22. Jensen
TWENTY-TWO
JENSEN
The academy parking lot was full to bursting with cars. Students, as well as family, were here for support. I also noticed a half dozen firetrucks parked on the edge of the snow-dotted grass.
My breath puffed out in front of me as I climbed the incline and headed around the back of the building. The crush of people was startling. There seemed to be a lot of commotion near the smoking Burn House structure. It was a large prefab house that had been slapped together dozens of times, only to be destroyed again and again. Evidently, a test was already in session based on the plumes of white smoke.
The cold air made the steam and smoke collide to reduce visibility even more.
A handful of trucks emblazoned with EMT and Ambulance were parked off to the side. I frowned at an obvious hole where a truck looked as if it was missing. With an active fire, we’d been told there would be people on deck to make sure things didn’t go sideways.
The back of the academy had been rearranged. It was a similar setup to the stress test, but this time, it was more imposing. There were a number of obstacle courses for active burn training on the far side of the campus, as well. Winter training was just as important as the other seasons. Winter added additional stresses and all the water with subzero temperatures caused even more problems.
The academy was always midway through classes all year-round. Which created an extra level of chaos that was probably done on purpose. A fire was often chaos between the cops, EMTs, and fire departments. Depending on the size of the fire, the insanity was tenfold.
Part of my training allowed a certain number of ride-alongs. Watching the firefighters in the real world brought me back to Trick or Treat. It was one of the reasons I was afraid of the final.
What if I froze up again?
What if I fucking failed?
I pushed through the crush of trainees and firefighters there to help with the exams. The raucous laughter grated on my already frazzled nerves. My stomach twisted and I wished I hadn’t eaten CJ’s breakfast.
Though I knew the protein would help me with my reaction time.
Right now, it sat in my stomach like a cement brick.
I scanned the whiteboards on wheels that flanked the crowd. My name wasn’t on the first one, which required me to dig through the crowd again. A bullhorn shouted a sixty-second countdown. The firehouse required you to gear up and into the trucks within ninety seconds and there were game-like sprints going on while people waited for their turn in the finals.
Everything I’d learned was crowding my brain, as well as the fundamentals like hose work, bashing windows to help reduce the heat of the fire, the clanging of my regulator for oxygen. All the things I needed to remember to pay attention to when I was in the middle of a blaze.
“Turner! Hey! Slow up.”
A hand came down on my shoulder and I swung around, my brain maxed out.
“Hey.” Eddie Chase jumped back.
“Sorry, man.” I hung my head, gripping the back of my neck. “A lot of noise here today.”
Eddie pushed me through the throng of people. “I know, dude. I got here at eight and this place was already packed.”
Finally, I spotted the other whiteboard, which had my name on it. “Hell, we aren’t even on the board until eleven. I thought we were in the first group.”
“One of the cadets got trapped and freaked out. Ripped off his mask.”
“Shit.” I shoved my hands into the front pocket of my hoodie. “Who?”
“Naughton. Singed his lungs. They loaded him on a bus and sent him out to the hospital.”
I blew out a breath. Naughton was one of the best in our class. He’d aced all the textbook work and curriculums. If he fucked up, how the hell was I supposed to get through it? “Is he okay?”
“Not sure. We haven’t heard yet. Needless to say, things got bumped back.”
“Where’s Kal?”
Eddie nodded over to where the drills were being done at the edge of the crowd. “He said he couldn’t stand around.”
“I’m tempted to do the same. Standing around here for hours is going to suck.”
“Pretty sure Kal was trying to show off for Ferrari.”
“She’ll eat him up and spit him out.” I laughed and fell into line with Eddie as we headed over to give Kal moral support at the very least.
“You got that right.”
“Is Misha here?”
Eddie gave me a rueful smile. “He said he couldn’t handle seeing me do the box.”
“Sorry, man.”
“It’s okay. He’s coming to terms with me being a firefighter. It scares him and turns him on at the same time.” Eddie waggled his eyebrows. “Mostly turns him on, thankfully. But I’m kind of glad he’s not here. I think I’d be more nervous knowing he was watching me.”
“I’d be the same with my girl.”
“So, now she’s your girl?”
I rolled my eyes. “It’s looking that way. Took a bit of doing to convince her of it.”
“I can’t wait to meet this girl. Lyric, right?”
I nodded. “I’m nervous to say I’m doing this to anyone. Like I don’t want to jinx it.”
“Understandable. I think a quarter of our class has washed out in one way or another.”
“I can’t believe Naughton did that.”
“I guess it can happen to any of us. Panic doesn’t always make sense.”
That was for fucking sure. I’d been a stone fucking statue when Lyric had been down in that basement. No, I couldn’t think about that. I had to rely on my training.
I wasn’t going to wash out this time, dammit.
The sound of the bullhorn jarred me out of my thoughts. I recognized one of my teachers who was a tight ass about gear. Definitely a good one to have as the final say in gear sprints.
I spotted Kal. He was fully geared up and cranked his regulator on his helmet at the fifty-five second mark. Eddie and I whooped and gave him a rock-on sign.
He turned to us, both fists raised in celebration until he looked over at Ferrari—who had done in it in fifty-two seconds.
We both laughed and ran over to check in with him.
Kal was shrugging off his tank. His mask was flipped off and dangling to show off his sweaty face.
“Great job, man.”
“She still beat me.”
Eddie slapped him on the arm. “You should be happy. You two are going in as two of the best probies in the Buffalo FD. If you pass the box.”
Kal gave him a rueful smile. “Gee, thanks.”
Eddie grinned and shoved his hands into his hoodie pocket. “You know you got this.”
“Yeah, well, so did Naughton. Now look at him.”
Eddie and I both sobered.
“Yeah, I didn’t see that one coming,” I said quietly.
Just the mention of Naughton had flowed through the nearby firefighters. Losing one of our own was already a difficult thought, but actually having it happen made us all wary.
“C’mon, let’s get you a Gatorade.”
Kal nodded, then dropped his turnout gear for the next sprint to use. Ferrari gave him a smug grin as she stood in her full turnout gear.
“You better watch yourself at your firehouse.” I nudged Kal. “She’s trouble.”
“Tell me about it.” His dark eyes danced as he whipped off his hood, then he dropped it on top of the gear.
We ran into a few of our friends and killed some time. All the while, my mind was on the house that would be the final test to see if being a firefighter would be in my future.
A sudden flurry of activity near the house had all of us craning our necks to see what was happening. I jogged toward the test site and Eddie dragged me back when the EMT’s pushed through with a stretcher.
“What is going on today?” Eddie’s voice dropped lower, nerves rolling through him to match my own.
“It’s the cold. Makes the fire unpredictable.”
“Well, someone paid attention in class.”
I elbowed him. “You should have too.”
“I’m more of an action guy.”
Which I understood all too well. I generally was too, but I was obsessed with learning everything about how fire worked. The old wiring and shit flooring at Trick or Treat had added unforeseen complications to the rescue. The Burn House was controlled, but there had been so many fires inside, things could be missed.
The white plumes of smoke mixed with the atmosphere, the hiss of water hoses, and sharp shouts, adding to the unease falling over the crowd. One of the waiting ambulances started directing the crowds to push back to give everyone room.
I eased around to see what was happening and saw a body on a stretcher. The firefighter jacket flipped wide as one of the EMT’s jumped on top of the guy to start compressions. The murmurs in the crowd grew as the compressions kept going.
“What happened?” someone asked behind me.
I really didn’t know. But it didn’t look good at all.
Suddenly, the EMT stopped and made a signal. A mask covered the sweaty, soot-covered face. Another EMT was making controlled squeezes of air into the guy on the stretcher.
I didn’t recognize him. He must have been in a different class.
But that was the second one to go down today. It wasn’t unheard of. That was the reason for the controlled burn situations. It was to show us a moment of reality to see if we could hack it.
I spotted Captain Mills from the CCFD in the circle of supervisors. Heads were down and I had a feeling they were discussing if today should be scrapped. Many of the captains came to the final exams to see just what kind of firefighters were out there. And to make decisions about who would be taken on as probationary firefighters.
Just the idea of waiting for another try at this made my stomach pitch.
In the midst of it all was the now familiar scent of smoke and burning wood and the moaning of heated metal.
The head of the Fire Academy turned to us. “Today has been a stressful testing process, but this shows each of you how important our training is. These are the kinds of things that can happen in the middle of an actual fire. And you need to make split second decisions about whether a structure is safe to enter. More than that, you need to trust your training. We’ve decided to continue the exam, but we understand if people would like to reschedule their finals.”
There was a murmuring in the crowd, but no one came forward.
Because he was right. This was part of what we signed up for.
He nodded, satisfaction and pride straightening his spine. “All right then, Chase and Turner, you’re in line to get in the box.”
My chest constricted, and I had to breathe out the nerves.
Eddie slapped me on the back. “Nothing like scaring the fuck out of us, then tossing us into the deep end.”
“We got this.”
Eddie nodded. “Fuck, yeah, we do.”
I threaded my way through the crowd of onlookers and went to the setup station. The same guy that had geared me up for my stress test waited with an air tank over his shoulder. “Turner, I hear I owe you a beer.”
I laughed. “I didn’t drop my hose once, sir.”
“Even I did.” He pointed to the boots tucked into pants. “Gear up, cadet.”
“Yes, sir.” I stepped in and went through the ritual of buckles, snaps, and straps until I wore my full uniform. I pulled on my hood, the first shield under my helmet. The noise of the crowd was muffled then nearly cut off when I hooked on my mask.
This time, it wasn’t blacked out.
The tent that held all our gear was a hive of organization. There was nothing but my own breathing. My gaze tracked to the three other people checking over the gear to make sure it was all in working order. It was their jobs to make sure there were no rips, gashes, or missing items from the last person to wear the gear in the Burn House.
I was jerked around to face the guy in charge of gear. My gaze lowered to the name on his navy T-shirt. Last time, I’d been too off balance to pay attention.
Joe. Simple fucking name and he looked like a Joe. Steady and no nonsense.
He smacked the top of my helmet to get me moving, then he handed me my air tanks. The unmistakable click of my regulator being checked sounded then cool air filled my mask. “You got this, Turner.”
I nodded.
Instead of being led blind, I was hustled through the chaos of the trainers and guys with more medals on their chest than I wanted to think about.
As if it wasn’t obvious already how important today was.
I was handed my hose, ordered to check the spray along the ground. Ice crystals had formed from the endless cadets who had come before me. I braced my feet apart and absorbed the powerful kickback as water blasted through the nozzle. Then I closed the flow of water, but I could feel the heavy flow of water waiting for me.
After I was urged forward, it was as if I was transported into reality. Adrenaline spiked as my heartbeat pounded in my ears. Smoke curled around the room like gnarled fingers.
Instinct had me pointing the spray along the ceiling first. I extinguished the smaller fire that had licked up the bricks and had nowhere to catch.
Orders in my ear told me to head left, and I spotted a lump on the floor.
The monstrous moan of the fire hit me first, followed by the unholy heat as I went through the next doorway. I blasted the walls and the growing flames. The water stole the power of it and pushed it back, but the metal groaned, and the ceiling started to buckle and sag.
I rushed forward, turning the spray of my hose down so I could still attack the fire and check on the lump.
It was a rolled rug with a blanket.
Not a human.
I wasn’t even thinking about the fact that it could be a fake person. In the moment, it was human. It was me against the fire as I checked the next room. I rushed forward and put the hose on blast against the flames that had engulfed this room.
The origin room.
Instinct had me crouching low to methodically spray until the steam and smoke rolled harder than the flames. My visibility went to near zero. I dropped low to crawl ahead. This room had three other firefighters in full gear and a body on the ground.
“Here!”
I flipped the lever on my hose, turning off the stream, and tucked it under my arm as I hustled forward.
“Out,” one of the firefighters instructed.
I nodded. The body was a large dummy, full of weighted stuffing.
Getting it out would be a bitch. I checked my surroundings and spotted the sliding doors. I dropped the hose and grabbed my hook in my side bag. I smashed the window then I returned for the body. I checked for injuries as I’d been taught, then I tossed it over my shoulder.
The air canisters, my gear, and the body made my thighs shake, but I deadlifted him and headed for the back door.
The swift temperature change created the white smoke. The deck was slick with ice and I stumbled, but I managed not to fall. I hustled down to the grass area where a team had been set up. I lowered the dummy onto the tarp then I headed back into the burning building.
The three firefighters were gone, and my hose was lost in the debris. I dug it out, making sure it wasn’t damaged, then I moved on to a dark room. There was barely a shaft of light. It was a burned out shell of a room, black as pitch with soot. The ceiling had crumbled in.
“Anyone here?” I called out.
This was too easy.
There had to be something inside I was missing.
Quickly, I scanned the room, kicking aside fallen ceiling tiles and wood. There was a lump under the ceiling debris. I set my hose aside and then hauled it up, finding a smaller body underneath.
The quick kick of panic arrowed into my chest.
It was woman-sized.
The dummy’s hair was dark and wild.
The rapid flash of memory stalled me for a moment. Then a shout erupted in my helmet headset, followed by the click of my mask’s respirator.
My fifteen was up.
I tried to get the dummy out, but it was jammed under something.
“Fuck,” I said into the mask.
Something crumbled on my right.
I had to get her out of there.
I used my small axe to cut at the sheetrock and finally, I freed the body. There was no time to waste and the warning clack that my oxygen supply was nearing its end gave me the final push to draw her out of the room. The ceiling had dropped in and I couldn’t get to the kitchen any longer.
Shouts came from another room. I ignored them, my sole focus on getting out the victim.
Sun and the streaming smoke whited out my vision. I stumbled down the stairs, but I didn’t drop the woman. I hit my knees, but I was able to take the brunt of the fall before setting the dummy on the ground.
A shoulder smack, a couple taps on my helmet, and a distant whoop had me jerking back to my feet.
“That’s what I’m talking about.”
I flipped off my mask, and the sweet, clear, cold air slapped my face.
“Good job, Cadet.” I looked up to see Captain Mills standing a yard away. “And maybe a probie.”
“Fuck, I hope so.”
Captain Mills threw back his head. “I better see an application from you, Turner.” Then he walked away without a word.
Eddie came rushing forward with Kal in tow. Both of them helped me to my feet.
“Fucking rockstar,” Kal shouted, shaking me until I swore my teeth rattled.
Eddie hauled me up off the ground into a bear hug.
“Fuck, put me down.”
“Nope!” He carried me to the tent, squeezing the life out of me.
“Idiots.” But I was too busy laughing.
I made it.