13. Mike
Thirteen
Mike
I’m grabbing coffee. Ten minutes of peace, warmth in my hand, silence in my head.
Clara’s behind the counter chatting with a couple of firefighters on their morning coffee run. It’s calm. Normal. The kind of normal I was chasing when I came back to this town.
Then the radio goes off.
Loud. Sharp. Sirens screaming outside.
The guys bolt out the door before the words fully register—
But I catch them.
“It’s the library.”
Everything in me stills.
No.
No, no, no.
My coffee hits the floor.
I’m already out the door, running to my truck.
I don’t remember the drive.
Just my hands locked around the wheel.
My boot slamming the gas.
My brain stuck on one word.
Shanay.
—-
Smoke fills the street by the time I get there.
Flames blazing from the back section, part of the roof has already caved in.
The firefighters’ water hoses are spraying.
Voices yelling everywhere.
I don’t hear any of it.
I spot one of Shanay’s colleagues, flag him down, and shout: “She inside?”
He nods. That’s all I need.
I’m moving before anyone can hold me back.
“Mike—” someone grabs my arm.
I shake them off.
“She’s in there.”
“You can’t go in!”
“The fuck I can’t.”