There was a loud splintering sound behind her as part of the wall burst into flame, tendrils licking the ceiling. Katie turned in panic, pausing long enough to notice the portrait that hung on the wall. She stared at it, already knowing it was of Alex's wife, because there was no one else it could be. She blinked, thinking it was an illusion, a distortion created by the smoke and fear. She took an involuntary step toward the eerily familiar face when she heard a roar above her as the ceiling started to give way.
Whirling around, she pushed through the window, holding the kids in the circle of her arms and praying that the comforter would protect them from glass shards. They seemed to hang in the air for an eternity, Katie twisting as they fell so that the kids would land on top of her. She hit the overhang on her back with a whump. It wasn't far, maybe four or five feet, but the impact left her breathless before pain rolled over her in waves.
Josh and Kristen were hiccuping in fear, wailing and coughing. But they were alive. She blinked, trying not to pass out, sure she'd broken her back. But she hadn't; she moved one leg, then the other. She shook her head to clear her vision. Josh and Kristen were struggling on top of her, trying to get free of the comforter. Above her, tongues of flame began to flare from the broken bedroom window. Flames were everywhere now, all over the house, and she knew they had only seconds to live unless she somehow summoned the strength to move.
On his way back from Joyce's house, Alex noticed the sky glowing orange just above the blackened tree line on the outskirts of town. He hadn't seen that as they drove into town and navigated the streets to Joyce's home. Now, however, he frowned as he turned in that direction. Something in his gut told him that danger lay ahead, and he debated only an instant before pressing down on the accelerator.
Josh and Kristen were already sitting up as Katie rolled over. The ground was perhaps a ten-foot drop from the overhang, but she had to risk it. They were running out of time. Josh continued to sob but didn't protest as Katie quickly explained what was going to happen next. She seized his arms, trying to keep her voice steady.
"I'm going to lower you as far as I can, but then you're going to have to jump."
He nodded, seemingly in shock, and she quickly scooted toward the edge, dragging Josh with her. He moved to the edge and she grabbed his hand. The overhang was shaking now, fire climbing up both support columns. Josh climbed over, legs first, holding on, Katie sliding on her belly toward the edge. Lowering him... God, the agony in her arms... four feet, no more, she told herself. He wouldn't fall far and he would land on his feet.
She let go as the roof shuddered. Kristen crawled toward her, trembling.
"Okay, baby, your turn," Katie urged. "Give me your hand."
She did the same thing with Kristen, holding her breath as she let go. A moment later, both of them were on their feet, staring up at her. They were waiting for her.
"Run!" she screamed. "Move back!"
Her words were swallowed by another coughing spasm, and she knew she had to move. She grabbed the edge of the overhang and swung one leg off, then the other. She dangled for only an instant before her grip weakened.
She hit the ground and felt her knees buckle before she rolled to a stop in front of the store entrance. Her legs screamed with pain, but she had to get the kids to safety. She scrambled toward them, seizing their hands and beginning to drag them away.
Fire was dancing, leaping, spurting toward the sky. Nearby trees caught fire, their upper branches sparking like firecrackers. There was a sharp clap, loud enough to make her ears ring. She chanced a peek over her shoulder, just in time to see the walls of the building collapse inward. Then there was the deafening sound of an explosion, and Katie and the kids were knocked over in the scorching blast of air.
By the time the three of them caught their breath and turned to look, the store was nothing but a gigantic cone of fire.
But they'd made it. She pulled both Josh and Kristen toward her. They were whimpering as she put her arms around them and she kissed the tops of their heads. "You're okay," she murmured. "You're safe now."
It was only when a shadow appeared before her that she realized she was wrong.
It was him, looming over them, a gun at his side.
Kevin.
In the jeep, Alex kept his foot clamped down on the gas pedal, growing more worried with every passing second. Though the fire was still too far away to pinpoint the location with accuracy, his stomach began to seize up. There weren't too many structures in that direction, mostly a few isolated farmhouses. And, of course, the store.
He leaned over the steering wheel, as if to urge the car forward. Faster.
Katie had trouble processing what she was seeing.
"Where is he?" Kevin rasped out. The words came out slurred, but she recognized the voice, even with his face partly in shadow. The inferno blazed behind him and his face was covered in soot and blood. There were smears of what she thought was blood on his shirt as well. In his hand the Glock shone, like it had been dipped in a barrel of oil.
He's here, Jo had said in Katie's dream.
Who?
You know.
Kevin raised the gun, pointing it at her. "I just want to talk to him, Erin."
Katie got to her feet. Kristen and Josh clung to her, fear etched on their faces. Kevin's eyes were feral, his movements jerky. He took a step toward them, almost losing his balance. The gun swung back and forth. Unsteady.
He was ready to kill them all, Katie realized. He'd already tried to kill them with the fire. But drunk, very drunk. Worse than she'd ever seen him. He was out of control, beyond reason.
She had to get the kids away, had to give them a chance to run.
"Hi, Kevin," she purred. She forced herself to smile. "Why are you holding that gun? Did you come to get me? Are you all right, baby?"
Kevin blinked. The voice, soft and sultry, sweet. He liked it when she sounded like that, and he thought it was a dream. But he wasn't dreaming and Erin was standing in front of him. She smiled as she took a step forward. "I love you, Kevin, and I always knew you'd come."
He stared. There were two of her now and then only one. He had told people she was in New Hampshire taking care of a sick friend, but there weren't any footprints in the snow and his calls were forwarded and a little boy had been shot and there was pizza sauce on his forehead and now Erin was here, telling him that she loved him.
Closer, Katie thought. Almost there. She took another step forward, pushing the kids behind her.
"Can you bring me home?" Her voice pleaded with him, begged like Erin used to, but her hair was short and brown and she was moving closer and he wondered why she wasn't scared and he wanted to pull the trigger but he loved her. If only he could stop the hammering inside his head--
Suddenly, Katie lunged forward, pushing the gun away. It fired, the sound like a vicious slap, but she kept moving forward, clinging to his wrist, not letting go. Kristen started to scream.
"RUN!" Katie shouted over her shoulder. "Josh, take Kristen and run! He's got a gun! Get as far away as you can and hide!"
The panic in Katie's voice seemed to galvanize Josh and he grabbed Kristen's hand and took off running. They headed toward the road, racing for Katie's house. Fleeing for their lives.
"Bitch!" Kevin screamed, trying to free his arm. Katie lowered her mouth and bit down as hard as she could and Kevin let out a ferocious cry. Trying to pull the arm free, he slammed his other fist into her temple. Instantly, she saw flashes of white light. She bit down again, finding his thumb this time, and he screamed, letting go of the gun. It clattered to the ground and he punched her again, catching her on her cheekbone, knocking her to the ground.
He kicked her in the back and she arched with pain. But she kept moving, in panic now, fueled by the certainty that he meant to kill her and the kids. She had to give them time to get away. She rose to all fours and started crawling, moving fast, gaining speed. Finally, she surged to her feet, a sprinter coming out of the blocks.
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She ran as fast as she could, forcing herself forward, but she felt his body slam into her from behind and she lay breathless on the ground again. He grabbed her by the hair and hit her again. He seized an arm and twisted it, trying to work it behind her back, but he was off balance and she was slippery enough to turn onto her back. Reaching up, she clawed at his eyes, catching one in the corner, tearing hard.
Fighting for her life, adrenaline flooding her limbs. Fighting now, for all the times she hadn't. Fighting to give the kids time to run away and hide. Screaming curses at him, hating him, refusing to let him beat her again.
He snatched at her fingers, tottering off balance, and she used the opportunity to wiggle away. She felt him clawing at her legs, but his grip wasn't good enough and she pulled one leg free. Pulling her knee up toward her chin, she kicked him with all her force, stunning him as she connected with his chin. She did it again, watching this time as he toppled sideways, his arms grabbing at nothing.
She scrambled to her feet and started to run again, but Kevin was up just as quickly. A few feet away, she saw the gun and she lunged for it.
Alex was driving recklessly now, praying for the safety of Kristen and Josh and Katie, whispering their names in panic.
He passed the gravel road and rounded the bend, his stomach dropping as his premonition proved right. Before him the entire tableau spread out beyond his windshield, like a portrait of hell.
He noticed movement on the side of the road, up ahead. Two small figures, dressed in white pajamas. Josh and Kristen. He slammed on the brakes.
He was out of the car and rushing toward them almost before the jeep came to a halt. They cried out for him as they ran, and he bent down to scoop them into his arms.
"You're okay," he murmured over and over, holding them in the tight circle of his arms. "You're okay, you're okay."
Kristen and Josh were both sobbing and hiccuping and at first he didn't understand what they were saying because they weren't talking about the fire. They were crying about a man with a gun, that Miss Katie was fighting him, and then he suddenly knew with chilling clarity what had happened.
He pushed them into the jeep and wheeled it around, racing toward Katie's house as his fingers punched the speed dial on his cell phone. He reached a startled Joyce on the second ring and told her to have her daughter drive her to Katie's house now, that it was an emergency, that she should call the police immediately. Then he hung up.
Gravel sprayed as he came to a skidding halt in front of Katie's house.
He dropped the kids off and told them to run inside, that he would be back for them as quick as he could. He counted off the seconds as he turned around and gunned the engine for the store, praying that he wasn't too late.
Praying that Katie was still alive.
Kevin saw the gun in the same instant she did and dove for it, reaching it first. He snatched it up and pointed it at her, enraged. He grabbed her by the hair and put the gun to her head as he began dragging her across the lot.
"Leave me? You can't leave me!"
Behind the store, beneath a tree, she saw his car, with its Massachusetts plates. The heat from the fire scorched her face, singeing the hair on her arms. Kevin was raging at her, his voice slurred and raw.
"You're my wife!"
In the distance, she could faintly make out sirens, but they seemed so far away.
When they reached the car, she tried to fight again but Kevin slammed her head onto the roof and she almost passed out. He opened the trunk and tried to force her in. Somehow she turned and managed to drive her knee into his groin. She heard him gasp and felt his grip loosen momentarily.
She pushed blindly, tearing out of his grasp, and started running for her life. She knew the bullet was coming, that she was about to die.
He couldn't understand why she was fighting, could barely breathe through the pain. She'd never fought him before, had never scratched at his eyes or kicked or bitten him. She wasn't acting like his wife and her hair was brown but she sounded like Erin... He started staggering after her, raising the gun, aiming, but there were two Erins and both were running.
He pulled the trigger.
Katie gasped as she heard the shot, waiting for the flash of pain, but it didn't come. She kept running and suddenly it occurred to her that he'd missed. She veered left and then right, still in the lot, desperate for some kind of shelter. But there was nothing.
Kevin staggered after her, his hands slippery with blood, slipping on the trigger. He felt like he was about to vomit again. She was getting farther away, moving from side to side, and he couldn't keep her in sight. She was trying to get away but she wouldn't because she was his wife. He would bring her home because he loved her, and then he would shoot her dead because he hated her.
Katie saw the headlights of a car on the road, moving as fast as a race car. She wanted to get to the road, to flag the car down, but she knew she wouldn't reach the road in time. Surprising her, the car suddenly began to slow, and all at once, she recognized the jeep as it careened into the lot, recognized Alex behind the wheel.
Roaring past her, toward Kevin.
The sirens were getting closer now. People were coming and she felt a surge of hope.
Kevin saw the jeep coming and raised the gun. He began firing, but the jeep kept coming toward him. He leapt out of the way as the jeep roared past, but it clipped his hand, breaking all the bones and knocking the gun somewhere into the darkness.
Kevin screamed in agony, instinctively cradling his hand as the jeep careened forward, past the burning wreckage of the store, skidding on the gravel and crashing headlong into the storage shed.
There were sirens in the distance. He wanted to chase Erin but he would get arrested if he stayed. The fear took over and Kevin began to limp and jog to his car, knowing that he had to get out of there and wondering how everything had gone so wrong.
Katie watched Kevin tear out of the lot, gravel spinning, onto the main road. Turning around, she saw that Alex's jeep was half buried in the storage shed, its engine still spewing exhaust, and she raced toward it. The fire cast its flickering light on the rear of the car and she felt panic rising inside her, as she prayed for Alex to show himself.
She was closing in on the car when her foot hit something hard, making her stumble. Spotting the gun she'd tripped on, she picked it up and started toward the car again.
Ahead, the door of the car pushed open slightly, but it was blocked by debris on either side. She felt a surge of relief that Alex was alive at the same instant she remembered that Josh and Kristen were missing.
"Alex!" she cried. She reached the back of the jeep and started to pound on it. "You have to get out! The kids are out there--need to find them!"
The door was still jammed but he was able to roll down the window. When he leaned out, she saw he was bleeding from his forehead and his voice was weak. "They're okay... I brought them to your house..."
Ice flooded her veins. "Oh, my God," she croaked out, thinking, No, no, no... "Hurry up!" She pounded the rear of the car. "Get out! Kevin just left!" She could hear the raw fear in her own voice. "That's the direction he went!"
The pain in his hand was beyond anything he'd ever experienced, and he felt dizzy from blood loss. Nothing was making any sense, and his hand was useless now. He heard the sirens coming but he would wait for Erin at her house, because he knew she would be home tonight or tomorrow.
He parked behind the other, deserted cottage. Strangely, he saw Amber standing behind a tree, asking if he wanted to buy her a drink, but then her image vanished. He remembered that he had cleaned the house and mowed the lawn but he had never learned how to do laundry and now Erin was calling herself Katie.
There was nothing to drink and he was getting so tired. Blood stained his pants and he realized that his fingers and arm were bleeding, too, but he couldn't remember how that had happened. He wanted so much to sleep. He needed to rest for a while because the police would be searching for hi
m and he needed to be fresh if they got close.
The world around him was growing faint and distant, as if viewed through the far end of a telescope. He heard the trees swaying back and forth, but instead of a breeze, all he felt was the hot summer air. He began to shiver, but he was sweating, too. So much blood, and it drained out of his hands and arm, wouldn't seem to stop. He needed to rest, couldn't stay awake, and his eyes began to close.
Alex slammed the jeep into reverse and revved the engine, listening to the wheels spinning, but the jeep was going nowhere. His mind raced frantically with the knowledge that Josh and Kristen were in danger.
He lifted his foot off the gas, engaged the four-wheel drive, and tried again. This time the jeep began to move, the side mirrors ripping off, debris scraping and bending its body. The jeep came free with a final lurch. Katie pulled futilely at the passenger door until Alex rotated in his seat and kicked at it, flinging it open. Katie jumped in.
Alex turned the jeep around and accelerated hard, gaining the road as the fire trucks pulled in. Neither said a word as he slammed the pedal to the floor. Alex had never been more frightened in his life.
Around the bend, the gravel road. Alex turned sharply, the car skidding out. The rear fishtailed and he accelerated again. Up ahead, he spotted the cottages, lights glowing in the windows of Katie's. No sign of Kevin's car, and he exhaled before he even realized he'd been holding his breath.
Kevin heard the sound of an engine coming down the gravel road and he jerked awake.
The police, he thought, and he automatically reached for his gun using his crippled hand. He screamed in pain and confusion as he realized that the gun wasn't there. It had been on the front seat but it wasn't there now and none of this made sense.
He got out of the car and looked up the road. The jeep pulled into view, the one from the store parking lot, the one that had almost killed him. It came to a stop and Erin leapt out. At first he couldn't believe his good fortune, but then he remembered that she lived here and it was the reason he'd come.