Danger Zone (File One of The First Responders Files)

Chapter Fifty-Nine

I will forever say I always planned to post this on Valentine's Day. I'm counting on everyone to make sure I keep saying that . . . because really, I had kind of hoped to have this ready on Sunday, then I realized what today was, and I thought "Score!" XD So . . . Happy Valentine's Day, folks. Guess what present you're getting with this chapter of 11.2K words!

The truth sets one woman free and brings a reckoning to another, 51 reels in the aftermath, Owen gives counsel left and right, and Sylvie decides it's time for her to win, not Stella.

Enjoy the first part of "No Survivors!"

***

Sylvie had never gotten a worst night of sleep in her entire life . . . and she was counting the night after her first altercation with Stella Kidd.

She sat in the back of her ambulance, her nerves so off the charts she found herself having to cycle back to the beginning of her inventory list because she kept skipping materials. Her hair, previously pristinely tugged into one of her better infinity braids, had flyaway strands here and there from where she had been anxiously running her hand over her scalp. Her knee constantly bounced as she sat on the gurney, and she was well aware there were teeth marks on the end of her pen from where she had been absently chewing on the end of it. All of her more negative habits were rearing their heads . . . all because she had let her guard down, and she had been cornered by the one person she had been trying so hard to avoid.

Typical, she thought with a scoff, furiously wiping away tears she refused to let fall. Just when you think you can handle coming back to the city where everything fell apart, someone knows exactly how to make you shatter again.

"Cap?"

Sylvie let out an undignified yelp and scrambled off the gurney, only to smack her head on the ceiling of her ambulance. That yelp was followed by a loud curse, and as she rubbed her head, she glared at her wide-eyed partner, the man halfway into the ambulance. "Eddie!"

"Sorry, Sylvie," Eddie cleared his throat. "It's just . . . that's the third time I tried calling you."

"Oh," Sylvie sighed, bending down to pick up her inventory list. "Sorry. I, uh . . . I didn't have a good night."

"Didn't sleep well?"

Sylvie blushed. "Something like that," she muttered, resigning herself to starting over for the fourth time in less than thirty minutes. "Mind helping me with inventory? So I actually finish the list this time?"

"Sure," Eddie hauled himself into the ambulance, peering over her shoulder to look at her list. "Is there a discrepancy somewhere?"

"Just in my concentration," Sylvie grumbled. "I apologize in advance if I'm in a mood for this shift."

"I don't think you'll be the only one," Eddie shook his head.

Sylvie blinked, looking at him in surprise. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's just . . . " Eddie trailed off. "You didn't see Nolan or Severide or Captain Strand last night, did you?"

Sylvie tilted her head thoughtfully. "No, I didn't," she shook her head. "I didn't see them this morning, either." She pursed her lips. "Then again, I wanted to get here as soon as I could, so I didn't linger. Why do you ask?"

Eddie sighed. "All I know is Severide got a call, then he, Cap, and Nolan were out of there like bats out of hell. Something had to happen for them to run off that quickly."

Suddenly, the meager breakfast Sylvie had eaten churned in her stomach, and she shoved her clipboard into Eddie's chest, making her partner stumble back a bit. "Sorry," she swallowed hard, regretting the move as nausea rose again. "I think I need to lay down."