Last Man Out Read Free Page B

walked into the hospital room.
    He knew as soon as they were out of Coach John Fisher’s car and through the emergency room entrance at Mount Auburn Hospital.
    There were other firefighters in the waiting room, some of them still in their gear and uniforms. But the one he focused on was the man he’d thought of as Uncle Brendan his whole life.
    You always heard grown-ups saying,
Hey, you look like you just lost your best friend
. Uncle Brendan, in his bunker gear pants and his suspenders, looked like he’d lost his best friend. And Tommy knew it must be true.
    He felt his sister grip his hand even harder. Emily hadn’t said a word since they’d gotten into Coach Fisher’s backseat. She hadn’t cried either. She’d just held Tommy’s hand and stared at him when she wasn’t staring straight ahead. She’d released his hand briefly when they’d gone through the double doors. She was holding on for dear life, even though Tommy knew there was no emergency now inside this hospital.
    He knew their dad was dead even if his little sister didn’t.
    The two of them hung back near the doors they’d just come through, almost like they were on the outside looking in. Tommy saw a tall, older man approach his mom. He heard somebody refer to the man as the “commissioner.” He wasn’t in uniform—maybe there’d been no time for that after he’d received
the call
. He was wearing a short-sleeved shirt and khaki pants. He held on to his mom’s hand as he spoke to her, Tommy unable to hear what he was saying.
    Then his mom was hugging Uncle Brendan. She wasn’t crying now. Tommy knew how tough his mom was when she had to be, how his dad always said that, even though he put out fires for a living, she was the toughest one in the family. Maybe she’d just decided she wasn’t going to cry in front of the fire commissioner and his crew. Maybe she thought that was something Patrick Gallagher’s wife, his high school sweetheart, shouldn’t do, even in a moment like this.
    Now Tommy’s mom and Uncle Brendan walked across the emergency room lobby to where Tommy and Emily were standing, Tommy struck by how loud Uncle Brendan’s wide yellow pants sounded as his legs rubbed up against each other.
    Tommy’s mom pulled him and Emily toward her, gripping them like she was holding on for dear life. She looked them in the eyes and said, “He’s gone.”
    Tommy wasn’t going to cry, either. Not because the fire commissioner was here, or even Uncle Brendan. He just wasn’t going to do it. He was Patrick Gallagher’s kid. Toughness ran in the family. Tommy looked at his sister when they all pulled back. Shewasn’t crying, either. Her eyes had just gotten bigger. She wasn’t looking at their mom. She was looking at Tommy. Just staring at her big brother, like she was searching for answers.
    Tommy had none.
    â€œHe did everything he could,” Brendan said. “He did everything anybody could have done. And more.” He swallowed and said, “The fire was just too big this time.”
    Tommy nodded. Still holding back tears.
    â€œHe’s upstairs,” his mom said. “I’m going up to see him. You two can stay here with Uncle Brendan.”
    â€œI’m going,” Tommy said. He looked down at his sister, who was still looking at him. She nodded, and finally spoke.
    â€œI’m going with Tommy,” Emily said.
    As they stepped into the elevator Brendan said, “Your dad was a hero today.”
    Tommy said, “He’s always been a hero.”
    â€¢Â â€¢Â â€¢
    There were more firemen standing around when they got out of the elevator. Tommy recognized the ones from his dad and Uncle Brendan’s crew. They formed two lines now, and saluted Tommy, his mom, and his sister as the Gallaghers walked between them.
    At the very end of the line was Father Walters, the pastor