Page 80 of Controlled Burn

“What happened? Is he okay? Is he burned?”

He wrapped his arms around me in a hug, and I sank into him.

“He doesn’t have any burns. I’m pretty sure his leg is broken, but the big thing is he’s unconscious. We don’t know if he hit his head when he fell or what, but he did manage to call for help, so that’s a good sign.”

“He’s unconscious?” I asked. That couldn’t be good.

“He is, and I know that sounds bad, but if he’s as banged up as I think he is, that’s probably a blessing. Let’s go inside.”

I followed my dad inside, but we didn’t stop in the normal waiting area. “Where are we going?”

“They put us all in a separate waiting room down the hall. I think we were taking up too much space.”

We rounded the corner and turned into a room that was filled with people. I’d known that when one of them was injured, they all came, but seeing it in person was strange. My dad bypassed all the other firefighters, taking me to a small group sitting off on the right. I recognized Keith’s dad and his sister, Becca, from the station, and I assumed the older woman with them was his mother.

“Caleb,” my dad said. “You remember Micheal, don’t you?”

“Of course.” I wasn’t sure what else to say. I had no idea what Keith had told them about us, and this sure wasn’t the way I’d planned to meet his family, but his mother took care of that.

She stood up and reached for me, pulling me into a tight hug. “Caleb, sweetie. Keith has told us so much about you, but I sure didn’t think this was the way we would be meeting you for the first time. You must be scared to death. Let’s get you a cup of coffee.” She turned to face the group of firefighters, who were congregated. “Would someone please get my son’s partner a cup of coffee?”

It sounded more like an order than a request, and one of the guys I didn’t recognize hopped up. “Sure thing, Mrs. Brooks.” Then he turned and left the room.

I could see the worry in her eyes, but she was determined to take care of me. I figured she needed the distraction, and I could understand that. He was her son, and to hear Keith tell it, they were all very close.

“Now.” She grabbed my arm and pulled me next to her. “Let’s have a seat. They’ve taken him back to run some tests. They want to check for a head injury, and to make sure that leg is the only thing that’s broken. They’ll be back to let us know where we stand any minute. Michael, grab us a couple of chairs.”

I took a seat, and my dad sat down beside me.

I turned to my dad. “What exactly happened in there?”

“We aren’t really sure. All we know is that he fell through the floor and was pinned by a ceiling beam. He called for help, and we got him out.”

“We,” one of the firefighters who was standing nearby scoffed. “It wasn’t we. It was you. You were headed back in there after him before we even got the go-ahead. Nobody was getting in your way, bud.”

“Dad?” I asked, looking at him in disbelief.

My dad shrugged. “It was Keith. I wasn’t leaving him in there.”

I grabbed him and pulled him into a hug. “Thank you,” I choked out.

He patted me on the back and sat back in his chair as the firefighter I hadn’t recognized from earlier came back with a cup of steaming hot black coffee. I thought about how much crap Keith gave me over my super sweet, creamy coffee and had to fight back tears. Instead, I took a drink and let the warm liquid ease my tense muscles. It wasn’t like I cared what anything tasted like right now, anyway.

Keith’s mother turned to look at me. “Have you met Keith’s brother, Nash, yet?”

“No, ma’am. We’re supposed to be getting together with him this weekend.”

She nodded. “He’s out of town delivering some horses. I called Spencer and let him know because I didn’t want to worry Nash while he’s out on the road. He’ll tell him when he gets home, and then I’m sure they’ll be here. He has another brother, Danny. He’s stationed overseas. We’ll get in touch with him if it’s necessary.”

I shuddered at the thought this could be severe enough to call his brother Danny home. I just hoped that wasn’t needed.

We sat there for what felt like forever, and the longer we sat, the more convinced I was something was really wrong. They said he’d fallen through the floor and was pinned where he landed. That meant he had to have fallen at least what, ten feet? Or maybe more. I’d never been inside the Vesper Hotel, but I knew it had been vacant for ages and that, in its day, it was a grand hotel. That probably meant high ceilings, right? So the truth was, there was no telling how far he’d fallen.

I closed my eyes and forced myself to breathe. Keith was somewhere down that hall in a room full of doctors and nurses, and we were just sitting here doing nothing. Like, why was everyone here? They couldn’t do anything to help him. He was unconscious. My dad had said so, which meant he had no idea who was or wasn’t here.

I shook my head. I was being ridiculous. These people were all a family, and they all cared about Keith. Of course they were here. It wasn’t like I would go anywhere else or that I could do anything, either. I think so many people gathered here just made the severity of the situation seem so real to me. It was a little overwhelming.

Keith’s mom reached over and squeezed my hand. “Caleb, sweetie, have you had anything to eat today?”