Chapter 9 - The Narrow Escape
Thick, black smoke immediately filled the enclosed staircase, choking my lungs and stinging my eyes.
I stumbled backward into the darkness of the basement, coughing violently as the heat intensified.
The wooden stairs were completely engulfed in fire, blocking my only normal way out.
I remembered the small, ground-level ventilation window near the old water heater at the back of the cellar.
I crawled on my hands and knees, feeling my way along the damp concrete wall to avoid the toxic smoke rising above me.
I finally reached the small rectangular window, but it was painted shut and secured with rusty metal latches.
I tried to pry the latches open with my bare fingers, but they wouldn't budge.
I reached into my pocket and felt the hard edge of the wooden ruler I had confiscated from Margaret earlier that day.
I jammed the wooden ruler under the metal latch and used all my adrenaline-fueled strength to pry it upward.
The rusty metal snapped with a loud crack, and the wooden ruler splintered into pieces.
I smashed the remaining wood against the glass pane, shattering it completely.
I pulled myself up and squeezed my body through the narrow opening, scraping my shoulders on the jagged glass.
I collapsed onto the wet grass of my backyard, gasping for fresh, cool air.
Flames were already licking the sides of the house, and the sound of distant sirens wailed in the night air.
A neighbor must have seen the flames and called the fire department.
I stood up on shaky legs, desperate to run back inside through the front door to save Lily.
Suddenly, a rough pair of hands grabbed me from behind and threw me to the ground.
Two police officers pinned my arms behind my back and slapped heavy metal handcuffs onto my wrists.
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"Sarah Jenkins, you are under arrest for arson and attempted murder," the officer shouted over the roar of the fire.
Daniel was standing safely near a police cruiser, holding a sleeping Lily in his arms and pointing an accusing finger directly at me.
