Page 5 of Set My Soul Ablaze

Charles ran his hands down his face. “Sorry. I’m justsotired of giving my all and still not being good enough.”

“That’s your problem, Charles. You’re in your head. You’re wasting time by thinking about your next steps. Run it without a timer. Run the exercise until you’re no longer thinking about the next step and it comes naturally to you. Once your body knows the order without hesitation, you’ll make your time,” I advised.

Charles nodded. “How long do I have to practice before it becomes natural? How long did it take you?”

“Honestly, it took me almost two years to get out of my probationary period. Not because I couldn’t do the drill, but I was here for all the wrong reasons.” I chuckled.

When I first came to the fire department, I was a liability toeveryone—including myself.I was a hotshot young man with a chip on my shoulder and a vendetta against the world. Life was unfair to me, and I got caught up in the wrong crowd. I’d seen my father die and countless peers succumb to the dangers of the streets. Captain Moore saw something in me and took me under his wing. He tried to nip the shit in the bud, but I needed a lot of tough love to break me out of old habits and vices. Captain Moore became the father figure I didn’t know I needed until he stepped up.

“Thank you for helping me, Flame. It means a lot to have someone show they care about my success.”

I smiled. “Of course, kid. If you need any more help, just shoot me a call.”

“Will do.”

I left the training room and went into the lounge. The lounge was spacious. There were several couches, televisions, andamenities, including two pool tables, a large home style kitchen, and several tables.

On my way to a couch, I grabbed an apple from the dining table and plopped onto the soft cushion. As I bit into the juicy fruit, I propped my feet up on the coffee table.

“Where have you been, Flame?” Juliet asked as she joined me on the couch.

“Worked out, then helped probie with his bunker drill. Poor dude’s in his head.”

“He had amazing times during his exams. I think he came in at forty-five seconds in his official drill. I don’t know why he isn’t hitting his mark anymore.” Connor joined in.

“The anxiety of wanting to be on his first call in the field. It’s one thing to do for the exam. It’s another tobein the real world and wanting to get out there and help,” Bradlee added as he joined our small circle.

Juliet, Connor, Bradlee, and I were usually on the same shift at station 143. The 143 was family, no matter which shift we were on, though. We put our lives on the line every day to protect the citizens of Cade’s Cove. We were at a large station in the heart of Downtown Cade’s Cove. With eight large trucks, four ambulances, and a slew of perks sponsored by the elite citizens of the city, we prided ourselves on our response times to emergencies.

Captain Moore walked into the lounge area. His shoulders were rigid, and his eyes were dark.

“Everything good, Cap?” I asked as I took another bite from my apple.

He nodded. “Yeah. I’m all good, Flame.”

The grimace on his face went against the statement his mouth made, but I wouldn’t pry in front of the others.

Before I could get up, the alarms went off.

“One-four-three, you know the drill.”

We all moved quickly and efficiently to our stations to prepare to head out on the next emergency.

The adrenaline I felt when on a high stakes call made my heart rapidly beat and my soul dance. Saving lives was my calling. Being amid danger gave me a high even the strongest drugs couldn’t replicate.

We moved with precision and haste during a six-car pileup. In teams of two, we each went to a different part of the wreckage to extract, triage, and more. Most of the extractions were easy. A few strong pulls and passengers were free. The worst of the damage came from the middle of the wreck. In a small sedan, a family of five struggled to get out.

I heard the husband first.

“Help!”

“CCFD, we’re here to help,” Cap called out.

“Help, please. My wife—my children . . .” The strain in his voice pulled at my heartstrings.

“Don’t move, sir. We’re going to secure the car and do our best to get y’all out of there safely.” Cap continued.

We looked at the damage to the car. The passenger side pressed against the trunk of the car in front of it. The driver’s side of the car took heavy damage. Glass from the windows were shattered.