Imani swung as hard as she could, and the glass shattered. She reached inside and pulled the hose out. Her legs moved as quickly as they could, trying to make her way back to Garrett and Raymond. She didn’t realize how heavy the hoses were until now.
Garrett was yelling at Raymond to give him his hand.
She yelled, “I got something! I have a fire hose.”
The sweat from Raymond’s hands was making it difficult to hold on. He started to freak out, and his voice was shrill when he screamed out, “My hands . . . they’re slippin’!” Raymond struggled to hold on.
“Grab my goddamn hand, Raymond!” Sweat was now pouring off Garrett. “Imani’s got a hose! Hold on!”
Raymond’s eyes locked with Garrett’s. He stopped struggling; he couldn’t hold on any longer. Raymond knew Imani wasn’t going to get there in time and quit battling with whether to grab hold of Garrett’s outstretched hand.
Imani arrived with the hose just as Raymond let go.
Helpless, they watched in horror as Raymond fell, landing on another pipe that went through his chest.
Garrett sat back on his haunches in shock. Unfortunately, he didn’t have time to process the death of Raymond, their complicated relationship, and what it all meant.
The only family he had left was Imani and his children. His only priority was figuring out a way to get them to safety.
*****
“Please! Please, stop!” Imani sat on the floor with her back up against the wall pleading with Garrett.
He’d taken off his shirt and was drenched in sweat doing his best to kick in the door that opened to the sixth floor. The ax wouldn’t work because of the reinforced steel. The door was blocked by something impossible to move. His efforts were pointless.
It wasn’t the corridor filling up with smoke that brought on Imani’s tears. They weren’t going to get out of this building or be able to see their daughter come into this world. There were so many things she wasn’t going to be able to do.
Her family might never find them.
Garrett had beat on the door until his knuckles were bloody. He didn’t know how to turn around and look Imani in her eyes. Briefly, he allowed his lids to close to keep his own tears at bay.
She could no longer hide her despair. “If we’re going to die, I want to choose my resting place.”
His voice broke as he turned to face her. “Don’t talk like that.”
“I don’t want to waste any more time. We can’t go up, or down, or out. Shouldn’t I be able to choose where I want to rest?”
Garrett swallowed and blew out an exaggerated breath. He walked over and slid down onto the floor next to her. “Where is that exactly?”
Imani stared at him then placed his sweaty arm around her shoulder. She nuzzled close and rested her head on his shoulder. “Here. This is where I’ve always wanted to be.”
They were silent for a while, both just listening to the other breathe until Garrett kissed the top of Imani’s head. “I love you.”
She pulled back to see his face. Garrett had never told her he loved her before. “It took being trapped in a stairwell, after an earthquake, with the building on fire before you knew?”
Imani had to listen hard to hear him when he spoke. “I’ve always known that I loved you. It scared me because I was afraid I would lose you. My insecurities were a self-fulfilling prophecy. I figured I would end it before you had a chance to.”
She pulled away and gazed into his eyes. “I’m sorry that you were betrayed by those who should have loved and protected you. Is that why you didn’t tell me about your family . . . about growing up in foster care?”
He sighed long and hard. “That’s a part of my life I wanted to forget. It’s still too painful to think about. And, the last thing I wanted from you was to see me as anything less than the man you know today. Not, some nothing kid who nobody wanted.”
Imani held his hand and squeezed it. “You were never nothing Garrett. No matter what, every child is special and that included you. I’m just so sorry no one made you feel that way.”
He was silent for a moment as if processing her words. His voice was a barely-there whisper. “For a long time, Raymond and I, we were all each other had. I never knew my parents. I grew up in foster care. He watched my back, and I watched his for as long as I could. I excelled in school and worked my ass off for a better life. He used women like a drug to ease his pain. I didn’t know about all the demons that chased him. I didn’t know about Dennis.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for.” It was hard for Garrett to speak. Instead, he placed his lips over hers and kissed her deeply until she pushed him away. At first, he was disappointed until he saw her face.
Imani pressed her lips together before groaning. “Aaah!”
“What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know. My back is killing me, and I have this pain in my . . . Aaahhhh.” Imani couldn’t finish.
Garrett hopped up on his knees and hovered over her. “Is it the baby? How long have you been feeling this way?”
“I don’t know. Since everything started, I just thought it was because of
