Page 69 of Inferno
Chapter 17
“Tell the truth, Lieutenant Wolf. You’ve never seen a more spotless bowl in your life, have you?”
“Hmm,” Stan murmured, inspecting the sparkling white toilet bowl that Jake Easton had just finished scrubbing. “I must admit, rookie. It’s pretty damn spotless.Smells good in here, too.”
Jake grinned, his broad chest puffed out with pride. He’d been up since four-thirty a.m. doing his morning housework detail.
As he and Stan left the immaculate bathroom, Jake—eager to please—rattled off the list of other chores he’d completed. “I put up the flag, opened the gates, made a pot of coffee, emptied the dishwasher, cleaned my equipment—”
Stan half listened as they headed past the sleeping quarters, where the other firefighters on duty were beginning to stir in their cots.
Stan’s muscles were sore and his eyes were gritty from the restless night he’d had. His unit had been out on a late emergency call last night, rescuing four people who’d been trapped inside their vehicles following a head-on collision. Racing against the clock, the fire crew had used axes and the Jaws of Life to pry back the roofs of both vehicles in order to extricate the injured occupants.
By the time the firefighters cleared the crash scene and returned to the station, they’d all been exhausted. But Stan was too wired to sleep. He’d tossed and turned for hours before lapsing into a fitful dream state haunted by dark, disturbing images he couldn’t decipher. He’d awakened abruptly but quietly, no scream tearing from his throat to disturb the others, thank God.
“I’ve already been on the floor to inventory the apparatus,” Jake was saying. “And as soon as Cooper arrives for his shift, we’ll practice throwing ladders and timing how fast we can put on our SCBA gear.”
“Good.” Stan nodded approvingly, pleased that Jake understood the importance of performing the daily drills. The kid was a good firefighter—bright, conscientious, respectful, and a team player. He took pride in his work, whether he was washing the station rig or loading hose after a job. Because he rarely complained about doing the least desirable chores—like cleaning the toilets—the senior firefighters liked him enough to spare him the worst of their pranks, which was saying a lot for the wise guys of Engine Company 8.
Stan, who’d taken Jake under his wing from day one, knew that the kid had a promising career ahead of him.
As they neared the kitchen, Jake announced, “By the way, I asked Lara Dominguez to be my date for the ball tomorrow night, and she said yes.”
“Hey, that’s great, rookie.” Stan paused, frowning. “Wait a minute. Who’s Lara Dominguez?”
Jake laughed.“Your kid’s first grade teacher.”
“Oh.Right.”Stan grinned ruefully. “Sorry. I only know her as Miss Dominguez.”
“That’s funny,” Jake said, following him into the kitchen, “because when I was talking to her after the presentation last week, she kept referring to you by your first name.”
“Really?”Stan crossed to the cupboard and removed a misshapen ceramic mug that Maddox had made for him in Boy Scouts. It was black with crooked white lettering that readWORLD’S AWESOMEST DAD.
“I didn’t realize she and I were on a first-name basis,” Stan mused, pouring hot black coffee into the mug. “I’ve only met her twice since the school year started.”
“Well, you obviously made quite an impression on her,” Jake teased, nimbly straddling a chair at the oversize table. “After you and Mason left that day, she couldn’t stop raving about you and your ‘wonderful, educational’ presentation. No mention of howItotally rocked as Sparky the Fire Dog.”
Stan grinned, sipping his coffee. “Well, she agreed to go out with you, so you obviously did something right.”
“That’s true.” Jake flashed a cocksure grin. “You know the ladies can’t resist a smokin’ hot firefighter.”
Stan snorted. “Yeah, okay.”
After a moment, Jake’s grin wavered with uncertainty. “Wait a minute. What if she only agreed to go to the ball so she can seeyou? I mean, what if she secretly has the hots for you, lieutenant, and shespendsthe whole evening asking questions about you?”
Stan frowned, raising his mug to his mouth. “You’re talking crazy, kid. Miss Dominguez doesn’t have the hots for me.”
“Maybe you’re right.” Jake’s blue eyes glinted with sudden mischief. “But if she corners you and propositions you, could you at least find out if she’d be interested in a threesome?”
Stan choked, spewing out a mouthful of coffee.
Jake burst out laughing. “Sorry, boss! I couldn’t resist.”
Stan scowled, grabbing a paper towel and dabbing dark splotches of coffee from his CFD T-shirt. “That shit wasn’t funny, rookie.”
“Sorry.” Jake wiped tears of mirth from the corners of his eyes. “I think I’ve been hanging around the fellas too long.”
“Probably.But say some shit like that to me again, kid, and your ass will be permanently sporting the Sparky costume. Ya dig?”
