“Excuse me, I’m here for Ms. Lansing’s class.”
The person who opened the door gave him a beatific smile. “I’m Grace Lansing.”
His jaw dropped. She looked like a highschooler herself. Gathering his wits, he said, “I’m Captain Taylor from the fire department.”
Now an amused smile. “I could tell by your uniform. Come inside, Captain. We’re ready for you.”
He followed her into the room; it was overly large with several sectioned-off areas. The main space was set up as he’d requested when he’d emailed her for the date and time. The kids were sitting in two rows of four each. Room for a demonstration spread out in front of them. The students were fifteen years old, and his task was to present fire safety information.
“Say hello to Captain Taylor, everyone.”
In unison, they greeted him.
“I’m here today to talk to you about fire safety. First, I’ll show you how to get out of your house if it catches fire.”
One student raised his hand. A big kid, he had shaggy brown hair and a challenging expression on his face.
Ms. Lansing said, “Go ahead, Jackie.”
“I thought we were gonna get on the floor and act out things we should do if we catch on fire.”
“It’s called Stop Drop and Roll. I’ll get to that next. But we will do something else that requires movement from you.”
He frowned. “I wanna do Stop and Drop now.”
Ms. Lansing went to his desk. “Jackie, we talked about listening to guests who come in and do what they ask us to do.”
A scowl now. He sat back in the chair and crossed his arms.
Carson walked to the white board. She moved to the side.
He wrote,
Exit the house immediately.
Then he explained, “Get out of your house as quickly and safely as possible. If there’s smoke, get down on your hands and knees, keep your head up, and crawl outside.
“The next two will have to be worked out with your family.”
Know two exits.
Set up a meeting place outside.
He glanced at the students. They seemed interested.
“So, first, let’s practice getting out of a smoke-filled dwelling. I’d like you to get up and stand single file in a row. I’ll demonstrate how to exit, then I want you to repeat what I did.”
The students nodded.
“Ms. Lansing, can you close the blinds, please?”
Carson dropped down on all fours, kept his head up and crawled to the classroom door. There he stood up and turned off the lights. It got dim, like it might be in smoke.
“Please follow my example one at a time. Jackie, you can go first.”
He stayed where he was.
Again, Ms. Lansing crossed to him. “Jackie, would you like to go to the timeout room for the rest of this presentation?”
“No.”
“Then do what he asked.”
The boy got up and dropped down on his hands and knees, looked down and crawled to the door. There he stood up.
“What did he miss, class?” Carson asked.
“Keep your head up,” one girl offered.
“Want to try it again, Jackie?”
The boy’s face reddened.
Ms. Lansing started toward him.
Before she reached him, Jackie rushed Carson and shoved him backward. Carson’s helmet flew off, he crashed against the white board, hitting his head hard before he fell to the floor. The room blurred.
But he could see Ms. Lansing grab hold of Jackie and take him out of the room.
Carson managed to stand. When she came back in, she crossed to him. “Are you hurt?”
He touched the back of his head. His hand came away bloody. “Get me a cloth. I’ll stop the bleeding then I can finish.”
She crossed to a cupboard and brought back a small towel. While he held it on his head, she turned to the class. “I can tell by your faces that you’re scared. Everything is fine. Jackie’s with our aide, Ms. Mason. And Captain Taylor has a little bump on his head. Now, sit down in your seats and put your head on the desk for a few minutes.”
They obeyed. She turned to him. “Let me see the wound.”
“It’s just a goose egg.”
“Please, let me check it.”
“All right.”
Up close she smelled like bath splash. Fresh and clean. Her touch was gentle. “You need ice. Shall we go to the nurse’s office?”
“Do you have ice here?”
“Yes. In the small fridge.”
“Let me put it on my head for a bit.”
“Whatever you say.”
She told the kids to talk among themselves.
In ten minutes, he removed the ice. “There, it feels better. I can go ahead with the lesson.”
“Are you sure?”
This close, he could see freckles on her face. And her honey-colored eyes were tinged with green specks.
“Yes, ma’am, I’m sure.”
“All right kids, get up and go back in line to take your turn.”
* * *
Grace was mortified that one of her students attacked the firefighter. But she pretended to be calm when the kids performed the crawling exercise. The bell rang just as they finished and she shepherded them to an adjoining room for math. Then she got the firefighter another ice pack.
Sitting again, he put it on his head.
“I’m shocked and embarrassed by what happened with Jackie.”
“It wasn’t your fault.”
“I feel responsible.”
For some reason, he wanted to erase that stricken look on her face. “The others were well behaved and you were calm and knew how to soothe them. Concentrate on that.”
“Thank you.” He was so sweet to say that. And boy, he was easy on the eyes with that black hair and those navy blue eyes.
“Grace.” He said her name with affection. “I’ll still come back tomorrow for the last part of the lesson.”
“All right. Tell me what the students should do tonight for homework.”
He wanted them to draw a floorplan of their houses and find two exits. “Can they, um, do this?”
“Yes, Captain Taylor. They’re Special Needs kids for a lot of reasons. And I’ll send an email to all the parents so they can help.”
He studied her. “You should call me Carson.”
“All right, Carson.”
“What will happen to Jackie?”
“It’s nice of you to ask. The team I work with, including the vice principal, will meet and decide what to do. Meanwhile he’s in a timeout room with supervision.”
“Don’t be too hard on him.”
She smiled again.
He stood and handed her back the ice. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Grace.”
“I’ll look forward to it, Carson.”
* * *
“OMG, a fifteen-year-old took you down?”
“Cap, you must be losin’ it.”
“Poor Cap. Do you need to go lay down for a while?”
“All right, all right, you can stop the razzing.” Carson wasn’t sure he would have told them what happened but they found him putting ice on the goose egg. It hurt like hell and he had a dull headache.
“The poor teacher was mortified. I felt bad for her.”
“Her, huh? What was she like?” Owen, the rookie, asked.
“Conservative clothes, no makeup. Brown hair pulled back in a bun.” But she sure smelled great. “A typical teacher.”
“So no prey for you then, right?” Patrick O’Neil teased. A veteran firefighter with a lovely wife and three kids, he had the best sense of humor in the group.
“I don’t prey on women.”
Pat laughed. “I meant they prey on you.”
“Stop with all that.” He checked his watch. “It’s almost time for training. Nick, would you still like to conduct it?” In the event of Carson’s absence, the easy-going lieutenant would be in charge.
“Sure. I like being the officer when you’re not here.”
Rachel Peterson, a paramedic and firefighter, and married to another firefighter, said, “I want to examine your head.”
“Do it.”
She crossed to him. Tall, lithe but strong, she was gentle when she moved his hair. But not as gentle as Grace. “Hmm, seems all right. Alternating the ice on for ten minutes, off for a half hour till noon would be enough.”
“There’s ice in my office and I have a few things to do. But how about we have the training in an hour?”
Once in his office, he grabbed an ice pack from the fridge. He couldn’t do much for ten minutes but hold the pack, so he studied his surroundings. The room was obsessively neat, painted a creamy white, with built-in shelving and storage cupboards on the bottom, one of which held his fridge. He’d paid for those units out of his pocket. The oak desk he’d inherited from his grandfather was uncluttered and held only his computer and an inbox for messages.
After ten minutes, he ditched the pack and called up his emails. One from Joe Redman, the fire chief, asking how the training went. Every year, the department went into high school classes to teach fire safety. This time, Carson had been chosen because the chief thought he could handle the special needs kids.
Damn, Carson would have to come clean and tell him what happened. He wrote back giving the chief the gist of it. Joe responded that he shouldn’t worry about Jackie’s behavior and asked if Carson wanted to go home for the day.
He just started to answer the next email when the P.A. came on. “Whirring noises coming from a wall. Engine six, go into service.”
Once they all got in the bay, Patrick O’Neil asked, “Why us?”
“There’s a list of firehouses to go on nuisance calls like this. Each house takes a turn. We won’t get another for a while.”
They dressed in their turnout gear and headed to the scene without sirens blasting or horns honking. At the given address, they dismounted the rig. They left their SCBA in the truck. Cold November wind blew in their faces as they trudged up to the medium size ranch up on Third Street. Carson knocked on the door.
A woman opened. “Hi, I’m so glad you’re here.” She led them to the bedroom. Sure enough a vibrating sound came from the wall.
Carson asked, “Was this a constant noise in here?”
“No. I was vacuuming and the machine hit the wall. Then the noise started.”
“Is there access to this wall?”
“What do you mean?”
“Is there an opening anywhere?”
“Um, I don’t think so. I recently moved in with my girlfriend so I’m not sure.”
“What do you think, Rachel?”
“I think we have to open up the wall.”
The woman’s brows rose. “Oh, well.”
“We’ll just cut a small square of drywall exactly where the sound is,” Nick explained. “It shouldn’t take much to put it back, spackle it and repaint.”
“Do you do that?”
Owen Kingston snorted. The newest member of the squad in his early twenties had trouble keeping a straight face.
Carson said, “No, ma’am, we don’t.” He turned to his crew. “Get the small saw, O’Neil. Nelson, you access the wall.”
The saw buzzed loudly, but it didn’t take long for a piece of drywall to fall out. The noise got louder. Nick reached his hand inside. He drew out something that was indeed whirring. Nick snorted a laugh, O’Neil said, “Holy Mother of Christ.” Rachel shook her head.
“What’s that?” Owen asked.
“Cap,” Rachel said, “This is all yours.”
“Owen, it’s a vibrator that was accidentally turned on by a vacuum cleaner.” He could barely keep a straight face.
“A vibrator like what a woman…ah, I get it.”
Carson stood.
“How could that get in there?” the woman asked. Her face was flushed with embarrassment, he guessed.
“Well, ma’am, somebody had to put it there.”
Her eyes widened. “My girlfriend?”
“Unless it’s from the previous owner. How long has she lived here?”
“Ten years at least.”
“Then I suggest you take it up with her.”
They gathered their things and left. They made it into the truck before they all burst into full laughter. Even Carson.
* * *
The night after the fire safety presentation, Grace stood at the sink fixing dinner. She boiled eggs, cooked rice, washed Brussel sprouts, carrots and tomatoes and added roasted sweet potatoes and cauliflower. When she was ready to eat the mixture, she put it in an almond flour bread bowl she’d made from scratch and frozen, then placed slices of lemons on a little plate. She hummed along with the Broadway show, Hamilton, when the phone rang. She answered it on her way to turn down the music.
“You listening to that show you won’t treat yourself to?”
“Hello, Faith.” Her twin. “Yes, I’m enjoying the tunes.”
“You should be seeing the play in person. You’re entitled to spend your hard earned money on yourself.”
She cringed at word entitled. But Faith meant well. And she wanted Grace to have a little fun.
“So, what did you use the money for?”
Still, she wasn’t ashamed of what she’d done. “I sent it to Good Shepherd.” Crystal City’s shelter for foster kids.
“I told you I’d pay for them.”
No difference in that. To distract her twin, she said, “I met a guy today. He was yummy.”
“Dear Lord, let me sit down. I think I’m going to faint.”
“Stop. It was professional. He came to my classroom to demonstrate fire safety to my kids.”
“He’s a firefighter?”
“Through and through. Black hair, navy blue eyes. Nice, nice build.”
“Is he married?”
She snorted. “I have no idea.”
“Did he wear a ring?”
“I imagine firefighters don’t wear their rings to work.”
“Hmm. Give me his name and I’ll research him.”
“No. You’ll do no such thing.”
“Why’d you tell me that then, honey?”
“To get you off the Broadway Show. Besides, you have enough men in your life for the two of us.”
“I dated a lot. But for a while now, I’m really sweet on Jack.”
“I know. Maybe he’s the one.”
“Maybe.”
“What was your day like?”
“The usual for HR. I hired two new people and talked with some workers with complaints. It was interesting.” Faith worked as the top Human Resource person at Crystal City Glass Works.
“Sounds interesting.”
“It is. Oh, I have some clothes for you.”
Grace sighed. “I don’t need any more. And I won’t accept any that you’re claiming you’re getting rid of.”
Faith got quiet. “That hurts. I wouldn’t lie.”
“I’m sorry. I know you wouldn’t lie to me. Are we still on for the event tomorrow night?”
“Of course. But you’ll need a fancy dress. I’ll drop the clothes off tomorrow on my way to work so you can wear one of the outfits. There’s a dressy coat in there that I’ve already replaced. I’ll use my key.”
A horrible thought invaded Grace’s mind. “Are you ashamed of me, Faith, of how I dress, act?”
“Never! How could you even say that?”
Now, she’d hurt her beloved sister. “I shouldn’t have. I’m rattled by our conversation.”
“Then I’m sorry for that.” A pause. Then, “Honey, are you ashamed of me?”
“What? Why would I be?”
“Because I’m not as unselfish and giving and environmentally conscious as you.”
“No, no. First of all, you are kind and generous. I’m sorry if I offended you.”
“Let’s forget all that, then. I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
“Love you, sis.”
“Love you back.”