BEHIND THE CURTAIN
CHAPTER ONE
Valley of Death
"Oh look, it's Blackwall, what time do you call this?"
Shadbrook had been attending a kitchen fire. They had dealt with most of the incident by the time Blackwall's Blue Watch arrived on the scene to be greeted by Alex Harris, Shadbrook's leading hand. She was in charge of the pump crew that morning.
"Anything for us?" Mick asked, jumping down from the cab.
"Don't think so," Alex replied, looking back at the blackened kitchen as the Shadbrook crews continued the dampening down. "A toaster blew up."
"Char-grills all round then!" Charlie grinned.
"It is if that cook of yours is still around!" Alex retorted, having heard the tales of Blackwall's cook, Lisa, who almost burnt the fire station down once.
Charlie looked as if he was about to melt at the mention of Lisa's name. She wasn't around anymore, not that it mattered to him.
"She got a better job," Craig put in helpfully.
"Really? You mean there's something better than feeding you lot?!"
The sarcasm was lost on Craig.
"We'll get going then," Mick cut the banter short. "If you're sure?"
"I think I can handle a small metal object Mick! Or is it Sir these days?"
"With any luck," Mick muttered without enthusiasm.
He was going up in front of the promotion board very soon, hoping to pass the interview and claim his full Station Officer rank. He had been busy swotting for it, but he couldn't stop the doubts niggling away at him. Was he really good enough to run Blue Watch?
The crew piled back into the appliance
and headed back to the station.
DO Dexter Ross had decided that it was his mission in life was to make sure his boy was something to be proud of. In fact, the only thing the lad had ever done to please him was join the Brigade. Craig wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but the Brigade would teach him a thing or two. Sometimes he just needed a push in the right direction.
Ross was paying one of his regular
visits to Blackwall fire station. He didn't that see that he had any conflicting
interests there, even if that was where Craig was stationed. He wasn't
going to show the lad any favouritism.
Blackwall's solitary crew were out
dealing with a kitchen fire, according to the log. Ross flicked through
the paper work in the watch room and tut-tutted at a few spelling errors
he came across. He shook his head as he read the name of the firefighter
who had made them. Craig Ross. Surely the lad wasn't getting sloppy?
"She's a bit of all right, though."
The silence was broken as the appliance pulled into the empty bay. It was Adam who had been yelling about some woman he obviously fancied.
"Out of your league though!" Charlie remarked.
"Wanna bet?!" Adam challenged.
Charlie grinned. "If you can pull Alex Harris, I will personally sign over everything I own to you!"
"DO's here," Mick commented on spotting DO Ross's car parked in the station yard.
Craig looked a little worried at his father's presence. He felt the DO followed him around. He always seemed to be hanging round training centre while Craig had been there, and now, coincidentally, he had come to Blackwall.
"Sir," Mick saluted the senior officer who returned the compliment. "What can we do for you?"
Ross seemed more concerned with watching Craig and Blue Watch's other new recruit, Zafar Ahmed, carry out their routine equipment checks. Ross suddenly flicked his attention to Mick.
"Actually, it's more of what I can do for you. I've found you some more personnel."
"Oh," Mick looked a little crestfallen, he had been hoping the DO had come with news about the Station Officers post.
"Alex Harris and Jamie McAllister," Ross diverted his attention to Craig again as he walked round the side of the appliance in front of the Watch room where the two officers stood.
"Alex?" Mick acknowledged. "She never said anything."
"Hmmmn," Ross didn't look too sure about Alex's impending presence on the Watch. "She's a bit of a fly by that one, you want to keep an eye on her," Ross advised, not taking his eyes off Craig.
Mick had sensed this. "He's doing fine," he assured the officer.
"Well, yes, good," Ross skated over the subject. "How about young Zafar? Not long out of training you know."
"He's fitting in well."
Zafar hadn't been with Blue Watch for long. He had only finished his training a few months ago and was still on probation. He had never really been clear on his reasons for transferring from his first station, Archway, except to say that they were personal. Mick assumed it had something to do with Zafar's Asian family. Not that it had to be of course, he didn't know why he had just assumed that.
"Anyway I just wanted to let you know about these transfers," Ross was telling Mick.
"Right sir," Mick felt that this wasn't the real reason the DO had come all the way down to Blackwall, after all he could just have phoned!
The DO left. Mick found Adam and Charlie arguing over which of them was more likely to pull Alex Harris. He wondered if he should give them the good news or make them sweat it out.
It would be good to have both pumps back on the run, that way they might be able to attend something more interesting than cats on roofs and rubbish fires. There was too much time to think at the moment. Too much time to reflect on things. He didn't want to discuss his problems with the Watch, not that they wouldn't understand, it was just… awkward.
He felt he would have been able to talk things over with Sally. But she was no longer around. She had opted for the "perfect" life with Frank Mooney. At least Frank had something to offer. He would look after Sally.
Now Mick had no one. It had been a nightmare when he had heard his own address read out when there was a fire at his house once. But then he had been able to rescue both his wife Shauna and their young son Liam. This time it had been even worse than a nightmare, hell on Earth perhaps.
He went home to an empty house every
night. He still expected to come home to find Shauna playing Spiderman
or some other silly game with Liam that involved them racing all over the
house. God, how he missed them both.
"Aren't you in the wrong station?" Charlie had clocked Alex as soon as she walked into the station for Blue Watch's night duty.
"No, I'm right," she smiled. "Did I forget to mention that I was gonna be your new leading hand?!"
"Must have slipped your mind," Charlie replied.
"This isn't Shadbrook is it?!" Adam joined them.
"We've already done that one," Charlie wasn't happy that Adam was trying to recycle his joke.
Adam glared at Charlie for a moment. "Need a hand?" he offered Alex, who was dragging all of her kit with her.
"Well, you can take that," she shoved the long kit bag at him, leaving herself with a blue sleeping bag and a pink sports holdall.
Adam dragged the bag up the stairs, wishing he hadn't offered.
"I would have offered," Charlie started. "But I know how you women like to be independent!"
"Why have a slave and do all the work yourself?!" Alex grinned. "Which one of you two jokers is going to give me the grand tour then?"
"He's the joker," Adam muttered. "I'm the mug!"
Both Charlie and Alex ignored his complaining.
"The Guv wants to see you," Charlie told Alex.
They made their way towards the dorms where they were interrupted by Craig hurrying passed them.
"Where's the fire?!" Charlie called after him.
"Sorry," Craig yelled as he legged it to the TV room. "You're gonna miss it!" he urged.
Charlie frowned. "Miss what?"
"His big moment," Adam replied.
"Oh yeah, I've gotta see this!" Charlie grinned.
They left Alex and rushed into the TV room after Craig.
"Hey," she tried calling after them. "Yeah, thanks a lot, I'll remember this!"
"Everything ok?" Mick asked as he reached the top of the stairs where Adam had dumped Alex's kit bag.
"Yeah, what's the excitement?"
"Local media wanted some shots of fire engines!" Mick explained. "Do you want a hand?"
"Well I did have one, but I guess… Thanks Guv."
Mick took Adam's place as the luggage handler. They went through the locker room to the curtained off area, where Sally's locker used to be. He had considered telling Sally about Shauna and Liam, but then decided that she had a new life now and didn't need, or probably want, him butting in and stirring all that up again.
"You ok Guv?" Alex noticed Mick was staring into space.
"Yeah, fine," he snapped back to reality. "I'm sure you'll fit in well here, Alex. I'll get one of the Watch to show you round."
"I don't think you'd be short of volunteers!"
Mick managed a smile. "Don't worry about Adam and Charlie."
"I don't."
Mick nodded. "I'll leave you to it
then."
"Where's the next Richard Burton then?!" Charlie asked as he, Craig and Adam were glued to the evening news report.
"Who?" Adam asked.
"Actor bloke."
"Oh, I didn't have you down as a lover of the arts!" Adam grinned.
Charlie looked uncomfortable. "I'm not!" then he grinned. "Impresses the birds though!"
Adam frowned. "You reckon?"
"Oh yeah."
"Guys, shut up, we're on!" Craig moaned as the news report switched to footage of Blackwall that had been recorded the previous day.
Unfortunately it was just a clip of the appliance driving out of the station. Craig looked very deflated.
"Oh… is that it?!" he asked downhearted as the program went back to the news room and the reporter carried on talking about the issues currently affecting the Brigade and the general public.
Adam shrugged. "Oh well."
"Good shot of the station," Charlie commented.
Craig wasn't happy though as he'd
missed his chance of fame.
At role call, Mick formally introduced Alex to the Watch. Geoff Pearce had also returned from his recent family holiday with his wife Fiona and baby daughter Eve. Mick then decided to announce that the third new bod would be arriving later on that evening, apparently because he had some personal issue to settle first. Another guy who refused to go into details about his private life.
"Anyone know this bloke?" Charlie asked as the Watch started to carry out their routing start of shift checks.
"McAllister? Unfortunately." Alex muttered.
"What do you make of him?" Adam questioned.
"Not much!" was the short reply.
Adam glanced at Charlie, who shrugged. They both wondered if they should press for more information, but Alex's tone had told them that she didn't want to talk about whatever sort of past she may have had with Jamie McAllister.
"What sort of knot would you call this?" Craig asked Zafar as he found a complicated looking knot in one of the rope lines.
Zafar shrugged, without bothering to inspect it. "I dunno."
"You ok?"
"Yeah, just," Zafar sighed. "Family stuff, you know."
"Yeah, tell me about it! Every time I go home after shift, my dad has to start on about something I've done wrong. Just because I haven't done something his way, then it's wrong."
"I get that. Must be tough having a divisional officer for a father!"
"It's like being in the Big Brother house, he's watching me all the time!"
Zafar grinned. "It's just a figure of eight."
"What is?"
"Your knot."
"Oh yeah," Craig paused. "I knew
that."
Blue Watch settled down with the prospect of a quiet Wednesday evening. Jamie McAllister still hadn't arrived so the pump ladder was once again off the run with Charlie, Pearce and Zafar having to stand down. Mick was beginning to get annoyed now. He hadn't received any sort of proper reason for Jamie's lateness.
The sound of the bells summoned the pump crew to a flat fire on an estate where uniforms, of any description, weren't always welcome. In fact, they were never welcome.
"Are the police on route?" Mick questioned as the four of them, he, Adam, Alex and Craig piled into the waiting appliance.
"Um… doesn't say, Guv," Adam passed the print out to Mick and started the appliance engine.
Mick got on the phone to Control. He wasn't a fan of the Greendale Estate. He didn't feel safe leading his crew into "the Valley of Death". Gangs of kids would hang around, waiting to cause trouble. Throwing bricks, glass bottles and whatever they could find, aiming at the firefighters as they tried to tackle the blaze - often started to lure them to the Estate.
This time was no exception. The police were no where around as Mick advised Adam to approach with caution. All four of them looked warily around out of their various windows, in search of both missiles and signs of fire as the appliance crawled silently, blue lights flashing, into the middle of the Estate.
High rise blocks of flats loomed
above them, casting dark shadows over them. There was no sign of anyone,
which was far from comforting. The sound of police sirens wailed in the
distance. It was a slight relief for the four firefighters, but none of
them noticed the broken brick plough through the front windscreen - until
it was too late.