Sirens in her Heart

Natalie Peck

Copyright 2015, The Electric Scroll

All rights reserved. Published in the United States of America by The

Electric Scroll. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any

form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,

recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without written

permission from the publisher. For information contact The Electric Scroll,

745 N. Gilbert Rd. Ste 124 PMB 197, Gilbert, Arizona, 85234.

The characters in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual

persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and entirely in the imagination

of the reader.

Thanks and Dedication

I wish I could deliver these thanks in person to Shirley

Thulin, a “mudder like no udder”, the most wonderful

gramma in the universe, seamstress extraordinaire, author,

and my first cheerleader.

She was one of the first readers of this, my very first

manuscript, and she liked it. Without her, I would never

have written a second book.

Sirens is dedicated to her, with the regret that she didn’t

live to see it published. Rest in Peace.

Books by Natalie Peck

Sirens in her Heart

Meet Me Midway

The Moms Place

A Gigolo for Christmas

Bits and Bites (an anthology)

Sirens in her Heart

Natalie Peck

1

The noise of the gong penetrated her sleep-deprived

brain. Rebecca struggled to sit up even as her hands groped

to pull on her short boots. A groan came from the next cot as

Roger rolled over and followed suit.

“Geez; Thursdays are usually quiet. Is the world going

crazy tonight?”

Rebecca flashed him a tight half-smile over her shoul-

der, reaching for the dispatch phone.

“Yeah, Tom, what’ve we got?” She grimaced as she jot-

ted down the address and other information on their call.

Roger finished tucking in his shirt for the fifteenth time to-

night and reached for his clip-on tie.

“That’s all you’ve got?” She listened and expelled her

pent-up breath. “Okay, we’re gone.”

She set the receiver back on its cradle and grabbed her

own tie. She ripped her note from the scratch pad, snapping

the scrap of paper to the top of her clipboard.

As they hurried to the ambulance, Rebecca told Roger

the address, then said, “I think you’re right; the world’s nuts.

This one’s a hostage situation.”

Sirens in her Heart

2

Roger’s mutters were lost in the sound of the siren. She

knew as they entered the street, he was fully awake and

planning the best route to the scene.

She wondered what to expect on the upcoming call. She

automatically looked for traffic on her side of the unit, and

mentally prepared herself.

When she caught herself preparing, she chided herself

for it. The need was no longer there, but it didn’t change

things much; it was now her habit.

When she’d been in training, her knowledge was new, as

were women in the emergency medical field. She’d fought

hard in her small hometown for the chance to show women

could be a viable and valuable asset on an ambulance.

No matter what she found at the scene, Rebecca couldn’t

show any weakness. The city fathers were waiting for her

failure. They wanted to hold her up as a bad example, jerk

her from duty and reassign her to a desk. It seemed a hun-

dred years ago, not just ten.

Rebecca had devised a safety plan; a game, really. If the

dispatcher said it was a traffic accident, she’d picture the

bloodiest scene, add the messiest complications and make a

mental picture in 3-D with HD color and stereo sound.

Then she’d decide how to react to that situation; what

she’d do first, then second and third; she did this all the way

to the scene. Reality had never been as bad as her imagina-

tion, and she’d never been at a loss in the actual situation.

Rebecca gave herself a mental shake and transcribed her

notes to the pad on her clipboard. She took a deep breath.

The days of trial were over.

So was her marriage to Simon and her life in Garfield.

She’d moved after the divorce. She now lived several hun-

dred miles away and worked for one of the top ambulance

Natalie Peck

3

companies in the city.

She went over her mental list again. She’d never been on

a call like this before. Also, this was an unfamiliar section of

town. She and Roger had traded stations with David and

Larry. David’s wife had been due with their first child two

days ago; he wanted to be close if Cheryl went into labor

while he was working.

As they pulled up to the scene Rebecca picked up the

mike, radioed their arrival time to Tom and wrote it on the

run sheet where she’d entered the other information enroute.

Roger brought the ambulance unit to a halt where a po-

lice officer indicated. They both stepped from the van, going

to the officer for an update.

Rebecca checked the street and houses with somber gray

eyes. She listened intently to the officer explain the situa-

tion. It was similar to stories she’d seen on the news from

time to time but with a definite difference.

Husband and wife quarrel; husband slams out of the

house, gets a gun and comes back. He threatens to blow

away her and their kid and then himself. This time, though,

it was worse. The child was a special case; she was on life-

support.

“At home? How did they arrange that?” Rebecca asked.

“The wife is a Critical Care nurse. She quit her job to

care for her daughter at home.” He shook his head. “I don’t

know what set the husband off, but he sounds desperate; like

it’s his only option.”

“How old is he?” Roger asked.

“Early forties; the neighbors we questioned said the

couple had been childless forever, then had this one girl.

They were the ideal little family; very close.

“About a year ago, a drunken kid on a Harley lost con-

Sirens in her Heart

4

trol and the bike went onto the sidewalk. Ran over the

daughter. She made it, but barely. What a mess. Stupid fool

kids; I wish they’d learn booze and driving don’t go togeth-

er.”

A firefighter walked up to where they were standing.

“Is this a private party, or can anyone join in?”

Rebecca looked up at him and suddenly felt her mouth

go dry. ‘Good looking’ didn’t even come close to describing

the ruggedly handsome man asking to join them. She tried to

swallow, but there was nothing there and it came out a gulp.

“Say, Chief,” he spoke to the police officer, although his

eyes were on hers. “Your boss wants you on the horn.”

His emerald eyes sparkled as though lit with a green fire

from deep inside him. His blonde hair picked up the reflec-

tions from the safety lights blinking all around them. It

shone like a polished gold helmet. He was tall; over six feet,

she judged. A smile hovered at the corners of his mouth. She

wanted to reach out and touch it with her fingertips.

Watching him, Rebecca discovered she was having

trouble breathing normally. It felt as if a tight band was

squeezing her chest. Suddenly feeling dwarfed, she straight-

ened and stood as tall as her scant three inches over her five

feet allowed.

Her motion caused him to look from her feet to her head

as he boldly assessed her. She felt heat flooding into her

face and wondered if her blush was visible to the world in

the scant light. His evaluation had been so thorough, she

wondered if he’d even counted her freckles.

His gaze moved to take in her short black curls. Had she

run a comb through them since tumbling out of her bunk this

last time? She hoped so.

Still keeping his eyes on her, he said, “Say, Roger; long

Natalie Peck

5

time, no see. You got a new partner since I saw you last. I

bet you appreciate the scenery. Ralph wasn’t nearly such an

eyeful.”

Rebecca felt her face grow hotter and her mind went

blank; she couldn’t think of one bantering word. That was

unusual. She often found guys teasing Roger about her;

she’d usually come up with a witty quip to make them

laugh.

She’d enjoyed the camaraderie between the ambulance

and fire crews. When they sometimes went to breakfast after

a particularly rough shift, she liked the kinship they provid-

ed.

This time she was having trouble just breathing. Any

joking words were lost in the desert of her dry throat, but her

gaze was riveted to his green eyes. No one had moved but

the officer who went to answer his call, yet she felt as

though she was standing closer to him.

Rebecca realized Roger had introduced her, but she’d no

idea what he’d said. Her feelings were in an uproar.

Again, the man’s glance slid across her body. She felt a

tingling along her nerves where his eyes stroked her, touch-

ing her body with a fire wand. He was dangerous. She

couldn’t afford passionate entanglements; she had to keep

all men at arms’ length so she could succeed at work…and

at life, now that her divorce was behind her.

Suddenly, a shot rang out. Conversation abruptly halted,

and for a split second, nobody moved. Then there was mo-

tion everywhere.

The first thing Rebecca knew, she was flying across the

sidewalk. She landed with a thump in the grass. A moment

later, the air whooshed out of her lungs as a body landed on

top of her. She couldn’t move. She tried to get up, but

Sirens in her Heart

6

couldn’t budge the bulk above her. She had no breath to cry

out, but she started to struggle.

“Stay still, you fool.” A harsh male voice grated in her

ear. The resulting spurt of anger gave her back her breath.

“What do you think you’re doing? Get off me.”

“No chance, Spitfire. Not until the bullets stop singing.”

“I can take care of myself; get off me, you stupid oaf.”

A terrifying sensation came to her as she looked up at

this man, overriding the anger and causing fear to engulf

her. More fear even than the now-ancient fear of failing the

challenge of her job. It was the insidious fear of her purely

physical reaction to this man.

The new fear shuddered through her body. He felt her

shake and turned his deep green eyes on her. An unspoken

question was there. She watched him and felt he could read

what was going through her. She was humiliated.

“Don’t fight it, Sweetheart,” he said softly but with a

wicked grin. “I can take care of you.” He moved his hands,

gently sliding them from her shoulders down her arms.

Anger flooded her again. She thought how he had the

audacity to tackle her like a football player. Then, making

light of the feelings streaking through her, he said he was

only trying to protect her. Rebecca glared at him.

“Get your hands off me!” She spit the words out as she

shoved against his chest. Her gasping breath was not from

exertion, but from her shockingly physical reaction. She

desperately looked around for Roger. There he was, coming

towards her from the police barricade.

“Roger!” Her eyes fastened on him like a lifeline, im-

ploring him to rescue her. Humiliating tears stung her eyes

and she felt more vulnerable than at any other time of her

life.

Natalie Peck

7

Roger helped her up as the firefighter eased off her.

Roger must have realized she was trembling. He softly

asked, “Are you okay?”

Numbly, she just nodded.

She took a deep breath as she tried to pull herself to-

gether. She blinked hard to rid her eyes of tears without ac-

tually wiping them; she didn’t want others to see her weak-

ness. She fought to regain her focus.

“Hey, Roger,” the firefighter’s voice intruded. “She’s al-

so a nice armful.”

Her anger at his words steadied her. It restored her sense

of balance and her sharp wit at once. She spoke to Roger.

“Tell your friend Tarzan he’d better keep his hands to him-

self if he wants to keep breathing air.” She turned her back

on them and headed toward her unit, picking up her scat-

tered papers and her clipboard on the way.

She reached the van and stowed the clipboard beside her

seat. She heard the rasp of the radio. Suddenly, she realized

she’d not even thought about the events happening inside

the house.

She turned, searching for Roger again. He was walking

her way. She was glad because her legs felt shaky and she

didn’t think she could walk right now.

What’s the matter with me? I’ve never felt turmoil from

a simple touch before. Simple touch? Yeah, right.

She was relieved Roger was alone. She looked past him.

The firefighter still stood, hands on his hips, watching her.

Even at this distance, he had power to make her heart speed

up; her breath come in little gasps. She thought once more

how emotionally dangerous he was to her. She shivered

again before turning to Roger.

He looked at her. “Are you okay, Bec?”

Sirens in her Heart

8

She nodded and then asked what had happened inside

the house.

“The father was in despair. His precious daughter was

just lying there, not getting well. He wanted her out of her

misery, and he out of his. A psychiatrist helped his wife talk

him out of it, so no harm was done.”

“But the shot; Roger, I heard a shot.” She wildly won-

dered if she’d lost control of all her senses since meeting

him.

“I know. When he threw the gun outside, it went off as it

hit the ground. Luckily, nobody was hurt. Come on. Let’s

check with the mother and see if little Mandy is okay.”

Rebecca threw him a questioning look. He answered her

unspoken inquiry. “That’s the little girl; Mandy.”

In a daze, Rebecca followed him to the house. She

hadn’t heard anyone say the little girl’s name. She shook her

head to clear the cobwebs; or at least remove those haunting,

emerald green eyes out of her mind.

Her brain just laughed at her: fat chance, Bec.

About the Author

Natalie Peck lives in Gilbert, Arizona with her family

and a thousand romance novels. She enjoys dining from her

good china by candle-light, especially when the special

guests are her husband and children. She loves to hear from

her readers, and promises to answer every email.

Connect with me online:

Website: electric-scroll.com

Blog: electric-scroll.blogspot.com

Email: n-peck@electric-scroll.com

Facebook: Natalie Peck