41

Ela left Grey to support Porsha on her own as she frantically searched for a signal. They didn’t know where the fire was coming from, but they had to get out of that death trap.

“Porsha where did Patricia say she was going?” Grey asked.

“She didn’t say anything. She heard you coming and just left. She wants to get rid of all of us at once.”

“There has to be another way out. Another door or something.” Grey let Porsha lean against the wall as she looked around for another exit.

Dying in the basement of an abandoned factory wasn’t in the plans. No one would hear them no matter how much they cried.

“The doors are all boarded up. The windows and shut.” Porsha moaned.

“Hello, hello!” Ela yelled into the phone.

“That better be the police.” Mia growled.

“Damn it!” Ela cried and quickly dialed the number again.

Grey spotted a window high up not even big enough for them to climb through. She cursed and ran to the door as smoke came into the basement through the staircase.

Ela’s eyes went wide as she saw the smoke seep into the basement. She held the phone to her ear as desperately tried to contact help. Porsha slipped down the door and a tear rolled down Mia’s face as she thought about Sky being trapped somewhere up there. Grey saw the hope slip away from the faces of her friends. Grey’s heart was pounding fast, she was scared, though there was one thing she was sure of, she didn’t want things to end this way. She was going to raise her baby with or without West. She was going to be strong just like her mom was. She was going to get her degree. None of her plans involved dying in a factory.

She grabbed Mia and shook her. More smoke seeped into the basement.

“We have to break the door. It’s an old thing it’s bound to give way.” Grey said.

“There’s nothing to break it with Grey.” Mia whispered.

Next to where Ela had given up and curled into a ball she spotted a thick wooden plank.

“Help me carry this. Come on guys! We have to get out of there. This place is going to collapse.”

Mia and Ela sparked into action, helping Grey lift the termite eaten plank. They rammed it against the door, but it not hard enough to crack the wood.

“Harder guys.” Grey urged.

After a couple attempts they only managed to dent the handle and split a few pieces of wood off the door.

“It’s hopeless.” Porsha moaned.

“It can’t be.” Grey said more to herself than the others.

“Hey! Girls! Grey. That’s got to be you.”

“West!” Grey slammed her hand against the door.

“Oh thank goodness.” Mia and Ela ran up to the door.

“Please tell me you have Sky.” Mia said.

“I have him he’s beaten up but he’s okay.”

Grey’s heart ached. She was ready to explode into tears.

“We can’t get the door open.” Grey said.

“Help’s on its way. Don’t worry.” West bellowed from the other side.

“Stand back I’m going to try to break the door in.”

Ela wrapped herself around Grey. They held onto each other for dear life.

“Be careful.” Porsha managed to yell just before West shouted from the other side.

“Fuck. Porsha what the fuck what that?” He barked.

“That isn’t Porsha, West. It’s Patricia. Porsha’s in here.” Grey yelled.

“The fuck is going on here?”

A high pitched scream sounded from the outside at the same time as someone falling to the ground.

“West!”

A couple rams to the door and the door caved in. Ela and Grey helped pull Porsha up just as the heard the roar of the fire blazing from the upstairs. The smoke in the basement flew out of the room through the door. The girls ran out coughing. Sky had tackled Patricia to the ground and now laid on top of her.

“We have to get far away from here.” Grey said.

West looked at his cousin who squashed Patricia. Sky shrugged. He got up, but didn’t give her the opportunity to fight. He snatched up her wrists and dragged her away from the burning building. Grey caught sight of the blood travelling down the back of his head.

The group watched as the building caved in on itself. As the fire burst like an angry volcano. Patricia had stopped kicking and screaming. She hadn’t said a word.

“Are you okay?” West cupped Grey’s cheeks.

She stared into his eyes. It was a loaded question. She shook her head. “No.”

West pressed his lips against her forehead and hugged her tight.

“It’s over now.”

Police sirens and an ambulance sounded in the distance. The fire track was well behind, but it was too late. The building was gone. Sky let Patricia go as the police cars stormed onto the grounds. She didn’t far.

“No, no let me go! You have no idea who my parents are.” She struggled.

Porsha rolled her eyes, “I didn’t think she would ever use that argument.”

“I guess she’s gotten so used to being you.” Mia said.

Porsha smirked.

“Come on let’s get you patched up. You too Sky.”

Grey hadn’t realized she was squeezing West.

“I’m sorry. How did you get here?” She spotted his car parked on the other side of the road.

“Sky called. Told me your whereabouts just in case. He called later said Porsha bashed him over the head. This is ridiculous Grey.”

“I know. I don’t understand it either.”

“You could have died.”

She bit her bottom lip, hoping her tears wouldn’t choose this moment to fall.

“I thought you hated me?”

“No, I don’t hate you. I wouldn’t want you to die either.”

They just looked at each other. So many words left unspoken between them. Her hand absent mindedly went to her belly. He still didn’t know. She didn’t want to blackmail him into staying with her. Now wasn’t the time to tell him.

“I should check on Sky. He lost a lot of blood.”

Grey nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“West?” She said before he was gone. “I’m sorry.”

He nodded. “So am I Grey.”