Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
About the Author
Copyright ©2020 Yolanda Olson
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Blurb
We knew each other in another life.
Times were much simpler then.
I was someone she saw as a friend, and I knew that I would never be able to let her go.
Then one day, she disappeared.
That’s when everything changed.
I felt myself spiraling into a void I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to climb out of.
Not until that day I saw her again for the first time in years.
A fire started burning deep inside of me that no one would ever be able to quench.
But I’m ready now.
Makena Washington is the only one that will understand why this is happening.
Maybe she can stop this before it’s too late.
Prologue
Orange.
Yellow.
Red.
Three of my favorite colors that—when brought together—can detonate into a heat not meant for any to survive, yet some do.
Red.
Orange.
Yellow.
The different stages the color of the skin melt into when it comes in contact with the immense fires that engulf the unsuspecting.
Yellow.
The color of fat as it begins to dissolve.
Red.
The rush of blood that tries to quench the burning sensation as it takes hold.
Orange.
The discoloration of the human body as it begins to succumb.
A blissful sigh escapes me as I step back into the dark, watching my three favorite colors conducting a beautiful serenade of destruction right before my very eyes.
I’m a patient man and I know this will bring the one thing I’ve watched and wanted for so long. The one thing that will rush in to be a hero—to try and save anyone that might be inside and attempt to smother the flames I’ve set.
But this is our song.
This is how I call to my hero on the nights when I need to see that face, that determination to do good in a world where being heroic has no place.
As the sirens begin to wail in the distance, a smile creeps slowly over my face.
Now, the hunt begins.
Chapter 1
I cough as I step out of the house, removing my helmet and nodding at my crew. I’ll let them extinguish the flames before I go in and try to figure out what started it. I walk over to the firetruck, sit on the back bumper, and put my hands on my knees, trying to regain some of the fresh air I lost in there.
At twenty-four years old, I’m the youngest fire chief the county has ever seen. I started volunteering when I was sixteen, and after eight years of proving myself to the guys that always tried to dismiss my hard work, I was quickly promoted and given control of the Ventura County Department.
I make sure we keep a tight hold on the wildfires that spring up from time to time. We’re the first to respond and the last to leave. I’ve saved more animals than I have actual people, but that’s because I know some animals aren’t capable of helping themselves while some humans are more than useful to themselves.
“Any idea what the fuck happened this time, Makena?”
I let out a sigh as I lift my head and find myself staring into the eyes of the Police Chief, Dominic Griffith. When he sees the look on my face, he gives me a sympathetic smile.
“Not yet, Chief,” I tell him as I cough again. “I have to wait for them to put it out, remember?”
I don’t mean to sound like a smart ass, but he should know better than anyone else on scene by now.
“Maybe if you stopped running in there with the rest of your crew, you wouldn’t be so out of breath right now,” he suggests gently as he takes a seat in the empty spot next to me. “That’s not your job.”
I roll my eyes.
“Thanks, Dom. I’ll try to keep that in mind for the next time.”
“You’re gonna get hurt one day, kid. That’s all I’m saying. You’re too good at your job sometimes, but we need you, Makena—you’re the only one that’s been able to keep these knuckleheads on the straight and narrow.”
My eyes soften as I glance at Dom again. This department was a shit show before I was promoted. While every last one of them has always been a damn good firefighter, most were a little too relaxed when getting to emergencies—skipping important safety steps, and some even stole some of the things inside of the burning buildings to supplement the income gap they felt they were owed.
Like kids in a candy store, high off the sugar rush, and no guiding hand to teach them right from wrong, I think as I reach up and smooth back my curly, black hair. I set the helmet on the space between me and Dom as I reach up to re-secure my ponytail, then shrug.
“I guess I happened to get promoted at a good time. They’re all great guys, Dom. They just needed someone to help them stay on the path to greatness is all,” I say reasonably.
“Chief Washington!”
Dom and I turn our eyes toward the sound of my name being called. Derick Simpson is one of my favorite members of the crew because he’s one of the few that have never needed a guiding hand. I may
