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I try to move around him.

He moves with me.

“Maggie, absolutely not.”

“There are animals still inside!” I shout.

“The fire department is almost here.”

Almost. But not yet.

I look past him toward the shelter. Thick smoke now pours from the roof, darkening the afternoon sky. Somewhere inside that building are five frightened animals who have already been abandoned once in their lives. The thought of leaving them there twists through me like a knife.

“I have to go,” I plead.

Sam exhales sharply and mutters a curse beneath his breath.

People who know me understand one thing very quickly. Once I've made up my mind, arguing becomes a waste of oxygen.

“Two minutes,” he says grimly. “I'm coming with you.”

Heat slams into us the moment we step inside. The hallway that had been merely smoky minutes earlier now resembles a nightmare. Gray haze fills the corridor, reducing visibility to only a few feet. The fire alarm shrieks overhead while somewhere nearby, glass shatters with an explosive crack.

Sam pulls his shirt over his mouth. “Stay close,” he orders.

We move quickly. The door to recovery room three stands partially open, and relief hits me so hard my knees nearly buckle. I drop beside the first kennel and begin working frantically.

“It's okay, babies,” I murmur through coughing fits. “We're getting’ you out.”

The animals shriek with fear.

My hands shake so badly that I fumble the first latch. One by one, I load trembling dogs and cats into emergency carriers stacked beside the wall.

“Maggie.” Sam's voice grows more urgent with every passing second. “We have to move.”

“I'm tryin’”.

The final latch jams. I tug on it again, panic rising when nothing happens.

“Come on,” I plead, tears stinging my eyes. “Please.”

The latch finally gives way. I scoop up the final carrier as a deafening crash reverberates through the building, hard enough to make the floor shake beneath us.

Sam swears loudly. “We're leaving. Now!”

We run.

Halfway down the hallway, another crash echoes through the shelter. A shout follows this one.

“Maggie!”

It’s Jules.

I freeze.

“That was Jules.” Panic sharpens my voice.

“Maggie.” Sam thrusts two carriers into my hands and points toward the entrance. “Outside. Now.”