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“You landed the plane about as perfectly as possible under the circumstances,” I said to Nate.
Nate was one of the pilots who contracted to fly hotshot crews all over Alaska. He’d been flying half of our twenty-five-member crew out to this fire when one of the engines on the plane had gone out. It was fairly common, even for commercial flights, for birds to get sucked into engines. We assumed that’s what had happened.
“I’m just damn glad we were in a larger plane with two engines,” Nate commented.
Single-engine planes crisscrossed the skies of Alaska by the hundreds on a daily basis. When the engine had gone out, Nate had expertly navigated as the plane drifted lower. Fortunately for all of us, we hadn’t yet reached the more mountainous region. We could see the smoke from the fire he’d been trying to bring us to.
Of the twelve of us on this plane, we were mostly a little banged up with a few injuries more serious here and there. One of the wings had clipped some trees on the way down. Hudson appeared to have taken the worst of it. Considering that all of us were trained in emergency first responder wilderness first aid, we quickly assessed the situation. I was pretty sure I had a broken collarbone but I was otherwise okay.
Bruising was forming on Nate’s shoulder from where a branch came through the window and clipped him hard. Hudson had been seated beside the wing that hit the trees and his knee was swelling badly. So far, he was turning down any suggestions for pain medication stronger than ibuprofen.
Aside from my broken collarbone, Tate Halston had a nasty gash in his side from the tree branch coming through his window. We would all be sore from the impact. Considering the dangers of flying in Alaska’s backcountry and thanks to Nate’s skilled landing, we were lucky. We also had just enough daylight left for the landing. We knew we’d likely be spending the night out here.
The plane’s radio crackled and Nate hurried over. A moment later, he returned to the group, reporting, “Looks like they should be here within a few hours. They’re sending two helicopters.”
As hotshot firefighters, we were prepared to spend the night out here. We had first aid, equipment, food, and the gear we needed to comfortably survive in the wilderness for up to two weeks, but trying to tough it out with injuries wasn’t pleasant.
We’d made ourselves as comfortable as possible and were resting on our gear packs. We were passing around snacks, and Graham had even broken out a pack of cards.
“Will they keep the other half of the crew out at the fire?” I asked.
“Probably to start, but they’ll send another full crew out,” Graham replied.
While we waited, my mind kept spinning to Tish. During my last trip out, I had missed her. A lot. The shock of our unexpected crash landing made the ache of missing her acute. For the first time since I’d become a hotshot firefighter, I could see the end of my shelf life in this career.
I glanced toward Nate. “Being a pilot’s not a bad gig,” I pointed out. “Do you miss Holly when you fly away?”
“Of course. But I don’t have to be gone too long,” he pointed out.
Graham chuckled as he played a card in the game of rummy he was playing with Jonah, Hudson, and Wes.
“Statistically speaking, what Nate does is more dangerous than what we do,” Jonah pointed out.
“How long do you think you’ll be doing this?” I asked Graham.
He smiled quickly, his gaze understanding and bemused. “Are you contemplating your life choices now that you’re in love with Tish?”
I shrugged. “I guess I am. I always knew there was an expiration date to being a firefighter. The physical demands are hard.”
“Absolutely,” Jonah offered up as Graham and Wes nodded in agreement.
“I love my job,” Graham added. “I always miss Madison, Allie and Harry when I’m away. Aside from the risk, oddly, I think it makes our marriage better.”
“Seriously?” I prompted.
Jonah chimed in, “It may sound strange, but yes. I guess it gives you perspective on what matters. I don’t let the little things get in the way.”
“I don’t have a time frame, but maybe a few more years,” Wes said. “Unless, of course, an injury takes me out.”
Hudson shifted, glancing amongst us. “I’m short on relationship advice, but I figure this job is stupid after a decade,” he offered.
A laugh rustled in my throat. “I don’t have a time frame yet, but being with Tish makes me wonder about it. When will they report the crash to the station in Willow Brook?” I glanced toward Graham.
“I’m sure they already have. Maisie’ll get the scoop and pass on the updates,” Graham said.
My heart squeezed. “Tish is going to be worried.”
“They’ll all be worried, but they’ll also know we’re okay,” Jonah said.
