Page 16 of Hot Zone

“Well, let’s get started.” We walked up to the front door. I thought I had prepared myself for what I would find inside, but when I pushed open the front door and saw the mess inside, I gasped. Samuel hadn’t been joking. The inside was a disaster.

Samuel

I heard him gasp and immediately stepped up behind him, placing my hand on his shoulder. I should’ve done a better job preparing him for what to expect. Most people thought that fire was the thing that caused the most destruction, but the truth was, most of the time, the majority of the damage came from smoke and water. That was certainly the case here in the front part of Mars’s house.

“I knew it would be bad, but I wasn’t prepared for this,” he said.

“I know. It’s hard, but let’s go see what we’ve got.” I placed my hand on his lower back and guided him into the living room. A large portion of the ceiling had fallen in, and his couch was covered in broken, soggy sheetrock. He sniffed, then shook his head.

“You know, I hated that couch anyway.”

Steven chuckled. “You did. I remember when we brought it home from Mrs. Simpson’s yard sale. You said,It’s a hideous color. That’s probably why it’s so cheap.”

“It was hideous.”

I watched as Mars stood in the middle of what had been his home, looking around.

“What do you guys think?” Steven asked. “Anything worth keeping?”

“I’d be surprised if there was,” Mars mumbled.

“I don’t know. This lamp is probably okay.” I went over, picked up a lamp, and put it in my basket.

“Oh, look!” Mars exclaimed as he walked over to the wall near the couch. “Steven, come help me move the couch. I want to get to something off the wall up there.” Steven helped him move the couch to the side. “I think they’re all okay. I’ll put them in my basket.”

“Here you go.” I grabbed the basket Mars had been using and handed it to him, and he reached up, taking photographs off the wall.

“These were on my list, and they appear to be salvageable. See, look at this.” He handed me a picture of him and his aunt. The two of them were sitting with a group of people, all holding drums. “That was at the last summer solstice drumming my aunt attended. I’m not the one who took the picture, and I don’t have another copy.” I handed the photo back, and he pulled it to his chest, inhaled deeply, and then released the breath slowly. “The drum I was playing that day was in my bedroom, but I’m honestly not expecting to find it. It’s on the list, but I can replace the drum. I couldn’t replace the photo.”

“Well, I’m glad it’s alright,” I said.

He looked around and sighed. “I guess just pick up anything you think we can save. I’ll sort it all out later.”

We spent the next hour doing exactly that, with occasional exclamations of joy because something had been found and occasional moments of sadness because something had been lost. I had to say, I thought he was handling it all very well. The only time I actually heard him sound distressed was when he found a small rolltop desk.

“Oh no, look at this. That was Aunt Lilly’s favorite desk. It’s the only piece of her furniture I kept, and now it’s ruined.”

I had to admit, on the surface, it looked that way, but I wasn’t quite so sure. I walked over and tapped on the side of the desk.

“This is real wood. I bet it could be restored.”

Mars looked over at me, looking hopeful. “You think so?”

“Well, it isn’t burned. The finish is a little bubbled, though.” I tried to open it, but the roll top wouldn’t budge. “The wood swelled from getting wet, but that will dry out. Honestly, I don’t see any reason why, with just a little bit of elbow grease, it couldn’t be completely restored.”

“I wouldn’t have any idea where to begin.”

“Well, lucky for you, I would.”

“You wouldn’t mind helping me?”

“Not at all. As a matter of fact, I’d be honored to help. Let’s just get this all loaded up, and we can put it in my garage. I’d be happy to show you what we need to do to make it good as new.”

He looked up at me. His eyes were a little teary, but he was smiling. “Thank you, Samuel.”

I couldn’t do much about all the things he lost, but I was glad I was able to do something that made his day even a little bit better.

Chapter 6