conscious,” Jake
confirmed. “And she’s a strong swimmer, but that current is deadly
and the debris in the water even more so. The ground’s so damp from
all the rain the past week, trees are falling left and
right.”
“ So what are you doing to
find her?” Mick asked, anger rising inside of him. This wasn’t the
time to talk about how much danger Faith was in, it was time to
figure out how to get her out of it. “If her cell’s working, we can
track her location, right? Or her beeper? Don’t you have some kind
of—”
“ She left her cell in the
boat when she went in after the dog, and she wasn’t wearing her
beeper,” Jake said. “But I sent her team to search in the direction
she disappeared. And as soon as my other boats deliver the people
they’ve got on board, I’ll send them back out to assist in the
search. All the residents have been evacuated, but Faith’s team
volunteered to go back and rescue as many pets as they
could.”
Of course they had, of
course Faith had,
because she had a huge heart and knew how much an animal could mean
to their owner. Mick knew that, like he knew that risking her life
to save others was a part of Faith’s job. But right now he couldn’t
think logically or even be proud of her, all he could think about
was that he might never see her smile again, never hold her, never
get to promise his life to her, and it felt like he was being
shredded from the inside.
“ I know how you must be
feeling,” Jake said softly when Mick stayed quiet for too long. “If
you want to come down to the firehouse you can. We’ll get you a cup
of coffee, find you a place to hang out, and you’ll be the first to
know if there are any developments. We’ve already evacuated the
west end of Main because of rising water, but sandbags are in place
up and down Market Street. We’re pretty sure we won’t have to
evacuate the firehouse, and if we do it won’t be until late
tonight. The weather people are promising this shit is going to
stop by five o’clock.”
Mick ran a shaking hand through his hair.
“I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
He hung up and launched into motion,
hurrying down the hall to the bedroom to snag a pair of running
pants and a quick-drying shirt he wore when he worked out, trying
to dress as appropriately as he could for spending hours in the
rain.
Jake was crazy if he thought Mick was going
to sit in a corner and sip coffee while everyone else searched for
the woman he loved. He was going with them, and he refused to take
no for an answer.
A few minutes later, he shrugged into his
water resistant jacket, pulled the hood over his head, and jogged
out into the rain. The firehouse was always a quick walk from
Faith’s place, but today Mick reached it in record time, bursting
in the front door and taking the stairs to the second floor office
space two at a time.
Jake was on the phone, but as soon as he
spotted Mick he lifted a hand and raised one finger. He ended the
call a minute later and crossed to where Mick stood dripping near
the hooks on the wall. But Mick didn’t intended to add his jacket
to the line of raincoats, not when he planned to be heading back
out as soon as he found out where to meet up with a search
crew.
“ How you holding up?” Jake
said.
“ I’m fine,” Mick said,
ignoring the way his heart lurched in his chest. “And I want to
help. I want to join a search party.”
Jake shook his head. “Mick, I can’t let you
do that. You don’t have the training these men and women have
and—”
“ I don’t give a shit about
training,” Mick said. “My fiancée might be dying out there, and I
need to go look for her.”
“ I get it, Mick, but it’s
more complicated than that,” Jake said in a cautious tone that made
Mick fight to keep control. He couldn’t lose it with Jake right now
or he’d never get assigned to a search party.
“ Listen, I know CPR,” Mick
said. “Faith taught me not long after we got together. And
confirmed. “And she’s a strong swimmer, but that current is deadly
and the debris in the water even more so. The ground’s so damp from
all the rain the past week, trees are falling left and
right.”
“ So what are you doing to
find her?” Mick asked, anger rising inside of him. This wasn’t the
time to talk about how much danger Faith was in, it was time to
figure out how to get her out of it. “If her cell’s working, we can
track her location, right? Or her beeper? Don’t you have some kind
of—”
“ She left her cell in the
boat when she went in after the dog, and she wasn’t wearing her
beeper,” Jake said. “But I sent her team to search in the direction
she disappeared. And as soon as my other boats deliver the people
they’ve got on board, I’ll send them back out to assist in the
search. All the residents have been evacuated, but Faith’s team
volunteered to go back and rescue as many pets as they
could.”
Of course they had, of
course Faith had,
because she had a huge heart and knew how much an animal could mean
to their owner. Mick knew that, like he knew that risking her life
to save others was a part of Faith’s job. But right now he couldn’t
think logically or even be proud of her, all he could think about
was that he might never see her smile again, never hold her, never
get to promise his life to her, and it felt like he was being
shredded from the inside.
“ I know how you must be
feeling,” Jake said softly when Mick stayed quiet for too long. “If
you want to come down to the firehouse you can. We’ll get you a cup
of coffee, find you a place to hang out, and you’ll be the first to
know if there are any developments. We’ve already evacuated the
west end of Main because of rising water, but sandbags are in place
up and down Market Street. We’re pretty sure we won’t have to
evacuate the firehouse, and if we do it won’t be until late
tonight. The weather people are promising this shit is going to
stop by five o’clock.”
Mick ran a shaking hand through his hair.
“I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
He hung up and launched into motion,
hurrying down the hall to the bedroom to snag a pair of running
pants and a quick-drying shirt he wore when he worked out, trying
to dress as appropriately as he could for spending hours in the
rain.
Jake was crazy if he thought Mick was going
to sit in a corner and sip coffee while everyone else searched for
the woman he loved. He was going with them, and he refused to take
no for an answer.
A few minutes later, he shrugged into his
water resistant jacket, pulled the hood over his head, and jogged
out into the rain. The firehouse was always a quick walk from
Faith’s place, but today Mick reached it in record time, bursting
in the front door and taking the stairs to the second floor office
space two at a time.
Jake was on the phone, but as soon as he
spotted Mick he lifted a hand and raised one finger. He ended the
call a minute later and crossed to where Mick stood dripping near
the hooks on the wall. But Mick didn’t intended to add his jacket
to the line of raincoats, not when he planned to be heading back
out as soon as he found out where to meet up with a search
crew.
“ How you holding up?” Jake
said.
“ I’m fine,” Mick said,
ignoring the way his heart lurched in his chest. “And I want to
help. I want to join a search party.”
Jake shook his head. “Mick, I can’t let you
do that. You don’t have the training these men and women have
and—”
“ I don’t give a shit about
training,” Mick said. “My fiancée might be dying out there, and I
need to go look for her.”
“ I get it, Mick, but it’s
more complicated than that,” Jake said in a cautious tone that made
Mick fight to keep control. He couldn’t lose it with Jake right now
or he’d never get assigned to a search party.
“ Listen, I know CPR,” Mick
said. “Faith taught me not long after we got together. And
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