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“We should keep going,” Avery whispered, tugging on my sleeve. Her heart-shaped face was so like Ray’s, blonde curls framing gray eyes. In them, I could still see fragments of the innocent toddler I had spent my Saturdays with.
I shook my head and looked down at the watch he had thrust into my hand. “We’re giving him five minutes.”
Avery bit her lip, emotions warring across her face. “He told us not to wait for him.”
“Ray says a lot of things. But he promised me we would leave together, so we’re giving him five minutes. If we see anyone else come our way, we’ll run, okay?”
Appeased, she turned back to Ella, rubbing her thin arms the same way I had comforted Hannah. I watched the burning building in the distance, small figures running every which way around it. I hoped they were the girls, getting the hell out while they could. I also knew I had done what I could for them, and now my priority was the two girls next to me.
One minute. The watch ticked past, the minute simultaneously taking hours and going by in a blink.
Two minutes. I sighed, rubbing the smoke out of my eyes. The wind was blowing the ash and debris toward the forest. Thankfully, the ground and trees were damp with the fall weather. The smoke was annoying, but didn’t pose any danger.
Three minutes. Had I made a mistake?
Should I just take the girls and head for my camp?
We could collect my supplies and stay the night in the abandoned farmhouse, and decide what to do from there. My brain knew that was the right choice, but my heart wasn’t ready to give up on Ray just yet. In all the chaos, time slowed down. All that remained in my bubble was the girls, the watch, and waiting for Ray. The only thing that mattered was the next 120 seconds. Even the forest seemed oddly quiet.
The crackling of the fire that seemed to fill my ears only minutes ago muddled to a quiet hush, whooshing past us. The now-silent breeze carried bits of burning paper, and I found myself wondering what books I had burned. What stories had I set on fire to save us all?
“Mila. We should go,” Avery murmured. It suddenly felt like she was the adult and I was the petulant child, stamping my foot to get my way.
“He’s got two more minutes. We can afford him that much.” I stared at the fire blazing brightly, setting flame to every reminder of Kingsnakes there could be. His watch was ticking too fast, the seconds spinning by.
Come on, Ray.
Four minutes. “Mila?” Ella whispered next to me. “Ray will be okay, won’t he?” It only took a moment for the rest of my life to flash before my eyes, Ray-less.
I didn’t know if I could make it without him again, now that I knew what it felt like to be whole. And the girls… he was their entire world, and we were practically strangers.
Would they trust me?
I wasn’t sure how well I could raise two innocent lives without him by my side. He needed to make it. I needed to see him racing out of the flames, telling us to wait.
The last few seconds felt like years as my hope dwindled to nothing.
Five minutes. I sighed, resolving myself to the fact that I needed to get his sisters away from the city. If he had sacrificed his life for us, then I needed to honor his last wishes. My survival instincts kicked in, even as my heart sank. Safety came first. Tears could come later.
“Okay. Let’s go.”
I tried to sound determined, stable for the girls’ sake, but there was no mistaking the crack in my voice.
I’m doing this for you, Ray. All of it was always for you.
Taking one last glance at the smoky destruction behind me, I turned away. I was ready to lead my ragtag pack through the bushes when Ella gasped behind me. “He’s coming!”
If hope had a taste, it was smoke and ash. If it was a sound, it was a collective holding of breath. I whirled around, squinting to follow her pointing fingers. It was hard to make out, but sure enough, there was a shaggy blond head of curls running our way. “Holy fuck.”
“Language,” Avery scolded. But even she couldn’t help but smile, bouncing on her toes as Ray’s figure grew closer and closer. I needed to remember to tell Ray he had done a great job raising her. Both of them.
He was ten feet away when I raced to meet him, leaping into his arms. “I didn’t think you were coming.”
Ray squeezed me tightly, and set me back on the ground. I took the moment to really look him over. His face was covered in soot, his blond curls gray with ash. He didn’t look good, but he washere. Alive.
“I didn’t think I was coming either. The smoke was so thick I couldn’t see where I was going. I was able to crawl underneath it to find the doorway.” He gave each of the girls a tight hug, and a kiss on their forehead.
“Hannah?” I asked. My chest was already tight with fear for my friend. If the smoke was that thick, would she have made it out okay? Would the pregnant ones?
