Like an automaton Daniel made for the hole where the front door had been. I followed him, feeling the welcome cold rain on me. A crowd was gathering outside. I could see faces lit with the eerie red glow of the fire.
“My baby!” I screamed, rushing up to the nearest figure in the darkness. “My baby is trapped upstairs. Get the fire brigade.”
“I’ll get a ladder,” a man’s voice volunteered.
“No time for that.” Daniel was already hauling himself onto a window ledge. “Give me a leg up, boys.”
“You don’t want to go up there. It’s all on fire,” someone shouted.
“My son is up there,” Daniel said grimly. “Help me.”
“Daniel, no!” I shouted. “Be careful.”
Two burly men helped Daniel haul himself to the top of the window frame and I watched him reach for the upper window. The glass had shattered and flames were licking out of it. Someone had started a bucket chain in a pathetically futile attempt to put out the fire. Each time a bucket of water was thrown through a broken window there was a sizzling noise and steam rose, but the fire didn’t subside. I watched Daniel haul himself inside, wanting him to go and not go at the same time. My heart was hammering. I found that I was holding my breath. In the distance I heard the bells of a fire engine, coming from the Jefferson Market station nearby. Then horses’ hoofs drumming on the cobbles and shouts of: “Out of the way! Stand clear!”
And a fire engine appeared at the entrance to our alleyway. A hose was unwound. It all seemed to happen in slow motion as the firemen ran toward us.
“What happened?”
“There was an explosion,” someone in the crowd said.
“Gas main blew up? Someone turned on the gas and forgot to light it?”
Water was now being aimed at the front of our house, sending up a curtain of steam and smoke that hid the window into which Daniel had disappeared.
I grabbed a fireman. “My husband is up there,” I said. “And my baby, and the nursemaid.”
A ladder was placed against the wall. One of the firemen went up it and I heard him say, “Over here, sir. Come on. I’ll get you out.”
And a blackened, singed Daniel appeared at the window, clutching a bundle wrapped in a blanket in his arms. He handed it to the fireman then lowered himself onto the ladder and came down. I pushed past the firemen and ran to grab the bundle.
“My baby.” I could hear myself sobbing as I snatched him from the fireman’s arms. “Give me my baby.”
“Just a minute, missus. Let’s take a look, shall we?” I could hear from the tone of his voice that he wanted to spare me the sight of my child, burned and dead. I opened the blanket. A pair of terrified eyes looked up at me and he held out his little arms, letting out a huge wail. I grabbed him and held him tightly to me while he cried against my cheek. Daniel joined us, wrapping the two of us in a fierce embrace.
“Aggie,” I said, suddenly remembering. “Our servant girl is still up there.”
Daniel touched my shoulder gently. “She’s dead, Molly,” he said quietly.
“Are you sure? She might just be unconscious.” I could hear my voice, bordering on hysterical. “Somebody should rescue her.”
Daniel’s arm came around me. “She died protecting Liam. I found her huddled over him. She was clearly trying to get him to safety when a rafter fell on her. He was lying wrapped in his blanket and quite unharmed under her body.”
Only then did I allow myself to cry.
Three
One of the firemen put a hand on my shoulder. “Someone get this woman some brandy. She’s clearly in shock,” he said. “Is there somewhere she can sit down?”
I shook my head. “No, I’m all right. We have to get poor Aggie’s body out of there.”
As I said the words there was a horrible creaking, grinding sound and part of the house collapsed, sending sparks up into the night sky. I noticed the firemen were now working feverishly to save the houses next to ours. An image of Aggie’s poor, skinny little body, now charred in that inferno, kept hovering in front of my eyes. I felt sick and powerless and very angry. Liam had stopped crying, held safe against me, and was sucking his thumb.
A constable had now arrived on the scene. Daniel spotted him and called out, “Constable Byrne.”
“Captain Sullivan, sir. Is that you? Don’t tell me it’s your house.”
“I’m afraid it is, Byrne.”
“Was the fire an accident?”
“Quite deliberate, I’d say. Round up the other men in the area and find out if anyone was seen running away from here a few minutes ago. Get a description if you can. Is Lieutenant McCay on duty tonight?”
“Yes, sir. I believe he is.”
“Then have someone send for him immediately. The commissioner will want to hear about this right away. Tell them I’ll report in as soon as I’ve got my wife and child settled.”
The constable hurried off. The fire captain came over to Daniel. “Excuse me, sir, but are we right in thinking this wasn’t a simple gas explosion then?”