Page 31 of Scorched Hearts

“Can someone change me this time?” She raised the question, looking around the car.

“I can do it.” O’Malley nodded, getting out to switch seats.

On the way home, Elle fought bravely not to let her eyes close. But passing through the disheveled city, there wasn’t much she wanted to look at. She’d witnessed enough during this one day already, and she knew many more would come. Many buildings could still collapse. The city was growing empty, too. Many families had taken their children and had gone away to wait for safer times, to avoid looking the ugliness of disaster in the face.

12

MAYA

“Are you sure you’re in a safe building, all of you?” Maya tried getting through to her parents for a thousandth time, but as usual, they wouldn’t listen.

“Maya, the earthquake is over. What are you talking about?”

“Yes, but it could’ve created cracks in the structure of your building, and it might cause collapse later down the line, even tomorrow, for all you know, if you don’t get that checked.”

“I think we’d know if our building had cracks in it.” Maya’s father sounded as insufferable as always. “We’re fine.”

“Please get it checked.” Maya sighed.

Ever since her parents had gotten back together, talking to them had proved even more futile than when they’d been separated. After brisk goodbyes, they hung up. The familiar sense of hollowness stirred within her stomach, but she had no time for that. She had to call her brother, then go to work, go and witness again and again how cruel nature could be in its impartiality.

“Colin.” Maya said his name, almost starving for an affectionate conversation.

“Hey Mike, how are you feeling? Are you horribly overworked?” Colin’s voice contained a warm shade of worry, very different than their parents’’ cold, harsh one that almost spelled you should be ashamed I even have to worry about you.

“I am, but every rescue worker is right now. I’ll be heading back out in some twenty minutes. I wanted to discuss something with you, though.”

“Be careful out there. Don’t let them work you to an early grave. What is it?”

“I need you to check whether the building our parents are living in now is still safe to stay at, because they won’t listen to me about possible cracks the earthquake could have caused. And I can’t be rescuing my own parents from the building’s ruins, all right? I’m having enough of that,” Maya had let the irritation spill into her voice, and once she realized it, she felt a little ashamed. She wasn’t annoyed with her job, only with her parents’ stubbornness.

“Are you really okay?”

“

I’m just sick of our parents never listening to me as if I don’t know what I’m doing. I know natural disasters quite well,” Maya sighed.

“I’ll talk to them. Be safe, and good luck with the rescue. You’re doing important work there.”

Hanging up, Maya stood motionless for a moment, simply listening to herself breathe. Elle would probably be on the same scene with her, and once again they’d work side by side. Maya liked the perspective of that. She felt safe with Elle around, even if sometimes watching her work along the dangerously crumbling still pieces of the building caused sharp pangs of anxiety in her chest. They knew they could rely on each other’s professionalism, though, and that wouldn’t change. Elle’s nerves of steel were infectious.

On the scene, ambulances stood lined up already, waiting to receive potential victims from floor number two. The lower the floor, the more dead people would be found, the ratio of dead to alive slowly increasing. And the dead, she knew, would have to wait until they helped rescue other buildings. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to know someone from her family had died. But she knew thinking about the dead in this situation was of no use when there were people out there still struggling to survive.

Elle’s jacket shone brightly, RODRIGUEZ reflecting streaks of the sun among the backs of the other rescuers. The medics waited to be called either in case of a found victim or an injured rescuer.

Suddenly, Maya heard the dogs bark. Cameras and digging tools were employed to discover what had been the reason for the dogs’ excitement. The firefighters gathered round the opening, but the digging took long hours. Then the rescuers quieted down. Maya couldn’t see the reason from her post, and guesses flooded her thoughts. They discovered corpses, but were expecting the living, she thought on repeat. But no. Elle was carrying a child toward Maya’s team.

“He’s still breathing, he’s still breathing,” she shouted, carefully lying the boy down on one of their stretchers.

Preparing to take him to the hospital, they assessed his state—fractured ribs, potential pneumonia, severe dehydration – and that was probably not all. Maya remained on site and understood why the team had quieted down before. The boy would wake up as an orphan.

As they soon learned, he would also be the last person to be rescued from the building.

They began organizing themselves and regrouping, waiting for instructions. Maya found herself trying to get closer to Elle, seeking the comfort she’d experienced the last time against her chest, when they didn’t need to talk, only breathe against each other and feel that the other person was alive.

“Hey.” Maya approached the firefighting team, waving at Elle.

“Hey.” Elle came up to her, dirt and sweat mixed on her face. “Feeling all right?”

---