Chapter 6 #2
The front of the cabin is nearly engulfed in flames. I can’t see anything past them.
But still, I shout, “Vienna! V! Can you hear me?”
For a terrifying second, there’s nothing.
Then I hear, “Caleb!”
Ah, fuck. She’s alive. For now, at least.
Glancing to my left and right, I spot the wooden chest I pulled a blanket from last night. Flames are climbing all around it, but it hasn’t been destroyed yet. So I yank the lid open and snatch up one of the thick blankets inside.
Wool blankets, I remember my dad telling me. Better for wicking moisture. Better for conserving heat. And I know from my own training, more resistant to fire.
So I pull the blanket around me like a cloak with a hood. Then I hold my breath, hunch over, and race through the flames.
The other side of the cabin—where the kitchen is—hasn’t been impacted by the fire quite as much. But flames are spreading up the walls and stretching across the floor. In only minutes, this part of the cabin will be just as bad as the front.
And over by the small window near the dining room table is Vienna.
Fuck, Vienna.
She’s ash-covered and coughing as she tries to clear the glass from the broken window. A window I’m assuming she broke with the pan she’s holding.
Realization makes my heart stall.
Even as small as she is, there’s no way Vienna could squeeze through that window. Which means if I hadn’t gotten here—
It doesn’t matter right now. Nothing matters except for getting her out of here.
“Vienna!” I shout. Her panicked eyes jump to mine. “Hang on!”
As I race towards her, the cabin makes a terrible, ominous creaking sound.
She screeches in fear. “Caleb! No!”
But I’m not stopping. Not going back. Not now.
I leap across the last few feet between us. Then I yank Vienna into my arms, wrapping her tightly inside the blanket. Lifting her off her feet, I turn tail and haul ass back the way I came.
“Hang onto me,” I shout. “Legs up! Arms around my neck. Just hang on!”
Vienna doesn’t argue. She just clings to me. Her face is buried in my neck, and though I can’t hear them, I can feel her sobs.
Getting back through the flames is the worst of it. I’m worried the blanket won’t be enough. But all I can do is hug Vienna as close to me as possible, trying to protect her body with mine.
And then.
We make it through the door.
Screw the stairs, I leap from the top one into the snow. My knees voice their disapproval, reminding me they’re forty-two and not twenty. But nothing is stopping me.
I just keep running until we’re a good thirty feet from the cabin. Only then do I stop and turn around. The flames are coming through the roof now, and the wood isn’t just creaking, it’s groaning.
It’s going to come down. There’s no doubt. But not with me or Vienna inside it.
Though I’m loath to release her, I need to check Vienna’s condition. So I say, “I need to put you down, okay? I need to see where you’re hurt.”
It takes a few seconds for her to loosen her grip enough for me to put her down. Then I take a step back to inspect her.
She’s covered in soot from head to toe.
Her eyes are red and swollen, and tears streak down her face.
One hand is cut up, likely from breaking the glass. But as I take her injured hand in mine to look at it, I can tell the cuts are all surface.
She’s coughing, which concerns me the most, since I don’t know how much of that shit she inhaled. But at least she was by the open window, so hopefully that helped her a little.
“Vienna.” I frame her face with my hands. “Can you tell me if you’re hurt anywhere I can’t see? Did anything fall on you? How long—”
Fuck. If I’d only looked out the window earlier, I might have rescued her before it came to this.
“Caleb.” Vienna stares at me. From the twist of her features, I can tell she’s trying to stop crying. But ragged sobs keep escaping and tears keep sliding down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry.” She coughs, and it hurts me to hear it. “I’m so sorry.”
“What?” If anyone should be sorry, it’s me. I should have checked on her sooner. Shit, I should have insisted on checking the fireplace regularly. I should have had the damn chimney cleaned before winter came.
“I must have done something wrong with the fire,” she sobs. “I put extra wood on, and—” Another coughing fit shakes her body. “I fell asleep. I should have set an alarm to check on it. But I didn’t think—”
“No. No, Vienna.” I hug her to me. “No. It’s not your fault.”
“I messed it up. And now your cabin…” Another sob escapes. “Your dad’s retreat—”
“I don’t care about that.”
“I tried to get out the front,” she adds tearfully. “But the deadbolt was stuck. I probably messed that up, too.”
Nausea rises. I never thought about oiling the deadbolt. Never thought about changing it to a newer model. And now… Fuck. I could have gotten Vienna killed.
“I’m so sorry, Caleb.” Vienna buries her face in her hands.
“Ah, no, V.” I pull her into my arms again. In the distance, sirens approach. “No. Don’t apologize. It doesn’t matter how the fire started.”
“But—”
“I mean it.” Closing my eyes, I press my lips to the top of her head. “All that matters is that you’re safe.”
And shit. All that talk about not caring. About being better off alone.
Now that I have Vienna in my arms, I don’t want to let her go.