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As we worked side by side, battling the flames, I couldn't shake the feeling the dark forces at play were growing bolder. No longer content to lurk in the shadows, they were making their move, and we were the only ones standing in their way.
I glanced at Amber, her face streaked with soot, her eyes blazing with determination. At that moment, I knew I would do whatever it took to keep her safe, to protect the land and the people I loved. No matter the risk, confronting the darkness was necessary.
I paused to wipe my brow, chest heaving. The smoke stung my eyes, but I embraced the pain. The battle ahead would test us in ways we had never been tested before. For the forest, I would endure anything.
Chapter 6
Amber
As the strange sensations bubbling through my system faded, exhaustion settled deep in my bones. My muscles ached, and my lungs burned with every breath of the smoky air. But even as my body cried out for rest, my mind raced with unanswered questions and a growing sense of unease.
The smoke plume billowing above the trees quickened my pulse. We were running out of time. I said a silent prayer that we'd make it before the entire forest went up in flames.
When we’d arrived at the scene, the reality had been even worse than I'd imagined. The air was choked with ash, and the clearing had become a nightmare vision of smoldering stumps and scattered embers.
My heart broke at the devastation–so many beautiful old trees, gone in an instant, not to mention the wildlife.
Smoke stung my eyes as I surveyed the staging area, gauging resources. I relayed orders to my crew, immediately directing teams to start clearing defensible space.
Satisfied we were on track, I scanned for Emmett.
On the drive over, when he’d squeezed my knee with his calloused hand, I’d flinched involuntarily before forcing myself to relax into his touch. His palm was warm and steady against my thigh, and despite my lingering questions, I felt myself softening.
He stood with his brother, Leif, heads bent intently over a map. I approached, asking casually what they were conferring about. Emmett evaded with a vague claim of “strategizing.”
His smile seemed forced, and I noticed a flicker of hesitation in his eyes before he answered. The way he shifted his weight and glanced at Leif made it clear they were discussing something they didn't want me to know.
After all our earlier progress, he was still hiding things from me. My eyes narrowed. What were they discussing so secretly?
I wanted to trust him, but after seeing the way he'd whispered with his brother, I didn't know what to think. Were they somehow involved in these fires, after all? What were they hiding?
Doubt gnawed at my gut, warring with the undeniable attraction that simmered between us. I couldn't ignore how my heart raced when Emmett was near or the comfort I found in his presence, even amid the chaos.
But I also couldn't shake the feeling that he was keeping secrets–secrets that could jeopardize everything I was working for.
I bit my tongue against a sharp rebuke. The sting of renewed distrust cut deep, but I shoved it aside. People's lives were at risk—my personal feelings could wait. I strode off to continue coordinating crews, pretending not to feel Emmett's concerned gaze on my back.
I threw myself into my work, trying to quiet the doubts swirling in my mind. As always, being surrounded by my brave colleagues grounded me. We moved with coordinated purpose, containing the blaze through skill, courage, and determination.
Over the next hellish hours, we battled the blaze. Something about this fire seemed…otherworldly. A ridiculous notion, I knew, and I couldn’t explain it, but my instincts were tingling.
Despite my doubts, I trusted Emmett's judgment in directing efforts. His connection to this land gave him insights no training could match. I felt a small spark of hope. Together, we could overcome anything. We had to try.
At that moment, our goals were profoundly aligned–saving this forest we both clearly loved. I ached to reach out to him, to bridge the gap between us, but uncertainty still held me back. Was he who I thought he was?
When we finally contained the fire, I sank exhausted beside Emmett on a scorched log. I ached everywhere, my tank emptier than I could ever remember. But we'd beaten back the flames. I let the comfort of our triumph warm me.
Emmett's praise meant more than I cared to admit. I wasn't used to relying on a partner in the field, but his strength had bolstered me tonight. Without it, I might have faltered.
The lingering scent of smoke clung to our clothes, and the grit of ash coated my skin as I wiped my brow. In the distance, the sound of smoldering trees crackled like a dying campfire, a stark reminder of the destruction we'd witnessed.
Emmett drove me back to The Honey Den to collect my car in tense silence. As we turned down into the parking lot, his stoic facade cracked.
“I don't understand who would do this,” he said through gritted teeth, his big hands white-knuckled on the steering wheel.
I heard the catch in his voice, the barely contained sorrow. At that moment, I glimpsed the depth of his love for this place. It mirrored mine. Despite the short time I’d been here, I’d connected with this place in a way I hadn’t expected. Anger flashed across his face–an anger I understood all too well. The devastation of watching as the land you loved was inexorably destroyed by fire.
The people who lived here cared about the land and each other in a way I’d never experienced living in the city. That kind of care felt like the missing puzzle piece I’d been searching for in the anonymity of New York—somewhere real and genuine where people knew your name and went out of their way to help those in need.
