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"Get out, now!" he cried, running down the stairs. "I called 911. Just get out! It's bad!"
Holly spun around and dashed into the bedroom, grabbing Miss's soft carrier from the cupboard. She stuffed the startled cat into the little bag and zipped the top lid shut.
She snatched her phone and charger from the nightstand then ran for the door. Smoke billowed from the window of the apartment next door as the sound of crackling and glass breaking grew louder.
"Holy fuck!" The wall of heat from the towering flames scared the hell out of her as she ran down the stairs away from the fire. The building's alarm kicked on as she reached the bottom step, and she winced at the screeching noise.
Holly jogged across the parking lot to join a group of other residents. After doing a quick head count, it appeared as if everyone in the small complex had escaped unharmed.
Dragging a sweaty hand down over her pajama shorts, she glanced back over at the building. The flames had engulfed her door entirely. Red lights flashed and sirens blared as fire trucks rolled up in front of the apartment complex.
She set Miss's carrier down on the ground and stared at her phone screen. Her fingers trembled as she jabbed at the icons, searching for Penn's name in her contacts. To her dismay, she accidentally hit Eli's number instead.
"Shit, shit, shit!" Holly squeezed her eyes shut, trying to fight back tears. A sleepy-sounding Eli answered before she could press the red button to disconnect the call.
"Wilkes? I didn't think you'd be up for a late-night booty call this fast."
"E-Eli." Her voice broke, and she swallowed hard.
“Holly?” The teasing note left his voice, replaced by alarm. “Talk to me. What's wrong?"
"I... I meant to call Penn, but I hit your number by mistake. My building. It's on fire. My apartment—"
"Jesus Christ. Are you okay?"
"Yes. The fire department is here now. But I think it's all gone. My apartment is in flames."
Her clothes, her shoes, her computer. Gone.
Oh,fuck. Her computer!
"Stay where you are," he ordered. "I'm coming over there right now."
"No. I'll call Penn. I didn't mean—"
"Wilkes, I'll be there soon. Stay put. Call Penn, but stay there."
"Okay," she said, then ended the call.
A firefighter walked over toward the group. "Everyone, I'm going to need you to move to the farthest point away from the building."
Holly picked up Miss's carrier and headed toward the opposite end of the parking lot. A few of her neighbors hugged each other and cried while others talked on their cell phones. A news van pulled to a stop along the curb, and a reporter hopped out.
Punching Penn's name on her phone’s contact list, she sat down on the concrete block at the end of a parking space.
"Holly?" Penn’s panicked voice echoed in her ear. "It's 3:00 am. What's wrong?"
She ran a hand down over her face, trying not to cry. "Yeah, so listen..."
* * *
Eli rolled up to the red light and looked both ways before blowing through it. He broke the speed limit as he made his way toward Holly's apartment. When he turned onto her street, he hit the brakes and screeched to a halt as flames shot into the air all around her building.
"Holy fucking shit."
A cop carblocked the way, forcing him to park farther away than he'd like.
He killed the engine and scrambled from the vehicle. It was a chaotic scene with firetrucks, ambulances, and police cars everywhere.
