My heart sunk to my stomach the moment the words left Mathias mouth. Instinctively, I moved my left hand, squeezing my hand into a fist as the memory of the fire encased my thoughts. The red and orange flames licking up the walls, the heat that was unbearable and the smoke that filled my nose and mouth, the smoke that felt as though it was choking me. I felt my throat close at the thought of it. The thought of being back in that hallway with the suffocating smoke and the flames that danced around was terrifying, I didn't want to face that again.

But my friends were there.

Someone had to help.

Turning to Robert, I noted the confused look on his face as he tried to process Mathias' comment and just what it may have meant. He narrowed his eyes at me also glancing down at the burn on my arm. He was trying to connect the pieces of a puzzle that was far too complicated to understand. I knew I would have to explain myself, tell them the truth about everything, but I had more important things to do.

"I'll explain everything, I promise," I said, handing over the basket of books.

"Wha-" Robert went to respond, taking the basket off me as though not sure what to do with the situation he faced.

"I'm sorry, I have to go." Glancing away from Robert, I nodded towards Mathias who grabbed my arm and pulled me through the busy crowd.

"Rosie!" Was all I heard as Mathias dragged me through the crowd and towards the gates of the factory.

It was next to impossible to see anything over the crowds of people moving in the direction of the factory. Many were questioning what was going to happen to the so-called 'criminals' inside if there was substantial property damage. As Mathias dragged me through them, I wondered how people could be so heartless to those who were in danger. They cared more about their own appearance and keeping up standards than the lives of those behind the iron gates. Not that it surprised me all that much, the way people looked at me when I was dismissed from the gates was enough.

Mathias' grip on my arm tightened as he used his shoulder to nudge people out of the way, not even bothering to apologise as we approached the gates. The closer we got, the darker the sky became as black plumes of smoke travelled up from the factory and filled the sky. Ladies were placing handkerchiefs over their noses and mouths, so they didn't breathe in any smoke, but Mathias and I pressed on until we were standing outside of the iron gates, the padlock blocking us from gaining entry. Neither of us had thought about what we would do when we came across the padlock, the object that kept us out and them in.

Releasing my arm, Mathias turned around and snatched a metal mallet out of someone's hand. The man protested and attempted to snatch it back as Mathias lifted it and smashed it against the padlock with one arm. Instantly, the padlock broke in two. It dropped to the ground and Mathias handed the mallet back to the man before he pushed open the gate just enough for us to slip inside. No one dared to follow us, despite the now open gates, we were on our own.

Thick, dark smoke filled the courtyard as Mathias and I made our way across the cobblestones and around the side of the building. We knocked over buckets, wooden slates and pieces of machinery as we approached the back of the building where the factory was hidden. The courtyard was a mess of ash and metal, small pieces of ash continuing to float down from the buildings that were ablaze. The entire area was alight with flames, the licked up the sides of the buildings and onto the rooves. Smoke poured out of windows and doors, travelling upwards on the wind and blocking out the tower and the other buildings.

It was far bigger than the fire in the storeroom.

The inferno looked worse in the factory itself, with the roof turning black and flames escaping through the gaps in the metal. Mathias looked at me and ran his hand through his hair, as though not expecting the fire to be on this scale. Neither of us knew where to begin, we didn't even know where the others were.

"We should check the dormitories, he might have locked them in there," I said. I didn't want to think of them being in the factory itself.

"Alright," Mathias said.

The two of us took off at a running pace, we both grabbed a piece of metal bar from the ground in case we needed to break the doors to get into the dormitory. The main door was unlocked, and Mathias entered first, pulling his shirt over his face to shield it from the smoke that was pouring in through every gap in the brick. I followed his actions, using my dress to block out the smoke that already felt as though it was choking me from the inside out. Despite the smoke, we started up the stairs towards the factory itself, with Mathias taking them two at a time and me trailing behind.

When we reached the landing, smoke poured out from the under the doors and we both separated to tackle each dormitory. The handle to the girl's dorm was red-hot to the touch, but the door was locked. Wrapping my fingers around the metal bar, I swung it towards the door handle, watching as the first attempt did nothing. Taking a breath, I swung it again, hearing the lock break within the door and the handle fall away. The door swung open and amongst the dark smoke and the flicker of a small flame off to the side was the shadow of my friends.

I removed my apron and used that to extinguish the small fire that was starting, keeping my mouth covered to fight the smoke. With the door now open, the girls started to make their way towards me, keeping their faces covered as they merged with the boys and made their way down the stairs. I remained in the room, making sure everyone got out safely, and I wasn't the only one.

"Rosie? Is that you?" Suzanna asked, her voice deep and raspy from the smoke.

"Yes. Mathias is with the boys," I replied, the dress muffling my voice.

"What? What happened to you?"

"I'll explain everything later, but we have to get out of here."

"Okay."

Suzanna led the last of the younger children out of the room and with the bar still clutched in my hand, the two of us were the last to leave the room. Smoke filled the stairway as we made our way down, tripping and almost falling down the stone in the darkness. Spilling out into the courtyard, I took a sharp intake of breath, the clean air filling my lungs. Leaning against the metal bar, I fought to regain my breath as Suzanna stood beside me, coughing up whatever she breathed in whilst inside.

Many of the workers were coughing or hacking up what they had breathed in, but no one looked seriously injured. As far as I could see, there were no physical burns, just smoke inhalation. Through the crowd of workers, I couldn't find Mathias and it looked as though some of the other boys either hadn't come down from the dormitory yet or were off looking for others who may not have been in the dormitory. Most of younger children were crying, tears running down their dirt covered cheeks as the flames from the other buildings grew closer to the dormitory itself.

With the chance of the fire spreading become more imminent, I muttered something to Suzanna and between the two of us, we managed to move the crowd around the side of the other building and towards the front gates. We ignored the stares of the crowd outside as everyone started to collect themselves after the experience inside. The older ones took charge of the youngest workers, checking their skin for burns or making sure they were breathing alright.

The courtyard was full of noise, the crackling of the fire not far from where we stood, the crowds muttering amongst themselves at the state of us, the children sobbing and crying for their parents. In amongst the chaos, I regrouped with Suzanna and Lucy who were a little worse for wear but looked unharmed.

"Look at you!" Suzanna said, pulling me into a hug. When she pulled back, black soot and ash covered my dress, but all I could do was smile.

"What happened to Mathias?" Lucy asked.

"I don't know, he was helping the boys."

"Harry and Tommy ain't here, either."

"They might be searching the other buildings, either for others or for Mr Thompson and the foreman."

"Maybe." Lucy chewed on the skin of her thumb, her eyes knitted in confusion as she looked around to try and spot the mop of red hair.

As Lucy looked around, I turned my attention to the crowd of people at the gates, no one daring to step any further and help in the confusion. Until I saw a familiar face emerge from the mesh of unknowns. Robert fought his way through the crowd and pushed open the gate, leaving it open as he looked around at the collection of children still fighting to clear their lungs of smoke and ash. His eyes landed on me and, taking a small jog, he approached us.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Fine, but I think some of the others might need some help. There was a lot of smoke," I said, cleaning my throat.

"What happened?"

"The foreman started it. He ordered us to go to the dormitory before lockin' us in, we didn't know wha' was happenin' until the room started to fill with smoke." Lucy paused, removing her thumb from her mouth as she spun around wildly. "He took Isabel! Righ' before he locked us in."

"What? Where did he take her?" I asked, my eyes widening as I realised I hadn't seen Isabel since I entered the dormitory.

"I don't know. She could be anywhere."

"You two stay here, if you see Mathias, tell him I've gone to find Isabel."

"Rosie, you can't!" Robert, said, grabbing my arm.

"I don't have a choice."

Snatching my arm out of Robert's grip, I pushed my way through the crowd of workers and retraced my previous steps, making my way back through the alley and towards the fire. Ash floated down from the sky as the large flames flicked out of the roof of the factory, lighting up the dark smoke with bright colours. With the metal beam still in hand, I ran towards one of the storage buildings, beating the beam against the door until it fell away. Smoke poured out of the open door, the smell started to suffocate me as I pushed past and squinted against the darkness for any sign of Isabel. Flames danced around the small room, creating a glow large enough to penetrate the darkness, but there was no one there.

I moved on. I travelled from one storeroom to the next, bashing open the door and using the flames as a source of light to search amongst the smoke. There was no sign of Isabel in any of them, it was as though she wasn't in the factory any more. When I searched the last room, I stumbled back into the somewhat clear air and took a second to take several deep breaths, clearing the smoke and ash that were settling in my chest. My breathing was heavy and difficult. It felt as though someone was pushing against my chest I pushed my hair off my face, the small tendrils sticking to the sweat.

Glancing around, my eyes landed on the collection of flames that were flickering above the roof of the factory, the glow of light from inside the murky windows.

She wasn't in there.

She couldn't be.

As I fought to steady my breathing, I grabbed the metal beam and wrapped my fingers tightly around the cool metal. If she wasn't in the storage rooms, she was in the factory and I was running out of time to find her. Swinging up the beam, I started towards the door. Smashing it open, I was hit by a burst of heat and a rush of smoke as it poured out of the door and into the empty courtyard. The flames crackled and swayed as the wind hit them. They moved faster up the walls and threatened to spill out and encase the entire building, swallowing it up in a convergence of light and smoke.

Panic rose in my chest at the sight of the flames, watching them lick up the walls and darker the brick to black. Smoke filled the room and climbed up to escape the building through any gaps in the wall or ceiling. My breathing increased as I remembered my last time in that room, the similar scenes of flame and smoke that had left me with no job and arm that caused more hassle than it was worth. I wanted to turn around and run, to leave, but I couldn't. I had to do it.

Pulling my dress up over my nose, I lifted my already burnt arm and used it as a shield against the flames. The smoke made it impossible to see a thing and as it rose, I found myself gravitating towards the floor until I was crawling on my hands and knees and searching amongst the darkness. Even with my dress covering my face, smoke still made its way into my chest. My breathing grew harder as I crawled along the floor, calling out Isabel's name as I went. There was no sound other than the crackle of the flames and the metal ceiling shifting above me, threatening to cave in.

I moved through the factory, knocking into machines and tables that had yet to burn away to nothing. Squinting against the darkness, the glow of the fire penetrated through the dark smoke. Moving towards the glow, I noticed a dark object in a heap on the floor. It didn't look like a table or a piece of machinery and it certainly wasn't an animal.

"Isabel!" My dress fell away from my mouth as I pushed myself along the wooden floor towards the dark shadow. Reaching out, I felt my hand grabbing hold of Isabel's shoulder. I shook it slightly, calling out her name but she didn't move.

"Rosie? Rosie!" Robert's voice broke through the crackling of the fire and creaking of the metal above.

"I found her!" I replied, my voice sounded quiet as the smoke started to choke me.

"We have to get out of here, the ceiling could come down at any second."

"Grab her arm."

Robert stood beside me and grabbed hold of Isabel, pulling her up and supporting her weight as we manoeuvred our way past all of the objects and through the door. Stumbling out of the factory and into the courtyard, my grip on Isabel loosened as I collapsed in a fit of coughing, clearing out my lungs of the smoke that had filled them. After several seconds, despite my breathing still heavy, I seized hold of Isabel and Robert and I carried her around the side of the building and back towards the others.

Stepping out of the dark alley, I caught sight of Doctor Ealing moving from child to child, checking them over and giving them all small cups of water. Where he had gotten the water, or the cups was a mystery to me, but the moment he saw us, his face changed. Robert took Isabel's weight and carried her over to Doctor Ealing, I followed behind, still struggling to catch my breath. I watched as Robert laid Isabel on the ground and muttered something to Doctor Ealing who furrowed his eyebrows and knelt beside her.

Lucy and Suzanna handed me a cup of water and whispered something about drinking it, but I didn't. Even though my chest was heaving, and my eyes and throat stung, I couldn't take my focus of Isabel as Doctor Ealing pressed a stethoscope against Isabel's chest, placing his head against it. Lucy's fingers wrapped around my upper arm, her cracked nails digging into my skin as we watched Doctor Ealing and Robert work, though neither of them looked impressed.

Removing the stethoscope, Doctor Ealing placed his hands around the back of Isabel's head, tilting it back before he placed his ear just above her mouth. When he removed his hands, the tips of fingers were stained red and I watched as he glanced up with Robert in alarm. Lucy's grip on my arm tightened as Robert and Doctor Ealing held onto Isabel's shoulders and lightly rolled her to the side. The ground where her head had been laying was covered in blood, her blonde hair was mattered and slightly pink. Whilst Doctor Ealing held Isabel on her side, Robert removed his jacket and tucked it under her head, rolling his sleeves up as he helped roll her back over.

Suzanna reached out and gripped my shoulder as Doctor Ealing placed the stethoscope back on Isabel's chest, pressing his ear against it. Looking up, he shook his head at Robert and placed his hands on his knees. I watched as Robert pushed his hair back off his forehead, sitting back on his heels as he glanced around to look at me. Sighing, he pushed himself up and approached us, both Suzanna and Lucy tightened their grips on my arms.

"I'm sorry, Rosie," he said. His eyes were fixed on the ground, as though he didn't want to look me in the eye and tell me the truth. "There was nothing we could do."

Robert reached out and went to place his hand on my lower arm, but I pulled it away, fighting myself out of Lucy and Suzanna's grip. Pushing past him, I headed towards Isabel.

"Rosie, stop."

"You're wrong. You have to be wrong!"

"I'm sorry."

"No!"

I felt Robert's arms wrap around my stomach, holding me back. I struggled and fought against his grip, but he refused to let go. Instead, he pulled me towards his chest and tightened his hold. As I fought, I watched as Doctor Ealing removed his own jacket and placed it over Isabel's face, keeping it hidden from the scores of young children who were watching.

The moment her face was covered, I collapsed backwards against Robert.

~~~

A/N - Please don't kill me...

Dedication - This chapter is dedicated to grandview2019 who went on a voting spree of all the previous chapters!

First Published - April 9th, 2019