Page 69 of Ashes of Us
But part of me—some traitorous, unwanted part—was also looking for Liam.
He was Captain at Station 47 now. This was his jurisdiction. He'd be here, commanding his crew, coordinating the response. I'd see him, and it would be awkward, and I'd have to pretend I wasn't rattled by his presence.
I pushed the thought away. I needed to focus and find Daniel.
A paramedic was loading equipment into an ambulance. I approached her. "Excuse me… I’m looking for Daniel Collins. He's an EMT, he was?—"
“Collins?” She glanced up. "He's over there. Getting checked out."
She pointed toward another ambulance, rear doors open. I saw him then, sitting on the bumper, oxygen mask over his face, another paramedic taking his blood pressure. He was covered in soot, his uniform filthy, but he was conscious.
Relief hit me so hard my knees almost buckled.
I walked over, and he looked up. His eyes widened slightly behind the mask.
The paramedic working on him glanced between us. "You family?"
“I…” I hesitated. "Friend. I'm a friend."
Daniel pulled the mask away from his face. "It's okay. She can stay."
The paramedic nodded and went back to checking his vitals.
I stood there, not sure what to say. We'd broken up hours ago. And now he was sitting here, covered in ash, looking like he'd barely escaped with his life.
"You came," he said. His voice was hoarse, raw. Then, with a slight smile: "Guess breaking up doesn’t cancel emergency calls.”
"Idiot." I couldn’t help but laugh. "Maya told me. Are you… are you okay?"
"Yeah. Smoke inhalation, some burns too, especially in my hands.” He held them up, his palms wrapped in gauze. "Could've been worse. Would've been worse if—" He coughed, hard, and the paramedic put the oxygen mask back on his face.
"Don't talk," she said firmly. "Just breathe."
He nodded but kept looking at me.
"What happened?" I asked quietly.
He pulled the mask down again. "Kid trapped upstairs. I heard him screaming. I just… I went in. I know it was stupid." Another cough. "Got pinned under a beam. Thought that was it."
My chest tightened.
"But someone came in. The Captain from 47." He paused, looking at me. "Sullivan."
My stomach dropped.
He kept watching my face, reading my reaction. "He pulled me out. Got the kid too. Went in alone when everyone else said it was too dangerous."
Liam had gone in.
Liam had saved him.
"Where is he?" The question came out before I could stop it.
Daniel's expression shifted into something I couldn't quite read. "Hospital. He got hit pretty bad getting us out. Beam came down, he—" He stopped. "He made sure I got clear. Took the hit himself."
The world tilted.
"Is he okay?"
