Chapter 3
Earlier in the day, it had been warm and sunny.
But only a few hours after sundown, the temperature had dropped.
Aiden was with his family, and they walked down the midway.
There were games and food trucks and rides.
Sammy now wore a zippered University of North Dakota at Red Grove sweatshirt.
Ryan and Matti had matching hoodies. Aiden had to admit that the trio looked cute in their matching shirts.
His mom now wore a fleece jacket. It seemed like Aiden was the only one who hadn’t brought something warm to wear.
As the cool night air crept along his skin, he thought of snuggling up with someone next to a warm fire. In his mind, that person was Lucy Harris. Shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his pants, he blew out a long breath. It morphed into a cloud of steam.
“You look cold,” said Emily, patting his arm with her warm hand.
“I’m okay,” he said, even though he was freezing. “It’s not that bad.”
“You can hold Aiden the Space Alien.” Sammy held up the green stuffed toy. “He’ll keep you warm.”
Irony of ironies. Aiden had just been thinking about holding something to keep warm.
But the Martian was not at all what he had in mind.
“Thanks, kiddo. That’s thoughtful of you,” he said, reaching for the doll.
“Us Aidens will have to stick together.” He paused a beat before asking Sammy, “What do you want to do now?”
“I want to do whatever you want to do.”
Aiden wanted to find Lucy Harris again. Ted’s warning about her past notwithstanding, he’d been drawn to her. His hand still held the memory of her palm pressed against his.
The Ferris wheel stood at the end of the midway. Spokes of blue and red lights flashed as the large wheel turned and lit up the night sky. “What do you think about going up in that thing?” he asked, using the other Aiden’s stuffed mitt to point.
Sammy’s eyes got big. His smile was bigger. “Will I be able to see my house from up there?”
“I don’t know, kiddo,” said Ryan. “We’ll have to check it out.”
“And will we all get to ride together?”
“There’s plenty of room for everyone,” said Matti. She leaned on Ryan’s shoulder and ruffled her fingers through Sammy’s hair. Aiden was happy to see his sister happy.
But he couldn’t stop the tightening in his chest and the underlying question. When will it be my turn?
Immediately, Lucy’s face flashed through his mind.
The group stepped forward. A turnstile bar blocked them from the ride. “Looks like we’re next,” he began. Whatever else he was going to say was lost. Beneath the scent of motor oil and fried food, and the body odor of hundreds of people, was the acrid scent of smoke. “Something’s on fire,” he said.
“What?” asked his mom. “How do you know?”
“I can smell it,” said Aiden.
“I don’t smell anything,” said Ryan. And then, “Oh, wait… I do.”
Aiden pushed past those in line behind him.
He rushed to the nearest picnic table and climbed onto the top.
He looked around. There were colors and lights and people.
Then, he saw it. A cloud of gray smoke floated in the sky.
He scanned the horizon. Orange flames leaped from one of the barns.
He jumped to the ground. “Mom. Matilda. Call 9-1-1. Tell them there’s a fire at the Five Steers Ranch. ”
“Where?” asked his mother.
Aiden pointed. “It’s in one of the outbuildings.”
Then, his heart ceased to beat. Lucy had gone into one of the barns. A worker from the carnival had asked for something—he couldn’t remember what, and it wasn’t important now. He scanned the crowd. He didn’t see her. Was she still there?
“I’m going to check it out,” said Aiden.
“I’ll come with you,” said Ryan. To Matti, he said, “Find whoever is in charge and make sure nobody goes near the fire.”
“Will do.” His sister placed a kiss on Ryan’s cheek. “Be careful. Both of you.”
Matti pulled her phone from a small backpack that was slung over her shoulder.
He knew she was calling Emergency Services, but he also knew they were damn near twenty minutes out.
With Ryan at his heels, Aiden ran toward the burning building.
People at the fair were starting to notice the smoke.
Some stood in groups and looked at the billowing cloud in the sky.
Others covered their noses and mouths with their shirts.
He scanned every face that he passed looking for Lucy Harris. She wasn’t there.
The lights of the fair gave way to the darkness. The burning building was one hundred yards away. “Aiden. Ryan. Wait.”
Skidding to a stop, he looked over his shoulder. Ryan stopped, too.
Ted jogged to where the two men stood. “I called 9-1-1,” he said. “The fire department is sending a truck to take care of the blaze.”
Aiden imagined that the switchboard was inundated with calls. Matilda had reached out as well. “I need to make sure that nobody is trapped inside,” he said, thinking only of Lucy.
“I was told that those are abandoned buildings,” said Ted. “Right now, they’re just used for storage.”
Fire rose through the roof, crackling and sending sparks into the air. Even from where he stood, he could feel the heat from the blaze. He started to sweat.
Still, something started the inferno. And it was most likely caused by a person. “I have to get inside and look.” He took a step toward the burning building.
Ted dropped a hand on Aiden’s shoulder, squeezing tight.
“I don’t want you to die trying to save a bunch of junk.
You don’t have any of your gear. No Kevlar coat or pants.
No boots or oxygen tank. Hell, you don’t even have a helmet.
What if a beam or something falls?” He paused. “You’re my brother.”
Ryan said, “Ted’s right. There’s no reason for us to think that someone’s inside.”
The need to make sure everyone was safe was essential to Aiden. It came to him like taking a breath. “But Lucy,” he began, “was going to get something out of one of those barns.”
“I saw her a minute ago,” said Ted.
“You sure?”
“Pretty sure.”
Aiden wanted to see her for himself. But right now, that didn’t matter. So long as Ted knew she was safe, he would be content.
“The best thing we can do is create a perimeter and make sure that nobody gets too close to the building,” said Ryan.
He was right. Aiden glanced over his shoulder. People from the fair were wandering toward the fire, trying to get a better look.
Lifting his hands in the air, he said, “I need everyone’s attention.
My name is Aiden Colton. I’m a member of the Red Grove Fire Department.
” He projected his voice so everyone could hear him.
“Emergency Services have been contacted, and responders are on their way. I need everyone to stay calm and keep away from the fire. Stay off your phone so that the cell service doesn’t get overwhelmed.
Wait for the emergency vehicles to arrive before leaving.
We don’t want a traffic jam when the fire truck is trying to get through.
If you start to feel lightheaded or dizzy, have someone let me know.
We’ll get you medical attention.” He paused, wondering if there was anything else he should add.
That’s when an older man rushed forward.
He had white hair. An adult-sized bib with the word Judge printed in black letters and had been tied around his neck.
“My granddaughter,” the man said. “She tried to call me, but I didn’t hear the ringer.
She said she’s in the barn and there’s a fire. She can’t get out.”
“You wait right here,” said Aiden. “I’ll find her.”
“Wait,” Ted called out.
But he was done waiting. Aiden wouldn’t leave a little girl to die in the fire. He sprinted toward the building. Heat rolled off the burning structure, stopping him like he’d hit a wall. His nose and eyes dried out. His face felt as if he’d been out in the sun for hours.
Ryan sprinted toward the barn as well. Ted was right behind. Light from the inferno created planes and shadows on their faces. Everything was tinged with orange and left both men with a ghoulish appearance.
“That’s quite the fire,” said Ryan.
The front door was partially open. Aiden was thankful for small victories.
It meant that he could look inside without oxygenating the blaze.
Using his forearm to shield his face, he approached the door and peered inside.
It was a single room. Flames burned up the walls and crept along the ceiling.
It wouldn’t be long until the whole building collapsed.
From where he stood, he couldn’t see a body.
He took a step closer. The hair on his arm started to smolder.
Without protection, he could go no farther.
He backed away from the inferno.
“She’s not in there,” he said to Ted and Ryan, yelling to be heard over the popping wood and the groaning flames.
“Thank goodness,” said Ted. “Let’s back up.”
The old man approached, holding on to Emily’s arm. “Where is she?”
“Your granddaughter,” said Aiden, “isn’t inside.”
“Are you sure?” Using the Judge bib, he wiped perspiration from his forehead. “She wasn’t in the back room, either?”
Back room? Had Aiden missed the back room? He brought back the image of the fiery space into his mind’s eye. All the walls were wooden. There was no open door. “The back room,” he repeated. “As in at the back of the barn?”
The old man nodded.
Without another thought, he raced around the side of the building. The structure was wider than he originally thought. So far, the rear wall hadn’t caught on fire. But there were no other doors. No windows, either.
“What are we going to do?” Ryan asked. Ted was at his side.
“We’ve got to find a way in,” said Aiden. The thing was, he didn’t know how.
Ted stood a few feet away. He held the phone to his ear. “I’m talking with dispatch,” he said. “The fire truck is less than five minutes out.”