Disclaimer: All recognisable characters belong to HiT Entertainment. All OCs belong to me.

WARNING: This chapter contains references and events relating to teenage suicide.

Chapter 26

One month later

"…And, Leading Fireman McArthur, don't forget to replace the oxygen cylinders in the pumper," Sub-Officer Smithers said.

"Sir!"

"Do you have anything you want to add, sir?" Sub-Officer Smithers asked Station Officer Michaels.

"Yes. Fire Cadet Jones?"

"Yes, sir?" I replied.

"Since Fireman Adams is absent today, Sub-Officer Smithers and Leading Fireman McArthur have agreed with me that you'll fill in for him until nine o'clock."

Beside me, Simon's jaw dropped open in astonishment. "Why him?"

"Because, unlike you, Sam is a keen learner and he's devoted to having a career in the fire service," Station Officer Michaels told him firmly. He turned his attention back to me. "Fire Cadet Jones, I want you to stick to Leading Fireman McArthur's side this evening. If there's a call out, you'll be going out on the pump-ladder with him, understood?"

"Sir!"

"White watch! To your duties, fall out," Sub-Officer Smithers ordered.

"Sam?" Leading Fireman McArthur called. "After you've sorted out your uniform, come and help me with the oxygen cylinders."

"Sure."

I placed my firefighting uniform trousers next to the rear passenger door of the pump-ladder, and I put my jacket inside the cab where Fireman Adams would normally sit. I then went to find Leading Fireman McArthur.

While I was helping Leading Fireman McArthur with the oxygen cylinders, I plucked up the courage to ask him a question I'd been wanting to ask him for a while.

"I've been wondering, what's your first name?"

"Promise not to laugh?"

I shrugged indifferently. "Sure."

"Well, my family are mostly fishermen, so my parents named me Horatio. You can understand why I don't like to be called that though."

"My family are mostly fishermen too," I told him. "I guess we have a lot in common."

"Yeah…"

"Would you like me to call you Harry?"

Leading Fireman McArthur smiled. "I actually really like that! You're welcome to call me Harry from now on."

"Only if you keep on calling me Sam."

We shook hands on it.

…

About an hour later, we were all upstairs in the mess hall, having dinner. Simon wasn't eating much, and he kept glaring coldly at me. Station Officer Michaels finally put down his fork.

"I don't know what's going on between you two, but I want it sorted out now."

"There's nothing going on from my side of things," I said. "He's just jealous."

Simon responded by standing up and leaving the room. I was about to get up and go after him, when a flash of red light caught my attention. I turned my head to see a black owl with red eyes glaring at me through the window.

"Y pwca," I whispered. What's it doing here?

"What was that, Sam?" Harry asked me.

I turned my attention back to my dinner. "Nothing."

At that moment, the alarms sounded. We immediately leapt up from the table, and we ran down the hallway towards the fireman's poles. I was one of the first down the poles.

"Apartment fire, Oakfield Street! Both!" Fireman Peters called from the watch room.

I was already pulling on my trousers. As soon as I had them on, I leapt into the pump-ladder's cab and I closed the door. Harry got into the driver's seat, and the rest of the crew got into where they usually sat. Seconds later, we rolled out of the fire station, lights flashing and sirens wailing. I put on my helmet and jacket as we raced along the road.

It took us about five minutes to get to the apartment building. When we arrived we saw flames coming from an apartment on the third floor of the four-storey building.

"Sion, Tony, I want you two in BA gear, ready to go in," Leading Fireman McArthur instructed. "Report to the BA monitor! Sam? You can start rolling out the hoses."

I opened the door and leapt down from the cab. People were running around screaming and panicking, but I stayed focused on what I needed to do. I opened the locker containing the horses, and I bowled them out neatly along the footpath. Once I'd unrolled four hoses, I connected them up to the outlets on the pump-ladder.

"Sam? Help us with the ladder!" one of my colleagues ordered. Since I was already standing near the ladders, I assisted with slipping the longest one. Once it was down off the appliance, I turned my attention back to the hoses.

"Water on!" Harry ordered.

"Water on!" I shouted in reply as I turned the taps on, one by one, allowing water to flow from the tank into the hoses.

"Sam?" Harry called. "Grab yourself a hose and help us!"

I picked up the only hose that wasn't being manned, and I started aiming it directly at the flames that were leaping out of one of the apartment's windows. At first, the water didn't seem to do much, but then, I saw the flames beginning to die down. Harry gave my shoulder a friendly pat.

"Good job, Sam. Keep aiming at the base of the flames. That's it!"

A piercing scream filled the air as someone pushed through the crowd and tried to run inside the building. "My baby! My baby!" a woman screamed as two of my colleagues grabbed hold of her and dragged her to safety.

I tried to block out the thought that a baby might be inside the apartment as I continued to dowse the fire. The woman was taken over to an ambulance that had just arrived. Minutes later, I saw our BA team emerge from the apartment. Sion was carrying a bundle in his arms.

"We need oxygen, fast!" he shouted. He was directed over to another ambulance that was out of my line of sight.

"I think we're getting the fire under control now," Fireman Peters said.

Sure enough, we were getting the upper hand on the flames and they were beginning to subside. Finally, about ten minutes later, the fire was completely extinguished.

"We'll let the fire investigation team take over now," Harry explained to me as I helped to roll up the hoses.

"Did the baby make it?" I asked, although I feared the answer.

Harry shook his head sadly. "It was pronounced dead shortly after Sion put it in the ambulance. Poor child. The mother left it on its own while she went to the pub. Some people really don't deserve to have kids."

I sighed sadly as I continued to roll up the hose I was holding. She should've been the one to die, not her kid. Hearing an owl hoot, I paused rolling up the hose and I glanced up at a nearby tree. The pwca was obviously following me now. It stared at me with its ghastly red eyes. Is this the death you're predicting, or is there another to come? I wondered.

"Sam?" Harry called. "That hose isn't going to roll itself up."

"Hey, they should invent something like that," Tony suggested. "A hose that can roll itself up. Would save us a lot of work."

"Nah! You just don't work hard enough, Tony!" Firemen Peters quipped.

I finished rolling up my hose and I placed it neatly inside the locker. Harry placed a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry you had to be here to witness the baby's death," he said to me softly, but kindly. It was obvious he didn't want the other firemen to overhear us. "I hope this hasn't hit you too hard."

I shook my head. "I know to expect deaths in this job. I just never expected that the first one would happen at my first ever callout. That woman should never have left her baby on its own."

Harry gave my shoulder another pat. "Let me know if you need to talk about it."

I nodded, before I resumed helping to pack up the equipment.

…

It was almost nine o'clock by the time we arrived back at the fire station. I knew that grandad would arrive shortly to pick me up, so I immediately went upstairs to get changed into my casual clothes.

When I entered the locker room, I was surprised to find that Simon's locker had been emptied and his uniform was lying neatly on a nearby bench. Hearing someone else enter the locker room, I automatically asked them, "Has Simon gone home?"

"I don't think so," Fireman Anderson replied. He turned to look at the other firemen who'd entered the room with him. "Have any of you seen Simon?"

They all shook their heads. I decided not to worry about it as I went into the showers to wash and change.

About five minutes later, I went downstairs to sign off and meet grandad. However, when I reached the base of the stairs, I saw Station Officer Michaels talking to a man who I assumed was Simon's father.

"…Surely, it's your responsibility to know where your crew is at all times?" the man said.

"The last I saw of Simon, he was heading upstairs to get changed after my training session with him. Ah! Sam. There you are. Is Simon upstairs?"

"No, sir. But, his locker has been cleaned out, and he's left his uniform on a bench."

Station Officer Michaels immediately looked concerned. "We'd better search for him. He can't have gone far."

"I'll search the back carpark," I volunteered.

"Thanks, Sam."

I borrowed a torch from the rack of spare equipment near the rear appliance bay doors, Then, I went outside into the carpark. "Simon!" I called. I scanned the carpark with the light from my torch. Seeing nothing, I was about to go back inside the fire station when a flutter of wings caught my attention.

Oh, not you again! I thought as the pwca, still in the form of an owl, swooped over me. I watched it fly up to the top of the training tower, where it perched and looked down the far side. A sense of dread filled me as I made my way around to the far side of the training tower.

As I rounded the corner, I focused my torch on what appeared to be a bundle of clothing lying at the base of the tower. The light reflected off a pool of blood next to the bundle. I drew in a deep breath as I realised what had happened to Simon.

Somehow, I managed to find my voice. "Sir! I've found him!"

I heard running footsteps as those searching for Simon ran over to where I was standing. Station Officer Michaels froze beside me when he saw what my torchlight was focused on.

"Tony, go and fetch a sheet," he ordered softly. "McArthur, you'd better phone for an ambulance."

They both hurried away to fulfil their tasks. I remained standing where I was while Station Officer Michaels crouched down beside Simon to check his pulse. After a moment, he looked up at us and shook his head sadly.

"It can't have happened more than twenty minutes ago. That's when I sent him upstairs to change."

Hearing the pwca hoot, I glanced up at the top of the training tower. It stared straight back at me with its piercing red eyes. My vision clouded over, and I felt myself starting to pass out. If felt as though the pwca had put me under its spell.

"Sam!" Fireman Peters shouted as I collapsed. I felt someone lay hold of my torso before darkness surrounded me.

…

"Sam? Sam, can you hear me?"

I moaned as the stranger's voice penetrated through the fog that had enveloped me. I felt something wrapped tightly around my left arm, almost cutting off my blood supply and leaving my fingers tingling with numbness. Opening my eyes, I found that I was lying on a bed inside the fire station's sick bay. A paramedic was leaning over me, checking my blood pressure. That's what was causing the tightness around my arm. Looking around, I saw that grandad and Harry were also in the room.

"I think he'll be okay now," the paramedic told them. "He's just suffering from shock, so keep him warm and quiet for the next few hours. If he starts showing more shock symptoms, take him to an emergency department immediately."

"I will," granddad agreed.

The paramedic removed the strap from around my arm. I waited until I could feel my hand again before I tentatively sat up.

Station Officer Michaels entered the room. "How is he?"

"I think he's feeling better," grandad replied.

"Good. Sam, in light of what's happened tonight, I'm ordering you to undergo counselling. You're not the only one. Everyone who was on duty tonight will be made to have at least one session with the counsellor."

"I understand, sir," I said tiredly. I focused my attention on grandad. "A allwn fynd adref, os gwelwch yn, taid? (Can we go home, please, grandad?)"

"Siŵr, Sam."

…

A coroner's inquiry later established that Simon had committed suicide as a result of his parents' recent divorce and bad university grades. No blame was placed on any members of our brigade, but we were all affected by his death in one way or another. However, the counsellor who came to see us was very helpful, and I was deemed fit to return to my trainee duties after just two counselling sessions.