Page 38 of Never Forget
"And reform. The protocols. The staffing. All of it." I kept my voice steady. "So this doesn't happen to someone else's brother."
Sam went quiet. Something shifted in his posture. The guardedness was back, but there was something else underneath it now.
"Jamie..."
"I know what you're going to say."
"Do you?" He looked at me. "Havensworth doesn't like outsiders telling them what's broken. And you've been gone a long time."
"I'm not an outsider. Jack was my brother."
"That's not how they'll see it."
I was quiet for a moment. The words landed harder than I wanted them to.
"So I shouldn't try?" I said. "I should just let it go?"
Sam didn't answer.
"I'm going to do this," I said. "Whether you help me or not."
He looked at me for a long moment. Something conflicted in his expression. He wanted to protect me. He knew he couldn't.
"I know," he said quietly.
The tension sat between us. Neither of us moved to break it.
CHAPTER 9
Sam
The fire was supposed to be routine.
Structure fire, single-family home, reported smoke from the second floor. We rolled out expecting something small—electrical, maybe, or a kitchen fire that got out of hand. Something that could be handled with four guys and a decent water supply.
It wasn't small.
By the time we pulled up, flames were licking out of three windows. The whole back of the house was engulfed. A woman stood on the lawn in her bathrobe, screaming that her husband was still inside.
Cap was out of the truck before it stopped moving. "Reeves, Tyler, primary search. Sean, get me water on that exposure."
We moved on muscle memory. Mask on, air flowing, the familiar weight of the pack settling against my spine.
The front door gave on the first kick. Smoke poured out thick and black, which meant we had minutes at best. Tyler went left. I went right.
"Fire department! Call out!"
Nothing. Just the roar of flames eating through drywall.
I found him in the bedroom. Unconscious, slumped against the far wall. I grabbed him under the arms and dragged him out.
Tyler's voice crackled in my ear. "Back stairwell's compromised. Fire's spreading."
I keyed my radio. "Copy. Coming out the front."
The hallway was worse than before. Visibility was down to nothing. I kept one hand on the wall, the other gripping the victim's collar, moving by feel more than sight.
We made it out. Barely.
