Bad Seed

“Why?” Tyler asked. “You do it wrong?”

“Well, you heard her,” I said, grinning. “What do you think?”

“You’re one cocky son of a bitch,” Jason said, shaking his head.

“It’s not cockiness,” I said. “It’s well-deserved confidence.”

Both Jason and Tyler erupted in laughter. I shot them both a devious grin and proceeded to focus my attention on my coffee. My next shift started this morning, and one night off was not enough to re-energize me. I clung to my coffee mug while the guys continued to make jokes about Trish.

“Don’t break my balls guys,” I said. “Just because none of you can get any.”

Just as Jason was about to open his mouth, the bell chimed overhead. We froze for a split second before we all flew into action. We ran from the kitchen, grabbing our gear and sliding down to the truck as we moved. I was fully dressed and on the truck in seconds, the others following behind.

Tyler hit the siren and pulled out of the station, speeding down the road toward our call. Like always, we were silent on the truck. All shit talking forgotten. This wasn’t another game, this was our job, and every single one of us took it seriously. While we sped through town, we prepared ourselves for what we would see.

We saw the smoke first, spiraling up from an apartment building. Tyler turned the corner, and we saw it, flames shooting out of every window. Our bodies tensed, ready to fight the blaze.

Before Tyler could stop, we were off the truck, uncoiling the hose and preparing for a fight.

“Over here!” someone screamed. I whipped my head around to see a man running toward us. He was panicked, and his face was covered in ash. “My wife! She’s in there with our daughter! They’re trapped!”

“Where?” I demanded.

“Third floor,” he said, his voice shaky.

I glanced behind me where Jason was standing. He nodded, and we took off running, throwing on our masks and hurtling through the flames. Once inside, we slowly climbed the crumbling staircase. The place was barely holding on. We knew we only had seconds to get in and out.

We hit the third-floor landing and started yelling, listening intently for an answer. When it came, it was muffled and terrified, coming from a door to our right. Jason kicked it in, and we rushed inside to see a young woman curled around a toddler, holding her tightly and shaking with fear.

We ran to them and wrapped them in a fire-retardant blanket. Jason led the way back to the stairs but when we stepped onto the landing, it creaked, and pieces of wood began to splinter, falling inward and making the woman scream with terror. Her daughter was sliding toward the disintegrating floor and something had to be done.

There are moments in the life of a firefighter where a split second decision can alter the course of their career or even their lives. I jumped forward, grabbed the little girl and shoved her back to the rest of my crew. Heavy smoke filled the air, nearly blinding me, but I caught a glimpse of Jason catching her before the floor gave way beneath me.

I fell downward, hurtling through the air toward the second floor. Sharp pain rushed through my body as I hit the landing and then kept falling. The wood splintered and gave way beneath me, propelling me hard toward the bottom floor. I hit with a thud, my legs giving way beneath me. I looked up just in time to see pieces of wood flying toward my face. I threw my arms up and the last thing I thought about was a pair of ocean-blue eyes flashing through my mind.

Everything went black.

CHAPTER TWO - TARA

“You’re doing great, Olivia!” I said, my voice light and full of encouragement.

Olivia struggled through the next rep of arm lifts, pain etched on her face. She was only eight-years-old, and already, she possessed more strength and determination than most people four times her age.

“Are you sure she can handle it?” her mom asked, but I shot her a smile, and she relaxed.

“One more, sweetheart,” I said softly. “Just one more and you’re done for the day.”

“I can do more,” Olivia said.

“I know you can.” I took the small weight from her hand and laid it on the floor. “But we can’t push you, okay? Your arm has to heal the right way, remember?”

Olivia nodded and turned to her mom, who hugged her tightly and looked relieved that it was over. These physical therapy sessions were never easy, especially for the loved ones of my patients. It was hard to watch, but it was necessary. Sometimes, even I had a hard time making it through, but this was just the beginning of my clinical rotation, so I knew things would get easier with time.

“Same time next week?” I asked, looking from Olivia to her mom.

“I have a couple questions,” her mother said.

“Sure.” I forced a smile to my face, but my head was beginning to ache again. Olivia was my last patient of the day, and I just wanted to be alone to finish my paperwork.