Nothing but the dull roar of the flames.
She made her way through to the toilets. Searched them thoroughly. ‘Nothing in the toilets,’ she said. ‘And all doors in the corridor are closed on the left-hand side. Ask Jane if there’s a room Mikey likes most.’
‘Roger.’ She heard Mark calling to Jane, then he reported back. ‘No, the kid could be anywhere.’
‘OK. I’ll do a room-by-room search.’
‘You’ve got two minutes before you need to turn round and come back,’ Mark warned.
‘I’m fine.’
‘I want you back out of there. We’ll get more people in to search each room,’ Mark said.
It was frustrating, but she knew he was talking sense. ‘OK. Turning round and coming back right-handed.’ Her hand trailed along the wall. ‘Hang on. I’ve got an open door here. It wasn’t open on my way in. I’m going to check this room.’
‘Brains, get out of there.’
She couldn’t. Not with two kids missing. ‘Two minutes. You said I had two minutes. And there’s the safety margin on top of that, so I’ve got loads of time. I’m closing the door behind me. There’s only a tiny bit of smoke in here, top of the room.’ Smoke always rose. But she needed to keep an eye on it in case the gases at the top of the room were superheated and there was a flashover. ‘I’m in the third room between the classroom and the toilets. Send the relief team in and I’ll hand over.’
‘Paul says get out now, Brains.’
‘Two minutes,’ she repeated stubbornly—though she really wanted five. ‘Lucy? Mikey? Are you there? You’re not going to be in trouble, I promise. But there’s a fire and I just want to get you out safely.’
‘Brains, you’re better at calculating than the rest of us—you don’t even need the dial on a BAECO board to work out how much time you have. You know the drill—if you put yourself in danger we’re risking the kids and yourself. Get out now,’ Mark demanded.
‘I’m fine, Mark. And I heard something. I heard someone crying just now. I think they’re here in the cupboard and they’re too scared to come out.’
‘Get out of there, Kelsey.’ A different voice this time. Matt’s. ‘I heard what Mark said. Get out. There’s another team coming in.’
‘I’m fine,’ she repeated stubbornly. ‘But you stay put because I might be bringing two kids out with smoke inhalation or burns, and I’ll need your help.’ She took her mask off for a moment. ‘Mikey, it’s Kelsey—remember me on the fire engine last week? You know me. You’re not in trouble, I promise. But I need you to act like a firefighter. And firefighters always have to tell each other where they are. I’m here near the door. Where are you? Is Lucy with you?’
The cupboard door opened. Mikey and a little girl were standing there, clutching each other and not moving.
‘It’s OK, we can get out of here.’ The hanging mask was going to be a hindrance. ‘I’m putting my mask back on and then we’re going to make a run for it, OK?’
She’d just fastened her mask and was halfway across the room when there was an almighty bang. Fire spurted out of the panelling and ripped over the ceiling—and suddenly there was a wall of flame between her and the kids. The fire roared and crackled as it burned up the oxygen in the room; the floor, being wooden, started smouldering. And she couldn’t get through the fire to the kids. It was too hot, too fierce, pushing her back. ‘Mark, the fire’s broken through here. Tell the guv.’ She grabbed the fire extinguisher, but it didn’t even begin to get through the flames. There was a sink but the water pressure wouldn’t be enough to make an impact on the flames. But she could at least grab some cloths, soak them and bundle them round the kids, then haul them through the flames. Please, God, the floor would hold out long enough for her to get them.
It took seconds to find the towels, and seconds more to douse them in cold water.
But the pressure from the fire was too much. She just couldn’t get through the wall of flames.
‘Get down!’ she yelled to the children. ‘Get down and put your nose down through the neck of your T-shirts so you’re breathing in through the material.’ The lower they were, the less likely they’d be to inhale the smoke—the lowest part of the room was always the last to be choked with gases. And breathing through their clothes would at least put a barrier between them and the smoke. Not ideal, but it was the best they could do in the circumstances.
She could hear the children screaming, a high-pitched sound of sheer terror.
Oh, hell, why couldn’t she get through? She took a deep breath. OK. If she made a run for it, she’d get through the flames. She’d be able to bundle the wet cloths over the kids. And hopefully the relief team would put the flames out before the smoke was too much. Deep breath in. After three. One, two—
And someone lifted her off her feet.
‘No! I’ve got to—’
‘Out, Brains.’ She couldn’t see him through the smoke and his mask, but she recognised Mark’s muffled voice. ‘You’re out of oxygen,’ he said.
‘Just give me another tank. I can make it through to the kids.’
He didn’t argue. Just lifted her higher over his shoulder in the classic fireman’s lift, took her down the corridor and pushed her through the smashed window of the classroom they’d just evacuated.
Straight into Matt’s arms.
‘You bloody idiot, Kelsey!’ Matt yelled. ‘You put yourself at risk.’
She shook her head. Her throat felt raw but no way was she staying out here. ‘Give me a tank. I need to go back. They’re trapped. Two kids. I have to—’
‘You have to get medical treatment now,’ Matt cut in, and she realised that he was actually carrying her to his ambulance. Carrying her away from danger. ‘You were out of oxygen. You know damned well when it’s hot you use up more oxygen than normal. That’s why your crew goes through a ton of BA sets when you’re fighting a fire. You’ve inhaled smoke and I bet your throat’s hurting like crazy.’
It was—but she wasn’t going to admit it. ‘I saw them. I nearly had them safe, but the fire broke out,’ she rasped. ‘I was going to get through the flames. Where are they?’
Before Matt could answer, Ray was striding over towards them, swearing a blue streak. ‘What the hell did you think you were doing, Brains?’
‘I nearly had them. And I was in radio contact the whole time.’
‘Yes, but you didn’t do what you were told. You put yourself and other crew members in danger.’
‘Where are the kids? What’s going on?’
‘Stay put and let Matt check you over. That’s an order.’
OK. She’d let Matt check her over, and then she was going back in.
Then she realised that Matt was still cradling her in his arms. As if she were a precious piece of china. ‘You can put me down now,’ she muttered. ‘I can stand on my own two feet.’
He stared at her, looking shocked. Clearly he’d been holding her in his arms without realising what he was doing. In silence, he set her back on her feet and walked with her over to the ambulance.
By the time Matt had checked her over, Mark and the other crew were back out and had been replaced by the relief team. There were four more engines here now. Steam billowed upwards, mingling with the choking black smoke. And still the flames licked through the building. Still they roared. Still the heat blistered the air.
‘Mark, did you get the kids out?’ she asked urgently.
‘No.