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The young maid bowed and went on with her duties.
Thomas strode through the mansion to the foyer, where he inhaled deeply.
Something smelled a bit off.
Almost like…
And it was coming from the adjacent hallway—the hallway that led to his study.
“Oh my God!”
Smoke was seeping out from underneath the door of his study. “What the bloody hell!” He touched the doorknob, and even through his glove it was hot, but he managed to turn it and open the door.
Flames greeted him.
“Help!” He screamed down the hallway. “Help me! The study’s on fire. I need water. Quickly!” Then he closed the door.
“Thomas!”
A voice. Tricia’s voice.
And it was coming from inside the study.
His heart nearly popped out of his chest.
He opened the door once more. “Tricia!” There she was, beyond the flames, behind his desk near the window. What was she doing here?
But he didn’t care. He had to get her out of harm’s way.
“Thomas, I’m here. I tried to break the window. I?—”
Thomas didn’t think. He ran into the room, right through the flames, toward Tricia.
Tricia screamed. “Thomas, your coat!”
He looked down. The sleeves of his coat were on fire, and the acrid scent of his singed hair somehow made it through the smoke to his nose.
He scrambled out of the garment quickly and stomped the flames out with his feet.
“We’ve got to get out of here,” Thomas said.
He picked up his leather chair and threw it against the window. The glass shattered and, as quickly as he could, he placed his burned coat around the window so they wouldn’t get cut by the shards of glass.
He lifted Tricia and helped her through, and then he scrambled through himself just as the ledgers on his desk erupted in flames.
Tricia melted into his arms. “Oh, Thomas! I was so scared.”
“Tricia, what happened?”
She burst into tears. “I… I’m sorry, Thomas. I’m sorry I was in your office.”
“Do you think I care about that right now? I’m just happy you’re safe. What the devil happened?”
“I… I was sneaking around, I suppose, and I?—”
“It doesn’t matter. I’ve alerted my staff, and they’ll send a messenger to the fire department, though who knows how long it will take to get them out to the estate. How on earth did the fire start?”
“Oh, it wasn’t me. Two men came in. Scattered some papers around, and the next thing I knew everything was in flames.”
