11. Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

Trent

He drove up the road leading to the property, his hands tightly gripping the steering wheel. As he neared the house, he gasped at the sight before him. Most of the once-lush gardens had been reduced to charred remains, and the bushland that joined the property was blackened beyond recognition.

"Jesus Christ," he whispered under his breath as he climbed from the car.

The guesthouse stood amidst the devastation. He could see a broken window and the walls were a dirty grey colour, but it was still standing. He gazed around, desperately searching for any sign of Callum. His heart raced as panic threatened to consume him.

Then his gaze fell upon the burned-out cottage near the rear of the property, its walls scorched and crumbling, a stark contrast to the unscathed guesthouse. His stomach churned at the sight, adding to his already overwhelming devastation and shock.

Fuck, Callum. Where are you?

The sinking feeling in his gut fuelled his determination to find Callum safe and well. Finding him was his top priority, and everything else could wait.

He sprinted to the guesthouse, its solid structure giving him hope. How the hell had the guesthouse survived when the fire had come so close?

He threw open the door and called out. "Callum! Callum, are you here?"

His voice echoed through the rooms, his eyes darting around as he searched each one, hoping to sight Callum or Mushroom. The place didn't look any different to when he'd left this morning, with no sign that anyone had been there and no sign of the cat. Still, he tore through the living room, then back to the kitchen. His fingers trailed over the warm wooden table, picturing Callum sitting there earlier this morning, but fuck, so much had changed in such a short space of time. His legs trembled as his resolve began to crumble at the enormity of the situation.

He sunk onto one of the kitchen chairs and dug out his phone. Taking a deep breath, he dialled Callum's number. He couldn't even count how many times he'd called that number today. His stomach dropped when once again all he got was Callum's cheerful voicemail message.

"Callum, it's me," he choked out. It took every ounce of energy not to cry. He sucked in a breath against the stinging behind his eyelids. "I can't find you. Please, call me back."

He ended the call and immediately hit redial, with the same result. Frustration, fear, and helplessness threatened to consume him, but he refused to give up and just sit there waiting.

What do I do? Where would he go? Of course!

The community hall was the best place to start. Maybe Callum had gone to help others, or gone to the community hall to seek shelter, and even if Callum wasn't there, he'd be able to get an update from the officials.

Trent hurried to the car. As he pulled away from the property, his heart ached at the sight of the blackened bushland and charred remnants of the once-beautiful garden. But he forced himself to look away, focusing instead on the road ahead and finding Callum.

As the kilometres flew past, his mind raced with thoughts of what could have happened. Was Callam at home when the fire approached? Was he helping out a neighbour or maybe he was in town and sensibly chose to stay there in safety? He much preferred the idea of Callum far away from the flames. Fuck, I hope that's the case.

His panic only increased as he listened to reports of property damage and then the death of a volunteer firefighter. Oh my God. Heart in his mouth, he pulled into the crammed car park, scanning the cars for the familiar sight of Callum's ute. His hands shook on the steering wheel when he couldn't spot the vehicle, but he told himself that the place was packed and Callum may have parked on one of the side streets. As it was, he had to leave the car park and squeeze his own car into a space a block down the road, before jumping from the car and racing back to the community hall.

Arriving at the door, he took a steadying breath before pushing through the throng of people in the hall and desperately looked around.

Then he saw him.

"Callum!" Relief flooded through him like a tidal wave.

Callum's head came up and he looked around, eyes widening the moment his gaze landed on him.

Trent rushed towards him, his emotions taking control of his actions. Callum stood and pushed through the people between them and headed his way. They met in a clash of bodies, Trent throwing his arms around Callum's neck, and Callum wrapping him in his strong arms.

Thank God!

The relief was overwhelming. Tears prickled the back of his eyes.

"Thank God you're okay," he murmured against Callum's throat, then, to his horror, a sob escaped.

"Hey." Callum pulled back slightly to look at him but didn't let him go. "I'm all right."

"I was so fucking worried." Trent couldn't keep the tremor from his voice. "When I heard the news and couldn't reach you…"

Callum nodded. "I know. The phones were down and, to be honest, I had other things on my mind when the fire hit."

"You were there?" Bloody hell. "Oh, my God."

"Hey, it's okay." Callum cupped Trent's cheek. "It's over now."

He melted into the touch, relishing the feeling of Callum in the flesh. "It could have been so much worse."

"But it wasn't. The firies got there quickly and the guesthouse is okay."

Trent frowned. "I don't care about the guesthouse. I can rebuild. I can't replace you. God, I've never been so scared in my life."

Callum pulled him in close and Trent buried his face against his shoulder, ignoring the scent of smoke and sweat that lingered in his T-shirt. All that mattered was that Callum was here with him and he got lost in the feeling of being in his arms.

"It's okay," Callum kept whispering. "Everything's okay."

Was that…? Trent's heart stuttered as Callum pressed a gentle kiss to the top of his head.

It then occurred to him that he and Callum were sharing a very intimate embrace amongst a throng of people. He took a deep breath and pulled away, meeting Callum's gaze. He expected some awkwardness, but was only met with a gentle smile.

"Ah… sorry about that," he said, overcome with embarrassment. He brushed at the damp spot he'd left on Callum's sleeve.

"Nothing to be sorry about." Callum took Trent's hand, stopping his movement. "Honestly, I'm just glad you're back and in one piece."

Trent looked to where Callum's large hand held his and noticed the bandage around his forearm from wrist to elbow. "Callum! Your arm!" He automatically reached for it.

"It's fine," Callum said but winced and drew his arm back.

"It's not bloody fine." Trent's voice rose and a few heads turned their way.

"Honestly, it's not so bad," Callum tried to reassure him, but the way he now gingerly held the limb told otherwise.

Ignoring Callum's attempts at downplaying the injury, he looked around for a first aid station before turning back to Callum. "We should get you up to the hospital as soon as possible. You need medical attention, Cal."

Callum's eyebrows rose, then he offered a weak smile. "It's already been looked at by the medical people here. They reckon it's not too bad. Maybe a second-degree burn, plus there's some bruising. The wound's been treated and dressed, and I've had some painkillers. It'll just need dressing changes and some time to heal."

"Thank goodness," Trent said, relief washing over him. "What happened?"

"How about we get out of here and I'll tell you what happened on the way? Plus, there's someone I know who's keen to get home."

"Huh?"

In answer, Callum took his hand and tugged him over to where he'd been sitting when Trent had first arrived. On the floor next to an empty seat was a cardboard box with some holes punched in it. A plaintive meow greeted his ears.

"Mushroom!"

God, he'd been so consumed with the need to find Callum he'd barely given her much thought. He'd hoped he'd find Mushroom safe and sound back in the house. He dropped to his haunches and opened the flap to give her a quick once over. She looked pissed as all hell, but other than that, she appeared fine. He raised his eyes to Callum.

"The medics gave her a quick once over too. Despite her adventure, she's come out unscathed."

"Unlike some people," Trent said, shaking his head. He closed the box and got to his feet. "C'mon, let's get you home. And no arguments. We're leaving your car here and I'm driving."

He stopped what he was doing as the thought suddenly hit him. "We can go home, right?"

Callum nodded slowly. "The firefighters spent hours around our place and in the bush out the back. There's pretty much nothing left to burn in the bush behind the house and the experts have deemed it safe, especially since the wind turned. They said it's safe for residents to return to their homes, but we still need to take precautions."

Home. Fuck . Callum no longer had a home of his own. Actually, scratch that, Callum would always have a roof over his head if Trent had his way. He picked up the cardboard box containing a disgruntled Mushroom and tucked it under one arm while guiding Callum towards the exit with the other. His heart still raced from the relief of finding Callum unharmed, but he couldn't ignore the sight of his injured arm.

"Are you sure you don't need to go to the hospital?" he asked, as he opened the car door.

"Absolutely," Callum reassured him as he climbed in.

With Mushroom safely stowed in the back, they hit the road. He stole a look at Callum who had his head back on the headrest, with his eyes closed. He felt a twinge of guilt for not being there when Callum needed him the most. His imagination ran wild as he pictured what had happened to cause Callum's injuries, so he focused on their reunion instead—the relief and happiness on Callum's face, the way he'd held him close, the touch of his hand on his cheek. It was intimate and they had an undeniable connection. He just didn't know what it all meant. But whatever it was, he knew something between them had changed.

Meow .

Callum stirred at the noise. "She's had a big day."

Trent glanced at him. "Thanks for taking care of Mushroom. I don't know what I'd have done if anything had happened to her . " Or you.

"Couldn't leave the cheeky little thing behind, now, could I?" Callum replied, with a gentle smile. He definitely had a soft spot for the cute bundle of fur.

"Can I ask what happened?"

Callum's voice cracked as he recounted the moment the fire had approached the property. It sounded like hell and he had no doubt Callum was down-playing the whole thing as he told of hosing the building and then the arrival of the RFS.

"Everything happened so fast," Callum said, his voice low. "Mushroom disappeared down the garden and I followed. I grabbed her and ran for my life. I couldn't see a thing, but I knew I had to get us both out of there."

Trent reached over and gently took hold of Callum's good hand, giving it a squeeze. He had no words to express how grateful he was.

"Thank God you made it out, Cal," he murmured.

"You said it again."

"What?" He glanced at Callum.

"You called me Cal."

"I'm sor—"

"I like it. No one else calls me that, but I like it."

Trent mirrored his smile. "I like it too."

They drove in silence for the rest of the short trip. As they pulled into the driveway, the burnt landscape surrounding the guesthouse served as a stark reminder of the danger Callum had faced. In the fading light, they both stared at the area where the cottage had once stood but was now just a pile of wreckage.

Eventually Callum spoke. "I'm sorry that I couldn't save the cott—"

"Don't you dare. I'm sorry that you've lost your home, your belongings."

Callum shrugged. "That's something to think about tomorrow."

"Luckily I have lots of room. Now let's get you settled in. You need to rest to recover and I'm going to make sure you do just that." He grabbed Mushroom's box and headed to the guesthouse. He stopped briefly to let Mushroom out in the kitchen before leading Callum to his bedroom. Once he got Callum settled, he'd make up one of the guestrooms for himself. The most important thing was to get Callum lying down quickly as he was fading by the minute. He had dark circles under his eyes, and his movements were slow. He was also coughing a little, something Trent had noticed earlier. "Why don't you grab a shower and get that smell of smoke off you? Leave your clothes outside the door and I'll get them laundered once I've booted up the generator. In the meantime, I'll see if I've got anything you'll be able to squeeze in to."

"I can take care of the washing."

Trent stopped fussing over the room and turned from the blind he'd just pulled closed. He crossed the room and placed a hand on Callum's shoulder. "Promise me you'll take it easy and let me handle things for a while. I just want to make sure you're okay."

Callum nodded, his eyes serious. "I promise. But only if you promise not to blame yourself for not being here. We made it through, and that's what matters most."

Trent sighed, knowing Callum was right. They had survived a horrific ordeal, and they were fortunate to be standing here together.

"Okay, Cal. I promise."