He took two seconds to relock the barn in case the arsonist was still around, then headed for the garden shed.
He swung both doors wide, relieved he’d serviced the equipment already.The mower started first go, and he drove it down the path, through the gap in the hedges and towards the flames.
It might have been years since he’d last mowed the lawn at Lilydale, but the shape of the garden was imprinted in his memory.He lowered the blades and cut a straight swathe through the long grass, the flames racing closer.Across the garden, several trees were engulfed, including a couple of eucalyptus.
He hoped they didn’t explode.
But at least some sprinklers had come on, spreading water across the garden.
Ethan steered as close as he dared to the front of the flames, coughing at the smoke, keeping his face turned away from the flames, and then did another pass, and another, each one giving Barry and Chelsea a layer of protection.
Finally he heard the wail of the fire engine as he finished cutting the grass he could reach.Barry had found a shovel from somewhere and was digging a trench through the freshly mowed grass, so there was no fuel for the fire and Chelsea was fighting to keep the flames from the house.
The engine parked close to the house and within minutes was connected, and a deluge of water was drenching the flames.
Ethan parked the mower out of the way and ran back to Chelsea.Tears welled in her eyes, but it could have been because of the smoke, or because the garden was burning.
Already the fire-fighters had doused the leading edge where it had been creeping along the trench they had cut, stopping it from getting any closer to the house.
However the Japanese pagoda was engulfed in flames and he couldn’t see how close the fire had got to the Sydney Harbour Bridge replica.
“The fire-fighters have this side.”He took the hose from her hands.“We can check the other side.”
Chelsea nodded and he turned off the hose, coiling it, and together they moved back to the hose he’d originally been using.Further around the garden, Barry was still digging a trench to stop the blaze from spreading to the north.
Every instinct in Ethan screamed at him to get Chelsea out of there.“Come on, you can wait on the road by the fire truck.”He grabbed her arm, but she shook it loose.
“I’m not leaving.”
Again his chest tightened and his hands shook, but he recognised her determination.Where was the safest place for her?Ethan pointed towards Barry.“Fine.Drag the hose over there.”He turned it on and helped her pull the hose through the remaining long grass to the other edge of the fire.“Have you got it?”
She nodded again.
He didn’t like her silence.He gave her a quick hug.“It will be all right, Chelsea.We’ll stop it.”
Her exhale was shaky, but she glanced at him.“I know.”
Good.“I’ll get another shovel and help Barry.”He jogged back to the garden shed, his eyes adjusting to the darkness after the glow of the fire.It was impossible to spot anyone who might be watching their efforts.
When it grew light, he’d call Josh and ask if he’d had any luck with the fingerprints or discovering whether Darren or Johann had alibis.
And then he’d invite Dobby and his team down for the weekend.They would set up watch to make sure nothing happened tomorrow night.
The doors of the shed were still wide open, and he grabbed a shovel and hoe and returned to the fire.From the north side, he spotted the fast attack vehicle on the western boundary, spraying the flames, stopping them from spreading across the road to neighbouring houses.
People had come out of their houses to watch the spectacle.Some had found tools of their own and had joined Barry digging the trench, while others had garden hoses that stretched just far enough across the road to wet down the vegetation that hadn’t burnt yet.
Ethan was thankful it was a still night.The smoke hung around, but at least the fire wasn’t being fed by the wind.
He dug until the anxiety faded, his muscles burned and the break reached the road before he stopped.The flames were lower now, not as intense, and the glow on the horizon was the sun waking.
No trees or structures burned, and the grass was blackened and smoking, with just patches still alight.The fire-fighters had the blaze under control.He moved back to the house, searching for Chelsea.Barry stood back against the hedge watching the final flames being doused, and Chelsea was talking to a firefighter who was about their age.He joined her and slipped a hand around her waist.She leaned into him.
“Zach found the source of ignition,” Chelsea said.“There’s accelerant.It was deliberately lit.”
Though he’d guessed that was the case, anger rushed into him.“Have you called the police?”
Zach nodded, removing his helmet and wiping the sweat from his forehead.“Josh will be here soon.I was telling Chelsea we should be done in about half an hour.I’ll leave a team here to monitor for an hour or so, in case something flares up.”
