I scrambled forwards on my knees, but Paul was quicker than me. He grabbed one of my ankles and hauled me backwards, my jaw crunching as it hit the floor. I cried out, but a moment later his hand was across my mouth, cutting off my airway. Struggling against him, I tried to push him off me but he was stronger than he looked. The edges of my vision started to darken as I fought to breathe, so I let my body go limp. This tactic worked – Paul thought I’d passed out, and released the pressure on my face, allowing me to breathe again. As soon as I felt his weight lift from me, I made another dash for the kitchen door and into the hallway.
Paul obviously expected me to go for the front door, but instead I raced up the stairs. Smoke was curling out from underneath the door of the living room, and I could already see it starting to fill the hallway. I pulled my top up to cover my nose and mouth as I ran up the stairs, tripping on a bit of loose carpet halfway up. Part of me expected to feel Paul’s hand on my ankle again, dragging me back down the stairs, but there was nothing. I picked myself up and hurried to the top, checking the two rooms for any sign of Lukas.
The back bedroom was piled floor to ceiling with cardboard boxes, and a quick glance told me a person couldn’t fit in the spaces between them, so I went into the other bedroom. It was still furnished with Paul’s mum’s things, down to the open powder puff on the dressing table, and I felt a small shiver. Lukas was lying on the bed, tied up but conscious and alert. He stared at me, struggling against his bonds, as I came into the room.
Paul’s set fire to the house, I signed quickly, before attempting to untie him. The knots were tight and it took me too long just to pick at them and work an end loose. I looked around the room for something I could use to cut the cords binding his hands, but there was nothing, and by the time I’d freed his hands I was coughing. When he had use of his hands I thought Lukas would help to untie his feet, but he just lay there staring at me.
Paul killed her. He killed Nadia, he signed to me, looking dazed.
I know, and he’s trying to kill us!
Lukas just looked at me, as if he had no idea what I was talking about, and I wondered if he hadn’t even noticed the smell of smoke as it drifted through the house.
Fire! I signed again, and this seemed to galvanise him into action. Between us we got the ropes off his ankles and rushed out onto the landing. I got to the top of the stairs and felt the panic in my chest reach up to my throat, nearly suffocating me. I could see now why Paul hadn’t bothered to follow me up there. The fire had spread out from the front room into the hallway, and the flames were licking at the carpet at least three steps up from the ground floor. We were trapped.
Lukas pushed against me from behind and I stumbled, my foot slipping down off the top step. I fell to my knees and grabbed on to the banister rail to stop myself from falling down the full flight of stairs.
Go back! I hastily signed to Lukas, and he looked past me at the fire. Pushing me out of the way, he looked like he was going to try and get down, but I knew there was no way he’d make it. I grabbed the back of his shirt and dragged him back onto the landing, then into the smaller bedroom, which was the furthest away from the fire.
Help me move these boxes, I told him, pulling them away from the window.
What are you trying to do?
I pointed at the window. It’s our only way out of this house.
He shook his head. We can’t jump. We’ll be killed.
I shook my head at him in frustration. It’s only a few feet, we’ll be fine. I didn’t have time to argue with him, so I just ignored him and carried on lugging the boxes out of the way. They were heavy, so it would have been easier if he’d helped me, but the next time I looked round he’d disappeared. I was about to see where he’d gone, but the smoke was getting thicker and I could feel the heat of the fire coming up through the floor, and I knew I no longer had time to think about anything other than my own survival.
A moment later, however, Lukas was back at my side, grabbing me by the arm. I tried to shake him off but he was persistent, forcing me to look at him.
Police, he signed.
Where?
Outside. He pointed to the front bedroom, and I left the box I was trying to manoeuvre and dashed back through to the other room. Sure enough, there were blue flashing lights outside the window, and I saw a familiar figure standing next to a couple of uniformed officers, shouting orders and pointing at the house – it was Singh. He must have got my message. I felt a rush of emotion at the sight of him, knowing he had come to help me when I needed him most.
My hand went to the window to throw it open, but Lukas grabbed me.
No, don’t, he told me. The added oxygen could make the fire explode.
I had no idea how fire behaved
