Chapter Nineteen
River
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The motorhome slowed and honked. River waved at the Piedmont family leaving after their one-week vacation at Gem Haven Campground.
"We have six spots on the pull-in side and four tent sites open." Phil slid into the UTV. "It'll be on a first-to-arrive basis until the spots are filled."
"Do I need to put a sign up?"
"No, they'll come. They always do." Phil pulled away from the front of the cabin.
She walked back inside. It was early. The campers leaving had one more hour before they were scheduled to clear the campsites. Phil would go behind them, raking the site clean and ensuring all fires were extinguished.
Moving behind the counter, she swept her foot out, reassuring herself that her backpack was near and hidden under the shelf. She straightened the pamphlets on the wall, brought three more cases of water up to the front and put them in the fridge, and swept the pine needles that came in on everyone's shoes.
Two phone calls came back-to-back, and she answered their questions without any hesitation or thought. Her steps lightened, knowing the job came more naturally to her. She no longer had to run to Phil for all the answers.
A group of children ran into the store, thrusting their clenched hands toward her and dropping coins on the counter. She counted heads. There were five of them. They all appeared the same age.
The tallest one bounced. "We can buy candy."
"Okay, let's see how much money you have." She made piles of coins in front of each child. "You each have a dollar to spend." She stepped back at the display rack. "All the candy on the bottom two rows are a dollar or less."
They all pointed and yelled at the same time. She laughed, waving her hands to quiet them.
"One at a time. You go first." She pointed at a girl with blonde curls.
Ten minutes later, all the kids ran out of the cabin, satisfied with their purchases. She leaned against the counter. Children exhausted her. Never in her life had she had that much energy coursing through her body.
She smiled, watching them leave and talking over each other. Maybe at one time, when her mom and dad were alive, she bounced around giggling and looking for adventure. She remembered her and Kenna screaming over each other, competing to see who Dad would carry first on their shoulders when he returned from work.
Her dad had been a big man and would make a production out of swooping in and scooping her up. She'd tumble in the air, and he'd set her on his shoulders. It seemed so long ago, but the exhilaration of having her dad be the strongest man she knew lived on in her memories.
She wondered if Kenna ever remembered some of the things they'd done and if her sister ever wanted to see her again.
That was her biggest fear. What if Kenna stayed away because she wanted to forget her past? Forget about her?
A woman rushed into the cabin. "Can you help? Our fire got out of control."
"What's your campsite number?" She picked up the phone, ready to call Phil.
The lady grabbed hold of the counter. "Fourteen. Yes, fourteen."
She called Phil and received his voicemail. She disconnected the call, not sure if he couldn't answer or if bad cell service was the problem.
"The sparks are shooting up into the trees." The woman frantically ran to the door. "Look."
She grabbed her backpack and the fire extinguisher off the wall and led the woman outside. Locking the cabin behind her, she ran with the woman. Water spigots were at the end of each row and by the bathroom, with hoses nearby.
The fire rose above the camper, growing closer to the tree branches. Afraid she'd drop the extinguisher, she hugged it to her chest.
At the campsite, a man kicked dry dirt onto the fire, only sending up more sparks. She set the canister at her feet. Phil had taught her how to use one on the first day of work at the campground.
Panic made her doubt herself. What word was she supposed to remember? PASS
Pull.
Aim.
Squeeze.
Sweep.
She pulled the pin. "Go to the bathrooms and hook the hose up to the water faucet and bring the hose here."
"Okay." The man ran off.
She aimed the small funnel-like attachment at the fire, held her breath, and squeezed—a cloud of white fire-retardant powder sprayed out of the canister.
She swept the spray back and forth on the burning logs. The flames died down and disappeared. The spray fizzled and stopped sooner than she expected it would.
The camper arrived, stringing the hose, when Phil rode up in the side-by-side. She backed away and set the extinguisher down.
With the high rush of adrenaline gone, she inhaled deeply, surprised to find herself shaking. She'd done it—she put the fire out.
Phil assessed the situation, grabbed a shovel out of the back of the utility vehicle, and started moving the burnt logs around. "Good job, River. Your quick action probably saved Gem Haven."
"We're so sorry." The woman held on to her husband. "We put a little gas on the logs to start the fire and—"
"Your first mistake was using gas on larch wood. You could've sent flames up to the top of the trees. What you've done was put people's lives in danger. The rules are posted, and you signed the agreement when you paid to stay here." Phil shoved up his baseball hat. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave immediately."
The shaken couple nodded and backed away, picking up folding outdoor chairs and coolers. River collected the extinguisher, now lighter than before, and set it in the back of the UTV.
Phil stuck the shovel in the ground and leaned his elbow on the handle. "Go ahead and go back to the cabin. I'll make sure our fire-happy couple gets on the road."
She nodded, brushing off her hands. "I put the extinguisher in the back."
"I'll get another one out of storage and put in the cabin." Phil took off his hat and wiped his forehead. "You did good. Exactly what I'd want you to do."
"I tried calling you first."
"I was out of range." He patted her back. "Go back to the cabin, grab a Coke from the cooler, and relax."
She walked back to the cabin. Luckily, no campers were waiting to enter or check in when she arrived. While the fire fiasco seemed to take forever, it all happened in a matter of minutes.
Unlocking the door, she let herself in. Doing what Phil suggested, she got a pop and took a big swallow. She'd never been through an emergency before. It rattled her. But there was a sense of pride, too.
A rumble filled the cabin. She looked toward the door, knowing that sound. It was as familiar as her heartbeat.
Several seconds later, Zane stormed into the cabin, looking wildly around until his gaze landed on her. He studied her up and down, head to toe, as he made his way across the room.
He stopped before her, running his hands over her shoulders and down her arms. "You're okay?"
"Yeah."
He crushed her to his chest. She couldn't move. All she could feel was his heartbeat pounding in his chest.
He whispered, "I heard there was a fire, and you—"
"I put it out." She leaned her head back, smiling at him. "I remembered everything Phil taught me."
He kissed her hard. Taken off guard, he'd never kissed her outside the house before.
He pressed his forehead against hers and pulled out of the kiss, breathing hard. "If anything would've happened to you..."
She raised her hands and pulled his head down to her breasts, loving him the best way she could when he was eight inches taller than her. "Nothing happened. I'm fine."
"You need to go back in the kitchen," he muttered.
She laughed. "That sounded rude, Zane."
"I mean it." He straightened. "I can't have you rushing out to put out God damn fires. You could've gotten hurt."
"But I didn't." She caressed his chest. "You're getting worked up over nothing."
"I don't want that to happen again."
She sighed. "It probably won't. It was one time. The camper broke the rules. Phil is very strict about them."
"Where are they?"
"Who?"
"The campers." His mouth thinned. "I'd like to have a few words with them."
"They're gone. Phil sent them packing." She grabbed his hand, keeping him with her. "Everything is okay. Really."
Phil walked into the cabin and stopped, looking at both of them. She let go of Zane's hand.
"She's quite the hero, Prez." Phil lugged the empty extinguisher behind the counter. "She deserves a raise, saving the campground like that. Quick thinking. She's going to do okay here."
The praise only worried her. Zane looked as if he was going to drag her out of the cabin and force her to work in the bar's kitchen.
"I'll bring another extinguisher or two out of the supply shed." Zane left the cabin without another word to her.
She walked to the door and peered out at him, getting on his Harley and riding away. The thrum of her heart kept her in place. She'd scared him.
She'd never seen him act like that before.