Nova and Vince tugged on the boat, so Charlie let go. They dragged it through the shallow water onto the beach. Charlie glanced around, getting a quick head count. “Everyone good?”

  Some replied. Others looked over. Shell-shocked was an accurate assessment of their faces.

  Every bit of brush and every tree he could see had been burned black.

  The air seemed to crackle with energy, like he could touch a tree and it would fall to pieces. Destroyed.

  They’d come so close to the end.

  Thank You, Lord. They were safe.

  Jayne spoke to each one of the teens individually. Making sure they were all right physically so they could work through the emotional and mental aspects now—and probably for the rest of their lives. Some of these kids would never let this day go. It would shape the adults they became.

  “Dude, that was crazy.” Samuel strode past, his brother Joshua in tow. Pablo glanced at Charlie.

  The kid hesitated a second, then came over to Charlie with his hand out.

  Charlie clasped it. “You guys good?”

  All three boys nodded. Pablo said, “We’re good.” Cleared his throat and sniffed. Like all of them hadn’t cried at least a little.

  “It was pretty unbelievable for a while there, but it’s over now,” Charlie said. “First chance you get, call home. Tell them you’re all right.”

  They wandered off.

  “I’m all right.” Alexis appeared by his side, burrowing in again. “Just in case you were curious.”

  “Always.”

  “You need a doctor to look at you.”

  Charlie figured there was zero chance he’d get out of that. Probably no point in arguing with her, or Orion. Or Jayne. Or anyone else. He didn’t even bother cataloguing how he felt. He just needed a good spot to lie down and close his eyes.

  They were alive.

  Jayne gave Tiger a hug and headed toward the group starting toward the camp trail. Alexis held Charlie’s hand as they walked.

  “You’re really going to do this?” Alexis glanced over, walking his pace, and not in a way that let him know she was purposely slow just because of him. “You’re going to fight this illness and do everything you can to live as long as possible.”

  Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

  He swallowed against the lump in his throat and nodded. “I will if you will.”

  Charlie still wasn’t sure he’d ever be okay with one of them giving him a kidney. If he could do this without needing a transplant, that would be the best course. He might have to endure more that way, but it would be worth it, knowing he wasn’t impeding their futures for his.

  Alexis rolled her eyes. “You’re such a dad.”

  He grinned, warm not just because of the lingering heat but also because he hadn’t had many chances to feel that way. Or to prove that he could be the man he wanted to be.

  Now he just needed to get Jayne to agree to let him try, and not just with his kids.

  But with her.

  Booth, Finn, and Vince had crowded around something on the shore. Charlie and Alexis got close enough, and he saw it was a burned body. Earl?

  No one would cry over the death of an evil man. But a life had still been lost—and someone, somewhere, had cared about him.

  Charlie steered Alexis away from the scene, but as they passed, he said to Booth, “Where did Crispin go?”

  Booth glanced at Nova, then looked over. “We don’t need to worry about Crispin.”

  Okay, then.

  Jayne joined them. Alexis said, “Do you ever get used to seeing dead bodies like that?”

  Charlie squeezed her with his arm and wrapped the other around Jayne so they could walk together down the scorched path to the camp. He prayed no one taking shelter there had been killed. “Not really. I don’t think you ever get used to it. But you learn how to celebrate the time you have.”

  Time God had given them.

  “I won’t shed a tear,” Jayne said. “He nearly killed us all. Land mines, and hurting Crispin? Setting fires and holding a gun to my head? Who cares what he wanted. He won’t get it now.”

  Charlie shuddered. “We very nearly didn’t make it.”

  The camp came into view.

  Even the ground looked scorched. Paint had peeled off siding. A couple of windows were broken, and debris from what looked like one of the sheds was littered in pieces down the main street.

  Teenage girls raced out of the main house, followed by smokejumpers carrying Tucker down the porch steps.

  Alexis broke off to meet them, and there were a lot of relieved hugs.

  Charlie turned Jayne to face him, their bodies flush against each other.

  “Charlie Benning.” She shook her head. “So forward. What will our parents think?”

  He felt a smile pull up the edge of his mouth. Before he could reply to her, the sound of a helicopter crested the hill.

  Two helicopters.

  He kept Jayne close with one arm and used the other to shield his eyes.

  The first chopper to land was the local medical emergency transport. The other was pure black, and the men who hopped out were dressed in tactical gear.

  Aria broke off from her friends. “Dad!” She raced to the men.

  The blond spotted Charlie and lifted two fingers. Charlie returned the gesture. Aria slammed into the man with Asian heritage. The others gathered around her.

  Jayne said, “Friends of yours?”

  Charlie looked at Jayne.

  “I feel like I’m missing something,” she said. “I know who Aria’s family is, but should I know those guys aside from what I’ve read?”

  “They might have come here to check on Aria and make sure she’s okay, but they will also help get the rest of us out of here. They’re good people.” Helping the innocent was what the men of Chevalier Protection Specialists did.

  “She’s fortunate to have them in her life, then.”

  Charlie nodded. “Yes, she is.”

  The other smokejumpers helped Tucker to the medical chopper, and Bridget walked with them. Everyone had come through. Not unscathed, but not far from it.

  “Looks like we’re leaving.”

  Charlie said, “There’s just one thing I need to do before we go.”

  She gave him a knowing look. “And what’s that?”

  He turned and dipped her. Pressed his lips to hers and tried to find some of that magic they’d had between them before. It crackled at the edges in a way that had nothing to do with the air pressure or the fire.

  Then the spark hit him full force, a wave of heat. The storm of everything they’d once had, layered with a whole lot of maturity. Life lived in the interim years.

  Everything they’d been through and learned.

  She clung to his neck, and they rediscovered what would always be between them.

  All the while, several people cheered. Clapped. Someone whooped. Charlie tuned it all out. Then he stood up, bringing her with him. Loving the flush on her cheeks. “What do you say? Want to ride in a chopper with me?”

  She grinned. “I thought you’d never ask.”

  Thank you for reading Firestorm! Gear up for the next Chasing Fire: Montana romantic suspense thriller, Fireline by Kate Angelo. Keep reading for a sneak peek!

  SECRETS. BETRAYAL. SACRIFICE.

  THIS TIME, THEY'RE NOT JUST

  FIGHTING FIRE.

  She was born to be a smokejumper…

  As the niece of a legendary smokejumper, Nova Burns is tough as nails. When their crew chief Tucker Newman breaks his leg, Nova longs for the opportunity to helm the team, ready to take risks and prove herself. But there's one risk she refuses to take⁠—falling in love.

  He’s living a lie…

  Undercover Homeland agent Booth Wilder is seeking redemption. Scarred by a past explosion that took the life of his partner, Booth is hunting a rogue CIA faction known as the Brotherhood. Now, he's determined to uncover their secrets and find a hidden nuclear weapon that could turn the world to ash.

  Only problem…summer sparks have ignited between Booth and Nova. Nova is torn between her future as the smokejumping chief, her growing attraction to Booth, and the belief that he’s hiding something from her. Of course he is…Booth is hiding his true goal—unrooting the Brotherhood and returning to his life as a Homeland Security agent, a life that he’s not sure he really wants.

  Then the wildfire threatens the home of the Jude County Firefighting team, and Nova doesn’t care what secrets he might be hiding—she needs everyone to save the town. But when the Brotherhood discovers Booth and his goals, the fight becomes personal. Now, Booth must choose between accomplishing his mission and saving the woman he’s come to love.

  It’s a dangerous game of loyalty, betrayal, and pulse-pounding action in the fifth installment of the Chasing Fire: Montana series.

  Pre-order your copy now from your favorite retailer, or get early access from the Sunrise Shop!

  FIRELINE

  CHASING FIRE: MONTANA | BOOK 5

  CHAPTER 1

  His enemies had found him.

  All this time and they’d come so far. They’d nearly finished it.

  Now it would all be for nothing.

  The plane dropped about a hundred feet somewhere over the Kootenai National Forest. Okay, maybe it was fifty. Twenty. Booth Wilder didn’t know. Turbulence mixed with dread and exhilaration of what he was about to do left him nauseated.

  The six-man crew of smokejumpers was packed in tight. Shoulder to shoulder. All crowded around the windows according to their jump order.

  Booth sat with Nova Burns, a thrill-seeking legacy smokejumper with a propensity toward bossiness. Behind them were Finn and Vince, the two sawyers who’d be out front clearing the brush for the crew. Last in line was Logan, the team lead, and JoJo, another seasoned smokejumper.

  He glanced at the stoic faces. These jumpers, they had families, homes, lives outside the smoke. Booth wasn’t even sure who he was anymore. Just a WITSEC nobody. No past, no future, just this endless free fall until Homeland gave him back his life.

  “You good?” Nova shouted into the side of his helmet.

  “Better if Aria didn’t plow through every air pocket like she was flyin’ an F-22,” he yelled over the roar of the engines. “I miss Tirzah!”

  “Whatever. Aria is every bit a daredevil pilot. We were lucky to get her from Alaska!” She shouted into her headphone mic, “Hey, Aria! Ever think of becoming a fighter pilot?”

  “Why you think I carry a .357 Magnum?” Her voice crackled over the intercom. “I just stick my arm out the window and pew pew pew.”

  Laughter filled the fuselage but cut off when the plane hit another patch of turbulence. They slammed down on the cargo. The mirth turned to grumbling.

  Vince rubbed his elbow. “For real. If Aria doesn’t take it easy, I’ll have to jump outta this plane.”

  “Please tell me someone packed Huggies in the cargo box for Vince.” Their spotter for the day, Eric Dale, laughed over the intercom.

  Booth peered out the window. The charred remains of the mountain landscape rushed past at a hundred miles an hour. Thousands of lush green acres lay blackened, ravaged by the wildfire. To the west, black veins of ash pulsed through a crimson expanse.

  Somewhere out there in the endless wilderness was the real Crazy Henry from the stories Booth told by the fire.

  And Crispin.

  Three years since the nuke had gone missing.

  Three years since his life had fallen apart.

  They’d said his former partner was dead. So why was Crispin here, in Ember of all places?

  Was his appearance connected to Earl’s death? Was this where the nuke trail led? If Crispin was playing some deep game, Booth needed to see the board. Maybe finding him would lead him to the nuke, and maybe it would lead him back to himself.

  He had to find Crispin. That was the goal. But how? This town was a haystack, and he was searching for the needle blindfolded.

  The plane bounced and fell again. Queasiness sloshed around his stomach. His breathing was tight, restricted by the straps on his jump harness. He’d never been so eager to jump from a plane before.

  “Still good?” Nova nudged his knee.

  “Fine. Just…thinking.”

  The plane winged down into a hard turn. They turned their attention back to the windows as the plane circled the fire, giving them a closer look. Two hundred acres of fierce flames shot out from the trees, sending billows of dense black smoke spiraling into the sky. Booth’s chest constricted. The fire raged in every direction.

  Eric left his seat from the cockpit and picked his way through the tangle of jumpers. At the door, he attached the restraining line to his harness so that if he fell out, they could pull him back in. Booth had seen it happen once, so he’d never forget the restraining line.

  “Guard your reserves!” Eric yelled.

  Booth and every other jumper covered their reserve chute with a forearm to protect it from accidental deployment when the door opened. Booth had seen that happen too.

  Eric grabbed the handles and twisted. The door hinged back toward the tail of the plane. Cold air and the scent of woodsmoke rushed in.

  Nova stood at the jump doors, face hidden behind the wire-mesh guard on her helmet. “Fire’s about twenty-five miles northeast of Snowhaven. Wind conditions aren’t much better than yesterday, and the head is pushing southwest toward an area with a few homesteads.”

  “They’ve called for evacuations,” Logan said. “But we know not everyone takes it seriously.”

  “Yeah, there’s always one who thinks they can ride it out,” Finn said.

  “Buddy check,” Nova said, pulling on her fire gloves. “Booth’s with me first stick. Logan and Vince, second stick. JoJo and Finn, third.”

  Booth went to the door and performed his four-point check.

  Nova stuck her head out of the plane beside Eric. Booth watched over Nova’s shoulder as Eric dropped the first set of drift streamers. They watched them fall. The long pieces of weighted crepe paper fell toward the ground, catching on currents.

  Booth did some quick mental calculations and determined wind drift and descent time. “Looks good?”

  Eric nodded his agreement. “Aria, take us to three thousand!”

  Aria’s voice crackled over the intercom. “We’re at three thousand.”

  “All right. Looks like about a hundred fifty yards of drift. The wind is strongest down low. Stay wide of the fire.” Eric’s head swung out the opening, then he turned back. “Get in the door!”

  Booth backed up to give Nova room. She sat on the floor and braced herself. Her feet dangled out into the slipstream, ready to jump into the vast canvas of the sky. He dropped into position and moved in tight behind her. The hum of the plane vibrated under his legs. Nova leaned back. Pressed herself into his chest.

  The familiar tingle of raw energy electrified his muscles. Nerves firing. Blood pumping. Countless jumps and he couldn’t shake the mix of fear and exhilaration seconds before the free fall. He took a deep breath. The crisp air filled his lungs. This was it. The moment before the plunge.

  Eric’s slap came down on Nova’s shoulder, and she propelled herself forward out into the wind.

  Booth rocked forward as hard as he could to miss the edge of the door but bumped it on the way out. He tumbled under the tail of the plane in a slow spin and turned his belly to the ground.

  The rush of wind, the weightlessness, and the deafening roar of the air enveloped him. In that moment, all fear and doubt were left behind. His past mistakes were replaced by the freedom of flight. He had nothing but the sky and the guilt of surviving when others hadn’t.

  He counted in his head and kept his eyes on the horizon. “Jump thousand…look thousand…reach thousand…wait thousand…”

  Once stable, he pulled the rip cord. “Pull thousand!”

  A hard jerk pulled at his chest straps. The parachute riffled open high above the burning landscape. For a moment there was nothing but Booth, the wind in his ears, and the land below. Nothing but him and the God who had spoken all this into being. The wildfire ravaged the divine canvas, but underneath it all, there was a promise of renewal and rebirth.

  This was the part he loved. He’d come to Ember looking for a place to lay low, but jumping had gotten into his blood. But did he love it enough if the time came for him to choose between this life and the dead one?

  He grabbed the steering toggles and turned to face the hundreds of miles of wilderness. Smoke rose high overhead, gathering in storm clouds. Violent flames whipped back and forth between the trees.

  Nova was right. This thing had the potential to go big. The other crews needed all the help they could get. They needed him.

  Booth descended through open sky. The only audible sounds were the distant hum of the jump ship and the gentle flutter of his parachute as he glided twenty-five hundred feet above the earth.

  “Oooooh-weeeee!” Nova yelled.

  Booth grinned and let out his own whooping shout.

  Between his feet, wind whipped Nova’s chute to the west. She swept over a dense stand of towering Douglas firs. He caught the same wind gust and steered hard, but the wind pulled him toward the same trees.

  Facing into the wind, he tried to locate the jump spot through the thick smoke.

  The chute rocked back and forth. Booth’s gut tightened.

  He pulled down on the left toggle and moved closer to the wind line. The strong smell of smoke filled the air and stung his nostrils.

  Two hundred feet to go and he could barely see the ground through the dense ash cloud. “I can’t see the spot!”

  “It’s gonna be a hanger!” Nova hollered something else he couldn’t hear.

  Another headwind blew him backward and into the woods. This was turning out to be more dangerous than catching bad guys. Forget making the spot. He just needed to land somewhere without hanging up.

  At a hundred feet, things got worse. The wind died and he moved forward, but it was too late to clear the trees. He entered the opening at treetop level just in time to see Nova crash into a thick stand of birch and disappear.