarah Layton. She looked really scared, but she nodded.
Dylan lowered his mask back in place and we turned and ran down the hall to the farthest room. “As soon as you help us with this patient, I want you out of the building. We need to get you out of this smoke. Do you understand?”
Sarah nodded, not even trying to argue. We entered the room on the left side at the end of the hall, since that side was closest to the fire. An elderly man lay there, sleeping, seeming completely oblivious to what was going on around him. I saw he was on a ventilator. Quickly, the three of us packaged him up, getting him ready to move. As soon as he was ready, I unlocked the brakes of the bed and pushed it toward the door.
“Dammit,” Dylan cursed. “I wish I could stay behind and package these others.”
I knew it was against the rules for us to be alone—our training was set up on a strict buddy system. “So give this guy to the other three. Each of them can push a gurney out, together, and you and I can stay behind and package the rest so they’re ready to go when they come back in.”
“Great idea,” he said, radioing to the other guys. As soon as we handed off the patients and nurse to them, the two of us turned toward the other rooms.
“Command, Captain Wilcock, reporting. Three patients are on their way out, along with two nurses, escorted by firefighters Camden, Tell, and Stromboli. Weston and I are staying interior to package more patients. Be advised we are retrieving from the ICU.”
“Copy Captain Wilcock, three patients and two nurses coming out with Camden, Tell, and Stromboli. Weston and Wilcock remaining interior in the ICU.”
Confident that his message had been appropriately received, we turned into the next room, this one containing a young woman who looked like she might have been in a car accident with all her cuts and bruises. She was also on a ventilator, but she wasn’t asleep—her eyes wide and frantic as we entered.
“It’s going to be okay,” I said to her as we moved swiftly around her bed gathering things she needed. “There’s a fire, but we are here to evacuate you to a different facility, okay?”
She nodded slightly.
“Don’t be afraid when you go outside,” Dylan added. “There are a lot of emergency crews here helping, so it’s going to be loud and a bit chaotic; but we’ll make sure you get taken care of.”
As soon as she was ready to go, we pushed her out into the hallway until we reached the door to the next room. “You’ll be able to see us from here, but we’ve got to step away and get all the patients unhooked and rea
dy to go. Another team of firefighters is on their way in to take you out,” I said, leaning over and maintaining eye contact with her.
Following our previous routine, we packaged the young man in the next bed who, according to his chart, was here after an attempted overdose. He certainly didn’t look like he wanted to die right at this moment, begging us to get him out. I noticed he had leather restraints, so I figured he was still on a suicide watch. Maybe today would help him change his mind.
Pushing him out into the hall, we moved both him and the woman down to the next door, going in and repeating the same procedure again. I glanced at the ceiling nervously. The smoke was definitely getting thicker in this area. With all the oxygen in here, this place was ripe for an explosion. We needed to hurry.
The third patient was out of the room just as our three crewmen reappeared. We handed the patients off to them and began our task again, working as fast as we could. Before long, six more patients had been delivered to safety.
“Dylan, I can feel the heat. I think the fire is in the ceiling above us.” Glancing up, I watched as thick, dark smoke seeped in from between the ceiling tiles.
“I think so, too. Two more runs, Russ. Then we are done. We’ve got to get these people out of here.”
Three more were safely delivered to our crew—only three more to go. The ceiling groaned heavily overhead and the smoke increased.
“Captain Wilcock to command,” Dylan said into his radio.
“Command, go ahead Wilcock.”
“We need an interior attack in here. No flames yet, but the smoke is getting very heavy. According to our information, we still have three patients to evacuate from this department. Fire is imminent, I repeat, fire is imminent.”
“Copy. We will get a hose into you pronto.”
Dylan and I quickly packaged the next two patients, this time taking them completely out into the exterior hallway to get them away from the worst of the smoke. As soon as we saw the crew returning for them, we turned to go back for the remaining patient.