Layla nodded. “The fire is in the kitchen,” she said through rough coughs.
“I can see that,” Mark answered, his tone clouded with disappointment. “Maybe if we can get some hands here quickly, we can try to put it out.”
“I’m just glad Heath is safe,” Layla gulped fresh air and looked at Heath. “He’s such a good baby and so precious.” As the word ‘precious’ stuck in her throat, Layla remembered her most treasured possession. “My mother’s Bible,” Layla gasped. “It’s one of the only things I have left that belonged to her. I can’t let it burn!”
“No!” Mark said firmly. “You can’t go in there, Layla.”
“But the fire hasn’t reached the second floor yet,” Layla breathed, her voice rising hysterically. “I can just race up to Heath’s room, grab the Bible, and I’ll be back here in no time.”
“Layla,” Emmett sputtered, his words altered by a spasm of coughing. “You can’t go in there. It’s way too dangerous.”
“No,” Mark repeated. “I won’t let you—”
Mark shouted after her, but Layla didn’t hear him. The thought of losing her mother’s Bible clawed at Layla’s heart and mind as she raced back toward the house. Her bare feet flew through the patches of grass and bits of sand. She barged through the open front door, but the smoke was now so thick that Layla couldn’t see anything. Crouching low, she pulled the collar of her nightdress up to cover her mouth. Layla put her free hand out in front of herself so that she wouldn’t bump into anything as she thought,I’ll just be a moment.
Chapter Thirty-Three
“No!” Mark shouted after Layla and Heath immediately wailed in his arms.
“No! No! No! No!” Little Heath yelled as he waved his hands wildly in the air.
“She can’t,” Emmett said as his head popped up. “We can’t let her—” He coughed loudly again.
“Mr. Fitzpatrick,” Mark started. He extended his free hand for the man to grip, and using all his strength, he helped lift Emmett back to his feet. “I need you to take care of Heath. I’m going in there. No matter what happens, you keep my boy safe.”
Emmett’s hands shook as he received the baby, but Mark knew he could trust Emmett. He would do anything to protect Mark’s child, just as Mark would do anything to save Layla now.
He raced toward the house, shouting Layla’s name at once, even when he was leaping up the steps. As soon as he walked through the front door, he felt the heat of the flames. While they had not yet spread to the front of the house, the blaze clearly engulfed other areas. The fluorescent red, moody blue, and lightning white flames flickered from the direction of the kitchen, and Mark thought that the fire was also illuminating the hall that led back to his office and the guest bedroom.
“Layla!” he yelled again, immediately regretting it. Black smoke rushed toward him and filled his lungs. He bent over and coughed vehemently, trying to expel the poisonous air. When he stood fully once more, he recognized the dining room as the flames fluttered and flared in front of him, but he couldn’t see much further through the smoke. He wasn’t sure how he would ever be able to find Layla.
Mark bent over slightly and tucked his elbows in at his sides. He did his best to determine which direction the staircase might be, as he thought that’s where Layla would have headed.God, help me, Mark prayed, taking a tentative step into the darkness.I need to find her. His hands bumped into various objects that he recognized as the corner of the table and the top of a wooden chair.
“Layla,” Mark called out again, unable to stop himself. He could hear the fire roaring in the kitchen to his left as pots and pans clattered loudly. It sounded like the flames were also engulfing the right side as he heard wood creak. Mark was surrounded on the sides, but the space in front of him remained clear. He pushed aside anything that might get in his way using both hands.
“Layla,” he wheezed as he approached what he thought was the staircase.
When there was still no answer, Mark looked around desperately. With a tentative step up the stairs, the boards shifted underneath him. Moving more swiftly, Mark bounded up the stairs but had to stop, overcome with the exertion. The smoke was so thick; it hurt to breathe. One hand to his chest, Mark tried to force himself to take in the fresh air, but none was to be had. He lowered his head and walked toward Heath’s bedroom.
“Layla!” he called into the black fog.
“Mark!” she responded.
“Layla!” His eyes struggled to focus on the pale green of Heath’s bedroom door, but Mark ran toward it. Just as he was about to burst through it, Layla emerged, clutching her mother’s Bible tightly in one arm.
“You’re safe,” Mark said, rushing to her. He enfolded her in his arms and squeezed with all his might. He had never felt so relieved to see anyone.
“I’ve got it,” Layla replied, shifting the heavy Bible, so she held it against her chest with both arms.
“Here,” Mark said quickly, unbuttoning his flannel shirt and handing it to Layla. Even in the dark, he could see her eyes widen as he stood before her in just his thin night cotton shirt.
“What are you doing?” Layla asked, bewildered.
“Put the shirt over your mouth and run out of the house as fast as you can,” Mark ordered.
“What about you?” Layla asked.
“I’ll be right behind you.”
