The Captain's Betrayal

My son died in that fire.

The rescue team couldn't get in, and my husband, the fire captain, had to make the agonizing call to divert the rescue efforts elsewhere.

Or so I thought.

I was consumed by the grief of losing my child, unable to pull myself together.

That was until I saw the little boy being carried out, sitting safely in the passenger seat of my husband's Ford F-150.

His high school sweetheart was holding the boy, laughing and chatting with my husband, Michael.

They looked like a perfect, happy family of three.

That's when I learned the truth.

Michael had lied about the fire being uncontainable just to ensure his first love's son would be saved first.

I rushed over to confront them.

In the ensuing struggle, Amanda shoved me.

I lost my footing, tumbled down the stairs, and smashed my head against a fire hydrant.

I died on the spot. When I opened my eyes again, I had been reborn.

I was back to the day my husband lied about the fire.

...

"Move! The situation is out of control! Everyone evacuate to Sector A immediately!"

The familiar voice, accompanied by the crackling of burning timber, smashed into my eardrums.

I snapped my eyes open.

A wave of heat and ash hit me in the face. Michael was gripping my shoulders tightly.

"Emily, don't do this! We can't get into that building anymore. Do you want me and my brothers to march in there and die?"

In my past life, this was exactly what Michael had said to me.

Back then, I had cried and begged him to try one more time. He had scolded me sternly.

"Emily! There are people in other sectors waiting to be saved! If we waste time here, those who actually have a chance will die!"

He looked me in the eye. "I am Noah's father, but I am also a Captain in the FDNY! You have to understand!"

I trusted him then. I thought he was making a heartbreaking choice out of necessity.

I watched helplessly as he led his entire team toward the location of his first love's son, leaving me kneeling on the ground in despair.

Slap!

A crisp, loud slap landed hard across his face. I glared at him with pure hatred.

"You coward!"

I didn't wait for his reaction.

I turned around and sprinted with everything I had toward the Incident Commander, standing fifty feet away.

"Chief! Please! My son is still in Building B! Tenth floor!"

"Captain! I'm sorry! My wife is hysterical!"

Michael chased after me, grabbing me and pulling me behind him.

He addressed the Commander urgently.

"I've already assessed Building B. The structure is unstable. There is no safe entry point!"

"No! He's lying! My son is on the tenth floor! He couldn't have completed a full structural assessment in that short amount of time!"

I screamed until my throat tasted like blood, but Michael drowned me out with a louder voice.

"Building B is fully involved! Just because our son is inside, are we going to let the survivors in Sector A lose their chance at life?"

"Enough!"

Before I could retort, the Commander frowned. He grabbed his radio.

"Dispatch, I need thermal imaging data on Building B immediately. Captain, are you saying there are definitely people inside Building B?"

Michael froze for a split second, then quickly pivoted.

"No... Chief, I mean, based on my assessment, the probability of survival in Building B is extremely low..."

"Probability? We don't make decisions based on 'probability' alone!"

The Commander barked into his radio.

"Engine 23, proceed immediately to Building B for structural assessment and life detection!"

Michael's face went pale. He stepped forward aggressively.

"Chief! The fire and structural issues in Building B make this rescue mission practically suicide. We could lose men! But Building A allows for a safe rescue, and there's a child waiting there too!"

He was desperate.

"We shouldn't abandon a guaranteed rescue for a low-probability one! If we concentrate our manpower on Building A, that kid is one hundred percent getting out!"

I felt the distant fire burning a hole in my heart.

I wanted to tear Michael apart right there.

Even at a time like this, he was trying to divert the rescue team I had fought so hard for, just to send them to his ex-girlfriend's son.

Thankfully, the Commander looked at him coldly.

"Captain, you said 'low probability,' not 'zero probability.' If we don't go to Building B, that child has no chance at all. Furthermore," he glanced at the data on his tablet, "thermal imaging shows a heat signature on the tenth floor of Building B."

A look of utter despair washed over Michael's face.

"You are unfit to continue command."

The Commander's tone turned steel-hard.

"Captain Miller, as an immediate family member, you are compromised. Per FDNY regulations, you are to recuse yourself immediately. Go stand by at Building A. I'm sending Lieutenant Johnson to take over command at Building B. We will do everything we can for your son."

It wasn't a suggestion. It was an order.

Michael grit his teeth, hesitated for a second, then stood at attention.

"Yes, Chief!"

He turned around and led a portion of his crew, sprinting toward Building A without looking back.

Watching his retreating figurerunning so heroically toward Building Amy smile was filled with bitterness.

The thermal data showed signs of life in Building B. The technical assessment showed equal difficulty for both buildings.

The Commander had essentially given him a graceful way out, a "reasonable" excuse to leave Building B.

How could a man, who was willing to risk everything for his first love's son, possibly let "regulations" stop him if he actually cared about his own flesh and blood?

I stood downstairs, my eyes glued to the entrance.

Lieutenant Johnson's squad hadn't come out yet.

Several times, I tried to rush past the yellow tape, only to be held back by other firefighters.

The scorching heat wave stung my eyes, making tears stream down my face, but I refused to blink.

I stared deathly hard at the exit of Building B.

Behind me, a cheer erupted.

"We got him! The kid is out!"

I whipped my head around.

I saw Michael holding his ex's son, Lucas.

He hadn't even cared that his turnout gear was still smoking as he carried the boy to the safe zone.

Unlike my past life, this time, I had managed to divert a significant portion of the rescue force to Building B.

Without the entire team focusing on him like last time, the boy named Lucas had clearly taken some damage.

He lay weakly in Michael's arms.

Good.

I let out a cold snort.

I would never forget my past life.

I knelt under Building B while my son burned to death inside.

Meanwhile, behind me, Michael had lifted his first love's unharmed son high into the air, celebrating a successful rescue with his crew.

"Medic! This child needs immediate attention!"

Johnson's voice cut through the air.

I spun back around. The squad that rushed into Building B was emerging through the flames.

Lieutenant Johnson, leading the pack, was holding my son tightly against his chest.

"Noah!"

I sprinted forward, taking my child from his arms.

"Ambulance is two minutes out. I'm handing him to you; I need to get checked out."

The sleeve of Johnson's protective gear had been burned through. His skin was severely scorched.

My eyes welled up.

"Thank you... thank you so much..."

"Ma'am, the child is unresponsive!"

A paramedic checked Noah's vitals and immediately shouted over his shoulder.

"Captain! Noah needs immediate..."

His voice cut off abruptly.

I followed his gaze.

Not far away, Michael was kneeling on the ground, performing chest compressions on Lucas, who was lying flat.

"Lucas, stay with me! Breathe! Uncle Michael is here! Don't you give up on me!"

He was screaming his ex's son's name like a madman, completely ignoring the blood dripping from his own injured arm.

A crew member stepped forward.

"Captain, let me take over. Your hand is injured."

Michael shoved him away violently.

"Back off! I can't let anything happen to this boy!"

The paramedic who had tried to call him stood frozen in place.

Michael's own biological son was barely alive just fifty feet away.

Yet, with plenty of other professionals available to take over, he stubbornly guarded someone else's child.

I wanted to rush over and scream at him.

But I grit my teeth, lowered my head, and laid Noah flat on the ground.

I cleared his airway, checked his pulse, and began CPR myself.

Thanks to the immediate first aid, Noah's condition improved significantly.

A moment later, he coughed violently and spoke in a weak, raspy voice.

"Daddy? Is it Daddy... did he come to save Noah?"

"Noah..."

My voice trembled.

He blinked, his eyes focusing on me.

On his soot-blackened face, he tried to force a smile.

"Mommy came too... It must be... it must be Daddy who got Noah out, right?

"I knew it...

Daddy would never give up on Noah...

Daddy is a superhero...

"He's breathing! He's back!

Michael's ecstatic shout rang out at the worst possible moment.

I looked up. Lucas was coughing loudly. Michael, looking relieved as if a heavy burden had been lifted, gently picked the boy up.

He high-fived the crew members surrounding him.

"We did it! Thank God!"

"Noah, Daddy is..." I didn't know how to explain it.

"Did Daddy...

save another kid too?

Noah wheezed, smiling through the pain.

"Daddy is so amazing...

Noah wants to be...

a big hero like Daddy someday...

"Mommy, did you know?

"Being burned...

hurts so much...

"Noah wants to save... everyone trapped in fire...

"Otherwise...

it just hurts too bad...

A tear dropped onto Noah's face.

I couldn't imagine how much despair and pain Noah had endured in my past life.

Even until the very end, this child believed his hero father would come for him.

I stood up and walked over to Michael.

Slap!

A vicious slap struck his face, silencing the celebration.

"Do you not have a son of your own?

Why are you guarding someone else's child!"

Tears streamed down my face as I roared.

"Noah still thinks you're the one who saved him!

But look at you!

You haven't even looked at him! You haven't even asked!

Who is this kid to you?

Is he worth abandoning your own flesh and blood?

"Emily, calm down!

You're scaring the boy!"

Michael immediately shielded Lucas in his arms and backed away. Several crew members rushed up to mediate.

"Mrs. Miller, please, don't get excited. The Captain has his reasons.

"What reasons!

" I screamed. "He didn't hesitate for a second when he left his own son to die in Building B!"

"Emily!"

Michael frowned deeply.

"This isn't the place to argue! This child has a congenital heart condition. He can't handle stress! I am the Captain. Per FDNY triage protocols, patients with severe underlying conditions get priority monitoring! Do you want me to violate protocol?"

"Is it protocol or personal feelings?"

I lunged forward, grabbing his uniform.

"Was it protocol to direct everyone to Building A when a rescue in B was possible? You said Building B was a lost cause! Then how did Johnson manage to save my son!

"Is this boy, Lucas, so important? Important enough for you to sacrifice your living, breathing son!"

Even while I tore at his uniform, Michael refused to let go of Lucas.

He bent over to protect the child further.

"Stop being unreasonable!"

"Let go of her!"

A force slammed into me, pushing me to the ground.

A familiar woman, wearing Louboutin heels, rushed to Michael's side. Her voice was frantic.

"Michael!"

Seeing Lucas in Michael's arms, Amanda burst into tears immediately.

"Michael, how did Lucas get hurt? You said you'd save him first!"

Michael didn't speak. He just shot a subtle, warning glance at me.

Amanda followed his gaze and realized that my son was being attended to by medics nearby.

Her eyes turned red instantly. She lunged at me, trying to scratch my face.

"It was you! You caused my son to almost die! If everyone had gone to save Lucas like they were supposed to, how would he have gotten hurt so badly!"

She was tall and slender, stumbling in her heels.

I, however, had years of CrossFit training. I caught her wrist and delivered a backhand slap that echoed through the plaza.

"Your son's life is a life, but my son's isn't? Why should Noah burn to death just so my husband can take the entire department to save your kid!

"If you speak another word of nonsense, the next injury won't be on your son, it'll be on you!

"Emily!

Watch your mouth!

Michael shouted sternly, stepping forward to support Amanda. I stared him down, my eyes cold as ice.

"I dare you.

Michael froze.

I asked, enunciating every word.

"Whose husband are you, exactly?

The atmosphere at the scene became suffocatingly awkward.

The crowd of onlookers grew larger. Some people already had their phones out, recording.

"Everyone!

Please help us!

A sobbing cry broke the silence. All eyes turned to Amanda.

Her white dress highlighted her slender figure.

Her makeup was artfully smudged by tears, making her look fragile and pitiful, like a lily trembling in the wind.

Several men in the crowd immediately looked sympathetic.

"Ma'am, what happened?"

"Miss, are you okay?"

She pointed a trembling finger at me, choking on her sobs.

"If not for her diverting the firefighters who were supposed to save my son, my Lucas would be unharmed right now!"

Thank God Captain Miller risked his life to bring my son out. But now, she's hitting me because of it!

"Every child's life matters! Why does her son require everyone to save him? Does my son deserve to burn to death?"

Her weeping triggered compassion in the bystanders.

"You bitch! Who was the one trying to hog all the resources for her own kid!"

I rushed forward to grab Amanda by the collar.

Just as I raised my hand, a pair of large hands grabbed me from behind, forcibly pulling me away.

Michael used a standard police hold to restrain me.

"Enough! You already stole the resources meant for Lucas! Hitting me wasn't enough? Now you want to attack the victim's mother too?"

His words instantly ignited the crowd's anger against me."Oh my god, she attacked a firefighter!"

"She stole rescue resources and now she's assaulting people? Is this woman crazy?"

"Wait, isn't that Captain Miller? He saved my neighbor in the Bronx fire last month!"

"Captain Miller is a hero!How dare this woman hit him!"

The crowd began to surge. Someone spat in my direction.

Angry women started shoving forward, trying to get close to me.

"Bitch! Who do you think you are, bullying people!"

"Too bad your son didn't die!"

"Firefighters risk their lives! What right do you have to tell the Captain what to do!"

The waves of verbal abuse crashed over me. The crowd was getting agitated. Someone threw a water bottle at me.

The hands restraining me trembled slightly. Michael spoke up hurriedly.

"Please, everyone, calm down! We will handle this according to regulations. Please don't get physical! NYPD is on the way!"

Despite his words, he didn't let me go.

The crowd's rage wasn't quelled by his weak attempt at de-escalation.

More phones were raised. People were live-streaming the chaos to social media.

Through the gaps in the crowd, I saw Amanda being supported by several "kind" women.

Amidst their comfort, she gracefully wiped the corner of her eye with the back of her hand, sobbing softly, garnering even more sympathy.

My eyes were bloodshot with rage.

I grit my teeth so hard they felt like they would shatter, but I couldn't break free from Michael's grip.

"NYPD! Back up!"

Sirens wailed. Several squad cars screeched to a halt.

Police officers began pushing the crowd back.

"Clear the area! This is an active emergency scene!"

A high-ranking fire official in a white shirt shouted through a megaphone.

The crowd slowly dispersed.

"Chief Garcia?"

Seeing the man with a bandaged arm approaching, Michael finally released me.

Slap!

A heavy slap landed directly on Michael's face.