Big Daddy Firemen (Big Cedar Daddies Book 2)

Walker kicked the door open and immediately stepped back.

He did so just in the nick of time, too. A hot, orange blast rocketed toward him, the fire coming mere inches from his face shield, the flames licking dangerously close.

He threw the plastic orange capsule he held right into the blaze that had prevented him from entering the cabin door. It exploded, spreading white flame-retardant foam that instantly extinguished the fire.

Well, that fire, at least. Fire still raged all around them. They couldn’t fight it, even if they’d had a hose with them. All they could do was find the trapped people and get them the hell out of there.

Cane and Austin stepped through the threshold while Walker readied another “bomb” just in case. The capsules were experimental and hadn’t caught on with all fire departments across the country yet. The manufacturer had sent them out for free, trying to show off the product. So far, so good. Walker made a mental note to order a new batch when this thing was over.

He stepped in and saw what Cane and Austin were seeing: half the cabin was on fire. The other half would be soon.

“Anyone here? Fire department!” Cane called out. “We’re here to help!”

A second later, a scream for help emitted just as a small hand reached up and offered a weak wave.

“The kitchen!” Austin said, having spotted the movement.

The three firefighters hurried across the cabin’s living room, but before they could reach their destination, an overhead beam fell to the floor with a deafening roar. Sparks fluttered up in its wake. The commotion caused the fire to rear up, too, and all three of them instinctively stopped running and brought their arms up to shield their faces, though the helmets and protective gear they wore did the job just fine.

Walker was able to sidestep the beam and keep moving forward. The air itself seemed as if it was burning. His lungs heaved, straining to retain precious but scarce oxygen. Even with the mask that filtered out most of the ash and particles, the taste was still bitter.

Everything around him looked wavy as neon embers floated around the destroyed building. The old cabin hadn’t been sturdy before the fire had ravaged it. Now, it was barely holding on.

They needed to get out of there and pronto.

He barreled into the kitchen and moved around the overturned table the hand had waved from behind. When he came on the other side, he was shocked to see not one person, but two.

They were just children, a boy and a girl, neither older than ten, huddled together and crying.

“Over here!” he called.

Cane and Austin were already coming up behind him.

“Good Lord!” Austin said.

The three men knelt down and quickly inspected the kids. There wasn’t time to linger, but simply yanking them up, throwing them over their shoulders and running like hell might do more harm than good. They needed a fuller picture first.

Thankfully, a quick scan told them the children weren’t seriously hurt. Terrified, yes. Hurt, no.

Nothing else needed to be said. Working in unison, the firefighters lifted the overturned table and cleared the other debris. Cane and Walker scooped up the children while Austin led the way, throwing a couple of his own fire-retardant capsules at hot spots that threatened to spread into their path. Thick black smoke, white foam, and crackling flames were on all sides of them.

And suddenly, something else was blocking the path, too.

Another beam from the ceiling fell right as Walker had passed under it. He was still in the way enough for it to catch his boot.

“Damnit!” he yelled.

The kids screamed. Remembering their presence, he smiled, despite the grim, deadly circumstances. “No worries.”

He tried to wiggle his booted foot free, but it was pinned tightly beneath the flaming shaft of wood.

“Take ‘em,” Walker said, handing the little girl he held to Austin.

“We can’t leave you!” Austin said as he took the child.

But the firefighters knew how it went: you saved innocent lives. Even if it cost you your own. They weren’t going to let any harm come to those kids.

So, Cane and Austin offered understanding nods and made quickly for the door—or rather, where the door had been. Now, it was just a crumbling threshold with the pile of white foam still fizzing in the center. They were careful not to slip as they skirted around it and outside.

They weren’t safe once they cleared the cabin, though. Walker watched them scramble off the porch and move forward. The inferno was still fierce, the hellish tentacles lashing at them as they hurried by, the men hugging the children tightly and trying to cover as much of them as possible. They eventually disappeared from Walker’s line of sight, causing him to smile.

His brothers had made it. The kids had made it. True, they weren’t out of the woods yet—literally—but they were a lot closer.

Now he just had to join them.

He worked his leg to the left and right, trying to free it, but the beam was too heavy. And with the fire slowly creeping toward the middle from both sides, the time in which he could reach down and grab it, hoisting it up, was limited. Moving quickly, Walker bent down enough to try and get a good grip on the thing. He grunted as he put all his strength into lifting it, but it was no use. The awkward angle and the heaviness of the beam made it impossible to lift.

The flames around the cabin began to grow as the flimsy old wood of the structure fueled them. The temperature was beyond stifling: it was energy- zapping and close to deadly. Walker thought he might literally melt right there in his protective gear, leaving only bones for the others to find.

A deafening roar startled him as more wood fell from the decaying ceiling and landed a few feet away, kicking up sparks and smoke.

“Come on! Come on!” he yelled, followed by a round of curses. He gritted his teeth as he twisted his ankle, trying to find a different angle that might loosen the beam’s hold.

Nothing.

He tried lifting it again, but flames were mere inches from his hands now. Even with the gloves he wore, he couldn’t hold out long.

Just when he started to consider that this was the end, Cane and Austin appeared through the flames.

“What the hell?” he yelled.

He then realized he needn’t worry. They’d never just abandon those kids, even if not doing so meant they lost him.

Those children were what mattered. They were the top priority.

“Quinn and Theo were out there,” Austin yelled through the roar of the flames. “They took ‘em.”

Walker wasn’t surprised. As Big Cedar’s sheriff, Quinn would be eager to help, even if it meant putting himself in danger. The same went for Theo, though he wasn’t law enforcement. He was, however, former military. Plus, the folks of Big Cedar were just the type to pitch in and do whatever was needed. There were probably other citizens out there, too, doing what they could to combat that inferno.

Walker couldn’t think about that now, though. He had to break free before time ran out. And the clock was quickly expiring.

“Here we go!” Cane said.

He lifted his ax high overhead and brought it down on the beam, severing it just inches away from Walker’s ankle. Thanks to the fire already weakening it—and Cane’s raw strength—it only took one chop to do the trick. Walker’s foot was free.

There wasn’t anything left to say—or time to say it. The men bolted toward the door, having to leap over a new patch of burning debris on their way out. Austin tripped and tumbled to the floor amid the flames.

“Go!” Walker yelled at Cane. “Clear the path!”

Cane didn’t want to leave them, but went ahead and moved on, making sure all was clear before them.

“I’ve got you,” Walker said as he bent down, put his arms around his friend, and got him on his feet.

With Austin’s arm draped around Walker’s shoulder, the men left the burning cabin behind, Austin hobbling as fast as he could. It was clear he’d rolled his ankle in that fall, but they’d have to worry about that later. Right now, they just had to move.

They’d only gone a few yards when the whole cabin succumbed to the ravages of the fire and collapsed on itself. Flames zoomed high into the air, sending a blast of hellishly hot air out on all sides.

“This way!” Cane called, pointing toward the best path to forge.

He waited for the other two to catch up and then they all set out together.

They’d been through close calls like this before, and each time, they came out with an even stronger bond.

The three of them weren’t just colleagues. They weren’t merely friends.

Walker, Cane, and Austin were brothers.