Chapter 6: Into the Thick of It

Brad started the car and they drove out of the parking lot. As he drove through town, he brooded and chewed his lip. Nori was quiet and sat plastered against the passenger car door, casting surreptitious glances his way.

His clothes were still damp and chaffed him in places that he didn’t want to think about. He especially didn’t want to think about how royally he’d screwed up tonight. What the hell was he going to do now? Porsche was probably being kidnapped as they sat in the restaurant.

The stress made his anxiety go through the roof and he fought to keep it in check. He could do this. He was Bradford Holmes for goodness' sake, he’d dealt with everything under the sun at Hilmark.

“Turn here.”

Brad hit the brake and the Mercedes fishtailed as he took the corner. He’d almost missed that turn. Get your sh*t together man, he thought. He flared his nostrils and focused on the road and the directions that the GPS was droning.

The apartment complex loomed before them and Brad slowed when he saw a crowd of people on the pavement. Groups of them were gathered in the parking lot.

“What’s going on?” asked Nori. Brad parked the car and they both got out.

Then Brad saw it and his stomach bottomed out. Smoked billowed out of the third story window and alarms blared from inside. Brad followed Nori as she scanned the crowd.

“Mindy!” she cried.

“Nori, thank God you’re here.”

“Mrs. Watson, where’s Mindy? What happened?”

“She’s not here,” said Mrs. Watson, “Fire in Sanderson’s flat. I knew he shouldn’t have been smoking with that dang O2 tank of his.”

“Where are the fire trucks?” asked Brad.

“Stuck in traffic sweetie,” said the old lady, “Haven’t seen Melinda or that dark-haired lady down the hall from her either. Everyone's accounted for except Melinda, they got out just as the flames started.”

“The Sanderson's? Oh God, that’s next door!” cried Nori. Nori’s face registered horror, “Mindy’s gotta be still in there. Miyagi too!”

“Nori wait stop–” Brad called, but Nori ran into the building. Panic surged through Brad. Stupid woman, didn’t she see the place was ON FIRE?

“Go get her son,” Mrs. Watson prodded him with her cane, “She’s gonna need help. Move!”

Brad spurred into action and he took off after Nori. He could see smoke coming out of two apartment unit windows now as he plunged into the building. Nori’s figure disappeared into a side door and he followed. As he burst into the stairwell, Nori was one tier ahead of him.

“Nori wait, you can’t go in there!” Brad yelled. His voice echoed between the screaming alarms.

“I have to!” she said, “Mindy is in there. She could be stuck or hurt and I need to find my cat!”

Brad took the stairs two at a time and caught up to Nori as she plowed ahead. Her breathing was shallow and fast. Adrenaline pumped through his legs and he grabbed her hand and pulled her after him. The alarm blared in the stairwell and cut into his eardrums.

“Here!” she called.

They burst through the door to the third floor. Smoke roiled and heat whooshed past them. Nori screamed and they both retreated. Brad closed the door and turned to Nori. There was no way they’d be able to go through that smoke.

A calm fell over Brad and something primal pumped through his veins. He grabbed Nori’s waist and ripped a strip off her skirt. Nori recoiled from his hands as he ripped another strip off her dress.

“What are you doing!?”

“We need masks, the smoke is too thick.”

He pulled her back toward him and this time she didn’t fight. He wrapped the material over her face and tied it behind her head, then did the same to himself.

“Stay low and try not to breathe too deeply,” Brad’s muffled voice was sharp and Nori nodded. Her eyes were wide and filled with tears. Brad squeezed her shoulder and he took her hand.

“We get your friend out first, then the cat.”

Nori nodded and Brad leaned into the door. Another whoosh of heat ripped past them and Brad pulled them forward. The fumes stung his eyes and made them water. Nori began to cough and Brad pulled her lower under the level of smoke. They plunged down the hall.

Flames were licking under the doors of what Brad assumed was the Sanderson’s flat. There was a very real chance that the fire was spreading throughout the walls. The closed doors were keeping the flames marginally contained.

Brad could hardly see. The lights had burst and he heard glass crunch under his feet. The vapors clawed at his throat and he started to feel lightheaded. The smoke was everywhere and a dull roar and stench of burning drywall made him gag. The hallway magnified the echo of the wailing fire alarm and it stabbed his eardrums.

Nori jerked his hand and they stopped before a door. She banged on it and called her friend. There was no response. She banged again. Suddenly flames licked out from under the door and Nori screamed. Brad pulled her away.

He’d have to break the door down. Brad had never done this, but he’d seen it in movies. He grabbed Nori and pulled her towards him so his mouth was in her ear.

“Get the cat!” he said, “I’ll get her!”

She nodded and vanished into the smoke.

Brad retreated from the door and straightened, the smoke instantly clouded his eyes and he squinted through fresh tears. He tensed and ran forward bracing as the door impacted his shoulder. Pain ripped through his upper arm, but the door held firm.

How had the heroes in the movies done it? They usually had guns and shot the lock off. Then the idea came to him and he raised his leg and stomped where the bolt met the door handle.

There was a splintering of wood, but the door was still tight. Brad could feel the heat from the other side. He stomped on the wood again, and again. Then finally the door burst open and flames shot out at him. Brad recoiled and covered his face. Now was not the time to chicken out.

He ran into the unit and sure enough the drywall and furniture were on fire. He ran through the adjacent bedrooms and saw a figure lying prone on the ground. She was half in and half out of the bed, as if she’d gotten up but fainted.

The smoke in the room was so thick, dizziness made him stumble. His throat burned and all he could taste was ash and metal.

He grabbed hold of the woman and slung her over his shoulder. She was small, but the movement made his shoulder light up with pain and he grunted. He plowed through the burning unit and out into the corridor. His breathing was ragged and Brad knew that every second he lingered could mean death.

He ran across the hall and down the stairway. Sweat poured down his face and he nearly tripped down the last flight. He rushed through the doors and out into the open air. People crowded around him and he handed them Mindy’s unconscious body.

“Give her CPR, NOW!” he ordered. He could hear the sirens of the fire trucks in the distance. Just then a loud rumbling crack split the air and with cold dread Brad realized Nori wasn’t there with him or behind him. His heart hammered his ribcage and he felt like his lungs were going to explode as he raced into the blazing building. His lungs burned like he was inhaling knives.

He made it to the third floor and pushed the door open. Heat blasted him and nearly knocked him over. He ran into the hallway counting the doors as he went.

He got to the door where he was sure that Nori had disappeared into and to his horror, he could hear screams.