The rescue, p.1
The Rescue, page 1
THE RESCUE
Brothers of Fire
Book 2
Kathryn Shay
The Rescue
Copyright © 2023 by Kathryn Shay
All Rights Reserved
Smashwords Edition
Published by Ocean View Books
Cover Design by Stacy Stephens
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to the bookseller and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Table of Contents
Cast of Characters
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Author’s Note
The Brothers of Fire Stories
FRIENDLY FIRE Excerpt
About the Author
Cast of Characters
Main Characters
Noah Keaton—Crystal City firefighter
Chloe Logan—Hollywood movie star
The Brothers of Fire with Significant Others
Captain Jared Zenko (Lacey Roth)
Lieutenant Noah Keaton (Chloe Logan)
Captain Tim Daniels (Ava Daniels)
Lieutenant Tommy Mancini
Captain Adam Stark (Beth Stark)
Captain Carson Taylor III
Noah’s Family
Sons: Liam 7, Bobby and Brady 5, Casey 2
Gina and Ellen and Deana—his sisters
Mark Winslow—father-in-law
Sara Keaton—deceased wife
Chloe’s Colleagues
Al Jenkins—director of the movie
Jackson Kane—her leading man
Isabella Lancaster—actress and friend
Cameron Sloan—agent
Stanley Stroud—bigshot director
Previous Movie—This is Emily
Current Movie filming—Payback
Locations
Brothers&Sisters
Crystal City Diner
Pelican’s
The Elmwood Inn (The Grand Hotel)
Harris Hill
Chapter 1
“Ever been up here before?” Lt. Noah Keaton asked his crew. “Socially, I mean.”
The fire call had come in for Harris Hill, the local Glider Club and Social Center where planes could be rented to glide around the county along with flying lessons. Social events like barbeques and picnics also took place here. This time, though, a Hollywood studio had contracted to film a movie there. Noah’s firehouse covered the site.
“Nope.” This from Will Kirkland, the senior member of Truck 3 after Noah.
Lucy Law, a very competent female firefighter responded, “I have. My boyfriend took me here. It was romantic.”
“Aw…”
“How sweet…”
Of course, the guys teased. But Noah said, “I do think it’s sweet. Pay them no mind, Luce.”
“I can always count on you, LT.”
They all sobered as they pulled in right behind Engine 4. Jarek Zenko jumped off his rig and crossed to Noah’s just as he dismounted. Jarek said, “Seems like a contained blaze. We don’t know the origin.” His team was already getting out two hoses.
Cameras were set up at different angles, people standing around looking at the cabin and various other members of the crew. The buzz of conversation was loud. Added to the rumbling of the firetruck, which was never turned off, Noah could barely hear himself think.
A man rushed to them. “I’m Al Jenkins. I’m in charge of this project. I don’t know what happened. The main actors are inside. The camera people got out because they were closest to the door.”
“Any idea why it started?” Zenko asked.
He ducked his head.
The captain said, “We need to know, sir.”
“The fire pit.”
“There’s a fire pit inside the cabin? That you lit?”
Jenkins nodded.
“How big is the inside?”
“Fifteen hundred square feet. But the rooms are chopped up. We were filming in the main area.”
“Let’s go team.” He said gruffly, “We’ll deal with you later, Jenkins.” He headed toward the building, pulling his face mask on.
Noah’s team also donned their SCBA, grabbed tools from the truck and followed him. When they reached the door, they headed inside. Water from two hoses put out the fire in minutes. It had singed the surrounding walls and floor. “You and me will check the downstairs, Law. Kirkland and Davidson, go to the second floor.”
Zenko said, “We’ll take a hose up there ahead of you.”
Light smoke filled the air, but it wasn’t too bad. Noah said, “I’ll go left.”
He walked through a doorway off to the left and Law went right. Noah found restrooms. He opened the first one. Empty. He tried the second and was met with resistance. He pushed. The door nudged forward. Inside he found a woman sitting on the john. She wore a bra and skirt. And by God, he recognized her. “Are you all right, ma’am? The fire’s out.”
She coughed. “Just a little smoke in my lungs.”
“Um…”
“I took off my blouse, wet it and put it in front of the door. There was nothing else in here to use.”
“Smart girl.”
She stood. “Yeah? How am I going to get out of here?”
Noah whipped off his turnout coat and slid it on her shoulders. She poked her arms through the sleeves and did it up. He said, “Let’s go. Fires can reignite before we finish the search.”
He took her hand. She gripped his. He led her to the living room and through the front door. She sighed audibly when they reached the fresh air and took in deep breaths. Coughed some more. He left her on a bench with the director. “Thanks…”
Noah headed back inside. Law had found the costar and she’d got him out quickly, too. No victims upstairs. This was one of the easy fires. The team overhaul, searching for hidden pockets of fire that might be hiding in the logs was next up. Noah went back outside.
He saw her still wearing his coat, sitting where he left her. Jarek was talking to the director and producer. Noah crossed to the woman he’d been trying hard to forget after he met her on the sidewalk one summer morning. Where she kissed him soundly. He removed his face covering. “Hello, again.”
She startled. Then delight filled those green eyes. “Hello. I remember you.” Despite her dirty hair from the smoke, and the smudges on her face, she was still a knockout.
He couldn’t help a grin. “I remember you, too.”
“I’m Chloe Logan.”
“As I said then, Lt. Noah Keaton.”
“Thank you for finding me in there. Getting me out.”
“You’re welcome.” He motioned over his shoulder. “Why on earth was a fire pit lit inside the cabin?”
“Ask the director. Jackson and I told him that was ridiculous. He said they wouldn’t leave it lit for long.”
“Very, very dangerous.”
“Obviously. We should have refused to go in and film.”
A man came up to them. He was movie-star handsome. “Chloe, are you all right? We got separated.”
“Yes, Jackson, I’m fine. You?” He nodded. She gestured to Noah. “This is Lt. Noah Keaton.”
“Jackson Kane. Thanks for all this. We tried to tell Al the fire was a stupid move.”
“So I heard.”
The guy sat beside Chloe and took her hand. She glanced at Noah, seeming uncomfortable.
“Why do you have on his coat?”
“I took off my blouse to block the door gap. There was nothing else to do it with in the bathroom.”
“I’ll walk you to the trailer.”
Before they could leave, Jarek returned. “We’re set to go.”
“I’m waiting until my guys are out.”
“Sure thing, lieutenant.” He left without acknowledging the couple on the bench.
The costar was still holding Chloe’s hand. Noah wondered if their on-screen romance extended into their personal lives.
Jackson stood and held out his hand. “Let’s go, honey.”
“Don’t get carried away, Jackson.” She shrugged off his hand and turned to Noah. “I’ll be right back with your coat.” They headed to the trailers.
She returned just as the team finished, walked up to Noah and handed him his coat. She’d put on a T-shirt. “Thanks again. Your firehouse covers this area?”
“Yeah, we’re a small one, positioned on the east side of Crystal City.”
“Good to know.”
“If you ever need us, we’re minutes away. Nice to meet up with you again, Ms. Logan.”
She gave him a lush smile. “I think Chloe is called for in our situation, Noah. I hope to see you soon.” She walked away.
Noah stared after her. Damn, he never planned to see her again. When the dreams about her started right after they met, right after the kiss, he’d forced his conscious mind to…extinguish thoughts of her. But now, the image of her in a skimpy black bra would make that impossible for a while again.
Hell, he had more important things to think about.
* * *
“Hey, LT. Did you actually see the star in her underwear?” This from Dirk Dav
“Part of it.” He kept a straight face. “She’s beautiful.”
“That’s all we’re going to get?”
“Yep!” Now let’s do some training.” Even though he tried to sound stern, his voice always came out coaxing.
“Sure thing, LT.”
“Come on, Dirk,” Lucy said pulling him out of the kitchen.
Will Kirkland stayed back. “You okay, LT?”
“Yeah, of course.”
“You seem a little…lost. You like the movie star?”
He shrugged. “Women are out of the picture for me these days.”
“Are they?” He seemed concerned even though he knew Noah’s situation.
“Would you want to take on my boys?”
“Your boys are great. Rambunctious, but that’s normal.”
“I guess.” He angled his chin. “Let’s get out there.”
They headed into the living space. The room was like other firehouses, but smaller since the staff was only a four-person team on each shift. The furniture, dark wine leather, was in good shape, and the floor had been replaced with plank wood when the old firehouse had been resurrected. The scents of furniture polish rose up to them.
But the pièce de résistance was opposite the windows. Will Kirkland’s father had built an entire wall of cupboards, shelves and drawers in fine oak. In front of it was a handcrafted matching wood table, thanks again to Pa Kirkland, that could hold ten. The setup was the envy of most of the other stations.
“Before you go over there,” Noah said, “Put these on.” He handed out blindfolds.
“God, I hate blindfold drills.”
“I know you do, Lucy. Nobody likes them. But we’re blinded by smoke in most fires.” He swept them with his gaze. “Maintaining orientation in the building when conducting a search is critical for survival. It’s easy to lose your way and become disoriented. When this occurs, you can get lost.”
Lucy Law added, “Yeah, when my dad was a smoke eater, they had a death from disorientation.”
“Your job is to put on the blindfold and go to the floor samples set up on the table. Identify where you might be by that flooring. I’ll grade you.”
“The first guy’ll be at a disadvantage,” Dirk Davidson said.
Will Kirkland rolled his eyes. “We leave the room, right?”
“Yeah, you do.”
“I’ll go first,” Dirk said.
“You all can wait in the kitchen.”
When the others left, Dirk put on his blindfold, and Noah guided him to the table. Noah had turned off lights and he shut the blinds. “Go ahead and identify the surface and where it would be. They’re all mixed up in order.”
Davidson ran his hands over the first one. “Ceramic tile. It’s either in a kitchen, entryway, or bathroom.”
“How would you narrow it down?”
“Feel around for furniture.”
“Good, go on.”
He moved to the right. Felt the sample. “It feels like real brick. It’s rough and uneven.”
“It is brick. Where would you find it?”
“Outside, probably.”
“I didn’t say everything was inside.”
“Huh.” He moved to the next one. “Hardwood. It could be downstairs in the living room, kitchen or sometimes it covers the whole floor.”
“So again, you have to narrow it down with the furniture. Move on.”
He ran his hand over another surface. “Concrete.”
“Again, where are you?”
“Outside or the basement.”
For the last one, he said, “Um…vinyl?”
It turned out to be laminate wood flooring. Noah was always grateful when people missed somethings, to show them how valuable the drill was.
After everyone finished, they gathered in the kitchen to wait for their debrief. “So, was it worthwhile?” Noah asked.
“Yeah. I knew all of them, but it’s good to practice.” This from Will. “In a real fire, seconds matter so knowing immediately where you are or could be is important.”
More of the same was discussed.
“You tried to trick us,” Lucy observed. “With the brick and concrete.”
“That’s right, Firefighter. I did.”
She snorted.
“I’m glad you learned from it.” He went to the countertop and grabbed two big shopping bags. Put them on the table.
“What’s that?” Dirk asked.
“A treat.”
Noah pulled out big canisters of pretzels, potato chips and popcorn. When he opened them, the scent of popcorn wafted out. “Thanks for not dissing what can be seen as a simple training.”
Noah was happy to have a small group like this to manage on his first officer tour. He knew a lot of firehouses had uncooperative old-timers or newbies who gave the officer in charge a hard time. At least that had tipped in his favor.
As he watched the group dig in, big green eyes and auburn hair came to his mind. Now that would never be on the positive side.
Damn it, stop thinking about her!
He was trying to, but fate had played a cruel trick on him, sending him on that call today. For God’s sake, there she was, in a sexy bra.
* * *
Exhausted by the end of the day, Chloe slipped into the back seat of the town car and asked Charles to drive her home. She eased back into the butter-soft leather and thought about today. The indoor shooting would be delayed, but there were other locations: a lake, downtown Crystal Corners, a house where her fictional boyfriend lived. They’d tried doing one of those scenes, but no one was ready for it, so at four, Al stopped shooting for the day.
Her mind turned to the director. How stupid he’d been…
She’d stormed over to him in the aftermath. “Hell, Al, Jackson and I could have been killed.”
“Well, you weren’t.”
“I hope the fire department doesn’t shut us down.” This from Jackson.
Jenkins eyebrows rocketed. “They can’t do that.”
Jackson had caught her eye. Shook his head. “If they declare us a hazard to the community or the natural surroundings they can.”
Only then had the damned man lost his swagger…
She sighed and looked out the window. June had come into this small Southern Tier town with soft breezes and warm temperatures. But a cool river ran through the city and the nearness of a couple of lakes made the air enjoyable.
She laid her head back, thinking about Noah Keaton.
When he took off his helmet and mask, his eyes had shone with mirth. He knew he’d surprise her when she recognized him from the tumble she took on the street that morning.
And in that navy shirt, she could see his wide shoulders.
He was taller than her, and she was 5’8”.
And she liked the way he carried himself…
“Directly home, Chloe?”
Mostly, she wanted to go to the only firehouse near the filming site. But she said, “Yes, I’ll order in tonight.”
“You can eat out. I don’t mind waiting.” Her agreement was the local man would be her chauffeur during the day but have nights off. She actually could walk to the downtown area.
“No, not tonight. But thanks.”
When they arrived at her house, Charles opened the passenger side for her and watched her until she reached the porch and unlocked the door. The rented condo on the river was beautiful, furnished tastefully by a local doctor who moved in with the love of her life. Briefly, Chloe wondered if she’d ever find hers?
* * *
Tommy walked up to House 4 to see Carson before the Brothers of Fire meeting tonight. He’d quit the group when he and Jarek got into it and never came back. But Tommy wasn’t going to let the guy go that easy. In the front of the big brick building, he saw a firefighter working on the flowers that had been planted, apparently this spring. When he reached her, he said, “Hey there, Stef.”
She looked up from under a black visor. “Hey, Tom.” She stood. “Thanks for not calling me Steffi.”
