1. Becky

1

BECKY

T he smoke felt like it burned Becky Thompson's lungs, even through her breathing apparatus mask. The flames leaped in front of her as more of the walls crumbled. She couldn't see clearly anymore. They would have to evacuate any second now. Where were they?

"Thompson! We need to get out now!" Erin Quinely yelled from behind her.

"Not yet!" she called.

"The building is no longer stable!"

She pushed forward, looking for a clear path through the burning wreckage. Becky couldn't turn away from a challenge, even if it meant getting herself killed. She heard a light knocking over the roar of flames and destruction .

"They're in the bathroom." Becky waved over Quinely before trying to open the door.

"Please help!" a muffled voice screamed.

Becky tried the door, but it wouldn't budge."Back away from the door! I'm going to get you out!"

She took her axe from her belt and slammed it into the weak wood.

"Thompson!" Quinely jumped back from her as the ceiling fell in front of her.

She swung again. The axe chipped away at the wood, then suddenly…

"Chief Thompson?"

Becky startled awake, her cold mug of coffee clutched in her hand instead of an axe. She found that she wasn't surrounded by burning flames but by the cold break room of the Phoenix Ridge Fire Station.

"Ya hear me?" Captain Jenna Carter’s brown eyes looked at Becky expectantly.

Becky shook her head and inhaled. "I'm sorry, Carter. I was looking over the emergency relief packets until two last night and didn't get much sleep. Can you repeat that?"

"Just asking how you slept." Carter chuckled.

"Like shit, Captain." Becky poured her coffee in the sink and watched as the dark liquid swirled down the silver drain. Even coffee wasn't helping her bitter mood. Her grip tightened on the mug before dropping it in the sink, chipping the handle.

Carter glanced at the mug and back at her face. "Hey, Becks..."

"Chief," she corrected coldly.

Even if she and Carter were good friends, as soon as they stepped into this firehouse, she was chief and chief only.

"Chief.., are you sure you're doing okay? You've got that whole 'I want to burn down the whole town' look." Carter laughed but Becky could tell she was wary.

How ironic.

"I'm fine. I have to get my notes for this morning's briefing. I'll see you there?"

Carter raised her coffee in response. Becky rubbed at her temple and walked back to her disaster of an office.

It wasn't like she didn't know how to clean. Becky just never had the time to actually go through everything and organize it. This was probably why her office was the most dreaded place in the world for her. She shut the door and leaned her forehead against the cool wood, hoping it would help with her headache. Becky didn't even want to look at her desk. She knew what was waiting: towers upon towers of paperwork. In her fifty-five years of life, she had never wanted to do something less.

Becky loved her job. She’d dreamed of being fire chief since she was nineteen years old. But sometimes she missed the thrill of being out in the field. She missed how her muscles would burn after a grueling training day. Or the relief of saving people who needed her. She tried to remember that she was still doing that, just from behind a desk. The plaques and medals hanging on her office walls held that reminder, but she often wished for the days before they ever decided to carve her name.

Her life was, she feared to say, stagnant. Just paperwork, shitting, eating, and barely any sleeping. Alone or with company.

A knock rumbled her head from behind the wood. She groaned and unlatched the door.

Her daughter Ember stood with her hands on her hips. Ember's beautiful red hair made Becky think of those fiery flames she had cut through in her daydream. Ember was trying to grow her hair out from a rather rash short cut. The wavy bob came down to her chin. Even though Ember was masculine in how she was, the short hair hadn’t been the one on her. Her wild unruly mane of red hair suited her better, Becky thought to herself.

She's looking more and more like her mother, Becky thought.

She sometimes thought it was a curse that her daughter looked so much like Becky's ex-wife Alison, but she guessed Alison deserved that since she had carried Ember and all.

Becky’s own hair was a sandy color. A reddish gold. So, close enough to Ember’s that most people at a glance mistook her for Ember’s biological mother. But Ember shared Alison’s strong powerful beauty and tall frame.

Not that biology mattered, Becky thought to herself. Ember was as much her daughter as if she had birthed her herself. And more so perhaps. It wasn’t like Alison had turned out to be much of a mother over the years. Becky and Ember, although they bickered a lot, were closer than Ember and Alison had ever been.

"That was quick. Were you waiting for me?”

Ember strode into her office and leaned on Becky's desk. "You don't look too great, mom."

"Chief," Becky corrected. "Even if you are my daughter, at work, I'm your superior officer. “I know you haven’t been working under me for a long time, but let’s not forget protocol.”

"Got it, Chief Mom." Ember saluted as she rifled through some of Becky's papers.

Ember had taken a sabbatical from her job as a firefighter. She had been unstable and risking her life too much. It was only in meeting Becky’s friend Dr. Josephine Mars and settling down with her and having their beautiful little girl, Natalie, that things had really changed with Ember. She had taken 5 years out from her job as a firefighter to be at home for Natalie and her family whilst working as a mechanic. Now, she was covering occasionally as a firefighter again when they were short and Becky was enjoying this new, much more mature and stable Ember.

"Josephine wanted me to tell you that you shouldn't be worried about this Dr. Everett coming in.”

Becky inhaled deeply. The new head of trauma at Phoenix Ridge Hospital, Dr. Lucinda Everett, was already a growing thorn in her side. Of course, her best friend Josephine would sense that from a mile away. Josephine was the head of Phoenix Ridge Hospital, so she would know if the British doctor was going to cause them any trouble with her fancy ideas.

"Why would I be worried?" Becky said bitterly.

Ember clicked her tongue. "Because she's trying to change all of your emergency protocols?"

"How much did Josephine tell you?" Becky tried to rub the sleep from her eyes.

Ember smiled. "I mean, I had to do a little convincing." Her daughter wiggled her eyebrows at the suggestive joke.

Becky hadn't loved the idea of her close friend and daughter dating in the beginning, but now that she had seen their love for each other, Becky was able to let it pass. But that did not mean she was comfortable knowing about their sex life.

"Ember," Becky warned.

Ember laughed. "But she told me all about Dr. Everett’s suggestions and how they conveniently all combat your proposals." Her daughter tilted her head. "Have you met her yet? I heard she's a real looker." She mockingly lifted her eyebrows.

"Please don't ever refer to anyone as a 'looker' ever again. You sound like a grandpa," Becky said dryly.

Ember put her hands up defensively. "Just repeating what I heard, Chief. ”

She rolled her eyes. "No, I haven't met her yet. However, I am well acquainted with her proposed changes to the emergency disaster plans. She wants to focus on long-term preparedness instead of immediate response." Becky ran her hand over her face. "Yes, that's a good idea for two years from now, but how is that going to help if we have an emergency tomorrow ?"

"You have a point," Ember said matter of factly.

"And then on top of that, she wants to keep the public uninformed." Becky sighed. "I hear she's from London. That would probably work for the Brits but not Americans. Could you imagine?"

It's not that she didn't understand what Everett was trying to do. But how could someone come into her city and mess with all of their protocols without even being here for twenty-four hours?

Ember shook her fist in the air. "Those damn Redcoats!"

Becky let a smile touch her lips. "Shouldn't you be in the briefing room?"

"That's why I came.” Ember picked up the packet labeled with that day's date. "It started five minutes ago."

"Shit, why didn't you say that first? You were acting like we had all the time in the world." Becky snatched the folder from her daughter's hand and rushed down the hallway.

"I was playing therapist. I figured you needed it.”

Becky stormed out of the office and into the briefing room, Ember strolling in casually behind her.

"Good morning, team. Apologies for my tardiness." Becky pushed Kaia Montgomery's feet off of the table. "Manners, Montgomery."

Kaia pulled her feet under her chair properly, "Apologies, Chief."

Ember took a seat beside Montgomery, whispering something into her ear.

Becky leaned against the podium, looking out over her all-female crew. The first of its kind. This is what she had worked so hard for. It was unheard of, an all-female firehouse, but damn if this wasn't the best group of people she’d ever worked with. They all knew they had something to prove, that a woman can be just as strong, if not stronger, than any man.

"Let's get into it." Becky turned on the projector showcasing this month's schedule. "As you can see, we have a wildfire drill next Friday. I expect a pristine report, you hear? Wildfire season is only a few weeks away, and we can't risk what's going on in California to happen here. And- look at the drama we had last year with wildfires. We do not need a repeat of what happened to Lux and Zoey. City Hall has their eyes on us. Study your procedures."

Becky clicked through the rest of her briefing, explaining their usual duties for the week before pulling up the new disaster protocol slide.

"Woah, there's a new head of trauma?" Leilani Silva asked, her thick dark plait swung over her shoulder.

"Yes. Dr. Lucinda Everett. She will be joining the disaster protocol team," Becky replied.

"So are we still working with the same protocols or will there be some updates?" Montgomery asked.

Becky cracked her knuckles. "I have a meeting with the city council tomorrow. Your captains will update you with any changes."

The team nodded. Ember stared blankly at the projector.

"Alright, if there are no questions, you are dismissed." Becky collected her laptop and paperwork before striding out of the room.

After the briefing, Becky had another meeting to discuss the department's budget. After that meeting, she had to oversee the training of the new recruits. When she finally found a moment of peace to get some work done, Lieutenant Zoey Knight almost busted down her office door with a complaint about a rookie named Patrice Swarze.

"Patrick Swayze?" Becky looked at Zoey Knight over her glasses.

The woman groaned. "No, Swar-zee. She's causing issues within the team."

Becky continued filling out paperwork. "And you went over your captain because...?"

"Carter doesn't take me seriously, Chief—" Becky gently set her pen down, linking her fingers in front of her face. "Lieutenant, does it look like I have time to care about your petty squabbles?"

Zoey Knight opened and closed her mouth like a gaping fish. "I-I didn't mean. The captain has just been busy."

Becky ignored her. "There is a chain of command in place for a reason. Report to Carter or Hunter or deal with it yourself. If you ever come into my office with this petty shit again, I'll make you and Patrick Swayze reenact the final scene in Dirty Dancing for the whole squad. Dismissed."

Zoey Knight nodded, her whole body was red as she slipped out of Becky’s office .

Becky leaned her head back against her chair, checking the clock. 4:17 p.m. Shift changes would be happening soon. Becky's neck ached from looking at her desk most of the day.

What was tomorrow? More paperwork? No, a meeting at the city council where she would meet her . This bloody Lucinda Everett.

She was already so annoyed and hadn't even met the woman yet. Becky wondered if it was because Dr. Everett was suddenly the talk of the town. It wasn't like Phoenix Ridge was a small place, but the people here loved to act like it was a one-stoplight town.

Becky opened her laptop, typing "Dr. Lucinda Everett London" in the search engine. Her screen was filled with mentions of Dr. Everett. News articles about her accomplishments and hospitals recommending her papers and studies.

A link labeled "Our Team" was highlighted in blue on the St. Thomas Hospital website. Becky clicked it, loading a page with a picture of a pale woman with luscious dark curls and gray eyes.

A sigh blew out of her mouth. Maybe Ember was on to something with the word looker. She scanned Everett's bio.

"Oxford?" she mumbled to herself .

Did England only have one university or was that fucking impressive ?

A knock rapped from behind her door. Thinking it was Ember or Carter, Becky mumbled "enter" without looking up from her computer.

A woman walked up to her desk and waited for Becky to glance in her direction, but Becky was engrossed in reading about Dr. Lucinda's accomplishments and honors.

"Chief Thompson?" The sweet, airy voice wrapped around Becky's name like a caress.

The chief glanced up, and there she was. Luscious dark curls, steely grey eyes. The ghost that had been haunting her every thought.

"Dr. Everett!" Becky rushed to shut her laptop, knocking over her cup of coffee on a stack of paperwork. "Oh shit." Becky snatched the ruined papers from her desk before the liquid could leak on anything else.

Dr. Everett glanced between Becky and the mess. Her gentle British accent and polished clothes did not match the chaos of Becky's office. "Did I catch you at a bad time?"

"No, no. Just finishing up some work before it's time to head home." Becky sat back down and motioned for Dr. Everett to sit .

She did not.

Everett's picture didn't do her justice. Her black hair was pulled out of her pale, freckled face. She looked like a sculpture in the Louvre with her slight frame and large eyes. Becky tore her eyes away, trying to look anywhere else.

"What can I do for you, Doctor? I thought our meeting wasn't scheduled until tomorrow morning."

Everett glanced around the cluttered office, her eyes obviously clocking the towers of papers and empty takeout boxes stacked in the trash and a disapproving look on her beautiful face.

"I hope I'm not"— her eyes shifted to Becky's hastily shut laptop—"interrupting something?"

Just busy googling you. No biggie.

Becky's cheeks heated. This was definitely not how she wanted to meet this woman. She hadn’t even brushed her hair and suddenly when faced with the immaculate doctor, she was very aware of that fact. "Not at all. What can I do for you?"

Everett handed over the two folders."One is paperwork from Ms. Rhodes. The other files are the procedures I plan on suggesting in tomorrow's meeting. I wanted you to be"—he paused, looking for the right words—"prepared for discussion. "

Annoyance hummed in the back of Becky's brain. "I am quite prepared, thank you." She stood, accepting the files, her heart hammering in her ears. "I promise I'll be a formidable opponent tomorrow."

The doctor studied her face cooly. "Opponent? I thought we were to be allies." Sarcasm dripped from her words like venom.

"My job is fire safety and security. I've been managing emergencies just fine for a while now."

"And because you've been doing this for a while, you cannot comprehend the thought of something new?" Everett's voice didn't convey any emotion.

Becky smiled, stifling her bumbling anger. "Ms. Everett?—"

"Doctor," she corrected.

"Doctor, my apologies. Why don't I take a look at your file and we can continue this conversation tomorrow with fresh minds?" Becky's smile was tight.

Get her out of here. Get her out of here. Get her out of here before I fucking lose it.

The other woman didn't smile, only nodded.

Becky rounded her desk, leading Everett to the door. "I will see you first thing tomorrow, Doc. "

Everett turned, making Becky catch the faint sweetness of her perfume. It smelled like spring flowers with sticky pear juice clinging to their leaves. Becky wanted to push the doctor out of her office but also wanted to lean in closer to grasp the sugary scent.

"Were you reading about me, Chief Thompson?"

Becky felt her ears get hot. "Well, I…yes.”

"So you've seen my credentials?" Her gray eyes were steely as she looked up at the chief.

Becky raised an eyebrow. "Yes." Everett's mouth tugged into a knowing smile. "Then you know I'm more than capable of handling my job and emergency operations. Please keep an open mind about me before you judge my methods. I expect we'll make more progress during our meeting tomorrow?"

Becky leaned against the open doorway. "Looking forward to it." Her voice was pinched.

Everett walked out of the office before saying over her shoulder, "Try not to get any stains on those files, Ms. Thompson."

The sound of her heels echoed down the hall.

“It’s CHIEF ,” Becky corrected her loudly, but Lucinda Everett didn’t pause .

Dr. Everett is a brat, huh? Absolutely, incredible.

Becky wasn't some old person who couldn't accept change. Her whole position rested on the power of change! She was the first chief of an all-female firehouse. She was the fucking epitome of change. She would fucking show this Everett.

She walked back to her desk and grabbed the doctor's file, trying to get the memory of her intoxicating scent and the way she had looked in that designer skirt suit out of her brain.