Page 56 of The Hijack

“Theo!” she shouted, alerting me to the fact that she was buried all the way in the back.

I could feel heat rising from the floor, not a good sign. In one part of the hallway, I thought I saw the telltale orange glow that foretold disaster. The fire was eating its way through the second level on its way to the third. If I didn’t hurry, we would be trapped, and my chances of finding the girls would narrow to nothing.

I set my intention and pushed ahead. We weren’t going to die tonight. I wouldn’t let it happen. Running past the gathering flames, I hurled myself at the door that stood between me and Z’s voice. Hoping desperately to find Clark within Z’s bedchamber, I was disappointed when Z was the only occupant.

“The door was locked,” she said.

I didn’t have time to ponder the meaning of that statement. It was obvious by now that there was a human instigator to the fire. The chemical smoke and the explosion on the second floor proved that we were dealing with a coordinated attack. I kicked myself mentally for sleeping through it. The thought of multiple actors sneaking around, locking doors and planting bombs was outrageous. How could a house full of spies have missed all the signs?

But that kind of regret wasn’t going to save our bacon. We needed to get out and fast. With Z at my heels, we rushed back to the stairwell, only to find it on fire. Beneath our feet, the floorboards began to sag, threatening to give way as the flames leapt higher.

“This way!” Z shouted, tugging me into another bedroom.

She went straight to the window, diving onto her knees to pull up a section of the floor. Underneath, she found nothing but an empty compartment that might have once stored a rifle or some other important tool. I shook my head, wondering why Z was going for a gun.

“There should be a rope,” she said desperately, pawing around in the empty space as if she could find something that wasn’t there.

“What?” I asked, distracted by the smoke seeping up through the very walls surrounding us.

“There should be a fire escape,” Z explained. “A rope. It was right here. Every room had them.”

“Well, it’s not there anymore,” I pointed out, grabbing her by the arm and hauling her to her feet.

We turned back to the door but felt the floor buckle beneath us. I skidded across the room, running straight into the far wall. A roiling chasm opened up between us. Fire licked at our shins like a doorway to hell, threatening to devour us if we didn’t act fast.

“The window!” I said, pointing.

Z turned, leaving me to fend for myself. I watched her throw one leg out and then the other. She didn’t pause before leaping out, tumbling three floors down to the ground below. It was my turn.

I inched around the hole, hugging the wall. The plaster behind me was scorching to the touch, the fire licking at my feet the whole way. I climbed up over the bed, reaching the window just as the cot tumbled over into the void.

I didn’t have time to consider my landing or whether Clark was trapped inside the burning building. My only chance at survival was to jump ship fast. I leapt from the window, pushing away from the inferno as I fell. My feet hit the ground a moment later, and I rolled, absorbing some of the shock. Though my shins ached and my throat burned, I came to a stop in the grass, blissfully alive. But what about Clark? Where was she in all this? Had she managed to escape, or was she still somewhere inside, fighting for her life against the roaring flames?

Chapter 29

Clark

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LUKAS TUMBLED DOWN the stairs straight into my arms. I had to dig in with my legs to avoid being bowled over. Supporting my friend, I searched desperately for Theo, thinking he might have been upstairs with Lukas when the fire began.

“Where’s Theo?!” I asked, unable to get away, but unwilling to leave my boyfriend behind.

“He’s okay,” Lukas said. “He went to get Z.”

“I have to find him,” I insisted.

“No,” Lukas commanded. “We have to get out.”

“I won’t leave him.”

“He can handle himself,” Lukas said. “Let’s get outside, and we can meet up with him there.”

I glanced up at the second floor again, feeling the walls closing in. There was precious little time and no room for a mistake. I couldn’t spare the energy to help Jasmine; Lukas needed me to help him reach the door. If I dropped both of them, I could very well lose two friends and cut off my only avenue of escape.

I made a painful choice, turning away from the stairs and toward the front door. Lukas put his weight against my shoulder, his left leg injured. All around us, the fire burned. The gunman in the kitchen and Jasmine in the front hallway were both lost causes. I wouldn’t have a chance to interrogate either of them.

This whole night was a disaster, and I couldn’t help but think we’d been too slow. We knew that operatives were being killed and yet we’d imagined there was time to waste sleeping one more night in the old mansion. It was hubris. Though we were squarely in the crosshairs, we didn’t think they could touch us. I wasn’t going to make that mistake again.