Guns & Stilettos

The Burning Man

They raced outside and were greeted with absolute chaos. The building across the street was on fire. Worst of all it was a hospital. People stumbled out onto the street covered in thick layers of ash and blood—some still in hospital gowns. Someone had called the paramedics and they were already pulling up next to the crowd. The irony of the situation was so bad it actually hurted. A man — one of the doctors— was screaming,"Someone needs to get in there! The top floor! The recovery ward, its small but the entry way was blocked!" He was crying now, tears streaming freely down his face. The official looked at him,"We understand that sir but there is nothing we can do at the moment—"

"There is children in there!"

At that she started to push through the crowd. Tristan hot at her heels murmured apologies as he shouldered people out the way. She sprinted hell for leather across the grass. People behind them screamed at the sight of the two teenagers rushing towards the open entrance to the burning building. And the screaming increased as they were engulfed by the flames. They sprinted through the doors and that collapsed behind them in a shower of sparks blocking the way out. Everything was on fire the desks, chairs and even they ceilings were at the mercy of the raging inferno. They raced up the stairs until they reached the top floor and turned towards the recovery room. The doctor had been right. The doorway had collapsed, along with half the ceiling and was burning steadily. She tapped the wall with a finger. It was drywall. Jessica was once again faced with the choice between what was easy and what was painful. And once again she picked painful. She took three steps back and ran full on at the wall. Tristan gave a shout. But too late. Too late. Her body slammed into the wall with a crash so loud she thought the roof was going to cave in. And in a shower of plaster, dust, wood and flame she fell through the wall, hitting the floor hard on the other side. Tristan rushed through the gaping hole her body had left in the wall and fell to his knees at her side. She rolled onto her back, coughing and sat up. Jess gave him a shaky smile, " I'm fine, promise. Now lets get these people and get out of here." She stood up. They were huddled in the corner. One adult woman and two small children who couldn't be older than five looked up at her with tear streaked faces. Tristan scooped the woman up in his arms and she grabbed the two kids balancing them on her hips. They raced out the room up to the window firefighters had set up a ladder and were climbing up it. His eyes widened when he saw them but he took the woman in his arms passing her to a colleague who carried her down she passed him the children who went down with another. At that moment there was a loud: craccckkk. And a ceiling beam fell, hitting her squarely in the chest. It was burning, scorching her clothes and her skin. She screamed but then it was gone and she was in Tristan's arms. He had thrown it off her. They got to the window and insisting she was alright she climbed down the ladder, Tristan after her. As soon as they reached the ground the building collapsed. Someone was staggering towards them. A Man he was burning, his whole body on fire. And he was screaming the sound tearing at her ears. He fell thrashing at their feet and then went still. She hadn't realized that she had begun to shake. She fell to her knees on the grass suddenly rocked by a coughing fit so hard her whole body spasmed at the force of it. Tristan cried out falling down next to her and drawing her into his arms. The coughing worsened her vision became black at the edges, sounds became distant as if she were trying to hear through a wall of water. Tristan was calling a paramedic and then she was swallowed up by unconsciousness.