foam, not wood. Heat beat at me from every direction, and something crashed behind me, but I didn’t look back.
I didn’t see any light from outside, and as we got closer to the front of the house, I realized why. Something had collapsed, blocking the front door.
Fuck.
The heat was starting to hurt, even through my turnouts. I had air, but the temperature was getting too high. I hoped someone had gotten Sally out, but there wasn’t anything I could do about that right now. I switched focus. Matt. He had a wife and kids. I wasn’t going to let him die in here.
We veered toward the windows in one of the front rooms. Matt quickly broke the glass with his ax. He gestured to me to go first, but I shoved him toward the window.
“Get the fuck out of here.”
He climbed through and turned around, reaching to help me get out.
Another loud crash rang out and the whole building shook. I looked back and it was like a gaping hole to hell opened up behind me. The floor collapsed inward, exposing a raging inferno underneath the building. The walls tilted and a sickening feeling hit me.
I was never going to see Sky again.
42
Skylar
With a racing heart, I pulled up across the street from the Haven House and got out of my car. Smoke filled the air and emergency vehicles lined the street. There was a flurry of activity, the controlled chaos of firefighters running hoses and cops directing traffic and keeping bystanders away from the blaze.
I knew I couldn’t get close, and there wasn’t anything I could do. I’d waited at the station after watching the engine pull away with Gavin on it. But the sense of urgency had only grown. I couldn’t just sit there and wait. When I’d noticed the plume of smoke rising from the middle of town, I’d gotten in my car and driven straight here.
Dad was in front, issuing orders, talking on his radio. It occurred to me that I’d never seen him on a call before. His reserved demeanor was gone. The man I saw out there was completely in charge, shouting over the noise. He was in control, but there was worry in his face.
Something was wrong.
I ran across the street to see if I could get a better view without getting in the way. A firefighter carried a woman in his arms. She looked scared, but definitely alive and breathing. He took her to one of the waiting ambulances and the paramedics took over.
The house rumbled, a low groaning sound. Fallen debris blocked the front door and smoke billowed out of the windows and rose from what was probably a hole in the roof. It groaned again and the sound reached right inside my chest and wrapped around my heart.
Where was Gavin?
Several firefighters aimed streams of water at the building, but none of them were Gavin. Dad paced around, talking on his radio, gesturing with his arms.
Glass flew out a front window, as if it had been broken from the inside. A second later, a firefighter climbed out.
Was it him? I couldn’t tell from here.
He turned back to the window and reached inside.
Gavin was in there. I didn’t know how I knew, but I was certain of it.
A crash reverberated through the ground, the vibration traveling through my feet and up my legs. My stomach clenched as the whole house shook. It looked like it was about to collapse.
Oh my god, Gavin, get out. Get out. Please, get out.
“Get him out of there,” Dad bellowed.
Two more firefighters rushed to the window. Smoke poured out, pooling against the porch roof above it. The building shuddered and something crashed inside.
I held my breath, wondering if my heart would explode.
The smoke obscured everything. I couldn’t see what was happening. The building shook again, the noise of old beams failing more horrifying than the collapsing bridge.
Two firefighters backed away from the window. Then a third, the one who’d been inside.
He had another one, his arm around his shoulders.
They rushed him onto the lawn and pulled off his helmet and mask.
It was Gavin.
He took heaving breaths and the other three worked to pull his gear off. A paramedic raced toward him, but Dad reached him first.
I couldn’t see anything with all the people surrounding him. Tears ran down my cheeks and my shoulders clenched tight. He was alive. I’d seen him breathing. He was alive.
With another ear-splitting groan, the building caved in. Beams split and cracked, the