Page 1 of Fierce Family

Chapter 1

Sheila

My heart almost stopswhen the sound of the fire alarm suddenly pierces the silence in the office. Tommy looks at me, and for a second we are both stunned before our training takes over.

I have been the General Manager of the Greenview Manor Hotel for almost two years, since Tommy, the owner, decided he needed more time to enjoy life, especially after he’d gotten married to Ella. Now that they have a newborn baby he spends even more time out of the office, leaving day-to-day management to me. And I love it, at least most of the time. I certainly could have done without the alarm today, when we have a large conference in house.

“You get Ella and Nicky, I’ll take care of the guests,” I shout over the alarm. My fire marshal vest hangs on a hook next to the door and I grab it as I move out into the corridor.

I’ve been through plenty of fire evacuations to know that despite my racing heart and weak knees, if I stay calm and collected (at least on the outside) I can keep control of the situation. The last thing the staff and guests need to seeis me running around like a headless chicken. And keeping control is my second priority, right after making sure that everyone gets out unharmed. We are responsible for over three hundred people and that responsibility never weighs heavier.

I walk swiftly along the corridor keeping an eye out for stragglers and signs of an actual fire. Most likely a guest has set the alarm off by mistake, but I can’t allow myself to get complacent.

“What the fuck is that noise?” A young man steps out of his room dressed in boxer shorts and T-shirt.

“Sir, this is the fire alarm; can you please evacuate by the nearest exit?” I point towards the evacuation route.

“Oh, come on, the football’s starting in a minute!”

“Sir, the fire alarm is going off as you can hear. We need to evacuate until we can confirm the building is safe,” I try again in my calmest but sternest voice. Every fucking time there are at least one or two twats who think we set off the alarm because we are funny.

“Let me get my suitcase,” he whines and turns toward the door.

“No, sir, I need you to leave now,” I point again towards the stairs.

“I’m in my underwear!” he protests and holds his hands in front of his crotch.

“Just imagine they’re swimming trunks. Please, can you leave now?” I give him the same look I give to my sons when they try to have yet another argument with me about the state of their bedrooms.

He mumbles something but I can’t hear him over the alarm. His ears have turned a dark shade of red and he hovers between me and his door, unsure what to do, buteventually heads towards the stairs.Numpty!I fight the urge to put my fingers in my ears to protect them from the shrill fire alarm as I have a final look down the corridor and head down the last staircase to the ground floor.

The bright glare of the sun makes it difficult to make out all the people, but eventually my eyes adjust and I head towards the spot where most of our reception staff assembled.

“We’ve done a roll call and John is just checking the second assembly point to make sure everyone is accounted for,” Marisa approaches me. As Operations Manager, she organises assembly points and addresses guests’ questions during an evacuation, leaving me or Tommy (whoever is on duty) free to deal with the fire brigade.

“Great, thanks. Any clue what caused it?” I ask just as Tommy and Ella exit the hotel and head towards their car with baby Nicky. I appreciate that he trusts me enough to get on with it. Plenty of owners would want to take the lead in a situation like this.

“No clue, but I can guess—” The sudden silence as the alarm cuts off stops her from finishing her sentence.Good, I’m sure that means it wasn’t an actual fire. Juri, our Head Housekeeper, would have checked the location our fire alarm system indicated and would have only silenced the alarm if there was no danger. We have a strict fire emergency plan and I’m relieved that it all seems to have gone smoothly, just as practiced.

The minute the alarm cuts off guests try to re-enter the building, but our staff are trained to keep them out until we’ve found out what’s happened. Luckily it doesn’t take long for Juri to leave the building and give a thumbs up to all the staff.

“It was Mr Wilkinson,” he explains as he joins me and Marisa.

“Great, the fire brigade will be pissed. This is the third time in as many months they have come here because of Mr Wilkinson,” John, our young receptionist who has returned from the second assembly point with his clipboard, sighs. We all look towards the street as the fire engines are approaching at high speed, their sirens blaring. Our alarm automatically sends out a call to the emergency services if not silenced within a minute. It’s a sensible security precaution given how many lives are at stake here, but in situations like today it’s also a pain in the arse.

“John, please tell Tommy that all is okay,” I ask the young receptionist. “Marisa, get everyone back in. I’ll deal with the fire brigade.” A knot forms in my stomach.

“Want the hot fire chief all to yourself?” Marisa laughs. Originally from the US, she married a local lad she met while studying in Manchester. After living in the UK for over ten years, she has developed a somewhat peculiar accent, shifting between British and American. However, she takes great pride in it, often declaring proudly, “I represent both of my homes.”

“He’s watch manager. We don’t call them fire chief over here,” I reply, “And I’ve told you before that I’m not interested.”

“Sure. I mean all that flirting you guys do, it’s all nothing,” she giggles.

“We're not flirting. We argue. All the time,” I protest. Josh is cocky, self-assured, and knows that most women have a firefighter fantasy. Admittedly, he's easy on the eye. You wouldn't believe he's only a year younger than me at forty-one, because he looks at least ten years my junior.Well, unless you look closely and notice the laughter lines around his eyes and the few stray grey streaks in his thick brown hair. Okay, yes, I’ve studied him closely and paid extra attention when the receptionists gossip about him. But I don’t have the time or patience for someone like that. So, there's definitely no flirting going on.

“Sheila maybe if you stop biting his head off every time he turns up here, he might set off some fires in your bedroom," Marisa whispers before starting to round up her troops and guide the guests back into the hotel. I’m not just Marisa’s boss, we are also close friends. That’s the only reason she can get away with saying things like that to me. I shake my head and watch the fire engines rolling up the long drive.

“Juri please stay, the fire brigade will need your statement,” I hold the housekeeper back. I think I need a buffer because despite my earlier objections, Josh definitely flirts with me whenever he turns up, no matter how much I try to put him off.Oh, to be ten years younger with no responsibilities.

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