Time Will Tell [Complete]

Chapter Eight

  She woke. Someone was shaking her. It was hard to breathe.

"Lizzy! Lizzy – Elizabeth! Wake up!"

"Go away," she muttered, still half asleep.

Then she smelled it. The smoke.

She shot up like a spring, suddenly wide-awake and ready for action. Amanda was standing over her, eyes wide. "Fire," she breathed.

Lizzy nodded. "I know. I can smell it." She paused to grab an apron to hold over her mouth and filter the smoke. "Where?"

Amanda pointed out the window. "Wheelbarrow full of hay, outside, next to the barn." Her voice was strained. "Climbing fast up the side of the barn."

Lizzy threw a clean rag to Amanda before swinging down the ladder. She ran outside to the pump, grabbing several pails, and as soon as she was outside she dropped the apron to yell. "AMANDA! Wake up the others! Send them out here... Patrick first! He'll be awake the fastest! GO!"

She nodded and rushed into the house.

Lizzy brushed her hair back and started pumping, as hard and fast as she could. The water sputtered at first, not coming out, then the steady flow of it poured out and sploshed into the pail.

Some of the water dumped on her as she lifted it unsteadily, but she barely noticed it as she threw the remaining contents onto the fire. Then Lizzy repeated the process, over and over again, until Patrick ran out.

"The others might come," he shouted over the roar of the flames. "But we need to go quick."

"They won't make it in time!" she yelled back.

Patrick nodded. It was up to them.

Lizzy grabbed sacks from inside the barn, bending low to avoid as much smoke as she could, then rushing out. She pumped water over the sacks.

She jumped. Something was rubbing against her leg. She looked down.

A kitten! Lizzy glanced around as she pumped, noticing a large quantity of cats milling about, most of them trotting away from the barn. She smiled. They had escaped!

Patrick grabbed a sopping wet sack and began whapping the side of the barn where the fire was highest. She grabbed one and joined him, hitting the weakening wood furiously as her face grew warmer and redder.

Slowly but surely, the flames receded. Lizzy and Patrick threw pail after pail of water over it until all signs of fire were gone. Besides the charred wall and ruined wheelbarrow, of course. And all the ashes and soot that coated their faces.

Lizzy collapsed to the ground, and Patrick followed suit. She rubbed her face on her dress.

"I wonder where the others are," Lizzy panted.

"Yeah. Fast asleep, no doubt."

Elizabeth frowned. "No, Amanda would wake them up."

"What? Amanda? Who's..."

Lizzy's eyes widened. That was a mistake. "I mean, Minnie." She laughed as if she had made a trivial error. "Sorry, she just reminds me of someone I used to know named Amanda. It's early," she added by way of explanation.

Patrick examined her expression. "All right," he said slowly. "Umm, but was she awake?"

"Didn't she wake you up?"

"No, I... was thirsty. And couldn't sleep. You know. So I got up and went to the kitchen, then I noticed the red... haze over the barn, and I knew what it was."