Rescued Hearts (Hero Series) (4 page)

Nick didn’t respond. He just looked at his father and listened.

Mr. Gates shook his head from side to side answering his own question. “It’s not living Nick. And at some point, you’ll have to let Amy go so you can live a life full of happiness.”

“How do you do that, Pop? How do you let go of someone you love?”

“When you love someone, that love doesn’t die when they do. That love stays in your heart forever. But you have to say goodbye to the life you shared with Amy so you can begin a new life. A life filled with happiness.”

“I can’t say goodbye to Amy.”

“Maybe not today or tomorrow but at some point I believe you will. Nick, you don’t want to waste your life being married to your grief. No good will ever come from. You’ll just be torturing yourself and you’ll become an old grouch. I’ll have to start calling you Ebenezer Scrooge.”

Nick chuckled as his father’s joke and said, “I hear you pop. I’m just not ready.”

“One day you will. I have faith in that.” Leaning over to put his hand on Nicks, Mr. Gates continued saying, “And when that day happens, I’ll see that joy beaming from your face. I’m proud to call you my son and nothing in this world can take that away from me. You’ll be fine.”

Nicks heart felt lighter after hearing his dad’s kind words. “Thanks pop. I appreciate that.”

Resting his back on the couch again Mr. Gates continued, “On another note, your mom and I are heading down to Florida for a 5 day Caribbean cruise. Since you’ve got some free time on your hands, you’re more than welcome to join us?”

“Thanks Pop. You and mom have a great time but I’m hoping this suspension the captain put me under isn’t going to last much longer. I want to be ready when he calls.”

“Well if you change your mind just give us a call.”

Nick smiled and nodded his head yes.

“In the meantime, how about a game of chess with your old man?”

“Sure.” Nick said.

After watching the evening news it was Nick’s time to get out of the house and go for a walk. He enjoyed the walks because it allowed him to clear his head before he went to bed for the evening. It also gave him an opportunity to think about the conversation he had with his dad earlier that day.

As he headed down Sacramento Avenue, he was saddened to see that the café shop he and Amy used to frequent was going out of business. Nick thought,
I’ll have to go there one more time before they close their doors for good. I wonder if they still have that carrot cake Amy enjoyed so much.

As he turned the corner, he saw Palmer Square Park. Walking by the 3 city blocks of serene undeveloped park, he thought about evenings he and Amy would walk the park while fresh snow would powder the landscape. The memory bringing a smile to Nick’s face, he recalled his earlier conversation with his dad,
but you have to say goodbye to the life you shared with Amy so you can begin a new life. A life filled with happiness.

Nick thought,
how do I even do something like that? Feel like I would be betraying her memory.
Realizing that every turn he took was reminding him of Amy; he decided to walk down Albany Street. Knowing that he never ventured down this street before wouldn’t bring up any memories of Amy.

***

Susan was listening out for any news worthy stories on her iPhone using a recently downloaded app called Emergency Radio. In the news industry, if someone’s bleeding or in mortal danger, that would be a leading story in the newsroom. Susan believed that big breaking exclusive story would happen one day. Unfortunately that wouldn’t be tonight because Susan’s favorite show was about to begin.
Perfect timing!
She thought.
Just in time to watch Dancing with the Stars!

Grabbing the remote to her 54” Sony LED slim screen TV, she tuned into her favorite show and laid down on her modern white leather sofa. While watching TV she thought
what fun it would be to take ballroom dancing lessons. I wonder if Tom would be up for it.

During a commercial break, Susan went to the kitchen to make some Chamomile tea, her usual routine before she went to bed. Hearing that the TV commercials were still being shown she thought,
I hate all these commercials. I really need to get a DVR so I can just record my shows and skip those annoying commercials.

Even though she threw out the trash and ran the dishwasher, Susan smelled an odor in the air. Immediately rolling up the bamboo blinds, she opened up the kitchen window. Then grabbing two small vanilla scented candles from the kitchen drawer, she placed them on the window ledge and lit the candles. Hearing that her show was back on, she grabbed her chamomile tea and headed over to the living room. A few minutes later, her iPhone rang. It was Liz.

“Hi Liz.”

“Hi. I’m stuck on a decision and need another woman’s advice. Do you have a moment?”

“Of course silly, what’s up?”

Susan turned the TV off, grabbed her chamomile tea and starts heading upstairs to the master bedroom.

Grabbing her TV remote off the bedroom night table, she turned it on to catch the last 20 minutes of her show comfortably laying down on her queen size bed at the same time listening to Liz.

Downstairs in the kitchen, the bamboo window blind rolled back down onto the candles and instantly caught on fire. Spreading furiously throughout the kitchen, the fire devours the wooden kitchen cabinets and the lovely silk flowers that were sitting above them.

“So I’m having some difficulty deciding what color to paint the walls in the living room for the new house?” Liz said.

The fire has made its way out of the kitchen down the foyer which leads to the front door. The kitchen fire alarm has failed.

“Have you narrowed down your choices?” Susan asked.

“I’m stuck between a sage and tan color. Are you watching Dancing with the Stars?”

“Yes. Why don’t you go with both?” Answering Liz while holding her hand up towards the TV, Susan gave a disagreeable expression on the judge’s decision to eliminate one of her favorite dance couples.

Now having claimed the main entrance to Susan’s home, the fire now begins making its way up the staircase.

“I would go with the tan color as your primary and then use the sage as your border color for trimming your walls and window sills. That should also go great with your dark furniture unless you’re buying new furniture?”

“No, no, no that actually sounds good. I can actually picture it in my mind and those colors will go perfect with the furniture.”

“Yeah, I think that will go nicely.” Susan said.

“Thanks for putting your Martha Stewart thinking hat on and coming up with that great idea.”

“Hey what are friends for?” Susan stepped into the adjoining master bathroom and began running the sink water. “Anyway Liz, I’m going to bed now so if there’s nothing else we’ll talk soon OK?” “Not a problem sweetie. Goodnight and thanks.”

“Goodnight.” Susan said.

Once she was done brushing her teeth and turned off the water, she walked into the bedroom grabbed the remote from bed and turned the TV off. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she heard the eerie sound of the first-floor fire alarm going off.

Opening her bedroom door she thought,
Oh please tell me it’s not what I think it is. Oh God no, I smell smoke.

Her heart beat begins to speed up as she rushes to the staircase to see the awful reality of the fire creeping its way up to the second floor. Susan rushed back to the bedroom window which faces the front of Albany Street. She opened up the bedroom window and yelled,
“Please someone help me! Can anyone hear me? My home is on fire! Help me, Help me please!”

Albany Street was incorrectly named as far as Nick was concerned.
Should’ve been called Albany Avenue or Albany Boulevard because this street seemed to go on forever.
He thought.
If I don’t walk into Sacramento Avenue or some street I’m familiar with, I’ll have to turn around and go home the way I came.

The good thing about getting lost is it gave him time to think about something else rather than Amy. Not that he would admit to anyone, but he did miss his job and his friends at the firehouse. He missed the joking around but especially the action and adrenaline that kicks in when the firehouse alarm starts ringing. The rush of rappelling down the side of a building, running into a burning building, saving lives and making a difference in this crazy world.

Feeling tired now and unable to see the end of Albany Street, he decided to turn around and go back home the way he came.

“Please someone help me! Can anyone hear me? My home is on fire! Help me, Help me please!”

Nick heard the distant cry of a woman’s voice for help clearly but figuring it must’ve been around the bend of the street because he couldn’t see a fire.

Nick ran as fast as he could down the street and there it was. The fire already dominated the 1
^st
floor of a brownstone building with plenty of smoke coming out a 2
^nd
floor window.

“Help me, Help me please!”
Nick seeing the woman sticking her head out the window, yelled back.

“i’LL BE RIGHT THERE. KEEP BREATHING OUT THE WINDOW AND GET As LOW AS YOU CAN!”

Nick looks through the front door’s side window pane noticing the fire controlling the entrance, “Front door - definitely not an option.” He said.

Looking up to the 2
^nd
floor window, unable to see the woman’s head anymore, he said, “Oh well Captain, looks like I’ve got one more solo act to perform.”

This particular brownstone building didn’t have fire escapes on the front; only in the rear of and he didn’t see an alley. Nick noticed the adjacent brownstone was the same height. “Guess I’m jumping rooftops.”

He rushes to the main entrance of the apartment building “Great!” speaking sarcastically “I’ve got to get buzzed in”.

He presses all six buttons on the intercom panel. Instead of some person just buzzing him in, he hears the voice of someone who had one too many drinks. “Please leave your message at the sound of the beep and your donation at the door ha, ha,” said the drunken man.

Nick responded quickly, “This is the fire department. Buzz me in please!”