Poppy stilled. ‘Saw who, Hilda?’
‘The same one,’ she breathed, her fingers clutching at the blanket. ‘The one I told Rita about. She was here.’
Her eyes rolled, the strength draining from her face, and she slumped back onto the stretcher as Poppy quickly replaced the mask.
Through the smoke and bodies and still not being able to find Rita, Jago ran around outside in a fit of panic. ‘Rita, Rita, where the hell are you?Rita.’ The more he called her name, the more desperate he felt. Where was she? And could what Hilda had said really be true?
Villagers were now arriving in droves, Betty and her husband, Pete the Pilchard, Jilly, and Joel. All wanting to do their bit, help a friend and neighbour in need. Zenya was guiding the firefighters and the other ambulance that had followed in their slipstream.
Rita stayed where she was, coughing violently, vision blurred, her hands both resting on her stomach. She cried out as another sickening streak of pain tore through her ankle. The fire roared, consuming hay and equipment in its path. The group moved as one, a frantic, coordinated effort to pull everything away from the barn.
Flames spat embers into the night air, their glow painting the world in flickering golds and reds. The heat pressed against Rita’s skin, relentless, and the smoke curled into her throat, sharp and choking. Rita lay frozen, coughing, and then all of a sudden, strong arms wrapped around her and lifted her off the ground.
‘Jago.’ Relief trembled through her voice.
‘You’re… pregnant?’ His words were a rush of disbelief, relief, and love, all tangled together.
‘Yes…’ she managed, a tiny, shaky laugh which escalated into a bout of coughing. He held her close, rocking her gently, hisown eyes glistening with tears. Her heart hammered so fiercely she thought he might feel it against his chest.
He looked up to see two paramedics rushing over to her. Jago’s gaze swept over her face, taking in every smudge, every fleck of ash, the way her hair clung to her forehead. Then a crooked, incredulous smile tugged at his lips. ‘Why didn’t you tell me…?’
Rita laughed softly again, smoky, and raw, letting herself melt into the safety of his arms. ‘You’ve been kind of busy.’
‘She’s pregnant,’ Jago announced, rising to meet the calm, reassuring expressions of the emergency crew.
‘She’s in good hands,’ the female paramedic assured him as she guided him towards an ambulance and he put her down on the bed inside it.
Jago had tears in his eyes. ‘Do you want me to come with you?’
Rita shook her head, resolute. ‘I’d rather you stayed and looked out for everyone… the farmhouse, the animals… I’ll be fine.’
‘But… I want to.’
‘No, Jago,please… stay here.’
THIRTY-FOUR
Jago came running down the hospital corridor, face blackened with ash, dirt streaked across his clothes, every step hurried and uneven. His chest heaved as he pushed open the door to where Rita was being scanned.
Rita looked up, startled, a monitor’s gentle beeps filling the air. Her face filthy, her hair streaked with ash.
‘Jago…’ she breathed, ‘I’ve been so worried.
‘Darling, darling, Rita. How are you feeling?’
Rita’s voice was raspy with exhaustion. ‘I’m OK… I think.’
He dropped onto the chair beside her, hands shaking slightly as he reached for hers, eyes wide with disbelief and raw emotion. The smell of smoke and fire clung like a second skin, but nobody in the room cared, especially Rita, for all she could see was him, the man who’d risked everything to make sure she and her family home were safe.
‘Sorry I took so long! Once I knew the fire was completely out, I ran up to check the animals with Teo… then came as fast as I could! Goats and chickens all fine, just a little stressed clearly with all that’s going on.’
‘And the barn?’
‘Barn is intact. The big wooden door is scorched but we saved it. One fire crew has stayed back to finish dampening down.’
‘Thank God! Sennen has organised caterers for the wedding, so hopefully we can get everything cleared up properly and use the farmhouse kitchen for the food.’
Jago ran a hand through his soot-streaked hair, still catching his breath. ‘Please don’t worry about all that now; we just need to get you better.’
