Free Backfire by J.R. Tate Page B

when they took off.  She had voiced many times that she loved to fly .  After they were allowed to, Michael put in his ear buds, leaned back, and tried to catch up on sleep.  Before he knew it, they were making their connection flight to Austin.  The flight time was only forty-five minutes, so he called Casey before they took off, ensuring that they’d have a ride ready when they landed. 
    He leaned over Eva to look out and see the parched land below.  A smoky haze blanketed beneath them, hindering much of the visibility.  From what he could tell, the fires were a lot more widespread than the news in New York had led them to believe.  He had this horrible mental image that the entire state was burning, but of course, that wasn’t the case at all.  The problem was that where it was burning, it was spreading as if the ground was made of gasoline, and there were towns in the burn path.  He remembered Texas being lush, green, and breathtaking.  Whi le it still held a lot of it s beauty, it was horrible seeing it in such desperate need for rain. 
    “We picked a hell of a summer to come down here,” he replied.
    “Just imagine if you were that type of firefighter, out there in the wild, fighting the winds and the drought,” Eva said. 
    “I’m not sure I’d even know where to begi n.  Dangle me over a high rise any day.”  T here were pros and cons to each type of firefighting.  He just preferred sticking to what he knew, as those down there on the ground battling the wildfires probably thought the same thing. 
     

    Chapter Six
    Michael grew impatient as people took their time getting off of the plane.  He felt like he was meeting Casey for the first time.  He forced a smile at a lady and a young boy who were taking their dear sweet time in moving up the aisle toward the exit. 
    “Good thing we don’t have to make another connection.  We wouldn’t make it to the damn gate,” Michael mutte red as he pulled their carry on bag from the overhead compartment.
    His mother lightly slapped his shoulder.  “What’s your hurry? We’re still gonna have to wait a long time for our luggage anyway.”
    “I’m just ready to see him.”  He handed Eva her duffel bag.
    “Is he here at the airport?” Eva asked as they finally got to the jet way and out of the plane, the flight attendants thanking them for choosing their company, and to enjoy their stay in Austin. 
    “He said he rode with the driver. I didn’t think he’d be allowed to leave the facility, but I guess he got to.”
    Michael could feel the outside heat through the tunnel that led them to the terminal.  He checked his phone and the weather was reporting one hundred and eight along with a red flag warning that wasn’t helping the fire departments at all.  He had never hea rd about red flag warnings and G oogled it the night before they left New York.  It meant high winds and static in the air were all the ingredients needed to spark up open land. 
    He got a text message from Casey informing him that they were waiting at baggage claim.  His heart skipped a beat and he found his pace quicken as he weaved through people, all engrossed in their own destinations that they didn’t even care that he bumped in to a few of them.
    “Mikey, slow down!”
    Eva’s yelling reminded him that he had two other people with him.  Slowly turning around, he tried not to show that he was slightly annoyed.  “Hurry up.  He said he’s at baggage claim.”
    “Yeah, and he’s not going anywhere, so there’s no need to break into an all out sprint,” his mom replied.  “You gotta remember that I’m an old woman.”
    Baggage claim felt like it was miles away, but when they got there, Michael slowed down, almost to a complete stand still when he saw Casey standing off to the side, two other men with him.  He did a double take to make sure that it was his little brother, shocked at how different he looked since the last time Michael had seen him.