The Fire And The Gun

Ravira's POV

The heat was a living thing, clawing at the filters of my oxygen mask as I kicked through the charred remains of the double doors.

Alarms screamed from somewhere deep inside the Sawyer estate, a high pitched mechanical wail that cut through the roar of the flames. Thick, greasy black smoke rolled across the ceiling, blocking out the light. As a search and rescue paramedic, I'd been trained to compartmentalize the terror, to focus only on the heat signature of a life.

"Ravira! Get out of there!" My radio crackled. "The roof on the east wing is about to collapse!"

"I hear a child!" I yelled back, my voice muffled by my respirator. "I'm not leaving him."

I didn't wait for a response, I ran deeper into the burning mansion, my boots sinking into the melting carpet. I followed the high, thin sob of a child. In the far corner of the massive library, huddled under a burning desk, was a boy- no older than six, clutching a stuffed wolf.

I lunged forward, scooping him into my arms. "I've got you, buddy. Hold on tight."

He buried his face in my heavy turnout coat, his tiny body shaking violently. I turned to make a run for the exit, but a sudden crash blocked my path. A heavy beam had fallen, sending a shower of orange sparks into the air and sealing the hallway.

"Damn it," I muttered, pivoting toward the adjoining master study.

The smoke in the study was thinner but the heat was suffocating. I ran toward the balcony doors, intending to break the glass and jump out, when a wet choking sound made me freeze.

Through the haze of the fire, near the massive stone fireplace, two figures were locked together. It didn't look like a rescue, it looked more like a slaughter.

Arthur Sawyer, the billionaire patriarch of the Sawyer empire was on his knees, his face turning a sickening shade of purple. Standing over him was a younger man, his hands wrapped tightly around Arthur's throat, squeezing tightly with a force that intended death.

Even in the firelight, I recognized him. Arrow Sawyer. Arthur's adopted son and the golden boy to the family fortune.

Arrow's face was a mask of cold, blood thirsty focus. He didn't look like a man who had the intention of saving his father, he looked like a monster enjoying the kill. A silver signet ring flashed on his finger as he squeezed. I watched helplessly as Arthur's hands flared weakly against Arrow's arms before dropping to the floor.

My radio creaked causing Arrow's head to snap toward the sound.

"Ravira! Get out of that place! Ravira if you can hear me- leave!"

I took a step back, clutching the boy in my arms even tighter but it was too late. Arrow had already noticed me. His eyes were a pale piercing gray completely devoid of panic, even as the room blurred around him. He didn't run. He didn't yell. He just stared at me, his eyes memorizing every detail before he dropped Arthur's body and backed into the thick wall of smoke behind the desk disappearing like a ghost.

"Chief, I need immediate evac at the south balcony!" I screamed into my radio. "And Arthur- Arthur Sawyer is still in here." I turned around and ran for the glass doors, kicking them open and spilling out onto the cool stone terrace.

Ten minutes later, I was on the wet grass of the lawn, the kid was wrapped in an emergency blanket while paramedics checked his vitals. The mansion was a raging inferno behind us, a towering column of orange and black that painted the night sky.

"You did good, Ravira," Chief David said, handing me a bottle of water. His face was streaked with soot, his eyes tired. "But you need to let the investigators handle the rest."

"Chief, it wasn't just a fire," I said, my hands shaking so badly the water sloshed over the plastic rim. I pulled him away from the other paramedics, my voice dropping to a harsh whisper. "I saw someone in the study. Arrow Sawyer. He was strangling his father before the roof fell."

David's expression went completely flat. He didn't look surprised. He looked terrified and that's what scared me the most

He grabbed my shoulder, his grip tightening until it was bruising. "Listen to me very carefully, Ravira. Arthur Sawyer died of smoke inhalation. It was an electrical malfunction, that's what caused the fire. That is the official report. Do you understand?"

"But I saw him!" I argued, my voice rising in panic. "His hands were around his throat!"

"You saw shadows and smoke, Ravira," David hissed, his eyes darting toward the black sedans parked near the police barricade. "Arrow Sawyer is now the new head of this territory's largest energy conglomerate. If you start throwing around murder accusations, your job won't be the only thing you'd lose. So keep your mouth shut."

He walked away, leaving me standing in the cold rain, the smell of burning wood and copper clinging to my skin. I raised my head up to see Arrow standing near the police barricade, his eyes locked onto mine and it made my heart race fast in fear.

He was watching me.