Garrett maneuvered through the compressor unit compound around burning piles of rubble, pulse racing, as his thoughts turned to the charred body he’d seen only seconds before. He had experienced his share of life-or-death situations, in some of the most dangerous places on earth. But those were not nearly as frightening as the wall of flames that now hemmed him in.
Spying a tiny gap in the blaze as he spun in a circle to the left, Garrett eased the reins to the right and aimed at an opening in the barrier. Sadie sprinted through the scorching heat of the tiny breach, where they found safety on the other side. Garrett pulled the reins, brought the mare to a halt, and did his best to survey the grounds through the wafting smoke, stinging his eyes.
Psyching himself up for another charge into the flames, Garrett spun Sadie around, pointed her at the front door of the control center, and gave her a little prod with the spurs. She went from a walk to a lope until building into full-on sprint. But within thirty yards of the burning structure she balked, came to an abrupt halt, and slid a few feet across the melting snow.
Between the suffocating smoke, leaping flames, and a howling shriek from the busted lines, every bit of the disaster was an assault on the senses. As Sadie stomped, stamped, and snorted, Garrett suspected that she’d done all she would do. He dropped from the saddle, wrapped the reins around the horn, and gave a slap on the rear. In a matter of seconds, she was at the front gate and bolting toward safety in the wide-open pasture.
Garrett turned and sprinted to the office, but nearly ten feet from the front door his arms shot up reflexively to shield his face from the scorching heat. Reasoning that if it were too hot for him to handle on the outside, then there was no way anyone was alive within, he decided to escape while he still could. He was getting ready to make a run for it when something caught his eye. On the ground, at the front door, just breaking the threshold, was what appeared to be a hand.
Garrett twirled around in search of something that could help him to withstand the heat. But between the flames and smoke, he couldn’t find anything of much use. Then he noticed several sheets of corrugated tin that had blown from the rooftop during the blast. It wouldn’t be perfect, but he reasoned that the three-foot by four-foot panel could work as a makeshift shield.
After sprinting back to the parking lot, Garrett grabbed the thin metal pane and flipped it over. Using the shattered beam still attached as a handle, he raised it in front of his body and hurried to the door. Garrett felt the same blistering burn, but he persisted, pushing through a heat so intense that he cried out in pain.
Reeling back, Garrett hid his face behind the tin and forced himself onward. He was about to look around the side when he slammed into the outside wall of the office and the armor slipped from his grip. He threw his hand to his face and clamped his eyes shut, as he dropped to his knees, grasping and groping for his shield in a pure state of terror.
A quick look back at safety, and Garrett rose to flee. But a glimpse of the hand caught the corner of his eye. He dove for the threshold and gripped the wrist tight. Rare, if ever, was there an occasion where he would’ve spouted the merits of panic or losing control. But his body’s desperation to escape the burn seemed to have given him what felt like a supernatural strength.
One swift tug and the body was through the door. Another hard yank got him some relief. And a third big pull got them far enough out where he could breathe. A giant inhalation of smoky air and Garrett rose to his feet. He didn’t think. He just hauled. Over and over again, he dragged the body until they were in the middle of the open parking lot, where he collapsed in the frozen mud.
Lying prostrate on the snow-covered caliche ground, Garrett turned back to the inferno to find he’d made it at least forty yards. Mustering what little strength he had left, he rolled over to check on the one by his side. Although he had unfortunately been overseas for most of the big benchmark moments of his godson’s life, he recognized David the instant he saw him.
As the sirens grew close, Garrett leaned over to check for a pulse. But if there was any sign of life, it was too faint to detect. What wasn’t hard to find were the severe burns from the blast. As he did his best to wipe the soot from David’s face, his heart broke for Tony and his family, and at the thought of what horrible suffering was still yet to come.