Page 28 of Fighting for Tawny

“Possibly. Whatever is happening next is occurring at the fire camp.”

“What about my role? Am I staying overnight at the camp?”

“No. Any change in the routine will only draw suspicion.”

Their waiter interrupted their conversation to deliver their meal. He refilled their wine and water glasses and brought them another breadbasket. They attacked their dinner with vigor and grinned at each other.

“I’ve missed this,” Finnigan admitted.

“I have, too.”

“So, what’s new in your life?”

“If you’re asking if I’m dating anyone, the answer is no.” Moira sipped her wine and gazed at her brother. “You know, there’s such a double standard at play here. Women fantasize about dating hot firemen, and my single male coworkers never lack for a date. But I don’t think guys fantasize about dating hot firewomen. I guess what I do isn’t sexy.”

Finnigan choked on a bite of food and gulped it down with water. His face grew hot as he gasped, trying to catch his breath. “I wasn’t expecting you to say that.”

“I’m not twelve, Marcus.”

“Yeah, I get that. If you want, I could set you up with a guy in SWAT. Someone who thinks female firefighters are sexy.”

Moira kicked his shin under the table. “Very funny, Marcus. What do you intend to do? Put out a poll?”

He grinned and waved his fork at her. “That sounds like an excellent idea.”

She laughed. “Listen, Marcus, I don’t need my big brother arranging dates for me.”

“Okay, but I’m going to take a poll regardless because now I’m curious to find out if what you said is true.”

They bantered like old times, each vying for the upper hand. There had always been intense competition between them, from grades in school to sports. As they waited for dessert and cups of coffee, Finnigan grew serious again.

“What was your impression of Warden Stoltz?”

“In a word? Shady as hell. Tawny warned me that he was wily, and she was correct. He pumped me for information, asking questions about my taking the place of the guy he was expecting, if I was only temporary, and so on. He was nervous but tried to hide it beneath a charming veneer. Quite creepy.”

Finnigan scowled. “I’m sure Jiena has prepped you well for this, Moira, but I’m issuing you a stern warning. Don’t discuss anything personal with him or the inmates because you might inadvertently reveal something you shouldn’t. Stick to what you know. Firefighting.”

She reached across the table and covered one of his hands with hers. “I’ll be careful, Marcus.”

Dessert and coffee arrived, and their conversation reverted to their mother. Moira expressed her concern about Mira Finnigan’s mental health, and Finnigan promised he’d spend more time with her. At the end of the evening, he paid the bill and accompanied his sister to her car.

“If you’re able to speak with Tawny alone, tell her that I love her and miss her, and I meant every word in the letter I wrote to her.”

“I will. Love you, Marcus.”

“Love you, too, sis.”

When Tawny and the others entered the classroom on day two of instruction, they found their desks arranged so they had to sit with their backs to one another. The quizzes were labeled with their names in random order. Once everyone settled into her seat with a pencil in hand, Moira instructed them to begin the quiz. For the next several minutes, nothing could be heard but the sound of their pencils scribbling across the paper. Tawny finished her quiz and waited until a couple of others rose from their desks to turn them in before she followed them. When the last inmate turned in her quiz, Moira led them outside to a training area for the fire program, where they went through a series of warmups before she ordered them to run laps.

Better conditioned than the others, Tawny outlasted them all. One by one, they dropped to the ground, gasping for breath. As Tawny passed each of her fallen classmates, she hauled her up and yelled, “Keep going! Don’t you quit!” Only when she realized they couldn’t give any more did Tawny sink to the ground, chest heaving. A couple of the women vomited.

Moira handed them bottles of cold water and warned them not to chug. “You think running laps until you drop is hard? In the field, you’ll be expected to run up flights of stairs with up to seventy-five pounds of gear. Or you might have to carry an unconscious victim out of a burning building. Physical conditioning is vital. You’ll be running every day and working out in the training room. Any questions?” They shook their heads. “Okay, let’s hit those weights.”

CHAPTER NINE

Finnigan shifted in his seat as he studied the large screen on the wall in LA’s SWAT command center. Next to him, Commander Mattox, Hutch, and Jiena did the same. Working remotely from home, Tex communicated the video of convict Bette Simpson's elimination, zooming in and scrutinizing every detail.

After a back-and-forth discussion, Hutch voiced their conclusion. “It’s fake.”

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