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They had a major combustible risk. It was time to pull out.
He went to both teams and gestured toward the door. “Pull out. We’re initiating the Halon system.” They evacuated the compartment and backtracked the way they’d entered, the boundarymen spraying down the bulkheads as they went and securing each of the hatches to create an air-tight seal. Back in the cooler passageway, Sean made sure everyone was out before the final door was closed, then he met the senior chief at the actuation station and advised him of the situation.
His superior agreed with Sean’s assessment and immediately engaged the switch that shut down the ventilation fans to the affected compartments and initiated the Halon system, which used a combination of liquids and gases to suppress fire. A warning horn sounded immediately, and a sixty-second countdown began that gave anyone in harm’s way time to evacuate.
It should’ve all been good from there, but instead, it was where shit started to go sideways.
Just then, word came through Sean’s earpiece that the initial explosion had apparently ignited an electrical fire in the maintenance compartment below where they’d been working.
“How do you want to handle it, Chief Riddick?” his senior chief asked.
He appreciated the trust and confidence the question represented. So Sean continued to take charge. Using his wireless comms, he called for back-up personnel and then divided his team into two until that back-up arrived.
“Keaton, Westover, you’re on reflash watch,” Sean said to two of his newbies before issuing commands to others that he no longer remembered. Because those turned out to be the only two that mattered…
Then he and the rest of the team descended one more deck to assess and contain the electrical fire. It was a nasty bitch of a fire, too. Charlie fires always were. And it was already threatening to get out of control. Luckily, no one had been injured here, so after assessing the fire, the extent of the damage, and in consultation with one of the electrical specialists, he made the call to engage the Halon system here, too.
He was just feeling good about getting things under control in relatively short order when another explosion rattled the ship.
What the fuck was that?
The public address system crackled on, announcing the locations of the fires and directing all hands to their stations.
Then DC Central was in his ear with the news that would change his life: there’d been a massive reflash event on the deck above resulting in multiple casualties.
Sean hauled ass up the ladder and through the passageways, the weight of his gear and the air tank on his back making him feel like he was running through molasses. One refrain ran through his mind: Don’t let it be Keaton and Westover.
Oh, Jesus, don’t let it be my guys.
Chapter Sixteen
“No! Nonono…”
The mournful shout jolted Dani awake. Blinking into the darkness, she was disoriented, but then Sean’s pained voice reminded her where she was.
And, oh, God, she’d never heard him in so much pain, not even once after he got hit. His whole body shuddered.
Dani moved closer and laid a hand on Sean’s chest. Beneath her palm, his T-shirt was damp and his heart was pounding so hard it was as if he were running. “Sean,” she said, gently shaking him—which wasn’t easy given how tense every muscle in his body was. “Sean, hey. Wake up.”
“God, no,” he rasped.
The sound of his voice made Dani’s heart ache. In the hospital, she’d written off the bad dream he’d had as being a result of the accident, but this seemed like something else altogether. “Sean, it’s me, Dani. Wake up.”
His head jolted off the pillow. “What? What’s wrong?”
“Hey, it’s okay. You were having a nightmare. I’m sorry I woke you, but it seemed bad.” She couldn’t make out his expression as he dropped his head heavily and scrubbed a hand over his face, but with the other hand he covered hers where it rested on his chest.
On a long sigh, he released a single word, “Fuuuck.”
Dani wasn’t sure whether or not to push, but he’d been there for her earlier in the night when she talked about all her losses—okay, well, not Anthony—but all the rest. She could be here for him for whatever this was. So into the quiet of the room she asked, “Wanna tell me about it?”
A long moment passed before he finally said, “Gimme a sec.” Then he slid off the bed and padded to the bathroom. The light of the bathroom made her realize he still wore his jeans, and then the door clicked shut behind him. It seemed a long time before he returned, now wearing a pair of boxers and a different T-shirt. He sat on the edge of the bed with his head hanging on his shoulders.
Dani hated the defeated cast of his body language. Whatever this was, he needed to fight it. And something inside her said he needed her help to do it. Which was why she closed the distance between them and hugged him from behind, her knees on either side of his hips, her body fitted against his back, her head on his shoulder, and her arms gently wrapped around him. “I’m listening if you need to vomit out whatever that dream was about.”
