4
700words
As for the truth—no one except those two really cared.
The growers just wanted someone to pay.
But they never imagined things would reach the top.
They both turned pale, sweating through their shirts.
Now that it had, their only move was to double down and pile everything on me.
The commissioner frowned at Chris,
"You said the fire was already out of control when you arrived—is that right?"
Chris shuddered, "Y-yes…"
Lily spoke up righteously,
"Leaders, as the medic on site with Captain Chris, I swear on my honor—I can vouch for him!"
No one answered. The only sound was the crackle of dead wood.
All eyes were on them—whether he noticed or not, Chris seemed unnerved by glare.
Especially the pilot, Alex, standing behind the commissioner—he was clenching his jaw.
I shook my head at Alex, signaling him to be patient—we just had to watch Chris dig his own hole.
Alex worked in the department's inspection wing, he'd been sent to check the chopper.
In my past life, the inspection got postponed, and the helicopter had been loaded with diesel instead of water—the firefighters were drenched and burned alive.
This time, after Chris's crew left, I had Alex inspect the chopper.
He found the water had indeed been swapped for diesel. The helicopter was refilled with water before it took off.
Chris stared daggers at me, "As soon as we arrived, I radioed that the fire was too strong. I don't know if the dispatcher misjudged or had other motives—she ordered us to charge in, like our lives didn't matter. She almost got us all killed."
"Thankfully, Captain Chris made the call to pull back and dig a firebreak—he saved the crew and contained the fire."
Lily didn't miss a beat praising Chris in front of the brass.
"Captain Chris saved the team and millions in property—he should be celebrated by the press."
"As a firefighter, it's my duty to serve and protect the public," Chris added with shameless poise.
"But this liar—incompetent and dishonest—should be fired and forced to pay for all the damage!"
As Chris finished, Alex stepped forward and snapped,
"After all these years, you're still shameless—and now you've lost your brains too?"
"Alex? What right do you have to criticize me?" Chris flushed purple with fury.
I narrowed my eyes at Chris, then cleared my throat,
"Captain Chris, Dr. Lily—allow me to introduce this gentleman."
"Alex works in the department's inspection division. He happened to be inspecting the helicopters today."
"And he found that the water meant for firefighting had been replaced with diesel."
The scene went stone-silent.
Chris gaped, but Lily reacted fast.
She pointed at Alex, eyes wide, looking horrified at me,
"Why would he inspect? And the department brass were here the whole time? How?"
I nodded, a hard little smile on my lips,
"Of course. A dispatcher has to see the big picture. It's a critical role—I had to prepare for every contingency."
"The fire was controllable at first, but with so much on the line, I notified the department. Half the leadership was watching you handle it."
Faced with the stern chief, the skeptical brass, and the bewildered growers...
Lily stood frozen.
Suddenly, she went pale, foamed at the mouth and collapsed to the pavement.
Those who understood were already shaking—now Chris was left exposed on the stage.
Chris glanced at Lily and sagged to the ground too.
Alex moved quickly, stepping forward to "help" Chris up.
Chris leaned on Alex's arm, his legs wobbling,
"It's... all a... misunderstanding."
Chris could barely get the words out—he had no choice but to shut down.
No amount of silvered speech could spin this.
The growers started to turn—the man who'd demanded I pay for the trees glared disgusted at Chris.
Before the department brass could decide, our chief spoke up for me,
"You delayed the response, then tried to shift the blame. Someone like you doesn't deserve to wear that badge!"
Under Chris's hopeless gaze, the chief announced,
"Chris, you're fired. Don't show up tomorrow. The press has been recording—you'll be on the evening news."
