Ember, p.13
Ember, page 13
But turning back was not an option.
The smell of smoke was all around and the light from the sun began to look burnished. Ember shook her head as if she could clear the smell from her nose, but it was pointless. The burning, smoky scent was everywhere. Fortunately she could still detect the smell from the sock. She hadn’t lost the trail, and sensed that they were closer than ever. And more than ever, she wanted to “find.”
The golden dog gazed at Marcus, who kept looking at the tiny screen he carried. He looked worried. He looked … uncertain.
Ember let out an impatient whine, and Marcus lifted his head.
“Ready, girl?” he asked, though he didn’t have to. He could see she was ready, and clear. She had read his mind … and made it up for him. Her ears and tail were at attention. Her eyes were bright. She was determined!
“Okay.” Marcus nodded, and Ember was off, moving with renewed energy and confidence.
“Maybe I should have named you Spark,” he said, mostly to himself.
Marcus felt his own worries fade as he trailed after Ember, keeping a close eye on their GPS location. If she started toward the fire, he’d have to recall her.
The terrain flattened some and the smoke turned the sun an eerie reddish orange. Marcus’s radio crackled with nonstop reports.
“This fire is serious,” Greta’s voice reported. As IC, she had to monitor everything that affected the mission, and that included weather, hazards in the search area, and now a fire. “It’s growing fast and the winds are unpredictable.”
Marcus didn’t stop to respond. If the winds were making the fire unpredictable, they’d be making Ember’s scent trail unpredictable, too. They had to keep moving.
The radio crackled again. “Marcus, I’m thinking about calling off the search.”
There they were—the words Marcus suspected were coming but did not want to hear. He let them hang in the air momentarily before radioing back.
Whether to continue the search or not was not his call. That decision was entirely up to the incident commander, and for good reasons. The searchers in the field could be easily compromised by fatigue, hunger, or injury. Victor was a case in point.
At the same time, Marcus really wanted to see this search through. Ember was totally committed, and there were children involved. He also wanted his first real mission with Ember to be a success. “Greta, I think we’re close.”
A trickle of sweat ran down Marcus’s back, giving him a shiver. The afternoon sun and heat from the fire were combining to make the air oppressive. He stifled a cough. It was getting thick with smoke as well. Unfortunately he hadn’t thought to bring a mask.
Marcus stood still, waiting for the next radio crackle. Finally it came. “Proceed for now,” Greta said. “But be prepared to be called off.”
“Got it,” Marcus replied. He holstered the radio. In the distance, he could make out the unmistakable low rumble of a fire consuming the woods, like an ominous hum. Tiny bits of ash were floating in the air, settling on the trees and ground around him. Marcus moved forward, keeping his steady pace. If Greta called them back, he would go—she was the incident commander, and she was in charge. As a firefighter, he could tell the fire was significant, and he knew he and Ember would be of no help to anyone if they became injured, or worse …
Taking a bandanna from his pack, Marcus dampened it with water from a water bottle and tied it over his nose and mouth. He took three long strides and crested a small hill in time to see Ember disappear over the next one, ears and tail at attention. She reappeared quickly, lingered to sniff carefully, then took off on a new trajectory—toward the fire.
“Oh, Ember, are you sure?” Marcus whispered to himself, knowing full well that she was. The golden Lab looked back at Marcus, pausing for a split second before turning again and taking off at a run.
Yes, she was sure. Yes, the hikers were in the same direction as the fire. And yes, she wanted to find them!
Marcus touched the radio on his belt but did not remove it. He looked ahead, toward the wide funnel of smoke rising into the air. He blinked several times. His eyes stung. Through the thickening smoke, he saw Ember still moving forward with determination.
Ember drew in air. The smoke was nearly overpowering the scent of her target, making her slightly less sure of her direction. But she could still pick up the unique scent, and she was certain they were getting closer. She paused and lifted her snout. A whimper escaped her throat. The rumbling sound of the hungry fire, the acrid smell, the dark smoke. They weren’t just threatening to drown out the scents she was trying to follow. They were dredging up memories. They reminded her of the time under the house, when she had to get her brothers and sisters out, when she could not find their mother. They reminded her of Marcus. She looked back over her shoulder and caught her handler’s scent. He was behind her moving steadily, if slowly.
She paused again as an impulse to run back to Marcus’s side came over her. She was especially reluctant to get too far ahead of her partner since Victor was no longer with them. But she remembered her training. She could, and should, range out of sight of Marcus. She was faster on her own. She gave one last backward glance and refocused on her goal.
Marcus saw Ember look back, and then she put on a burst of speed. He tried to pick up his own pace, anxious to be closer to her the nearer they got to the fire. Greta could call them off at any moment. They did not have much time—nor did the hikers … if they were out here. He hoped Ember’s renewed energy meant that she knew something he did not.
Pausing, Marcus listened for Ember’s alert. The only thing he heard was the roar of the forest fire getting louder, and another sound that would only make things worse: the wind. It was blowing up the ridge. It was good that it wasn’t blowing the fire toward them, but it would fan the flames nonetheless.
Fighting back a cough, Marcus touched his radio again. He should report the weather to his IC. The conditions were getting more treacherous with each passing minute. But just then he heard the sound he’d been straining to hear: three short, sharp barks. Ember had found the hikers!
The barks were close, and they gave Marcus strength. He surged up the hill toward the sound. There was not a moment to lose. Shouldering his way through some brush, he stopped short.
Ember was sitting by the two missing girls on the edge of a drop-off. When Marcus came into view, Ember stood up and barked again. The girls also stood and both began shouting at once.
“Our daddy! He’s down there!” The taller girl pointed toward the precipice, her dirty face streaked pink with trails left by her tears.
“He needs help,” the smaller girl added, tugging on Marcus’s arm and drawing him closer to the edge of the cliff. “He’s hurt!” Her tear-streaked cheeks matched her sister’s.
Marcus could see that the girls were frantic with worry, and understood why. They’d been alone up here for more than a day, probably with very little to eat or drink, worrying about their dad in the giant rock crevice, and smelling the approaching fire. He pulled the handkerchief away from his mouth.
“I’m going to help your dad,” he said reassuringly. “But I need you both to listen to me, okay?”
The smaller girl nodded and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. It was covered in soot and snot. “Okay.”
“Great. Can you tell me your names?”
The older girl spoke first. “I’m Rachel, and this is Olive.”
Marcus held out a hand. “Nice to meet you, Rachel. Olive. My name is Marcus, and this is Ember.”
Ember licked each of the girls’ hands in greeting, and Olive giggled.
“The first thing I need you to do is come away from that ledge,” Marcus told them firmly. He needed both of them to listen, and there was no time to waste.
Rachel looked doubtful. “But our daddy is down there!” she said. “He can’t get out!”
The back of Marcus’s throat spasmed, and he coughed violently. The smoke was getting thicker. “I know,” he wheezed. “And I’m going to get him out. But I need space to work, and I need to know you are both safe while I do it.”
Rachel took another worried look into the crevice, and then relented. “Okay,” she said shakily.
“Olive, can you hold on to Ember’s collar for me?”
Olive nodded and grasped the collar while Marcus led the girls over to a small tree, settling them at the base of the trunk. Ember sat down between the two girls, and Olive slung an arm around the dog’s back. “Ember is very smart and is trained to help in situations like these. She’ll stay with you while I help your dad. Can you tell me your dad’s name?”
“Travis. Our daddy’s name is Travis.” Olive barely got the words out before she started to cough. Marcus could see that they both had watery eyes … the smoke was choking.
Marcus pulled an extra shirt from his pack and wet both sleeves with fresh water. “Hold this over your mouth and nose. It’ll make it easier to breathe.” The girls each took a sleeve and did as instructed. Rachel put her other arm around her little sister, who was still leaning against Ember.
With the girls settled, Marcus pulled his handkerchief back over his nose and mouth and approached the ledge a second time. When he was still several feet away, he got down on his belly and scooted closer until he could see over the edge. The man below looked to be in his forties. He was dressed in hiking gear and lying on a ledge about twenty feet below. He raised an arm when he saw Marcus’s face appear, and Marcus heaved a huge sigh of relief. He was conscious! His job just got a hundred times easier.
“Travis, can you hear me?” Marcus called.
“I can hear you. Are my girls okay?”
“Yes,” Marcus confirmed. “The girls are fine. I’m Marcus Riley, and I’m trained in search and rescue.” He introduced himself before informing Travis about the next, crucial steps. “We need to get you all out of here as quickly as we can. There’s a fire to the east of us that’s spreading. Are you injured?” Marcus asked.
“My ankle,” Travis shouted back. “I think it’s broken. I can’t put any weight on it.”
Marcus could see from twenty feet away that Travis’s ankle was badly swollen, which explained why he hadn’t been able to climb up after his fall off the rocky cliff. That, and the fact that it was practically vertical. It would be a challenge to get him up with assistance, but it was not insurmountable.
“I’m going to be out of view while I get situated to help you out of there, okay?”
Travis nodded. “Yes, okay. I’ll just hang out down here …”
Marcus half smiled. Travis still had a bit of a sense of humor, which was a good sign. He commando-crawled back from the ledge and unclipped his radio. “We’ve found them!” he reported to IC. “We are with them now.”
“Good job!” Greta radioed back, though Marcus knew her well enough to hear that she wasn’t entirely relieved. Marcus reported the details and his plan to get Travis back on the trail.
“I’m sending a chopper,” Greta said. “Even if Travis can walk, you can’t hike out with this smoke. I have your location. Let me know when you’ve secured the victim.”
“Will do,” Marcus replied, and holstered his radio. He glanced at Ember and the girls, and couldn’t help but notice the ash falling on and around them like grim snow. Olive was completely slumped against Ember and looking drowsy. She probably hadn’t slept at all the night before. They’d been through an ordeal, and it wasn’t over yet.
Marcus pulled off his pack and opened it, digging around until he found a long piece of webbing. Since Travis looked to be a bit smaller than he was, Marcus used the length of his own arms to measure a loop and then adjusted accordingly. He tied an overhand knot several inches from one end and threaded the other end through. Then he attached a carabiner and a rope to the makeshift harness and crawled back to the edge.
“I’m sending down a harness,” he shouted. Travis looked up and nodded. He caught the descending piece of webbing and untied it from the rope used to lower it. Marcus explained how to put the loop behind his back and thread it through his legs, and then pass the ends back through the loop before tying it around his waist and securing it with the carabiner.
“Next I need you to thread the end of the rope through the figure eight that’s already there on one end,” he instructed. “And make sure the tail is about eight inches long so it won’t untie.”
Travis completed the task quickly and looked up, ready for more instructions. “You’re taking me back to my rock climbing days,” he called.
Marcus, who wished he could secure the harness on the victim himself, was more than a little relieved to hear that Travis knew a bit about knots. “Hang tight!” he called down. He crawled back from the ledge and found a scrub pine with a sturdy trunk to use as an anchor, then attached a premade pulley with a strong braking system. When he was satisfied, he made his way back to the edge.
“Ready?” he called.
“Ready!” Travis replied.
Hand over hand, Marcus pulled the rope and Travis up the sheer wall. He could feel Travis helping as much as he could with one leg, but the going was slow. The strain made him cough, but he held tight to the rope.
Finally Travis’s head appeared. He gripped the ledge and hoisted the rest of his body up before rolling onto his back in relief.
“Daddy!” the girls shrieked when they saw him. Marcus hurried to move him away from the drop-off as his girls rushed over to him for an ecstatic, three-way hug.
Ember wagged beside them, her tail low. She was happy to see the pack reunited, but she knew the danger was not over. They were not out of the woods and the fire was close. She sneezed, and ash flew out of her snout.
Too close.
“I’m all right,” Travis assured his girls, squeezing them tight. “We are all right.”
Olive was clinging to her dad and sobbing, her tears leaving fresh tracks down her soot-covered face. Travis held them both until they had calmed, then broke away and hopped over to Marcus. “Thank you,” he said, offering a hand.
Marcus’s face was serious as he signed off with Greta. “Don’t thank us until it’s over,” he replied, quietly so as not to frighten the kids. “We’re not out of danger yet.” He handed Travis a wet cloth to breathe through and then took out his map, spread it on the ground, and studied it for a moment. It was so much easier to get the big picture of the terrain on paper as opposed to scrolling on a tiny screen. He put his finger on the spot where they were, then looked in ever-widening circles for a spot where a helicopter might be able to touch down. He knew Greta was likely doing the same thing back at base camp.
Unfortunately there was no large, flat place big enough for a chopper anywhere near them. And even if he miraculously found a flat space, it would be covered in trees, making it impossible for a helicopter to land.
His radio crackled, and the helicopter pilot confirmed from the air that he would not be able to land, and not only because of the tree-covered, steep terrain. “The heat and smoke from the fire are pummeling us,” the pilot reported.
“Marcus, I need you to move farther away … to the west. Can you do that?”
Marcus looked at the exhausted girls and their little legs. He looked at Travis’s swollen ankle. Neither looked promising, but what choice did they have?
“Yes,” he said, and signed off.
Shouldering his pack, Marcus called to the rest of the group. “We’ve got to get farther away from the fire, and find a place where a chopper can land,” he explained.
Ember looked at him, and Marcus swore she understood what he’d said. It wasn’t a command she’d been taught, but Ember seemed to get it, anyway. She nudged the exhausted girls back the way they had come, sticking close for moral support. Marcus walked alongside Travis, supporting him on one side.
The going was slow.
Raising her nose but not stopping, Ember found a path for the group to follow. She was not scenting a person, or even an object. She was following a path to cleaner air, a path away from the fire. After they’d gone about a hundred yards, she paused and looked back at Marcus, who nodded. “Keep going,” he told her.
Rachel and Olive coughed through the shirtsleeves they still held to their faces. Ember stayed close, but two paws ahead, finding their path. She fought back an instinct deep inside—an impulse to run! She blinked her stinging eyes and tried not to focus on her burning snout as she continued onward. At last she heard something overhead, and stopped to listen over the wind and the low hum of fire. It was the whop, whop, whop of helicopter blades!
A fallen log lay across the path, and Ember jumped up onto it. She waited while the girls, and then Marcus and the man, crawled under. When they emerged on the other side, they were in a small clearing. It wasn’t big enough for the chopper to land, but it was large enough and clear enough of trees for the pilot to drop a harness without it tangling.
The chopper dipped lower, blowing up dust and needles to mix with the smoke. It was difficult to hear, or see. Ember’s ears lay tightly against her head.
Marcus helped Travis settle himself against the fallen log and took both Olive and Rachel by the hand, leading them to the center of the clearing. He caught the yellow harness as it came down. The girls would go first.
While he secured the wide yellow straps around them, Marcus explained what would happen. “We will use this to pull you up to the helicopter. These straps are very secure, so you will be totally safe. As soon as you are both inside the chopper, the pilot will lower the harness again for your dad, and then for me and Ember. Can you give me a thumbs-up?” he shouted over the din.
Squinting from the dust and smoke, the girls both gave him a thumbs-up. Marcus signaled to the pilot, and the girls were lifted off the ground. Olive shrieked in excitement and surprise, holding tight to her sister.
“You’re doing great!” Marcus shouted up to them.
The girls were lifted higher and higher, and soon disappeared into the body of the chopper. A few moments later, the harness lowered again, and Marcus helped Travis into it, trying to breathe as slowly as he could behind his handkerchief. When Travis was safely inside the helicopter, the harness appeared a third time, and Marcus climbed in.
