I didn't stop for the red lights and at this hour I don't think it mattered all that much. For the first time since the puppy mill, Saturday night, I realized the smell of smoke had gotten into something. It might have been my jeans or my running shoes or even my car. Thick, it made me a little nauseous and I opened all the windows wide which only made it worse.
I made the final turn down Central, and my stomach froze when I saw the parking lot. I saw the fucking Michelin Woman's car there. It wasn't even six yet and she was there reviewing my shit to fire me.
Fuck m e.
I turned into the lot, probably out of force of habit, because there was no way I was going in there to give her the personal joy of firing me to my face. The smell got worse and I started to get sick to my stomach, like my mind was really fucking with me.
Then I saw the dark grey smoke seeping out of the clinic roof. I stepped out of the El Dorado and as I did, I saw the lobby filled with clouds of white smoke.
A ball of fire the size of a refrigerator appeared in the lobby and raced to the front door, doubling in size. It exploded into the entrance way and blew out the glass all over the parking lot. I could feel the heat on my face twenty feet away. Claudia was trapped in there.
I sprinted through the front threshold, holding my arm over my mouth as much as I could. I couldn't see a damn thing, but I knew the office and took the sharp left after the reception area, into the director's office.
"Claudia! Claudia!" No answer. I coughed like a son-of-abitch as I felt my way around her desk. I felt for a handful of curly black hair and found it.
The fat bastard weighed close to three hundred, but I got my hands under her armpits and pulled as hard as I could. I ran backwards through Trina's small office, which filled with smoke. I wheezed and hacked but I wasn't on fire, at least not yet. The back of my head slammed into a wall, sending a wicked throb through my head. I dropped Claudia and had to find her underarms again.
Her body went limp.
I got a hold on her and drove my legs as hard as I could. I grunted and yelped with the effort and then I had to stop to hack out more smoke. One last pull and I dragged her out to the smoke-filled sidewalk. I pulled harder toward my car, dragging her to the front of it. I was out of breath, and began puking from the smoke.
I could hear sirens. When I looked down Claudia wasn't breathing.
The one in-service I think I actually attended covered CPR. I straddled her, swept her mouth clean and pressed my lips to hers and blew. I did it several times and then shimmied down her body, and compressed her chest. I went back up and puffed a few more breaths and repeated the compressions.
"Come on you fat bastard!" The trucks pulled into the lot. Claudia wretched and spit something up, part of it hitting me in the face. She coughed and coughed and moaned and started to rock from side to side. The next thing I knew there were two firemen pushing me out of the way and taking over. I took a step backward and fell down.
I heard the roof cave in the clinic, creating a loud 'whoosh' of air that sent billows of smoke and flames to the sky.
"Get back, you've got to get back," someone yelled. Whoever it was helped me to my feet and we ran together toward the back of the lot. As we did the clinic collapsed on itself. Seconds after, the ambulance carrying Claudia sped past me.
50
I sat there and watched the place burn. Trina was the first one there and Monique came by shortly after. We didn't say much; it just felt really weird.
A crowd of onlookers gathered. The fireman had the thing under control, but they continued to spray water on charred hunks of what used to be the clinic. I guess that's what they have to do to stop it from starting up again.
I walked up to a fireman who was changing his coat at the back of one of the trucks.
"The lady they took away-is she going to be-"
"You the guy who went in and got her, and did CPR?"
"Yeah."
"Well, pal, you'll never forget today. She was gone-flat lined and you brought her back. She was responsive and talking in the ambulance. How does it feel to save a life?" he said with a big grin.
"There's no way I could explain it to you." I walked back to my small circle of co-workers.
"What do we do now?" Trina said.
"I'm taking a personal day," I said. Everyone laughed. I started to head toward the El Dorado, which had its finish singed. I didn't know what fucking universe I was in, but I knew one thing. When AJ turned the knob on his front door at 12:01 I would be behind him.
"Hey, Duff!" A voice came from the other side of the lot, a little down the street. I couldn't make out who it was, but it looked like some guy walking his daughter. I walked toward thetwo of them while they walked toward me. As we got closer I noticed it was Sparky.
"Hey Duff, hell of a thing," he said.
"Yeah, unbelievable," I said.
"Kristy," Sparky looked at the little girl. "Say hello to Mr. Duffy."
"Hi Mr. Duffy," Kristy had two little ponytails and blond hair. She could've been the Sunbeam bread girl.
"That's my daughter, Duff," Sparky said with a big smile.
"But, I thought Paula said-"
"Weird, Duff. Last night I got my first call from Paula in years. Asked me if I heard about some drill at the school. Then she says it was no drill and she saw some stuff no one else did. Said she didn't know why, but she followed you and your buddy out into the woods and saw what really went down. Said she heard all sorts of scary shit. Said she saw my counselor doing some sort of heroic stuff and she changed her mind about me and Kristy." Sparky smiled.
I looked at him with my mouth open.
"So when they get the clinic open, you'll still be my counselor, right?"
"Well, I don't know if I'll be around. Remember-"
"You had some paperwork trouble." Sparky nodded to the clinic. "Doesn't look like there's any paperwork for anyone to check, if you ask me."
"Sparky-"
"Paula says she's callin' the clinic and rescindin' her complaint about you breaking that confidentiality shit. Gonna say she made it up to get me in trouble," Sparky said.
"I think the files are kept in metal file cabinets so they are fire protected. They're probably in that mess somewhere," I said.
"Duff, my experience tells me that the right incendiary device combined with the right accelerant will raise the temperature of a fire sufficient enough to incinerate metal and reduce it and its contents to cinders." Sparky looked me in the eye.
"Say 'thank you' to Mr. Duffy," Sparky said to Kristy.
"Thank you, Mr. Duffy," Kristy said in the absent-minded way kids repeat things.
"Sparky-"
"I'll call for an appointment, Duff," he said. "We gotta go. We're going to the zoo and then the movies." He waved as he walked down Central Avenue.
51
I was on Schlitz number three, watching the local news report the fire at Jewish Unified Services was caused by a faulty electrical outlet. Jerry Number Two came in, but focused on his laptop, and AJ loaded the coolers.
I didn't mind.
Number four slid in front of me as the door opened and Trina came in. AJ asked what she wanted and she ordered a Jack and Diet Coke.
"You saved Claudia's life?"
"Don't remind me," I said.
"With CPR and mouth-to-mouth."
"Talk about nightmares."
"And there are no clinical records left. None to be reviewed, no treatment plans, no discharge summaries…nothing." I shrugged.
"Welcome back."