Page 49 of Burning Escape

I have already come:

’Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,

And grace will lead me home.

“Maybe. But I don’t want Orion to have to pay the price for my bad choices.”

“Love bears all and keeps no record of wrongs. That’s from 1 Corinthians 13. If it’s the real deal with Orion, you’ll know, Tori. At least give him a chance.”

“I’ll think about it.”

She was already attached, wishing he were here. And yet, she didn’t want him to get hurt because of her. And until they could find Razor, there was a good chance her past would continue to remind her why she was better off alone.

ELEVEN

Orion parkedthe base truck and stared up at the hardware store sign. He should be out there fighting the fire with his crew. Not shopping for lawn mower parts. He was now relegated to groundskeeper, tasked to mow the grass around the jump base. His shoulder hurt, but it wasn’t debilitating. He’d be fine if they would let him jump.

But nope. He was grounded.

He’d done everything right. He’d sacrificed. Pushed hard. He’d even waited to take this shot until his mother was ready. So why had God sidelined him now?

But he wouldn’t be for long. He just had to get through today. Tomorrow, Jade was going to test him. If he was healed enough, he’d be back on the crew.

His phone rang as he stepped out of the truck.

Dad.

Still weird to see that word pop up on a screen.

Up until last year, he hadn’t known who his father was. But when Charlie Benning had shown up last year to join the Jude County Hotshots, it’d been obvious he had a history with Jayne Price. It hadn’t taken long to connect the dots and realize he was Orion’s father and that Jayne had never told him she was pregnant. They’d come a long way in the last year.

“Hey, is everything okay?” Orion answered.

Charlie Benning chuckled. “I was gonna ask you the same thing. All good here. But we hadn’t heard from you in a while. And Jade reached out.”

“My boss is calling my parents? Why do I feel like a kid in trouble at school?” And if he sounded grumpy, so be it. This was ridiculous.

“Don’t get your shorts tied up in a knot. It wasn’t like that. She called a few days ago to see if we had any connections to get an airplane, but when I casually asked how you were doing, she was surprised we hadn’t heard from you ourselves. Said there was a lot going on, but she wouldn’t say anything more. Your mom and I waited a few more days, and when we still didn’t hear anything, I thought I’d reach out. I know you’re busy, Ry, but we’ve been concerned.”

“You don’t need to worry about an airplane. Logan’s girlfriend Jamie is loaded. She bought a new Twin Otter for the base camp.”

“That’s not what we’re worried about. But why’d she do that?”

“Probably her way of thanking us for rescuing her and her brother Tristan from this militia they got caught up in.”

“Yeah, but a new plane? What was wrong with the one the team was already using? It need an upgrade?”

There was a reason he hadn’t been in touch. But guess there was no going back now. “Um, it crashed.”

His father was silent for a moment. “I’m assuming no one was in it when it went down?”

Orion winced. “Only Neil and Saxon, but they’re okay now. The rest of us jumped before it hit the ground. Which is why I didn’t say anything. No need to worry Mom. I know she has a hard time with me being out here in the first place.”

“She’s come to terms with you being a smokejumper. But she’s not happy about you ghosting us. I get you wanted a fresh start, but we didn’t think that meant you’d cut off all communication.”

“I wasn’t trying to. It’s just been busy, and Tori and I got waylaid on our way back to base. And I thought you understood that when I moved out here, things would be different. I have to do this on my own.”

“That’s why you went out to Alaska instead of staying with the Jude County crew here?”

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