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“What do you mean? What was wrong with it?” Drew asked.
“Someone must have been trying to pry it open with something and whatever it was got wedged in there. The only way to get the cap off was to dig it out.” Irwin shrugged.
Drew nodded. “I’ll brief Chief Franks on the issue. I think I remember one of the other crews saying they had a problem with a hydrant recently as well. In the future, if you can’t get whatever it is out after a few seconds use the sledgehammer. Anything else?”
Baily cleared his throat. “Just one more thing.”
“Yes?” Drew asked when Baily didn’t automatically spit it out.
“We.” Baily pointed to Romeo and Irwin. “We’re wondering if your girlfriend was going to be stopping by tonight. You know. To say hi.”
Drew guessed that answered his question on what they’d had their heads together about. Figures it was about his personal life and not work. “No. Beth isn’t stopping by.”
“Well, you know, if you needed to work off a little tension, we’d cover for you,” Romeo said.
“Good to know you all would go through such a sacrifice for me.” Drew strolled over to the cabinet and replaced the cleaning supplies he’d been using. “See if you three can keep out of trouble for the next hour. I’ll be in the gym if you need me.”
He could hear them laughing as he left. They were good guys and a great crew. In all honesty, they probably didn’t understand why he wasn’t sharing details. He had in the past. Then again, his relationship with Beth was different. It had been from the start.
As promised, Shawn was waiting for him in the gym. They were alone. Apparently, no one else had felt the need to burn off any excess energy.
For the next forty-five minutes, Drew lifted weights, did leg presses, and spent some time on the treadmill. He was still angry, but at least he had it under control.
“Feel any better?” Shawn asked.
“Yeah. I do.” His friend handed him a bottle of water and Drew downed most of it in one go. “How’s the new apartment?”
“Quiet.”
Drew nodded and followed Shawn into the showers. It was almost nine and things would be winding down. Considering the day they’d all had, Drew was guessing most of the guys would be crashing early tonight.
Freshly showered, he went to his desk and finished the paperwork on the small house fire they’d responded to earlier that day. Once that was completed, he placed the file on Chief Franks’ desk and went to find a spot to read before going to bed.
By eleven o’clock, the station was quiet. Most of the guys were upstairs asleep or heading in that direction. Drew closed his book, tucked it under his arm, and began climbing the stairs.
He was halfway to the top floor when the intercom came to life. Drew froze and waited. You never knew if it was going to be an EMT-only call or if the trucks would be needed.
It wasn’t meant to be. The dispatcher announced that a fire had been reported. Drew turned on his heels and made a beeline for the fire engine. He was still putting on his gear when the rest of the guys began filing into the bay. Less than a minute later, they were climbing into their trucks and driving away from the station.
Drew’s crew pulled up to the building first, so he jumped out and began assessing the situation. Taking his radio with him, he jogged around the side of the building to get a look at the back. It was much the same as the front, unfortunately. The third floor appeared to be completely engulfed in flames.
Bringing his radio up, he relayed the information. “There’s evidence of fire on sides A, B, C, and D. Request second alarm.”
“Copy that. Dispatching additional trucks to your location.”
By the time Drew made it back to the front of the building, everyone was in position and ready to go.
“Do we know if anyone is in the building?” Romeo asked as he came up beside Drew.
“No idea.” He said it loud enough for everyone around him to hear. They all knew what that meant. They were going to have to go in and find out.
Shawn and his crew took the lead. When they first entered the building there was very little smoke. It wasn’t until they came to the top of the second level that they began to encounter serious evidence of the fire. Drew and Romeo stayed on the second floor to look for anyone who might be inside while Shawn and Kelly continued on to the third floor.
As Drew began checking each of the rooms, an eerie feeling settled into his bones. The building was under construction. It was being renovated and it looked like apartments were going in. That meant the chances of there being people inside were slim, which was good. It also meant that it had the potential of being a target for the arsonist.
A shout came from up top and Drew and Romeo took off toward the noise. They ran up the stairs. As soon as Shawn saw them, he tilted his head toward the standpipe. “It’s not working. We’re going to have to get one of the ladders to feed us hose from the outside.”
“On it,” a voice came across the radio.
