Page 13 of Colton’s Inferno

Aiden heard the blast an instant before the concussion hit him from behind. Like he’d been slapped by the hand of God, his feet lifted from the ground, and he was shoved forward by the shockwave. He landed. Hit the dirt. Knees. Hips. Chest. His head came down on something hard. The endless darkness rushed at him from all sides. As consciousness faded, he had one thought.

At least Lucy is safe.

Chapter 4

Lucy hit the ground. The impact knocked the wind from her lungs. Her throat burned and her eyes watered. Rolling to her side, she started to cough. Phlegm filled her mouth, and she spit. Her spittle was black. She pressed her hands into the dirt, trying to sit up. Her elbows buckled and she fell forward.

Breathing hard, she looked around. Sparks filled the sky. Bits of fiery wood rained down. Clouds of smoke rolled across the night. At her side lay Aiden Colton. His shirt smoldered. He was spread out, his eyes closed.

Then, she remembered going to the barn for tanks of helium. The smoke. The fire. The door that she couldn’t force open. Trying to call Grandpa Rusty and eventually moving the tanks so they wouldn’t catch fire. Her forehead pounded with each beat of her heart. Trying to bring up more memories sent a sharp pain between her eyes. But even without being told, Lucy knew that it was Aiden who saved her.

A man ran up to her. He wore a University of North Dakota at Red Grove zippered hoodie. Kneeling next to Lucy, he said, “My name is Ryan Palmer. I’m a doctor. Help is on the way. Does anything hurt?”

“My head,” she said, touching her forehead. The flesh was tender and hot. She could already feel a knot forming. “My chest and throat hurt.”

“Anything else?” Pressing his fingers to her wrist, Ryan looked at his watch.

Lucy lay still and scanned her body. She was weak. She was sore. Nothing hurt worse than an ache. “I think I’m okay.”

“Your pulse is good,” he said, “but I want you to wait here while I examine Aiden. The ambulance is on its way.”

Her throat tightened. “Will he be okay?”

Ryan drew his brows together. “That’s what I’m going to find out.”

She watched as the doctor took Aiden’s pulse. He pressed his head to his chest, presumably listening to his heart. “Everything sounds good,” said Ryan. “But he’ll get a better examination at the hospital.” He looked at Lucy. “As will you.”

The faint wailing of a siren came out of the night. Red lights strobed on the horizon—two fire trucks and an ambulance. She exhaled and her body relaxed. She’d made it out of the burning barn, all thanks to Aiden. She took his hands in hers.

Several people approached. Two women, whom she’d never met, were with Sammy. Ted Barrett was part of the group. There was also Grandpa Rusty. He moved slowly, holding on to the arm of the older woman.

“I missed your call.” Flames from the burning building were reflected in her grandfather’s eyes. “I’m so sorry. I would’ve got you out if I’d heard the damned ringer.”

Rusty rarely cursed, so she knew he was upset with himself over the missed call. Another thought came to her. What if her grandpa did come to the barn? Would they both have gotten stuck? There was something else about those moments, while she was in the room, but her head hurt too much to bring back all the memories. “I’m okay, Grandpa Rusty.”

“Ryan,” asked the older woman of the two. “How’s Aiden?”

The doctor said, “I won’t know until we get him a scan. But his pulse and heart are both strong. I’m going to guess that he has a concussion since he’s lost consciousness.”

“Shouldn’t he be awake by now?” The woman let go of Rusty’s hand and knelt next to Aiden. She pushed a lock of his hair back into place.

Aiden’s eyelids fluttered open. “Mom?”

“There you are,” she said. “You’re a hero. Again. I’d tell you to stop, but it wouldn’t do any good.”

So, the older woman was Aiden’s mother. That meant the younger one was who? His sister, most likely. Mother to Sammy. Was Ryan a brother, like Ted? No, he wore matching sweatshirts with Sammy and his mom. They were all together. A brother-in-law, then.

It took all her energy just to work through Aiden’s family tree. She relaxed further, her body sinking into the ground.

“What happened?” Aiden asked, closing his eyes again. “Is Lucy okay?”

The fact that he was worried about her filled her chest with affection and gratitude. Then again, he was a firefighter. It was his job to save her. Still, she squeezed his hand. “I’m right here.”

Aiden slipped his fingers through hers as the sound of sirens grew louder. The emergency lights atop the vehicles shone on the ground. The vehicles pulled to a stop and their tires kicked up a cloud of dust. Lucy closed her eyes as the dirt settled. A pair of EMTs, one female and the other male, approached. They were clad in blue uniforms with red caducei on their shoulders.

“Hey, Carol. Frank,” said Aiden. “Nice to see you.”

He seemed to be recovering quickly.