“I’ll get you!” Illadon yells from the other side.
I grab the handle, my heart in my throat with fear of what he’s going to do. As soon as I touch the handle, my skin sizzles and I jerk my hand free.
“Shit!” I curse, looking at my hand.
It’s not bad, but the handle being that hot is. I use the hem of my shirt to wrap cloth around my hand to protect myself, then try the door again. It works. The door opens.
Flames roar out of the door. I stumble back. The flames are the fingers of giant hands, grasping the wall, trying to break free. Shielding my eyes beyond the flames I see Illadon. Jolie and Rverre are cut off by a burning beam that has fallen.
“Illadon, get out of here!” Jolie screams. “I’ll find a way, get out before more comes down!”
As if in response, another sonic boom rattles the building. Dirt and debris falls, and a crack races down the wall. There’s no time to waste. Shielding my face with an arm, I run through the roiling flames engulfing the door frame. The heat steals my breath.
“Illadon, run!” I order.
“No,” he says. He’s looking up down and around with fast movements of his head. “Not without her.”
“Illadon get out, please!” Rverre yells. She’s clinging to Jolie’s side.
Flames stretch higher. The ceiling is a churning inferno, and the flames on the beam are stretching to join their brothers. It feels as if my skin is peeling back before the onslaught of waves of hot.
CRACK!
A flaming hunk of the ceiling falls and explodes as it hits the ground, sending glowing embers dancing in the air. Then I spot a chance.
“Jolie, the far end!” I yell.
She doesn’t wait, dragging Rverre with her, she runs. Illadon and I pace her the length of the beam.
“I see it,” Jolie says.
A long metal table rests against this wall. Flaming debris covers it, but they can crawl underneath it. The table has created a small save haven.
Jolie grabs Rverre and throws her through the wall of flames. She screams, but lands underneath the table safely.
“Come to me, honey, come on,” I coax her, reaching for her.
She has to crawl under the table far enough so I can reach her. The beam and its flames rests on top of it. She looks back for her mother, then scrambles ahead on all fours. The moment my fingers touch her, I jerk her out and spin her around.
“Illadon, get her out of here, now,” I order.
“Mom, Jolie,” he argues.
“No!” I yell. “Protect Rverre, I’ll help Jolie.”
He’s torn, I see it on his face, but he grabs Rverre and runs out. When I whip around, the flames are higher. It’s going to be much harder for Jolie to get past them without being severely burned. The crawl space under that table wasn’t a problem for Rverre but as small as Jolie is, she’s not that small.
“Come on Jolie,” I say. “You can do this. Come on.”
She shakes her head back and forth. Tears stream down her face but I see the truth. Rverre is safe and she’s giving up.
“I can’t,” she cries.
“You can,” I say. “You have to. I can’t do this without you.”
“I can’t,” she says, moving back and forth.
She rocks in place, backing away from the flames that are consuming more and more. Debris falls from the ceiling making the passage tighter.
“Jolie, damn it, we don’t have time for this. Do it! Do it now!”
“Tell Sverre and Rverre I love them,” she bawls. “Run, Calista, I’m sorry. I love you!”
“Don’t you do this to me!” I yell. “No. You don’t get out of this that easy. Do it or I’m coming in there after you.”
“I’m sorry,” she wraps her arms around herself and twists from side to side. “I’m sorry Calista, I love you, but I’m sorry.”
“You’re going to be sorry. I’m going to kick your ass when we get out of this, now do it!”
She drops to her knees, bowing her head.
No matter the heat and the fire, cold penetrates me to my core. She’s trapped. Another loud crack and more of the ceiling falls. The wall behind her is peeling and cracking.
“No!” I scream. “Get up. Get up and try, damn it. No!”
She looks up. Her beautiful face is flushed with burns. She looks around, then shakes her head. Something cracks again, and then the wall behind her explodes.
“NO-O-O-O-O-O-O!” I scream, tearing my vocal cords.
Light and fresh air stream through the wall. I rub my eyes, unable to believe it. Sverre scoops Jolie into his arms and turns back to the opening he created. He pauses and looks over his shoulder.
“RUN!” he yells.
I don’t wait. My throat burns and my lungs scream as I try to get oxygen. In the hall, I drop to my knees and crawl. The smoke is too thick to see my way out, and I can’t breathe.
My head is swimming. I’m dizzy. My arms shake with the effort of holding myself up and trying to move.
Blackness closes in. A bit farther. Almost there.
I drop to the floor. The tile is a welcome coolness on my face. Throwing my arms in front of myself, I try to get a grasp on anything. When my fingers hook on something, I pull myself forward a few more inches.
A little rest. A moment. Get some air.
I huff for air, but it’s filled with smoke, making me cough more. The blackness swirls in again, closing its grasp.
Can’t fall asleep.
Must. Stay. Awake.
My arms are grabbed, and then I’m sliding across the floor. In a moment, I’m in the daylight.
“MOM!” Illadon yells, his cherubic face swimming into sight.
“She will be fine,” Sverre says. His rough hands cup my face then lift my head.
Water touches my lips, and greedily I gulp it. Then my diaphragm constricts, and I sputter and cough, spewing water down the front of myself.
Someone helps me sit up, and I cough more. When I take a breath at last, my throat and lungs burn. It hurts, but I’m alive.
“Jolie,” I say, trying to climb to my feet.
“I’m okay,” she says from beside me.
She’s there. I throw myself around her, squeezing her with all I’ve got. She returns my hug, and we hold each other for I don’t know how long. When I finally let her go, I hold her face in my hands.
“Don’t you ever do that again!” I say, tears streaming.
“I’m sorry,” she says.
“You damn well should be,” I say.
“It’s not safe here,” Sverre says. “We must get everyone to the bunkers under the city.”
“The electrical tunnels?” Jolie asks.
“Yes, it will be safest,” Sverre says.
“Ladon went to help,” I say. “I have to find him.”
Sverre stands and looks over the gathered crowd of humans. He stares down the mostly empty street beyond our huddle of humanity.
“He was right,” Sverre says softly.
A cold knife stabs into my heart. The chills race down my limbs, driven in by his words. Ladon was right. He saw this coming, somehow. He wanted to take us away, but I said no.
“Jolie, can you lead these people to the tunnels?” I ask.
“Yes, but what about you?” she asks.