Marc followed her to a small kitchen, Darcangelo and McBride beside him.
Nicole opened the fridge, took out three bottles of water. “This has got to be the worst day ever. Gabe, Chaska Belcourt, and Chaska’s grandpa are missing. Eric Hawke and Brandon Silver are missing. They’re our friends. They’re like family. They’re the heart of the Team.”
Darcangelo twisted off the top to his bottle. “We can’t give up hope—not yet.”
“At least they found Austin Taylor alive—and Bear, too.”
Marc wasn’t sure who Austin Taylor or Bear were, but a life saved was always a reason to be grateful. “That’s good news.”
“Megs and Ahearn—they never had kids. I think we’re like their kids, you know? She never says it, but I know she loves us. If Eric, Chaska, and Gabe are all dead …” Tears welled up in Nicole’s eyes. “I don’t know how any of us will deal with that, but I think it will kill Megs.”
“We know their wives and kids.” Marc couldn’t bring himself to say more.
Nicole rested a hand on Marc’s arm, a moment of shared distress between strangers. “The woman with the dark hair sitting next to Megs—that’s Eric Hawke’s wife. She just told him today that she’s pregnant. The woman with the strawberry-blond braids—she’s Brandon’s girlfriend. They refused to evacuate. They’re waiting for news.”
Marc couldn’t blame them.
He and Julian followed Nicole out of the kitchen in time to see Megs slam her cell phone down on the desk. “They say the governor is aware of the situation and is leaving the deployment of resources to the appropriate agencies. What a load of bullshit!”
“Doesn’t he care about our town?” Sasha asked.
“Not enough to send the Supertanker. Bastard!” Megs looked over at Marc and the others and filled them in. “Hawke called for it before he went up in that chopper. The super of the hotshot crew requested it, too. As far as I know, no one has gotten back to them.”
“Sheridan.” Marc looked from Darcangelo to McBride.
McBride’s cell phone was already in his hand. He tapped in a number, lifted the phone to his ear. “Yeah, Sheridan. It’s McBride.”
Marc met Darcangelo’s gaze, listened while McBride brought Lt. Governor Reece Sheridan up to date on the situation, giving him the bad news about Rossiter and Ramirez. Sheridan was a good buddy of theirs. His wife, Kara, had worked with Sophie and Tessa at theDenver Independent, and the three women were best friends.
If anyone could help, Sheridan could.
“They’ve got a handful of local crews and one hotshot crew battling this monster, with two small air tankers and a single helicopter making bucket drops. They’ve asked for the supertanker but are getting bullshit and red tape instead. Can you kick the governor in the ass and get some help sent our way?”
At this, every head in the room turned, people staring at McBride with astonishment.
“Hurry,” McBride said. “There isn’t much time. If help doesn’t arrive soon, Scarlet will burn to the ground, and more lives may be lost.”
He ended the call.
Megs stood. “What did he say?”
McBride slid his phone back into his pocket. “He says he’ll do everything he can.”
“When Reece Sheridan says he’ll do everything he can, he means it,” Darcangelo reassured her.
Marc thought they should know. “He’s a good friend of Rossiter’s, too.”
Megs exhaled. “Thank you.”
Marc hoped to God that Sheridan would be able to pull the right strings in time. The survival of Scarlet Springs might well depend on it.
Chapter 17
Conrad liftedthe kennel out of the living area of Nate West’s enormous horse trailer and carried the dog to the section of the barns that had been set aside for them. He didn’t know their names the way Kenzie did. “Here’s the last one.”
Kenzie looked into the kennel. “Hey, Buster.”
She checked the pooch off her list. “They’re all here.”