What the firefighter said
before the aliens arrived...
Hi,
Buckle up fair readers because a lot happened this week! But first some quick book news!
Rogue Gift, book 5 of the Robin of Larkspur series, is out now as an ebook. Melinda is working on the paperback still. So that’s coming.
Summon the Gods, book 2 of the Rogue Gods Trilogy, is out now also.
I’m Ran, your friendly fictional host and I am also the son of the curse breaker. So what trouble did I get into this week? I know you’re wondering, and I won’t keep you in suspense any longer.
This past week started out with someone banging on my scribe’s door at 9 pm in the evening. Was it an early trick or treater?
No, nothing so fun as that. The knocker came with a warning. There was a fire in my scribe’s apartment building!!!
So of course the fictional characters present rushed to get her out of the building even though that cut into her writing time. I was getting some good page time and finally giving a certain character a piece of my mind. If you think about it, you can probably guess who I finally told a thing or two. I’ve only said I’d do it for many books, and I finally got my chance until the fire interrupted things.
But you’ll be proud of me because I put my hunger for page time aside and rushed my scribe out of the building. We didn’t smell or see any smoke as we rushed up the six steps to the lobby and out the door. But we didn’t stop until we were outside just in case.
Once out of the building, lights flashed and firefighters seemed to be everywhere at once doing all kinds of things. Melinda’s neighbors stood in groups and we checked the groups to make sure her neighbor heard the warning. Since Melinda didn’t see a fun-loving 80-something year old substitute teacher roaming about trying to get the inside scoop on things, my scribe dashed back into the building and went to fetch her.
This all happened before I could stop her. But there still wasn’t any smoke on Melinda’s end of the building so she was fine and her neighbor could take her time getting dressed for her grand entrance, which she made about ten minutes later.
Was there a fire?
Yes, it was at the other end of the building. Smoke wafted out of a second floor window in someone else’s apartment until the brave firefighters put it out.
Three firetrucks and one ConEd truck responded to the fire probably because we’re in a drought right now and there’s an elevated risk of wildfires. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, there are 16 wildfires burning in the US as of Oct. 25, when we checked the report out of curiosity. So please be careful if you’re experiencing a drought or live in an area prone to burning.
Once the fire was out and everyone could return to their apartments, Melinda didn’t go inside like a good scribe and resume writing that scene we’ve all been waiting for. What did she do instead?
Hang onto your hat friends because this is where the story gets a bit fantastical. But I assure you, this really happened!
Okay, enough beating things around the bush. What did Melinda do?
Remember her neighbor who’s in her 80s? Well, that neighbor suggested they walk for a bit and try to find out what caused the fire. Melinda loves to walk so she agreed. They walked past first one firetruck as the firefighters coiled their hoses, then past another one. Each time they asked what started the fire. Was it electrical?
Finally one firefighter said it wasn’t electrical. The fire started because some materials were left in an apartment that is under construction and they caught fire. He ran away before they could ask anything else and no one would say anything else.
So we don’t know if the mysterious materials spontaneously combusted or if a ghost set fire to them. What do you think happened?
Not satisfied with this, our intrepid explorers walked toward the exit of the apartment complex where the driveaway met the road. There they found four men and one women wielding lightsabers. I am not making that up. They were in the middle of the road waving lightsabers about!
So of course Melinda walked up to them and asked if they would have a lightsaber duel! And do know what they said? Yes!
So the five people started pretending to battle each other until a car rolled toward them. Then they ended their duel and used the lightsabers to direct traffic. Apparently, they were volunteer firefighters on traffic duty since the driveway is just wide enough for a firetruck, but no car could get past it until it left.
Since the show was over, Melinda and her neighbor headed back toward their building and that’s when the aliens signaled them. At least that’s our theory because the streetlight started flickering in a pattern.
But they didn’t know morse code so we don’t know what the aliens wanted. (I’ll bet they want page time too, but they can’t have it!) If you are in contact with them, please ask them to send a message in a more readable format. Thank you!
And that, dear reader, was just one night. Thankfully everyone was okay and the fire didn’t hurt anyone. But there’s some water damage to two apartments, so that’s not good.
Melinda and her neighbor sustained no damages. They walked away with a funny story. When Melinda went to the office the next day, she told her coworkers about the fire, and do you know what happened next?
The fire alarm went off! Everyone had to exit the building, but there was no fire. We think it was a planned test of the fire alarms since the fire department, which stands right next Melinda’s office building, didn’t come see what was going on. How is that for a coincidence?
After you finish reading this story, please go and check your fire alarms. Make sure they work and make sure you have a fire extinguisher. Melinda has one but we need to learn how to operate it.
Please have a safe week!
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