they lived only two towns apart. He was closer to her than her brother, in some ways, until recently.
Ivy closed her eyes and sighed. She was too tired to ask where he’d been the past few months, in too much pain to wonder about the haggard cast to his face.
She tried to replay the accident but could only get to the point when her personal distress indicator went off. The guys must have pulled her out before the place went up. Or maybe they’d gotten the roof ventilated and knocked down the fire. Not knowing the details was killing her.
She strained her eyes to find Mitch and pump him for info, but he was busy prepping the equipment that would follow her into the hospital. As the helicopter roared in for a landing, she let herself sink back into darkness.
People moved in and out of her consciousness. Dressed in white or green scrubs, they checked every detail, cleaned every abrasion and treated her with tender care in spite of her exclamations of pain. Vaguely she was aware of a doctor peeling off his gloves and announcing that he would brief her colleagues waiting in the hallway. That brought her around.
She opened her eyes to find her shoulder strapped firmly to her body. When she tried to sit up, a lancing pain drove her back to the pillow. A shower of sparks danced across her vision. Gingerly she felt the bandage stuck to her forehead and another taped over the burn on her neck.
Battalion Chief Strong appeared, Jeff next to her. They were both sooty, tired, their faces lined with worry, turnouts streaked with black.
Jeff’s smile was huge as he grabbed her hand. “Man, Ivy. You scared me. I thought you were done for. That place was cooking.”
She tried to return the smile. “Did you pull me out?”
He nodded. “Eventually. I didn’t know you were gone until your alarm sounded as I headed out the front door. I went back in and the rescue crew followed me. We found you under a pile of junk. Took all three of us to get the stuff off you, and I was nearly out of air by that time.” His expression changed. “What happened anyway? I thought you were right behind me. I told you we were leaving. Didn’t you hear me?”
She coughed. “I stopped to check the last door.”
He frowned. “Ivy…”
Chief Strong touched his arm. “Jeff, go get me some water, will you? I feel like I swallowed a sock.”
Jeff gave Ivy a nervous look and squeezed her hand before he left. “I’ll tell the rest of the guys you’re okay.”
Strong waited until he was gone before she sat heavily in a chair. Her hair was plastered against her head where her helmet had weighted it down. She smelled of smoke. “I’m glad you’re going to be okay.”
Ivy saw the warring emotions on the woman’s face and knew there was more coming. “Thanks, Chief. Was anybody else hurt?”
She pursed her lips. “No, and that’s a lucky thing, isn’t it?”
Ivy swallowed. “Sure.”
“Did it occur to you when you disobeyed my orders to evacuate that you were being reckless and stupid?”
Ivy bridled. “I was doing my job. I didn’t hang out in there to have a party or anything.”
The brown eyes flashed. “You were doing what you decided your job was at that moment. I gave you a direct order, and last I checked, I outrank you. You risked the lives of the people who dragged your behind out of there and you had absolutely no right to do that.”
Her cheeks felt hot. “There could have been someone inside. Did you find anyone?”
“No. The house was empty.”
Ivy’s stomach clenched at the thought. It had all been for nothing. They’d gone back in for her. What would she have done if one of them hadn’t made it out? Because of her, all because of her.
They both sat in silence for a minute. Strong sighed deeply. “This isn’t the time to get into it. We’ll talk when you’ve recovered. Doc says you’re out at least eight weeks before he’ll reevaluate you.”
“Eight weeks? Uh-uh. I’ll be back before then. There’s no way I’m staying out two months.”
Strong got to her feet. Her tone masked a current of fury. “Ivy, you will stay out until that doctor gives me a written note telling me you are one hundred percent mended. Then you and I will have a long debriefing session about this fire before I let you back on my crew.” She walked to the door and turned. “Thank goodness you’re okay, Ivy. I would sure hate to be the one who had to tell your mother that you weren’t. She’s outside. I’ll send her in.”
Her mother.
The thought hit her like a slap. It wasn’t the first time she wondered how her mother felt about her chosen profession, especially after what happened to Sadie. She’d never said a word to discourage Ivy’s career choice, as much as it pained her. It must have been awful for her mother to get a call that her surviving daughter was caught in a fire.
Guilt gave way to another emotion. An anger swelled up inside her and spilled out.
Two months away from the station? Maybe more than that if things didn’t heal right. She punched her good hand into the blankets. “Well, God? What are you doing up there? You are supposed to take care of your children,” she hissed at the ceiling. “Look what happened to me. And what about Sadie? Haven’t we had enough in this family? You’re nothing like a father.”
She quickly wiped the tears away at the sight of her mother barreling through the door. Juana Beria took one look at her and burst into hysterical sobs, tears running down her plump brown cheeks.
“Oh, Mama. Please don’t cry. Anything but that.”
Her mother’s tears continued, unchecked. “When I think…When I imagine…”
Ivy closed her eyes. “Please, Mama. Don’t.”
It was messy, emotional, and the whole situation left Ivy completely exhausted.
“I brought you some clothes. The doctor says you’ll be here for a few days. I’ll go to your apartment and get you some more things, a nightgown and some books to read. I’ll bring them first thing in the morning after you’ve rested,” Juana Beria said, her round face still damp with tears. She looked to her son, who had joined them. “Roddy, you’ll take me, won’t you?” Though she had a license, Juana refused to drive anywhere since her husband had passed away five years prior.
Rodrigo, Ivy’s brother, patted his mother’s hand. “Sure, Mama, sure. I’ll pick you up in the morning. We can bring her stuff over and then I’ll take you home. Let’s go.” He shot Ivy a look of aggravation that made her smile. Anything that upset Mama was something to be avoided at all costs, and Ivy had done her share. With Ivy laid up, Roddy would shoulder the emotional burden of the latest family drama for sure.
She’d owe him, and he’d definitely collect on the debt. When the room was empty, she tried to sleep. The pain in her shoulder wouldn’t let her. She wished she could take a shower and wash away the acrid smell that clung to her hair and skin.
A small tap sounded on the door.
