Fire Triangle

Chapter 1: Miles-1

Chapter 1: Miles

The car moved forward steadily. Neither of them had spoken a word for the last ten minutes. Miles could feel Blake’s eyes on him, but he ignored it. Blake was not the type to stay silent for long though.

“You sure you’re okay?” Blake threw another glance at him.

Miles shrugged. “I’m here, aren’t I?”

But it wasn’t like Blake to be shut down that easily. “Erica is all right with you going on this job?”

“Doesn’t matter. Nothing’s right with her lately. I don’t know what to do anymore. It’s not like she’ll tell me how she feels.”

“That’s awful, man.”

“Tell me about it.”

“You ever think about changing jobs?”

Miles turned to look at his partner in disbelief. “Are you joking?” This wasn’t just a job. Being a fire investigator had been his aspiration since he was a kid. And unlike the other kids who wanted to be firefighters, Miles had never really wanted to put out fires.

Fires were so powerful. It was their majesty, their mystery, that Miles had always wanted to learn about. He wanted to read them, not put them out. When he was still very young, Miles hadn’t known what he would like to do with his fascination. But he’d talked with his father and brother and they had steered Miles in the right direction, until finally he had become an investigator at the Arson Bureau of San Antonio Fire Department. He was proud of his achievement; being one of five successful candidates from more than a hundred applicants.

He would not let his girlfriend, Erica, get in the way of his career. He loved her, she’d been good for him ever since his last boyfriend left him for a loser s***h actor, but she’d known what a relationship with him would be like. Take this latest assignment: Miles often spent days, sometimes weeks, out of town when he was working on an investigation.

Blake fixed his eyes back on the road ahead and sighed. “Sometimes, Miles, you just have to choose.”

“And I’m choosing this, okay?” Miles snapped, and cleared his throat in apology. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

Blake grinned at him. “Guess I’m the one who should apologize for being nosy.”

“Nah. You’re my best friend. I know you want the best for me.”

“Aww,” Blake cut him off sarcastically. “Should we hug or something?”

Miles cuffed his partner’s arm playfully. “Now, shut up and drive.”

The rest of the four hour drive felt easier to Miles. His heart was no longer heavy with thoughts of Erica. He didn’t think of her at all.