Off Season by Eric Walters Page B

And now look around.”
    I scanned the scene surrounding us. The air was becoming more smoke filled and I thought that I could even see the glare of flames in the distance.
    â€œWe’re going to be okay, Nick.”
    I looked over at her. “You know, I think you’re right. At least I want to believe you’re right.” I paused. “This is real. Makes all those basketball games seem pretty unimportant, doesn’t it?”
    â€œI guess it does,” she admitted.
    We waded out of the water and flopped down on the dusty shore.
    â€œMy father always says that the best thing about sports is that it prepares you for difficult times, teaches you life lessons,” I said. “I can’t figure out how anything I was ever taught on a court could help me here … can you?”
    Kia didn’t answer.
    â€œI can’t think of how a good hook shot would help right now,” I said.
    â€œIt would be nice to have a team here now.” Kia said. “At least a team of firefighters.”
    â€œThey’d know what to do. They’d have a plan and plays, just like a team,” I agreed.
    â€œAnd I bet they have a leader, a guy like a coach or captain, who tells everybody what they have to do and how to do it,” Kia added.
    â€œThat would be the fire chief … they must have a fire chief. The people on the team don’t just go and do whatever they want.”
    â€œIt won’t be that long until the firefighters are here,” Kia said. “It’s been almost three hours since Debbie radioed in, and they said they’d be here in six hours, so that means that they’ll be here in less then three hours.”
    â€œThat was before we reported the second fire — and that’s if the radio was even working after the crash — so they have to fight their way through the first fire and then get through the landslide and — ”
    â€œI get the idea,” Kia said. “It could be a lot longer. If only we had somebody who could tell us what to do and then we could do it.”
    I looked up to where Ned sat with his mother. “Maybe we do,” I said softly. “Maybe we do.”

Chapter Twelve
    â€œI’ve read lots of books about forest fires,” Ned admitted, “but I’ve never even been near one before.”
    â€œBut you know how to fight them, right?” Kia asked. “You know what to do.”
    â€œI know the principles and practices of forest fires and their management and control.”
    â€œWhat?” Kia asked.
    â€œHe knows what to do,” I said.
    â€œWe both know what to do,” Debbie said. “You don’t live with a park ranger all those years without picking up a few things, but it’s not practical for us to even think about putting out this fire.”
    â€œI’m not thinking about putting anything out,” I said. “I just want to know what we can do to protect ourselves until the real fighters come.”
    â€œCouldn’t we go in the water and just keep our heads above the water?” Kia asked. “The water can’t burn.”
    â€œYou wouldn’t burn, but you could suffocate,” Ned said.
    â€œSuffocate?”
    â€œHave no air to breathe. The fire doesn’t just burn wood. It uses the air as fuel too. It draws off all the oxygen and leaves just smoke and gases that we can’t breathe.”
    That sounded awful. A shiver went through my entire body.
    â€œThere has to be something that we can do,” Kia said. “What would real firefighters do if they were here with us right now? Would they be sitting around, doing nothing?”
    â€œNo, of course not,” Ned said. “They’d be making a firebreak at least.”
    â€œThat’s right … you mentioned that to me when we were hiking … that’s what the tools were for.”
    â€œWhat’s a firebreak?” Kia asked.
    â€œA firebreak is also