Out of the Ordinary: a novella

Genevieve Rawlings

“Grant is one of five firefighters currently missing after the fire changed to their direction, we lost contact shortly after we noticed,” a man says over the phone. I look around my small studio apartment and try to find something, anything, to hold on to. “I tried to call his parents since they are his next of kin, but I wasn’t able to get in touch with either of them.”

I slowly fall to the floor, bile rising to my mouth. I slowly swallow, trying to keep myself from vomiting, and take a deep breath.

“Genevieve,” he says, calling me by my full name instead of the nickname I’ve gone by my whole life.

I only get called Genevieve when people are trying to get me to be serious about a situation. Well, I guess this counts.

“My parents are in Florida with the rest of our family, we were the only ones that couldn’t go…” I trail off.

Glancing at the clock on my wall, I realized that it was almost midnight their time. We were three hours behind them, so that meant they were probably sleeping. They probably thought they were getting spam calls.

“How long has he been missing?” I ask.

“Shortly after sunset. We have helicopters ready to go, but the fire…”

He didn’t have to finish that sentence.

Yes, my brother was on their list of priorities, but their top priority was that huge fire blazing all of California. Coming from Chicago and New York, wildfires have never impacted my life until now.

“Listen, it’s going to be a long night, but we’re going to find him. Your responsibility right now is to inform your parents when you reach them and to keep your phone on you so I can update you when I have updates to give, okay?”

Panic fills me.

“I don’t know if I should be the main person to do that, I can give you his girlfriend’s number,” I feel my chest tighten at the thought of his girlfriend.

Riley.

Does she even know?

I know she has to be worried out of her mind because she knows Grant is out there. I can’t imagine what she’ll do when she realizes he’s missing.

“Nope. I’m choosing you. I’ve heard great things about you from your brother, and I know you can handle it. Okay, Genevieve?”

Tears sting my eyes, but I nod even though he can’t see me.

“Okay.”

“Grant knows what he’s doing out there and he’s good at it. I will find him and the others, don’t you worry.” I wipe the tears.

“Okay,” I say again, but my voice cracks.

“Genevieve?”

“Yeah?”

He’s quiet for a moment. I’m worried for a moment that he’s about to tell me to stop crying, I have been doing it a lot lately pre-Grant getting lost in the woods, but there’s no way his Regional Fire Captain would know that. Grant doesn’t even know that.

“I’ll call you if anything changes.”

“What’s your name again?” I ask him.

I didn’t catch it when he introduced himself to me earlier.

“Captain Walker. Adam. You can call me Adam.”

“Thank you, Adam.”