Right.
Of course.
I ran through his apartment to the bathroom and grabbed three towels. I soaked them under the tap in his tub before squeezing them and running them back through to the door, dripping water everywhere.
Arthur was talking to Polly. She was telling him the fire was on the ground and the first floor. We were to stay put as the fire department was there. They were getting it under control and would be there to rescue us soon. She took his apartment number three times while I blocked the bottom of the door and helped him over to his bedroom which was the farthest from the front door.
Yes, it was hot. Yes, we could see the smoke outside the windows. No, we wouldn’t open a window, but I was pretty sure there was smoke forcing through the front door now.
I couldn’t see it, but I could smell it. It was thick and acrid, and I wrapped my arm around a shaking Arthur.
Polly kept talking to us, but it was all a blur. The smoke outside the window was getting thicker and thicker as it billowed into the sky. I was afraid to open the bedroom door just in case the fire had spread to the third floor now. I swore I saw the flash of flames licking at the sides of the building when I looked outside the last time.
What if I’d replaced those batteries like I should have? What if? What if I hadn’t been in the shower? Would I have noticed it sooner? What if I hadn’t been in my own little world—was there a chance I’d have heard the other alarms sooner? Smelled the smoke sooner?
Call me dramatic, but I couldn’t believe this was how I was going to die.
In a fire.
In my oldest cotton panties where the fabric had bobbled, and braless.
Awesome.
Joking was the only way I could stay calm. If I didn’t, I was going to panic, and that wouldn’t help anyone, least of all Arthur.
“Reagan? Can you hear me?” Polly’s voice cracked as the line broke.
“Yes!” I shouted.
“You need to go to the door and bang, okay? Smoke can obstruct the apartment doors. Use a wet cloth over your mouth to support your breathing. They’re entering the building now to get everyone out.”
I confirmed I would and took the phone from Arthur. One quick trip to the bathroom later and I had two cloths for us both. I handed one to Arthur to protect his mouth with and used the other for me.
He assured me they were clean, but I honestly didn’t care if they weren’t. If it was between a dirty face cloth or death, I’d pick the cloth.
I might regret it later, but at least I’d live to regret it.
Thick smoke was eking its way through the cracks around the sides of the door I couldn’t block off, and I told Polly that.
“Bang loud, Reagan, okay? Keep the cloth over your mouth and nose and do not move it. You don’t have to talk to me anymore. I’ll stay on the line until the firefighters have reached you. I’ll keep talking to you, but you tuck your phone into your bra and bang on the door.”
“Okay!” The smoke smarted my eyes, so I squeezed them shut before I tucked my phone under the arm that was holding my washcloth in place.
Why hadn’t I put a bra on? Why?
With everything I had, I thumped my fist against the door. I didn’t know how many of us were stuck in the building while it burned or even if it would collapse, but Polly’s constant affirmations that she was there and I was doing great kept me going.
So did the adrenaline.
I couldn’t die yet. I was too young. I had to see Halley and Preston have babies. I had to see Betty’s babies and love on them a little bit. I had to see Ava find love. I had to see another one of Aunt Bethel’s hideous outfits.
And my God, if I got out of this shit alive, I was going to ask Noah where he lived and, if it was close by, I was going to ask him out.
So be it, amen, blessed be.
I banged a few more times before I heard a shout outside. “Hello! In here!”
The smoke was thicker now, and I was glad it was me out here and not Arthur. He would be protected in the bedroom.
“We’re in here!” I yelled into the damp cloth, thumping the door as loud as I could.
A bang came back. “Step back from the door and move any obstructions!”
I yanked the towel away and moved back. The cloth slipped from my hand, and I dropped to my knees to grab it. I coughed as the smoke flooded the room with the opening of the door. My phone clattered to the rug, and I felt blindly for it, covering my mouth again.
“Miss—are you alone?” A deep voice accompanied a strong, gloved hand gripping my arm.
I shook my head. “In the bedroom—he’s old. Bad hip.” Another cough.
“Hold that tight to your mouth now. Sam! There’s an old fella in the bedroom!”
“Got it!”
“Come on.” The firefighter pulled me to my feet. “Can you walk?”
I nodded, but my legs gave away as soon as I took a step.
“I’m picking you up, all right? I’ll run you outside where the medics are waiting. I won’t drop you.”
“Okay,” I rasped behind the cloth. I pressed it so tightly to my face that it was any wonder I could breathe at all.
In one swift movement, he wrapped his arms around me and lifted me over his shoulder. I caught a glimpse of Arthur being carried the same way before I had to squeeze my eyes shut once again.
I was bumped and jostled, but the firefighter’s grip on me never wavered. He held me tight to his body as he descended the flights of stairs. The smoke got thicker and it was harder and harder to breathe as we got closer to the ground until—
It stopped.
The jostling stopped, and my feet were deposited on the ground. “It’s all right, you’re outside.”
I nodded, coughing into the cloth.
“I’ve got her, don’t worry.” A new, female voice and new arms took hold of me, and I forced my eyes open. “What’s your name, sweetie?”
“Reagan,” I breathed. My savior was a step away from me now, covered head to toe in dust, and I looked in his direction. “Thank you.”
He turned his head and nodded at me. There was a flash of green in his eyes before he turned and headed back into the still smoldering building.
My gaze was glued to him. He’d just saved my life.
A firefighter came out of the smoky doorway with the familiar figure of Arthur over his shoulder. I made toward him, but my legs went again.
“That’s my neighbor! I was with him! Is he okay?”
Another medic came to the other side to steady me. “He’ll be looked after by our colleagues, don’t you worry. We need to get you in the back of the ambulance and get you checked out.”
“I’m fine.”
I was not fine. My teeth were chattering and my entire body was shaking. I knew I was going into shock, but I refused to give in.
“Reagan!”
I looked up in time to see Preston burst through the police line.
“That’s my sister!”
“Get out of my way!” was Aunt Bethel’s shout.
My body was too busy shutting down to do anything. Before I could think, everything was blurry. I was bundled onto something where I could lie down and something was put over me, and then—
***
“What do you mean, there’s no wine here?”
Miss Louella was fifty-three-years-old and had the unfortunate assignment as my nurse. “It’s midday, Reagan. Even if I could, I wouldn’t serve you it.”