TONY: Slow Burn (Raging Fire Book 1) by Kallypso Masters (the false prince TXT) 📕

located.” He paused before adding, “We’re offside.” The other SAR groups and emergency personnel would understand the predetermined code words for death that they’d decided on, chosen for the woman’s Broncos shirt.

Mother found. Deceased.

Tony kept scanning the river, hoping to catch a glimpse of their second subject while they waited to turn over custody of the body. Nothing. The wail of the ambulance’s siren grew closer, but it would take the EMS personnel a good ten minutes to reach this spot on foot after parking.

The longest ten minutes of Tony’s life. He and Ryder remained silent.

He finally caught sight of the paramedic and EMT coming down the banks of Elk Creek before they turned toward them to follow the river. They carried a Stokes basket and a long spine board, along with other gear.

After checking for a pulse, the paramedic hooked her up to the heart monitor. Within ten seconds, the paramedic called dispatch with the official time of death.

“Zero-nine-thirty-three.”

With a sense of urgency, knowing it would take the other SAR teams a while to join them, Tony said to Ryder, “Nothing more we can do here. Let’s keep searching.” Maybe they could find the toddler alive.

The two returned to the water, wading in and scouring both banks of the river for any sign of life. After a five or so minutes, Tony spotted something pink, muddy, and small entangled in a tree root mass. Her head was just under the water’s surface on the western bank mere yards before Silverheels and Elk creeks spilled into the Middle Fork River from either direction.

Damn. Most likely she’d been submerged since last night.

With a heavy heart, Tony trudged forward through the calf-high water, Ryder at his side.

As he’d done less than thirty minutes ago, Tony pressed against the carotid artery in her cold, stiff neck hoping against hope for a pulse. Not surprisingly, the only heartbeat he felt was his own.

Swallowing hard, blinking back the burning in his eyes, Tony gently extricated the tiny body from the root mass that had grabbed onto her soon after she’d left her mother’s arms.

Staring down at her purple lips and cheeks, he realized the blood had settled in her face due to her prone position. Tony closed her eyes. Except for the scratches and bruises on her little face, she looked like one of the baby dolls Angelina had played with growing up.

Peaceful. Asleep.

Not asleep. She’s dead.

Because of me.

Ryder keyed up the radio this time. The knot in Tony’s throat wouldn’t have permitted him to speak anyway.

“Rescue Group 6 to dispatch.” Dispatch acknowledged Ryder. After a pause—obviously, this was as hard on him as it was Tony—he reported, “Subject two located. Offs…” He cleared his throat and tried again. “Offside.”

I should have rescued them both when I had the chance.

“Let me take her.” Ryder asked, holding out a thermal blanket.

Tony shook his head and wrapped up her stiff body himself then started for the riverbank holding her tight against his body as if he could infuse his warmth and life into her. Tears streamed down his cheeks, but he did nothing to hide them. Climbing out of the water, Tony stumbled but quickly recovered, blinking until he could see clearly again. Ryder asked again if he should take her, but Tony shook his head. She was his responsibility.

The paramedic met them on the path above the river, and Tony handed off the tiny body for him to do his perfunctory examination. Unable to watch, Tony turned away, held onto a tree, and leaned over the bank to puke up the energy bar he’d eaten earlier before dry heaving a few times. Ryder squeezed his shoulder but didn’t try to engage him in conversation.

After he could stand upright again, Tony turned to find that the paramedic had finished his examination and wrapped up the tiny body again. Assuming responsibility again, Tony stepped forward to lift her into his arms once more as the paramedic reported to dispatch. Afterward, the three walked together back to where the mother’s body lay.

As Tony approached with his precious armful, the EMT unzipped the body bag, and Tony laid the toddler in her mother’s arms before the EMT rezipped the bag.

Tony felt a squeeze on his shoulder and turned to see Luke. “Sorry, Tony.”

Tony slipped from under Luke’s hand. “I’m okay.” Luke, who had witnessed the death of his pregnant wife in an avalanche on Mount Evans, would have had a tougher time than Tony finding the dead bodies. At least Tony had spared him that.

But Tony would forever be haunted by that little girl’s face, frozen in death.

Megan stood nearby, her face ghostly white. Ryder went over and wrapped his arms around her, and the two held on to each other.

After a few moments, Ryder released her and came back to help Tony pack up their gear. Megan took both search dogs by their leashes, while the rest of the group grabbed on to the handles of the Stokes basket and carried the bodies up the steep riverbank to the ambulance.

Seeing Rafe’s Chevy Tahoe screeching to a stop behind the ambulance, Tony cringed. His brother marched straight toward Tony.

“Didn’t I tell you to stay home?”

Rafe wasn’t supposed to be here, either. “You aren’t on duty today, either.”

“We’re talking about you, not me.”

Angry and frustrated, Tony had had enough of his big brother telling him what to do. He took a deep breath as he watched the ambulance drive off, then turned back to Rafe. “They were my responsibility.” He pointed at his chest for emphasis. “I had to do everything I could to find them.”

Rafe stared him down a moment, breathing hard, then cast his gaze aside as he raked his fingers through his hair. “I didn’t want you to go through that.”

Tony didn’t need to be babied. Not anymore. “It’s part of the job. I’m sure every firefighter with more than a few years on the fire grounds remembers responding to at least one bad call.”

Rafe met his gaze,