Page 46 of Burning Escape

Probably if JoJo didn’t know him so well, he could’ve gotten away with it. Now he was out. Useless for the next few weeks.

But at least Tori woke up feeling almost normal the next morning. After Tori was discharged, Raine drove them all back to base camp in Tori’s car. Jade looked over the doctor’s orders and relegated the four of them to kitchen duty since it’d been such a long night for them all.

“Well, this is fun.” Tori’s grumbling while peeling carrots was the only thing Orion had to smile about. It was pretty cute the way she wrinkled her nose when she was annoyed.

“KP duty isn’t so bad. We all have to take turns.” JoJo stood by the commercial stove.

“Remind you of the Refuge?” Orion glanced at Tori.

“If we were at the Refuge, no way they’d letyoube in the kitchen.” Tori pointed at him with the end of the carrot and then took a bite. “All because you’re male.”

“Which sounds rather unfair. Glad I didn’t get stuck there.” JoJo gave the big pot of pasta a stir and went back to grating the block of cheddar cheese. “The whole outhouse thing would’ve been a nightmare.”

“Try bathing there. Washing your whole body in a little tub of cold water was no picnic.” Tori added her carrot sticks to the veggie tray. “But to be fair, it wasn’t all bad. Except for Jeremiah. That creep needed to leave. But the rest of them, well, it was different to be a part of a group where everyone took care of each other. They all worked in one big garden, ate their meals together, fished and hunted together. That part was nice. But I still don’t wanna live there.”

Raine continued to stir the veggie dip powder into the sour cream, listening but not saying anything. She was a hard one to read. They worked together to finish the cheesy hamburger casserole and get the dishes set.

It was homey and all, but this was not what Orion had signed up for.

Everyone settled around the tables once the casserole was ready. Orion swatted at a dumb fly buzzing around his head as he ate with Logan and Jamie and Tori. The sound of a plane engine interrupted the meal.

“It’s early.” Jamie wiped her mouth and ran for the door.

“What is she talking about?” Ham asked Logan from the next table over.

“Go find out.”

Everyone left their dinner and moved outside. A sparkly new red-and-white Twin Otter plane taxied down the short runway.

Jade’s jaw dropped. “Did you buy us a new airplane?” She stared at Jamie.

“Maybe.” Jamie’s grin didn’t hide a thing. “You couldn’t keep limping along on that rinky-dink plane even if Saxon fixed it up. And…I know a guy.”

The whole crew surrounded the Twin Otter.

“She’s a beauty.” Saxon ran his hand along the sleek body.

“It’ll be good to get back in the air, fighting fires.” Jade looked over at Sanchez, Kane, and Mack. “Not that we don’t like hanging out on the bus with you guys, but I’ve been on the ground too long. I’m ready to jump again.”

Tell me about it.

Orion shouldn’t be a baby, but how was a guy supposed to do what he was meant to do when he was grounded with a dumb injury?

“Who’s that?” Mack nodded toward the entrance of the camp, where a black truck drove up.

The decal on the side of the vehicle said “Sheriff.”

It wasn’t Deputy Mills, who’d taken their statements earlier. This time it was the sheriff himself who walked over. “Nice plane you got.”

“You should come up with us sometime, Deke.” Skye opened up the door in the back of the plane and stuck her head in. “This is amazing. It even smells brand new.”

“That’d be nice and all, but I need to talk to Ms. Mitchell,” the sheriff said.

“We can go in the mess hall. Do you mind if Orion comes too?” Tori asked. “If it’s about the guy from last night, Ry will know more than I will. My memory is really spotty.”

“That’s fine with me.”

They settled at a table with coffee. “Have you found anything yet?” Orion asked.

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