Page 30 of These Witches Don't Burn
9
SMOKE FILLS THE HOUSE.I can’t see the flames, but the fire’s gleeful hunger ripples across my skin. It’s somewhere above us, spreading fast along the second floor.
“This way.” I reach for Morgan to lead her into the backyard, but she darts forward into the living room.
“Gemma! Kate!” Morgan’s voice is full of fear as she slips around the corner and disappears into the smoke.
I chase after Morgan, searching through the haze for her red hair and Gemma’s blonde curls. Everyone is crammed together, pushing to get out the front door. They shove each other, bodies packed tight, but the narrow door slows them down. I don’t see Gemma anywhere.Please be outside already.
The smoke thickens, and I cough. Without thinking, my magic flares to life, reaching for the closest element. A pocket of clean air swirls up from around my feet, making it easier to breathe. Though all magic is technically forbidden around Regs, this type of reflexive magic is rarely punished.
Above me, the fire’s energy dips low, mostly extinguished, then flares bright again, growing faster than before. I turn, confused by the drastic shift in the fire’s strength, and catch Veronica and Savannah rushing down the stairs. Fear climbs up my spine like ivy. Veronica’s gaze meets mine, only for a second, and I know what she’s done. Did Savannah see Veronica calm theflames enough for them to escape? Has Veronica exposed us to a Reg?
Glass shatters, and the fire roars upstairs, emboldened by the magic Veronica must have used to restart the flames and cover her tracks. I search for Morgan, desperate to get out of here, and am finally rewarded with a flash of red hair.
“Morgan! Over here!” I shout over the crowd’s panic and the growing roar of the fire. “This way.” I lead her back to the kitchen.
Drunk partygoers rush into the backyard, but Morgan pulls me to a stop just before the door. “What about Gemma and Kate? We can’t leave them in here.”
“I won’t, I promise. But we have to go.” I reach for Morgan’s hand. “Do you trust me?”
Morgan pauses, but after a beat, she nods and lets me lead her into the backyard. She coughs as the fresh air hits her lungs.
“Come on.” I race around to the front of the house, Morgan at my heels. Fire in the windows casts an eerie red-orange glow on the windshields of cars parked along the street and Nolan’s silver SUV sitting in the driveway. I search the growing crowd for Gemma’s face, and thanks to her height, I spot her near the back. “Gemma!”
Somehow, she hears my voice over the noise and turns. Gem shoves her way through classmates to get to me, the shorter dancer from before—the one I assume is Kate—following behind her. “Thank god, Hannah! I thought you might still be in there.”
Gem crushes me in a hug, and then we watch as flames spread through the top floor of Nolan’s house.
“Do you see that?” Morgan points toward the far right window on the second floor. “It looks like someone’s still in there.”
Gemma grabs her phone. “I’m calling the fire department.”
While Gem dials, I follow Morgan’s gaze up to the window. The curtains flutter, but that doesn’t mean someone’s inside. “I don’t see anything.”
The second the words leave my lips, a shadow appears before the window. The figure pushes back the curtains and throws open the window.
Morgan gasps. “Someone’s trapped!”
Those closest to us shout and watch as one of our classmates leans out the window like he’s judging the distance to the ground.
“Someone call nine-one-one!”
“Don’t jump, dude!”
“He’ll never make it!”
Morgan’s grip tightens on my arm, hard enough that I flinch. “Isn’t that the guy who helped us?”
Before I can look, someone behind me cries, “It’s Benton!”
Benton glances directly at the crowd, and even from here I can see the panic. The fear. The soot and sweat covering his face. He’s running out of time. I pull from Morgan’s grip and step away from the crowd.Mom is so going to kill me.And I don’t even want toconsiderwhat Lady Ariana will do.
“I’m going in.”
“You’re what?!”
“I can’t leave Benton trapped in there.” The fire’s energy spikes, driving my pulse up with it. I need to hurry or this blaze will be beyond my power to control. “Stay here.”
