Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 97275 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97275 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
The night was positively frigid for Texas, and it was darker than sin because the streetlight that lit up my side of the complexes parking lot was out, yet again.
“Let’s go, Alpha.” I said to him before opening the door.
I used the flashlight on my phone and climbed the stairs carefully. I so did not want to get a tetanus shot today, and if I fell that is exactly what I would have to do. I used my keys to let myself in the front door, unlocking four locks and then locking three back once I was inside. Alpha paced the apartment, doing his usual routine of checking out all of the rooms before settling back at my side.
My apartment was completely dark, and the little lamp that I used for light when I got home late wasn’t turning on, so I felt along the wall for the light switch. I moaned when I flipped the switch and that light didn’t turn on either. It must be an outage for the whole right side of the complex since the lights were off outside also.
A little shiver of fear rent through me, but I squashed it down. Sighing in exasperation with myself, I walked into my bedroom with the light of my phone. Once I got in there, I texted Max to tell him I would be late due to the power outage, and then grabbed some clothes out of my dresser and tossed them on the bed. The gym bag I normally used for hauling laundry was in the deepest corner of hell, otherwise known as the very back of my closet, under tons of junk. I got down on my hands and knees and went digging, only to freeze when I heard a scraping noise.
The noise didn’t repeat itself, but it certainly alerted Alpha who was now growling quietly. Backing up, he shoved me deeper into the closet. Heart pounding, I dialed Max.
He answered on the fourth ring with a wretched croak. “Hey.”
My voice trembled as I said, “Max. Something’s wrong.”
His voice came through much more alert when he heard my reply. “What’s happening?”
“Alpha is growling. He keeps urging me into the closet. I heard a scraping sound, and the lights were out when I got here.” I explained as quietly as possible.
“Stay on the line, I’ll be right there, don’t fucking move. Let Alpha do what he’s trained to do.” He said fiercely.
Alpha now had me in the closet, and it was pitch black, no light could be seen anywhere. Even my phone was dark. Alpha’s growl was so quiet; you could barely even tell that he was making any noise. I counted to ten in my head trying to control my thundering heart, and my growing panic attack.
Alpha’s growl suddenly went murderous, and he was gone. Loud thumps, accompanied by a screech of pain followed his exit from the closet. A loud crunch, the slam of a door, and then all was quiet again.
I knew that crunching sound though. That was the sound of bone breaking, and most likely, it was something major since the piercing scream shut off so fast. Alpha made his way back into the closet leaning his body up against my knees, his body vibrated with readiness.
The smell is what hit me first. It was unmistakable. Undeniable, and I knew it would bring the whole building down.
Gasoline.
I started to get up, unequivocally terrified that I would be left in here to burn alive, but Alpha kept me seated. The sound of cursing reminded me that I was still connected with Max. Bringing the phone back up to my ear, I listened to him give orders, but I also heard the rumble of his bike.
Sirens broke through the silence of the night just as an unmistakable whoosh, followed by the sound of breaking glass sounded from the living room as the gasoline caught fire. Alpha bolted from the closet, and I was close on his heels when I felt the unmistakable form of a body. I didn’t stop to check on the person though; most likely he was dead, and I didn’t have the time to deal with him right now.
Fear was practically pouring out of me, and I was trembling so hard that I could barely crawl. Smoke was now billowing into the room from the crack underneath the door, and I knew I had to find a way to block it.
Taking the comforter off the bed, I dragged it over to the door and shoved it underneath the crack as best as I could. I made my way to the bedroom window, stopping first beside the bed to grab a blanket that never left the underside of my pillow. Wrapping the blanket around my face, I stood to drag the window open, but knew I would have nowhere to go unless I wanted to jump.
To my total dismay, I realized that the bedroom windows also had the safety glass that prevented any burglars from entering as the living room windows did. This completely baffled me though seeing as there was no balcony on this side for them to stand on to even get into the windows.
I would definitely have to complain to management as soon as I got finished here. This was so beyond safe that it was borderline suicidal. What they were thinking when they put these windows in was beyond me. There was too much smoke barreling out the opening behind me to get any real oxygen, so I laid myself down on the floor in hopes of getting better air quality.
Sirens could now be heard right outside my window, but I suddenly no longer had the strength to do much of anything. Alpha laid his head down next to my face, and I wrapped my arms and legs around him, holding him, hoping that somehow I got out of this alive. If I did, it would be a miracle.
ɸ
Max
Seeing a burning building is life changing. You don’t understand the ferociousness of a fire until you’ve experienced it firsthand. Fires have a mind of their own. They are intelligent. They are beautiful. They are merciless.