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“How many are there?” Connor whispered as he studied the movement within the gently swaying trees.
“Four: three at the side of the house; another one still at the end of the garden.”
“This is no burglary,” Connor sighed. This was more of an ambush.
“Let’s go and see what they want,” Isaac murmured with relish.
“Let’s see if they intend to get into the house first, or if they are just reconnoitring. I want to catch at least one of them inside if I can,” Connor replied.
Isaac nodded, and followed his colleague into the study. By the time they had taken a wide circuit of the room and come to a stop beside the windows in the room, a low scratching sound coming from outside was clearly audible.
Connor pointed to the window beside him. He saw the top of the burglar’s head, but it was too dark to see if the hair was black or brown. Connor was waiting for the window to being to slide upright when, to his shock, the glass suddenly exploded.
The sound of shattering glass was interrupted by the sudden whoosh of flames as they incendiary device latched on to the warm, dry carpet. The lamp oil within the bottle splattered all over the walls, rug, and furniture, and ignited upon impact.
Within seconds, fire raced across the room consuming furniture, curtains, and anything else in its way. It happened far too fast for either Connor or Isaac to be able to do anything more than stand and watch. It was only when Connor turned to leave that he realised he was trapped. A wall of fire now blocked his exit from the room. Unless he was willing to climb out of the window, there was no escape.
“Damn it,” he swore.
“Jump,” Isaac shouted, but Connor knew it was too risky.
Connor glanced up and saw Tahlia race down the stairs.
“Stay back!” He shouted.
“Connor!” Tahlia screamed.
Smoke stung her eyes as she tried to see him through the thick fog of smoke and ferocious flames licking at every surface. Desperate, she glanced around in search of some idea of what to do, only vaguely aware of Isaac racing past her.
“Get back,” Connor coughed. “Tahlia, get out of here.”
“No, I am not leaving you,” she cried.
A huge wave of helplessness swept over her as she eyed the hungry flames that grew with each passing second. She couldn’t just leave and surrender to them; Connor’s life was at stake. He was the man she now knew she loved. The man she had never really stopped loving since the moment she had left London three years ago. The man she suspected she would never stop loving.
Determination squared her shoulders. Anger fuelled her strength, and she began to consider the situation with a cool logic that, later, would surprise even her. Before she could decide what to do, Isaac nudged her back, and began to move the untouched furniture in the room out of the way. It wasn’t to save the furniture. It was to try to keep the flames to a minimum so Connor could find a way out without having to go outside. Hurrying over to one of the chairs in front of the fire, she began to push it out of the way.
Connor was aware of someone trying to get into the room behind him. The heavy fist he landed on the intruder elicited a grunt, but Connor didn’t have time to savour the victory. Aware of shapes moving around behind the burglar, Connor slammed the shutter into place, and locked it. It wouldn’t provide much of a barrier if the attackers tried to force entry, but it would buy Connor and Isaac some time to ward them off.
Together Tahlia and Isaac pushed until the heavy chaise was tipped over and extinguished some of the flames. Oscar then began to beat the rest of the fire until the chairs were extinguished. Isaac flicked and flipped the heavy rug over to smother the flames and coughed when thick, cloying smoke attacked his lungs. Still, he continued to work his way around the room while Oscar beat anything with flames on it.
Connor spied a space in the heat, and raced through it.
“Thank God,” Tahlia cried as she was enveloped in his strong arms. She savoured the sound of his heartbeat beneath her ear and gave a silent prayer of thanks that he was relatively unharmed by the ordeal.
“Are you alright?” he demanded.
She nodded shakily, and clung desperately to him when he kissed her. It was short. It was hard, but it eased a lot of the fear and worry she needed to be rid of.
“What was that?” Oscar coughed when the last of the flames had been extinguished.
“An attempt to get us outside, I think,” Isaac warned. “Go and check the rest of the house. Make sure that all of the windows are locked, the shutters drawn and the curtains closed. Then do the same upstairs, and hurry man. They won’t have gone far. It is only a matter of time before they strike again.”
Sure enough, the sound of shattering glass echoed hauntingly around the house.
Everyone suddenly lurched into action again, and raced down the hallway toward the source of the noise. When they entered the room, a smouldering bottle lay in the middle of the hearth rug, but it had done very little damage.
“Let’s go,” Isaac snarled. He withdrew his gun, and didn’t wait for Connor to follow before he raced toward the window and vaulted out of it.
