A clap of thunder boomed at the same time lightning struck. Kim yanked around toward the loud sound. “That was close. Too close.” She breathed in several deep inhalations, trying to calm the rapid speed of her heartbeat. “I thought it was moving away from us.”
Then suddenly another lightning/thunder combination shook the house as though it had blasted through the walls.
Zane surged to his feet. “That’s even closer.”
He marched toward the door into the hallway. Kim followed right behind him. Going from room to room, he flipped on the light and checked each one.
Kim hurried to keep up with him. “Maybe it struck a tree.”
“It struck something nearby. I’m going downstairs to see.”
“I’m coming with you. I can cover half the house while you do the other half.”
She made her way through the lower floor, finding nothing suspicious. As she approached the staircase again, her breathing evened out. Zane pushed back the plastic sheets and emerged from the living room, his calm expression reassuring her.
“I can go outside and look around, see if I can find any damage.”
“I’ll go, too.” Ascending the steps in front of him, Kim drew in the aromas saturating the air. “The beef stew and—” She took another deep breath. “I smell something else.” Halting, she spun toward Zane. “Smoke!”
Chapter Twelve
Zane charged up the remaining stairs, inhaling. “Where’s it coming from?”
“Don’t know. To be safe, I’m getting everyone out of the house.” Kim rushed down the hall.
“I’ll take a look to see if I can find the source of this smoke. Call 911.”
“Y’all need to get out of here. We smell smoke,” she said as soon as she burst into the game room.
Maggie whirled around at the stove. “The lightning struck the house?”
“It must have. We couldn’t find where, though. Zane’s still looking.”
Anna helped her grandfather to stand, all color drained from both of their faces. “Can we get anything?”
“If it’s in here, yes. Otherwise, no. I want you outside.” Kim dug into her pocket for her cell.
Maggie grabbed her purse and Kim’s, then corralled Keith and Anna toward the exit. “You can’t stay,” she called back over her shoulder.
“I’m coming.” The 911 operator came on the line, and Kim gave her the information, then turned toward the door into the hallway. There was no way she was leaving until Zane did. She hurried down the corridor, yelling his name.
“I’m in here.” He came out of her bedroom, sniffing the air. “It’s getting stronger. I’ve searched up here and can’t find the source.”
Kim stopped in the middle of the upstairs. “The fire department is coming.” Drawing in deep breaths, she swung around in a full circle.
Her gaze latched on to the door to the attic. She raced for it, paused and put her hand on it to feel for heat. When it didn’t feel hot, she started to open the door. She had it cracked open. In that second, smoke slithered from the small gap and continued to ooze from the bottom.
When Zane ran up behind her, he slammed it closed. He grabbed her hand and tugged her away. “Let’s get out of here.”
As they hastened toward the exit, her heart pounded until she thought it would come out of her chest. Its frantic beating thundered in her head. Not again. We can’t lose our family home. We were just getting it fixed. Please, Lord, help us.
* * *
Huddled in a blanket from a neighbor, Kim leaned against Zane’s black truck while her father and Anna sat inside it. A few feet away Maggie talked with Polly’s dad while Zane conversed with Gideon, dressed in his fire gear.
The chill of the evening reflected the cold embedded deep into Kim’s bones. The scent of smoke and burning wood saturated the air. In the lights shining to illuminate the scene, she glimpsed plumes of smoke drifting toward the black sky, but at least the flames were out. The firefighters continued to douse the upper level of Bienville, squashing the last burning embers.
Hopelessness settled on her shoulders as though the rain still fell and drenched the blanket about her. All the past weeks’ hard work on renovating the second floor was for nothing. Most of the first floor remained intact, but water soaked and smoke permeated. After the hurricane, they were able to stay in a small part of the house. Now they wouldn’t have any place to live—at least for a while.
The trembling in her legs sent her sinking toward the ground. Zane clasped her and held her up. “I know this looks bad—”
“Bad?” She clutched the folds of the blanket and rounded on him. “That’s not a strong enough word. My home is gone. We have no place to go. What am I going to do about Dad?”
He grasped both of her arms and tugged her farther away from the truck. “I’ve called Cody to be here in case your dad needs him. I will help you. You are not alone in this. Do you hear me?”
Yes, she heard his words, but they failed to sink in. She could only stare at her childhood home, a house that had withstood one hundred fifty years of time. She couldn’t understand why this was happening to her. What had she done to deserve this?
Why, God?
“Kim? Your family needs you to be strong.”
Zane’s words reached her. “Strong? I’m not allowed to fall apart?”
He slung his arm around her shoulder and walked her toward one of Maggie’s newly planted gardens, away from the lights and the people gathered.
“Yes, you can. I’m here to listen.”
“Why now? Why me?” Welling tears made any more words impossible to say.
“Sometimes there isn’t an answer for those questions. I know during the hurricane many people were asking themselves those questions. All I can say is life is never a smooth road. There are bumps and detours and even holes we encounter along the way.”
She swallowed the lump. “I feel like I’ve fallen into a crater. I’m at the bottom looking up into pitch blackness. I’m even afraid to grasp on and start my climb out for fear I’ll be—” her throat constricted, and she gulped back the emotions rising to take over “—knocked down again.”
He pressed her against him and wrapped his arms about her. “I’m here for you this time. If I have to, I’ll climb down into the crater and help you up every step of the way.”
His soothing words unleashed her sorrow, and the tears flowed unchecked down her cheeks. As the water from the hoses splashed down onto her home, her sobs splashed down onto his shirt as he held her to him.
* * *
“I don’t want us to be a burden.” Kim poured Ruth a cup of coffee from the pot Kim had made earlier. She hadn’t been able to sleep at all and had finally gotten up and come downstairs to the kitchen.
“My dear, I love having y’all stay here with me. I have the room now that Kathleen and my grandsons are living with Gideon. So don’t think you’re imposing one bit.” Ruth peered toward Kim’s dad. “This’ll give your dad and me a chance to work on the campaign. The election is in a few days.”
“We’re grateful for your hospitality.” Kim’s father sat at the end of the kitchen table in Ruth’s house, black circles under his eyes, lines of weariness on his face, but his gaze was clear, not blank and distant like after the hurricane.
Kim appreciated the fact that Ruth was helping take her dad’s mind off the fire that had consumed the attic and part of the second story of Bienville. “Zane said something about getting us a trailer to use in a few days.”
“Nonsense. I hate you staying in a trailer when I have the space.” Ruth leaned toward Kim and lowered her voice. “Don’t tell my daughter that I miss her and the boys, but I do. I got used to the noise level being loud. This past week has been too quiet.”
“After the fire department says it’s okay, I’ll need to assess the damage. Zane will help me with that. It’s just that…” She couldn’t say anything else. All the words had been said—and the tears shed—the night before to Zane who
had finally brought her dad, Anna and her to Ruth’s to stay while Maggie and Brady went to stay with a cousin.
“The minute Gideon called to let me know what was happening, I started preparing the bedrooms upstairs. I wasn’t going to take no for an answer.” Ruth patted Kim’s father’s hand. “I couldn’t have done this campaign without you, Keith. This is the least I can do for you and your family.”
He gave Ruth a weary smile that brightened his eyes for a few seconds. As he lifted his cup to his mouth, his hands trembled, but the brief grin lifted Kim’s spirits. Cody had arrived at the fire and had talked with her father for forty-five minutes while Kim had consoled Anna. Zane had been right. She couldn’t allow herself to fall apart. That short time with Zane last night was all the time she would let herself mourn the loss of her house. She had to hold the family together. If they had to tear down Bienville, then she would deal with it. If they could repair it, then she would manage that, too. At least that was what she’d told herself in the early morning hours when she couldn’t sleep. But now the prospects of the road ahead—after the past months of dealing with the damage from the hurricane and her father’s failing health—made her want to retreat from life, get in the car and drive until she ran out of gas and money. She wasn’t a chuck-it-all kind of person, but the temptation was great.
When Kim centered her attention on Ruth and her dad at the end of the table talking between themselves, the strong connection developing between them shouldn’t have taken her by surprise, but it did. Her father looked tired, understandably, but not defeated. Something else stunned her, though. He lifted his hand and grazed it along Ruth’s jawline, his eyes sparkling. What was transpiring between them was more than friendship. She’d known that but not the depth of it. When did this happen?
Kim scooted back her chair and stood. “I think I’m going out to the house.”
Her dad glanced toward her and said, “Do you want me to come?” Then he returned his gaze to Ruth.
“No. I thought I would check what’s happening. Get some kind of estimate from the fire department. I couldn’t see everything last night when we left.” She strode toward the hallway that led to the staircase. She couldn’t stay any longer in the kitchen because she felt like an outsider. Ruth and her dad needed privacy.
Upstairs she eased the door open into the guest bedroom and found her daughter still sleeping. Tiptoeing to the dresser, Kim grabbed her purse, the only item other than the clothes on her back that she had with her from the house.
Leaving Anna asleep, she went down the stairs, rummaging in her purse for her keys until she realized her car was in the detached garage at Bienville. She considered asking Ruth to use her car but decided not to. It was only two miles to her house, and she could use the walk.
She peered up. The bright blue sky without one cloud mocked her mood. As she began her trek toward her house, nature continued to taunt her with its joyous beauty and cycle of renewal as a pair of cardinals flew back and forth with twigs to build their nest, flowers bloomed, and the trees filled in with leaves.
She strolled on the sidewalk that ran beside the highway between the houses and the sea. The mirror-smooth water glittered in the sun beginning its ascent. The scent of the Gulf’s salty tang and flowers in full glory along her way urged her to let go of her sorrow, and she nearly did until she turned into the long driveway that led to Bienville. That was when she saw the house, and new tears crowded her eyes until she could hardly see.
She stopped, frozen.
The enormity of what she had ahead of her struck her in full force. Some of the second floor was gone, as well as the whole attic. All the boxes of memories stored on the third level vanished in the fire. The antebellum gown that she’d worn to the Mardi Gras party had been her mother’s and stored in the attic—not to mention some of the antique furniture they had moved since the roof had been repaired so they could renovate the downstairs.
Behind her she heard a vehicle pull up and stop. She didn’t have the energy even to turn and see who had arrived. Her gaze stayed fastened on the charred remains of the upper part of her home. The slam of a door jolted her out of her daze. Slowly she turned toward the newcomer. Seeing Zane’s dad, she sniffed back the tears and straightened her shoulders.
Then she spied the sheen in his eyes and the dam holding back her tears broke. Wet tracks rolled down her cheeks.
A couple of feet from her, he said, “I’m so sorry that this happened to Bienville, Kim. It has such beauty and history. I had to come first thing this morning. I was praying what I saw last night had been a nightmare.”
“So had I.”
He took a step. She took a step. And then she was in his arms, seeking comfort from a man who at one time she couldn’t forgive. Now he was giving her solace when he certainly had good reasons to be leery of her and her family.
Vaguely she heard another vehicle stop and a door shut. She quickly composed herself. When she looked up, she glimpsed Zane. The expression of sympathy nearly undid her all over again. He reached out to her, and she went into his embrace.
“I went by Ruth’s to get you, but she said you’d already left for here.”
“I couldn’t sit around there any longer. I needed to know how bad it is.”
Zane glanced beyond her. “I’m not gonna kid you. It looks bad, but Gideon thinks the floor to the second floor is sound. The fire didn’t reach there. It did damage part of the walls, though—” he waved toward the house “—as you can see.”
“When can we go upstairs and see for ourselves?”
“Gideon thinks by midafternoon.”
“I’m going up to the house to look around,” Tom said then left her and Zane alone.
After his dad drove away, he rubbed his hands up and down her arms. “I can’t imagine what you’re going through, but—”
Before he could say any more, she said, “No, you can’t.” She backed away. She was tired of depending on others for help. She could never repay Zane for all he’d done for her and her family. And now it would start all over again.
“I know you’re hurting. I know you feel defeated. You don’t think I’ve experienced those feelings?”
“I’m sure you have—under different circumstances. Up until last night I’d begun to feel that I was getting my life back together, that my dad would heal and regain a semblance of what he was at one time. Last night that went up in flames—literally. The battle starts all over again, and I’m plain tired of fighting.” She swung around and marched toward Bienville.
Zane dogged her steps. “Why don’t you wait and come back later? Let’s go to breakfast and then church. Give yourself some space.”
She wheeled around, and he nearly collided into her. “No, I want to be alone. I’m going to get my car and go somewhere to think. Is that enough space for you?”
He yanked back as if she’d slapped him in the face. “Fine. I’ll see you here at three this afternoon.” Pivoting, he stalked to his truck and backed out of the driveway onto the highway.
Kim curled her hands until her fingernails dug into her palms. Numb, she hardly felt the pain. After he disappeared from her view, she continued her way to the detached garage. She refused to look in the direction of her burnt home. But she didn’t need to. The image was seared into her thoughts.
* * *
Standing in her bedroom at her house, Kim listened to Zane tell her what he could do to repair the damage. She peered up at the blue sky exposed through the holes and missing sections of the roof—again. Zane’s voice faded from her consciousness. The view threw her back almost five months ago when the hurricane hit, and she walked into her room the first time to see the destruction.
When she finally looked at Zane, he’d quit talking, his gaze on her. “Whatever you think is fine with me. You’re the expert.” Her shoulders hunched as she crossed her arms over her chest.
“Has your insurance agent said when the adjuster will come out?”
“He thought tomor
row sometime.”
Zane picked his way through the wet debris to her. “I’ll take care of it if that’s okay. I know how overwhelmed you feel right now.”
She opened her mouth.
He held up his hand and quickly said, “I’ve dealt with many others in similar situations, Kim. The good news is your downstairs isn’t in too bad shape. We’ll deal with the water and smoke, but structurally it is sound. I know you want to retain as much of the old house as possible.”
“If it wasn’t for Dad, I’d walk away. I don’t have what it takes to fight anymore.” Beyond the destruction to the house, most of their personal belongings had been burnt or damaged beyond use.
She pivoted and started for the hallway. She needed to get out of the house. Her gaze latched on to a photo of her and Anna lying on the floor near the dresser where it had sat. The glass was shattered and the picture ruined. Hurrying, she escaped into the corridor and continued to the staircase.
The stench of smoke and burnt wood drove her outside. Her stomach roiled as she increased her pace. She gulped down the bile rising in her throat and strode toward her car. She’d been away from her dad and Anna long enough.
“Kim.” At her car, Zane touched her shoulder. “I’ve been calling your name.”
She slanted a look toward him as his hand slipped from her, and he came around between her and her car. “I didn’t hear you.”
“And that’s what has me worried. Please talk to me.”
She fumbled for her keys in her pocket. “I don’t have any words to say to anyone. I need to get home to Dad and Anna. I’ll talk to you later.”
His penetratingly intense gaze bored into her, then he stepped to the side, opening her car door for her. “I’ll come by later tonight. There are details we need to work out about the house at least.”
“Sure,” she mumbled and slipped behind the steering wheel.
Love Runs Deep (New Beginnings Book 7) Page 16