Shadows Ablaze

Chapter 11- Jaxon

The car speeds down the road, approaching the Elite sector and zooming under numerous gates. The houses are all mansions, and while I'd like to spend more time staring at them, the black smoke clouding the sky demands my attention. It's only my first week on the job, but that didn't stop them from sending me into the field. They were desperate for recruits, forcing me to learn on the job instead of attending a traditional training.

Without a uniform I'd never be allowed into this part of the city, but I don't have time to think about that as the car screeches to a halt. The air smells of burning wood and heavy smoke as Zieb and I jump from the car and sprint toward the house. Yellow tongues lick at the broken windowpanes, eager for a taste of oxygen. The structure takes a deep sigh, sending thick, gray smoke tumbling into the green lawn.

Shrieks escape the teenagers that stampede out the front door, tripping over one another as they rush to safety in the street. I jog to the girl who appears to be the last to leave. She presses her hand to her chest, coughing.

"Are there more?" I ask.

She looks up at me, wide eyed. "Who are y—" Her gaze glides across my brown uniform, stopping on the golden badge. "Oh thank goodness! Yes! There are kids having seizures inside." She points down the hall of the house behind her.

Smoke climbs the walls and clings to the ceiling. It's hard to see anything through the haze, but I swear there are two lumps at the end of the passageway. I take a step closer, desperate to see if I'm right. The heat singes my skin as I proceed down the hall. One foot after the other. That's all I can ask of my body, especially as the heat intensifies with every step. Somehow, I reach the lumps before the smoke can strangle my lungs. Two bodies, both twitching uncontrollably on the ground. Their mouths hang open, limbs flailing. They're seizing, and the house is burning down around them.

I pull the thin, dark-haired girl into my arms. Her head dangles and sways as I carry her to the exit. The heat dissipates as I tramp through the lawn, placing her in the fake grass a safe distance from the house.

Zieb rushes toward me, alert and ready. "Is she the only one?"

I nod. "No, but take care of her. I'll get the other."

The hall feels hotter when I enter the second time, but it doesn't alter my path. Crouching, I tuck the smaller, blond girl against my chest before retreating back to the spot on the grass. Red ambulance lights spiral through the air as sirens ring in my ears. Bodies dive from the vehicle, sprinting toward us and dropping to the ground beside us to assist with the two girls.

Zieb yanks me up, letting the paramedics take over as we race back to the house. The smoke is thick, but Zieb doesn't falter. "Hold your breath," he instructs, laughing when he sees whatever expression is playing out on my face. "Trust me, you'll be fine."

I suck in a mouthful of air before following him. The rooms are empty. The only sound is the crackling flames as they gnaw at the wooden framework. The deeper we get, the darker the smoke, making it impossible to know what's hiding behind its selfish curtains. Zieb is in front of me, his steps confident and measured.

"There!" he shouts, pointing to a figure coiled on the ground in the far corner of the room.

We bound toward the body, dropping to the ground beside it. It's a boy about my age. He isn't seizing, not like the girls were. In fact, he isn't moving at all. Not even his chest rises. Zieb notices it too and pushes me out of his way. He clasps his fists together and begins pumping, pressing his entire weight into the boy's chest. Zieb moves one hand to plug the boy's nose as he leans down and pushes oxygen into his lungs. He repeats the motion, shoving his hands against the boy's chest a couple times before breathing into his mouth.