James cupped his hands around his eyes and strained to look through one of the glass panels on the side of the front door. No movement. He then tentatively rang the door-bell. No answer. Finally, he resorted to pounding on the door. Still no answer.
He knew if he called Gayle, once she saw the caller ID she wouldn’t pick up. He had no other recourse than to use his own key to get into the house. He reasoned to himself she was probably picking the kids up from some play date or perhaps had gone to the grocery store and would be home within the next hour.
Gayle had told him not to come around, and as it was, he wasn’t going to stay for more than a few minutes. Only time enough to give her an update of his journey toward recovery and to receive his kid’s forgiveness. Then he’d leave. Go back to his office and its pullout couch bed. In the meantime, he climbed into his old Lazy Boy armchair and turned on the television to watch his favorite program, 60 Minutes.
The TV hadn’t been on for more than ten minutes when James drifted off into a deep sleep. The night before had been rocky, and today’s activities had drained him completely dry of whatever adrenaline he ran on.
Everything caught up with him at once. And he was out. In fact, James didn’t budge from his sleep until he heard Gayle’s home phone ring off the hook. He nearly tripped as he charged across the living room and into the kitchen. The house was now completely dark save for the television screen.
“Hello?” he answered sleepily.
“James, is that you?” the woman’s voice on the other end asked.
“Yes, it’s me. Is that you, Sheriff Barbara? What’s going on? Are Gayle and the children all right?” James felt himself panic as he stared at the digital clock on the oven range. It read a few minutes past midnight.
“James, I called to speak to Gayle. Where is she? Is she there?” Barb asked worriedly.
“She’s not here, only me. Why are you calling her at this time of night?” He picked up the worry in Barb’s voice and felt his heart race.
“James, listen to me and listen up good. I called to tell Gayle the winery’s on fire and emergency services are on their way to the scene. I wanted to make sure Julia could come to your house—Gayle’s house—should Julia’s home be jeopardized. However, if she and your kids aren’t there, then perhaps they’re out at the winery. Crap!”
James was totally awake now. “You mean my family’s in the middle of this fire? Barb, I gotta go. Good God, they need me now more than ever!”
Barbara was about to tell him to stay put, that he’d only be in the way, but James slammed down the phone before she could get a word in. Swiftly, Barb ran to her SUV, turned on the siren, and sped toward the Nooksack Valley Winery and Vineyard, praying all the way that everyone was all right. That the winery itself could be saved in time.
James also ran out the door, but rather than praying, he cussed all the way down the road. “God dammit, Duncan. You weren’t supposed to burn the place down and put my family and everyone else in danger. Shit! Shit! SHIT!”
The closer James got to the facility, the bigger the flames and thicker the black smoke appeared. Immediately his tune changed from anger to pleading for the lives of his children. “Oh God, please help my family make it out safe. Forgive me, God. I’m so sorry. Please, I’ll do anything if you’ll only keep these people safe!”
He pulled his car over to the side of the road and slammed on his brakes. He struggled to breathe as soon as the heat of the night air hit his face. The tears in his eyes stung as they latched onto the heat and ash of the fire. He ran to get closer when at once he saw Diego do the same thing. Without hesitation, James called out, “Have you seen Gayle and my kids?”
“No, I just got here!” Diego yelled back. The collective rumble of the fire, fire hoses, and sirens made it nearly impossible to hear.
“I’m certain they’re in the house with Julia. I called both women earlier but no one picked up,” James yelled, beside himself with fear.
“Over here, Señor Reynolds. Hurry!” Diego motioned to James for him to follow as both men searched for a way to break into Julia’s home before the inconceivable happened.
Chapter 15
Julia’s home was unique. Designed by Robert’s father Buck, the tasting room, retail store, and administration offices adjoined her home, making it possible for her to access both areas via a steel door. The only other entrance and exit to Julia’s house was through her front door.
That meant Julia’s only bedroom was situated at the far end of the building with no outdoor access but a slight window stationed high above the ground. The house sat on a slope with the daylight basement functioning as a temporary store room.
It’d taken the children about an hour to quiet down and fall asleep, which meant Gayle and Julia didn’t hit the sack until after ten. Even at that, it took Julia at least another hour to finally conk off. Gayle, on the other hand, had always been a light sleeper, and since she already had the privilege of two naps earlier that day, her rest was fitful at best.
It made sense then that Gayle was the first to open her eyes when she heard the sound of sirens nearing the winery. The parade of emergency vehicles threw her for a moment as she opened the bedroom door and tiptoed out to the living room to see what all the commotion was about. She wasn’t there three seconds before she realized they were in a great deal of trouble. Smoke was filtering in from under the front door, making it difficult to not only see, but to breathe as well.
“Julia, wake up! The house is on fire!” Gayle screamed as she ran back to the bedroom where Julia and the four children were camped out.
Half-asleep, Julia at first thought she was having a nightmare. She had those quite often over the last year. But when she smelled the smoke, she immediately leapt out of bed.
“Come on, kids. Eduardo, Jimmy! We have an emergency and I need you boys’ help. Now!”
Sleepily, the boys opened their eyes. It was almost as difficult to wake children up as it was to get them to fall asleep. “What’s going on?” grumped Jimmy.
Gayle rushed into the room. “Girls, Bobbie and Felicia, time to get up! And hurry! We’ve a fire in the house, so we have to act quickly so we don’t get hurt!”
Jimmy darted out of his sleeping bag and grabbed his sister’s hand. Bobbie wanted to cry but was too scared to make a sound, let alone move her feet.
“Come on, Felicia. Wake up! We’ve to go! Now!” Eduardo said as he shook his sister.
“What do we do, Julia?” asked Gayle. “The front door’s locked and smoke is pouring into the living room.”
Julia thought for a second and then had an idea. “We need to make a run for the steel door separating the winery proper from my house.”
She then opened a drawer in her bureau and pulled out enough scarves for each of them to breathe into.
“Señora Julia.” Eduardo pulled on Julia’s pajama sleeve. “Diego told me if there ever was a fire that I shouldn’t run but crawl on the floor to the nearest exit. Smoke rises, so the air’s much better closer to the floor.”
Julia hugged him and smiled. “You’re absolutely right, Eduardo. Everyone down on your hands and knees. We‘ll all crawl to the steel door on the other side of the kitchen. Jimmy, you help your mom and your sister. Eduardo, you stay close to me and help with Felicia. Ready?”
The caravan of women and children moved slowly down the hall toward the other side of the house, coughing and gagging along the way. Bobbie refused to stop crying in spite of her mother’s attempts to quiet her down. Finally a little voice emerged from Felicia. “Don’t cry, Bobbie. My papa and uncle will come for us. We’ll soon be safe.”
Julia looked back at Gayle. She could tell by the expression on her face that Gayle had some of the same doubts Julia was experiencing. Not wanting to frighten the children anymore than they already were, she foll
owed up on Felicia’s words. “That’s right, Felicia. It won’t be long now and we’ll be safe!”
~ ~ ~
The fire department concentrated their efforts on the production barn, the burning vineyard, and the apartment units where the many workers and their families were housed. That left James and Diego to fend off the flames which engulfed the front of Julia’s house and the inside of the winery proper.
It didn’t take long for both Diego and James to see that whoever was inside Julia’s house was trapped. The basement store room also was a fountain of flames, as were all of the buildings situated on the hill.
“What do we do, Diego? There’s no way we can get into the house through either the basement or the front door. I can’t simply let my family die in there!” James said in a panic.
Diego thought for a moment. He then ran back to his truck and gathered his blankets. He dowsed them in the irrigation ditch situated along the gravel road before running back to where James stood.
“Here!” he said as he handed one off to James. “Put this over your back and head and we’ll try to get inside Julia’s home from the winery side. Follow me!”
The two men ran through the half-burnt front threshold of the winery proper and worked their way through the flames to where the steel door stood. Without thinking, James reached for the door knob, but as soon as he clasped his hand around it, he knew he’d made a horrible mistake.
“Diego!” he screamed as he pulled his hand away from the nearly molten brass fixture where half of his hand stayed behind. Quickly, Diego took the blanket off his own back and wrapped it around James’s blistered hand. He then forcibly turned him back toward the way they’d come in.
“You run out of here and fast!” Diego ordered. “In the meantime I’ll go get whoever may be left inside!”
James looked at Diego doubtfully.
“I promise! Now go!!”
As soon as James ran past him, Diego yanked off his shirt and wrapped it around his own hand. He then worked the door locks, turned the knob, and opened the door into Julia’s kitchen. There on the floor lay both Julia and Gayle along with the four children—all at different stages of consciousness.
“Uncle Diego, you came!” cried Felicia as she crawled toward him.
“Sí, of course, little one. Put your arms around my neck so we can run out of here fast.”
Gayle then lifted Bobbie toward Diego. “Here,” she said. “Take Bobbie. Take my children, please!”
Diego then shouted out to his nephew. “Eduardo, grab your friend’s hand and stay close.” Diego unwound the nearly dry and burnt shirt from his hand and placed it over the boys. With both girls in his arms, the five of them ran toward safety.
When James saw his children he wept. Jimmy ran to his father and hugged him. “It’s okay, Dad. Bobbie is here and so are my friends.”
By the time Diego emerged with the children, Mariela and Sheriff Barb appeared and administered first aid to James’s hand, telling him the EMT’s would arrive soon. When Mariela saw Diego with her children, she fell to her knees in relief. “Mother of God be praised!” she sobbed and crossed herself.
Barbara quickly asked what she was most afraid to ask. “And Julia and Gayle? Where are they?”
Diego ran toward the irrigation ditch to douse James’s blanket one last time.
“Inside waiting for me!” he cried as he threw the blanket over himself and headed toward where he’d last seen the two women.
“Wait!” Sheriff Barbara barked. “You can’t go back in there! It’s too dangerous!”
Too late. Diego had already made his way through the flames. He knelt down to where Julia and Gayle lay—arm in arm, waiting for death to come. Quickly, Diego rolled each woman onto his wet blanket and with all his strength, he pulled his cargo toward safety.
When he was but a few feet from escaping the charred inferno, a burning timber fell from the ceiling and hit the floor on end. When Diego saw it was about to tip over and land on Julia, he threw his body over hers to protect both her and her sister-in-law.
He suddenly felt a crashing thud to the back of his head. In that moment he thought about how glad he’d chosen to sleep outdoors that night. Otherwise, who knew what would’ve happened to Julia and all those who lived and worked at the winery. A smile came to his lips, and then his world turned black.
~ ~ ~
Out of the corner of the sheriff’s eye, Barb saw the timber fall from the ceiling and knock Diego off his feet. She quickly ordered her two deputies, Stefano and Christos, to pull Diego and the two women to safety.
As soon as they’d all made it to safety, Sheriff Barb told her deputies to go down to the compound to see if any more help was needed. The emergency medical team arrived only minutes earlier to work on James’s hand, as well as some cuts and bruises on the children. However, as soon as the EMTs saw the three nearly lifeless bodies of Julia, Gayle, and Diego, they turned their attention toward them.
Julia was the first to come around. Miraculously, she had but a few surface burns and some mild symptoms of smoke inhalation. Gayle had fared much worse.
Quickly, an oxygen mask was secured to help her breathe, and a salve applied to an ugly burn on the inside of her left leg. James was holding her limp hand and weeping uncontrollably.
“I’m so sorry, Gayle,” he kept whispering. “This is all my fault! All of it!”
Finally, the medical team announced they were taking both Gayle and James to the hospital and asked if there was anyone who could look after the Reynolds children. Mariela immediately stepped forward.
“I take responsibility for these children. They’re friends of our family, and we love them as our own.” Mariela knew she had to be strong for the children. It wasn’t easy for it now became clear her brother was hurt as well.
The medical team at a second ambulance had in the meantime attended Diego, who, like Gayle, had still not come to. Julia assumed the deputies dragged her and Gayle out of the fire. So why was Diego there? And why was he receiving medical attention?
When she saw Diego being given CPR, she suddenly lost it.
“Diego! Oh my God, no!” She couldn’t lose another man she loved this soon after the first. With her heart shattered, Julia ran to Diego but was stopped mid-stride by Barb.
Hearing the anguish in Julia’s voice, Barb turned just in time to stop her friend by throwing her arms around her.
“It’s okay, Julia, they know what they’re doing!” Barb said while holding Julia in her arms.
“What happened? Why’s Diego lying there hurt?” Julia demanded while struggling in Barb’s grasp.
In all of the chaos, it didn’t dawn on the sheriff that Julia had no idea how she’d been saved from the fire. Only that she and the children were safe, and that James and Gayle were at this very moment being transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital.
“Julia, listen to me! Diego went in with James to rescue you, but James burnt his hand nearly off and was no longer of any help. Diego got him out of the building but went back in to rescue the children. Then ignoring our advice, ran back in to pull you and Gayle out as well. Except on the way out, he was struck somehow on the back of his head.”
Seeing the anguish on Julia’s face, Barb took her in her arms. “He’s strong, Julia, and a survivor. He’ll make it. I’m sure of it!”
Julia finally shook herself out of Sheriff Barbara’s embrace and fell at Diego’s side.
“Diego, listen to me.” Julia picked up his hand and brought it to her cheek. “You’re not allowed to die. Do you hear me? I’ve already lost too many people close to my heart, and I refuse to lose you as well. I love you, and I don’t care who knows it. I know you love me too, you stubborn, prideful man. Please, don’t leave me. You’re the only thing left that matters to me.”
; “Julia,” interrupted Barb. “He’s got to get to the hospital. Do you want someone to take you there, or do you want to ride along with him in the ambulance?”
Julia gazed up at Barbara with her smoky, tear-stained face. “I want to stay with Diego.”
“Okay. I understand. I’m going to stick around here until the fire’s completely put out. Then I’m going to find temporary housing for your workers since everything is gone. I also want to do some investigating because if I’m not mistaken, something about this fire seems fishy to me.”
“I understand.” Julia hadn’t even thought about the winery, she’d been that concerned about Gayle and the children. And now all her energy was focused on Diego.
“Julia, we were lucky. My deputies tell me all your employees, their families, and pets made it out alive. We must be thankful for that.”
“Of course, you’re right. Thank God!” Julia worked at appearing stronger than she felt on the inside. “We’ll make it through this. Somehow, someway.”
As the EMT’s hoisted their patient into the back of the ambulance, Julia took her place by Diego’s side, repeating her mantra of I love you all the way to the hospital. Not until the surgeon and doctors took Diego into the operating room did she let go of his hand.
~ ~ ~
The chaos in the compound was as thick as the fog of smoke emanating from the fire. Rafael and Joaquin had done their best to get the families out of their units but had less luck putting out the fire.
The production barn was gone, as were the barracks. Julia’s home and the winery proper were gutted, and the vineyard was all but a few acres destroyed. Once the two men were sure everyone was safe, they decided to poke around and see if they could determine exactly how and where the fire started.
Love's Harvest (A Salmon Run Novel Book 1) Page 22
