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I coughed again. “Just like hide and seek. Can you do that with me?”
Liam nodded and plastered mud over his legs. “Hide, hide.”
“We need to lie down and put these wet branches on top of us so the fire can’t find us.”
The roar of the fire was louder. Liam started rocking back and forth. I pulled a large men’s cotton handkerchief from my handbag.
“Come here. Put this around your face.”
Liam managed a playful laugh and I stifled a sob. He let me tie the handkerchief over his mouth like he was a bushranger.
“Now, lie down and hug me, okay?”
Liam lay down and I shoved my handbag under my jumper before I joined him, pulling the decaying, damp branches over us. I trembled, clutching Liam closer. Tears rolled down my cheeks.
I pulled up my woollen jumper over my nose, gulping air. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to focus on my breathing. I tried to think of my dad, mum, Ryan, my family but I couldn’t concentrate.
Harry …My heart ached.
Liam started humming a song that I didn’t recognise. I patted his arm in time and hugged him tight.
“You safe, Liam safe,” he whispered. “Hiding.”
“Keep singing, Liam,” I wheezed. “You’re a great singer.”
Liam now hummedTwinkle, Twinkle, Little Starand I paced my breathing to the song.
The roar of the fire was constant. The air around us was getting hotter but the smoke wasn’t getting worse.
My handbag started to buzz.My phone.
I had reception!
“RING RING!” Liam yelled.
My phone stopped and I swore. I had to shake off the branches to get my handbag out of my clothes.
“Liam, I have to stop hiding to get my phone. Someone wants to talk to us,” I coughed.
I rolled away but Liam didn’t want me to let go.
“Hide, Stacey, hide,” he said, squeezing me tight. “Fire!”
My phone buzzed again.
“Liam, I have to get my phone.”
“RING RING!” Liam yelled again, nodding.
I pulled out my handbag from my jumper, found my phone but then dropped it behind Liam out of my reach.
“Answer it, Liam!” I grabbed as many of the branches and bark as I could over us again.
He started to wail.
“Liam what’s wrong?”
He’d rubbed his muddy fingers over the screen. “Hello?” he wailed.
