Page 23 of Rumors in Bayberry (The Bayberry, Vermont #3)

Chapter Seventeen

H e was still in Bayberry.

Reed had tried everything he could to change his flight, but they were fully booked. He’d finally stepped out of his room at the B&B for a dinner break. All day, he’d searched for a way to save the Bayberry Gazette .

He’d told himself not to do it. The future of the Gazette wasn’t his problem.

And yet he knew how much the paper meant to Sadie, whether she was willing to admit it or not.

The loss of her family’s paper would cut her deeply.

He wasn’t even sure she was prepared for such a loss.

It was obvious she loved the newspaper more than she was willing to admit to him or even to herself.

Every solution he’d tried didn’t work out. He’d searched for a new editor-in-chief. None of the candidates were even half as talented as Sadie. And the ones he was interested in were not interested in changing positions and moving to Bayberry, Vermont. It had been an utter waste of a day.

He paid for his dinner at Wrights’ Eatery. It was already raining when he stepped outside. The sound of thunder rumbled through town. At least it was a light rain. If he walked fast, he might be able to make it to Sadie’s apartment before the shower turned into a downpour.

Lightning lit up the sky. Thunder shook every bone in his body, making his back teeth rattle.

He moved close to the buildings as he rushed down the street.

Why exactly had he decided to walk to dinner instead of driving?

As the rain grew steadier, he really regretted his decision to leave the diner.

When the sun was out, this walk was short and enjoyable.

But as the lightning once more lit up the sky, this walk seemed to go on forever.

He got a really bad feeling about being out in it.

He glanced over his shoulder, but the café was not in sight.

He kept going. Sadie’s apartment was closer than the B&B.

He rounded the corner at a jog. The apartment was just a couple of blocks away. A bolt of lightning sliced through the inky blackness of the night, and then it looked like it struck the ground—or a building—just down the road.

The clap of thunder happened simultaneously. It stopped him in his tracks. The ground shook beneath his feet. It was unlike anything he’d ever experienced.

And then he was moving again. He had no idea what the storm was going to throw at him next. The downpour soaked every inch of him. His shoes were soaked. Another pair ruined. What was it about Bayberry and his shoes?

Each step was squishy. Luckily, he had one pair of sneakers left at the B&B. Squish. Squish. He couldn’t get to Sadie’s fast enough.

And then he smelled smoke. He recalled the lightning. It must have struck something around there. When Sadie’s building came into view, he came to a halt. His chest tightened.

Flames danced in the apartment window.

Sadie! His heart pounded.

Adrenaline pulsed throughout his body. He no longer noticed his soggy shoes as he ran to her door. He rang the buzzer over and over again. He tried the doorknob. The door was locked.

“Sadie!” He backed up and looked up just as one of the windows blew out.

Reed lowered his head and covered it with his arms. Luckily, the shards of glass missed him. The flames were now growing. He returned to the entrance and beat on the wood door with both of his fists. “Sadie!”

Enough of this. He moved to the door and kicked at it. It took a few tries until the door gave way.

He didn’t notice the way his soaked clothes clung to his body like a second skin as he took the steps two at a time. “Sadie!” He stepped onto the landing. “Sadie, where are you?”

The flames were in the front of the living room, although smoke was starting to fill the rest of the room. He coughed as he raced into the kitchen. She wasn’t there. He checked the bedroom. She wasn’t there either. A glance in the bathroom let him know that Sadie wasn’t home.

“Mrrr…”

It was Binx. He was home alone. The smoke was getting thicker as the fire ate more of the room. His instinct said to get out of there now . But his heart wouldn’t let him leave Binx behind. Sadie loved the cat so much. And he was pretty fond of Binx too.

Reed coughed. He coughed again. He lifted the collar of his wet shirt to cover his nose and mouth. His coughing eased.

He lowered the shirt. “Binx!”

“Mrrr…”

His gaze searched the living room. He didn’t see the cat. He couldn’t believe the cat would be that close to the fire.

So, if Binx was trying to get as far away from the fire as possible, he would go where? The bedroom. At the same time as the thought came to mind, his feet were in action.

He closed the bedroom door and scanned the room. Reed knew he was running out of time if he was going to escape the fire. The bed was made, so there was nowhere to hide on top of the bed. Reed dropped to his knees and peered under the bed. He couldn’t see, but he could hear the cat.

He had to crawl under the bed, but thankfully, the cat didn’t run from him. “It’s okay, Binx. You’re going to be fine. We just have to get out of here.”

His fingers wrapped around Binx’s paws and pulled him toward him. Binx’s cries picked up their pace, and Reed braced himself to be bitten. It didn’t matter. He wasn’t letting go. Time was not on their side.

When he dragged himself and Binx from under the bed, the cat had progressed to hissing. With one arm around the cat, he yanked the blanket from the bed. With only one bite to his forearm, Reed got the blanket loosely wrapped around the cat.

Two long quick strides and he reached the door. With a squirming, growling cat in one arm, he yanked open the door. The fire was now blocking his way to the steps. They were his only way out of there.

There were the bedroom windows, but it was a two-story drop straight down to the sidewalk. And he didn’t think the cat would make it, even in his arms.

He had on wet clothes and wet shoes. That was the best it was going to get. He started coughing. It was so hard to breathe. The back of his throat hurt, and his lungs felt like they were beginning to burn.

He held the cat against his chest with both arms. He tucked his chin and then he ran.

He told himself not to stop until he reached the steps.

It didn’t matter how badly the flames hurt, he had to keep going.

If he didn’t, he knew he wouldn’t make it out of the fire alive. And he was not ready to die.

And so, he quickly took one agonizing step after the next.

It was only a matter of feet, but it felt as though he were walking miles on the surface of the sun.

His skin felt as though it were experiencing the worst sunburn.

While his lungs felt like they were on fire from the heated air. His coughing increased.

By the time he was in the middle of the room, he regretted his decision. For a split second, he thought of turning around. But his body didn’t get the message because it kept moving toward the steps.

And then he wondered if the steps were still there. What if they were also on fire? What would he do?