by A. E. Radley
“What happened?” Alice repeated firmly.
“I locked her in the store cupboard in the library. I was going to let her out after break.”
Alice didn’t stop to think. She turned and ran towards the building.
26 TIME TO PANIC
“When you write an appointment in the book, could you use your big boy handwriting so I can read it?” Hannah asked, squinting at Adrian’s scrawl.
“Oh, come on, what are you complaining about?” He looked over her shoulder. “Agnes Banks. Is that so hard?”
“That’s an A?” Hannah exclaimed.
Any further debate was silenced by the sight of a fire engine speeding past the shop with blue lights flashing and siren wailing.
“Wow,” Adrian said. “Wonder what that’s about.”
Hannah frowned. “They’re in a hurry.”
Adrian was already out of the door. “I’ll see what I can find out.”
“You’re such an old gossip!” Hannah shouted after him.
She returned her attention to the appointment book. She needed some distraction between clients. Her brain kept returning to her argument with Alice.
“Stop it,” she told herself. “Just focus on work.”
Adrian nearly took the door off the hinges when he threw himself back into the shop. “It’s the school,” he breathed.
Just as he uttered the words, Hannah’s next client turned up. Adrian looked from Hannah to Mrs Allardyce.
“Hi, Mrs Allardyce, Hannah has to pop out, so I’ll be dealing with you.” He gestured for Hannah to make her escape.
“Thank you,” she said to him. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Within seconds, she was in the street and running like she had never run before. Other villagers were standing around, chatting and pointing. Hannah looked up. She could see plumes of thick, grey smoke over the tops of the houses.
She charged around the corner and onto the main road down towards the school. Other parents were making their way towards the school, some driving and others running like she was.
“Please, please, please, please, please,” she panted as she ran.
She couldn’t cope if anything happened to Rosie.
Without permission, an image of Alice floated into her mind. The thought of Alice being hurt was just as fear-inducing.
As she got closer, she could see the fire engine parked up in the playground and the officers getting equipment ready and talking with Hardaker.
She sprinted into the playground. Her eyes quickly found the first-year class, but there were two notable absences. Lucy Gibson walked towards her, eyes wide and terror-filled.
Hannah’s heart sank. Something was terribly wrong.
“Where is she?” she screamed at Lucy. “Where’s my daughter?”
In that second, she knew with absolute certainty that Rosie was in the building.
“Miss Spencer went in to get her,” Lucy explained.
Hannah’s mouth dropped open. It felt like her heart had turned to ice in her chest. Her daughter was somehow inside the burning building. Alice Spencer had gone into a burning building to get her out. Alice, who was terrified of fire and dark spaces.
Hannah’s legs started moving towards the building.
Lucy grabbed her. “No, you mustn’t.”
“Let go of me, Lucy.” Hannah fought against her.
Lucy grabbed her a little tighter, but Hannah was strong and started dragging Lucy behind her. A moment later, two other teachers were grabbing her and holding her in place. She fought against them, desperate to get free.
“Let me go! My daughter is in there!” she screamed.
27 AN UNLIKELY RESCUER
Alice was in the building before she had time to think about what she was doing. The main downstairs corridor was completely filled with smoke. Thankfully, the thick, black smoke was confined to the ceiling, with a thinner mist at eye level.
The alarm bell screeched loudly so that she couldn’t hear anything but the siren echoing down the hallway. She couldn’t imagine how terrified Rosie felt. She had to get to her. And then kill Colin Whittaker.
She moved quickly, crouching low as she went. She turned and walked down a side corridor. She paused and looked around. It was the wrong direction. She’d only just entered the building, and she was already getting confused and turned around by the amount of smoke and her mounting fear.
She hurried in the right direction. The smoke was much thicker as she approached the library. In the distance she could see orange light flickering against a wall, an indication that the fire was just around the corner.
She paused again, staring at the eerie, amber glow that reflected off the walls. Her heartbeat sounded so loudly in her ears that she could no longer hear the alarm. She wondered if she was about to pass out. She’d experienced panic attacks before. This felt like her strongest one ever.
She reached out and held onto the wall, trying to find something solid that would ground her.
Rosie, get to Rosie, she told herself.
The sweet girl’s smile appeared in her mind, and she pushed herself away from the wall. A few minutes later she entered the library. Already there was smoke filling the space, but it wasn’t quite as bad as in the corridor.
She closed the door, hoping that it would buy them a little more time and a little more air before they headed back into the ever-darkening hallway.
There were three store cupboards in the room. Thankfully they all permanently had keys in their locks. She unlocked the first and threw the door open. It was completely empty.
She rushed around the shelving to the next door and struggled a few seconds with the lock before opening the door. She couldn’t see anything and wondered if this was another of Colin’s tricks. Maybe Rosie was outside, safe and well while she was in danger of being overcome by smoke in an empty library.
She was about to turn away to the third and final cupboard when she saw something.
“Rosie?”
She heard a noise. A cry.
She walked into the cupboard and could see Rosie curled up in a ball at the back. She pulled the young girl into a strong embrace.
“Oh, Rosie, you’re going to be okay,” she promised, even though by now she was sure they were both going to perish. Rosie wasn’t able to stand so she lifted her into her arms.
“Are you okay?” Alice asked, unsure if Rosie had already inhaled too much smoke.
“Are we going to die, Miss Spencer?” Rosie whispered.
“No, everything will be fine. The fire brigade are already on their way.”
Alice walked into the library. Emergency lighting dully lit the windowless room. The only way out was the way she had come in, through the corridor.
She looked through the half-glazed door and was alarmed that she could no longer see through the smoke which had become much thicker and darker since she had arrived. She held Rosie tightly, trying to soothe the girl and her own thundering heart.
She didn’t know what to do for the best.
The corridor looked impassable.
They’d have to run, and she didn’t think Rosie could. She’d have to carry her, but it was a long way. She didn’t know if she had the lung capacity to do so without being able to take a breath. There was a real chance that they’d be overcome by fumes in the hallway, which would mean certain death.
Her only chance was that the fire brigade had arrived and would be able to get to them. She congratulated herself on shouting to Lucy where she was going and why. People knew where they were. Now it was just a matter of when they would arrive.
“Miss Spencer?” Rosie asked.
Alice knew that her indecision was costing them valuable time.
“I think we should stay here, Rosie,” she said. “Let the fire brigade come for us.”
She spun around and sat Rosie on the librarian’s desk. She ripped off her jacket and her cardigan and put them under the door to try to stem the smoke that was pouring in.
She turned to Rosie. “Arms up,” she instructed.
Rosie did what she was told, in between hacking coughs.
Alice pulled her school jumper off and plugged the remaining gap with it.
She looked at the door and realised there was nothing else she could do. Even being close to the door was causing her breathing to become strained.
“Come on.” She picked Rosie up and carried her to the farthest corner of the room. She knew now it was all about giving them every extra second. She lowered Rosie to the floor by the wall and sat behind her, pulling her into a hug.
“It will be okay, Rosie. They are coming for us.”
Rosie clutched her arms around her. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come to the library without permission.”
“It’s okay,” Alice told her. She squeezed her a little tighter.
“Colin didn’t believe there was another book in his series, so I wanted to show him,” she explained. “He doesn’t like being wrong. He was being silly. I told him to stop and then he—”
“Shh, don’t worry about that now.” Alice softly rocked her. She knew they needed to conserve oxygen and not waste the last few valuable molecules of breathable air talking about Colin. She turned Rosie around so her head rested against her chest. She unbuttoned her shirt and used the material as a mask, placing it over Rosie’s mouth and nose.
“We’ll be out soon,” she promised, not knowing how much truth lay in the statement.
28 ANSWERS
Several people had held Hannah back right up until the fire officers finally entered the building. Once she saw them march in with all their equipment, her body finally relaxed.
She was still beside herself with worry, but at least she now knew that something was happening. Lucy remained beside her, an arm wrapped around her in a useless attempt at comfort.
Hannah shook her head. She couldn’t think like that. Lucy was doing her best. They’d never seen eye to eye, as it was between Hannah and most of Fairlight’s residents. Especially anyone who was connected to her by this vile building.
She got her phone out of her pocket and rang Alice’s mobile. She knew it was unlikely to yield any results, but if there was even a one percent chance she could hear that voice again, she’d take it.
The generic voicemail message sounded on the fifth ring, and Hannah sobbed.
“They’ll be okay,” Lucy told her. Her arm tightened. “Alice won’t rest until she’s found Rosie. She loves that girl.”
Hannah briefly wondered if she’d told Rosie that she loved her enough. She thought she had, but now that the crunch had come, she couldn’t be sure. Were there ever enough times to tell someone you loved them? She couldn’t even remember saying goodbye to her that morning. And Adrian had dropped her off at school, all because Hannah was petty and argumentative. She’d missed the chance to spend a few more precious minutes with her daughter.
And Alice. She wished she hadn’t been quite so harsh with her. She had been angry, but she knew she went off like a firecracker as she so frequently did when it came to protecting Rosie. Now, staring at the smoke streaming from the building, she wished she’d reacted differently.
“Miss Hall.”
She looked up to see Hardaker walking towards her, a grim stare on his face. She had nothing to say to him.
“I assure you that everything is being done to ensure young Rose is brought out safely. Miss Spencer will have found her and be working with the fire service to bring her to safety,” he explained to her.
She knew he had no idea what was going on and was just trying to keep her calm. She didn’t have it in her to argue with him.
“I promise you, in no time at all Rosie will be back in her classroom wired up to Prince’s Academy as if nothing had ever happened.”
She tore her eyes away from the burning building. “What do you mean?”
“The placement she has,” Hardaker explained. “For the online course for gifted pupils.”
Hannah stared at him.
“Miss Spencer used her contacts to get Rosie a place at Prince’s. Quite ingenious, students all over the country can learn via a laptop and the internet, being taught by the best with a view to those students attending Prince’s when they are older. I’m sure Miss Spencer was going to explain it to you soon.”
“She even got Mr Hardaker to open the kitty for a laptop,” Lucy added.
“Well, she blackmailed me, if that’s what you mean.” Hardaker chuckled. “She’s bloody-minded. Don’t you worry, Miss Hall, your daughter couldn’t be in safer hands.”
Hannah felt sick.
She’d jumped to the conclusion that Alice was planning to send Rosie away, when she’d actually gone to the trouble of constructing the perfect scenario for Rosie. She could stay in her class but still have access to the education she needed.
Her body shook with shock.
She’d pushed Alice away, without giving her a chance to explain. She’d ended things because of a misunderstanding. As usual, Hannah Hall had gone defensive and shot herself in the foot.
“There’s Rosie!” Lucy called out.
Hannah ripped herself away from Lucy and ran towards the fireman who had Rosie cradled in his arms. He was walking towards an ambulance which had arrived shortly after the fire service. A paramedic was on standby beside a stretcher.
The fireman lowered her daughter onto the stretcher, and the paramedic quickly took over. The officer opened his visor and looked at Hannah.
“She’s going to be okay,” he said.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!” She looked at Rosie who was covered in soot and coughing but seemed strong and healthy.
She cried with relief and took her hand. “Hey, pumpkin, you’re going to be okay.” She turned and looked towards the school. No one else was coming out.
The paramedic was speaking to Rosie, asking her questions and cleaning her up, but the sound of her voice faded into the background as Hannah stared at the door, wishing for it to open and for Alice to walk out.
She started to hope that maybe Alice was already out. Maybe she hadn’t been able to get into the building and was somewhere in the crowded playground.
“Some smoke inhalation that will need to be monitored, but she’ll be fine,” the paramedic was explaining.
“Where’s Miss Spencer?” Rosie asked tiredly. “She was with me.”
Hannah’s heart sank.
“I… I don’t know,” she admitted.
She looked around the playground. More and more parents were turning up and taking their children away from the school. She wished she was one of them. Arriving and feeling the relief that your child was safe and well, taking them home and holding them tightly.
“She saved me,” Rosie whispered.
Hannah squeezed her hand. She had nothing to say. She wished she could offer some comfort, but at that moment she was all out of positive thoughts.
The doors opened, cracking loudly on the walls on either side of them as a fireman pushed them aside. He held a limp body in his arms.
Alice, Hannah recognised her immediately.
In that moment, her heart stopped. It was only Rosie’s hand squeezing her that brought her back from the dark void.
The fireman rushed to a stretcher and gently lowered Alice down, shouting information at the paramedic as he did.
“Mummy?” Rosie sounded terrified. She may have been facing away from what was happening, but she had picked up on the charge in the atmosphere. Parents and students in the distance were gasping and murmuring, the sound carrying easily across the now deathly silent playground.
Hannah stretched her neck to see what was happening. Alice was covered in soot, her eyes firmly closed. She looked like she was in a deep sleep, and Hannah refused to believe any differently.
“Mummy?” Rosie said again, this time more forcefully.
Hannah spun around and took Rosie into her arms, using her body as a shield so that Rosie wouldn’t be able to
see the paramedic working on her teacher.
“It’s okay,” she whispered. “It’s okay.”
She clung to Rosie, hoping to anyone who would listen that it really would be okay.
29 A FRIGHT
Alice fought against the exhaustion to try to open her eyes. She couldn’t remember anything. Something was clawing at her mind, telling her to wake up, to get up. Urgency tore through her, but she didn’t know why.
In a flash, she remembered the fire, the library, and Rosie.
Her eyes opened. She tried to sit up but was unable to move very far.
“Whoa, whoa, calm down,” a voice said. “You’re okay. You’re okay.”
Someone had gripped her arm and was trying to get her to lie still.
“Rosie,” she said, surprised to hear that her voice was a harsh rasp. She turned to see who was holding her back from getting to Rosie and was surprised to see that it was Hannah.
“Rosie is fine,” Hannah reassured her. She sat on the edge of the bed, where its railings ended, the first indication to Alice that she was in hospital.
Alice shook her head. Rosie was in danger, and she needed to get to her.
Hannah gently pushed her back down and stood up, gesturing behind her to where Rosie sat asleep in a high-backed chair, Hannah’s coat draped over her.
“She’s?” Alice asked, struggling to think in full sentences, never mind speak them.
“She’s absolutely fine. Thanks to you.”
Alice sighed in relief without thinking. It caused her to cough, which, in turn, caused a painful ache in her chest.
Hannah picked up a cup of water with a small straw and held it out for her. She eagerly drank, hoping to rid her mouth and throat of the foul taste there.
“You gave us all a fright,” Hannah said seriously.
Alice finished with the water, and Hannah put the cup back on the bedside table.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Alice apologised. “I, I don’t remember much of it.”
“That’s okay. It’s etched in my mind forever,” Hannah said. “The woman who is scared of the dark and of fire ran into a burning building to save my daughter.”