Free Fire! Fire! by Stuart Hill Page B

distance, over the crowded roofs of all the houses and the tall spires of the churches, I could see a red glow in the sky somewhere near the Billingsgate area of the city. My mistress joined us, making a small crowd of four around the narrow window.
    â€œIs that all?!” Master Pepys demanded, as he saw the flames. “A dog could wee on that and put it out!”
    â€œPerhaps Pip could help,” I said with a quiet snigger, not really wanting to get Jane into trouble.
    My mistress resettled her nightcap that had fallen over one eye. “Really, Jane, what a fuss about nothing! And so early… what time is it?”
    â€œThree o’clock!” Master Pepys exploded. “Next time you see a fire, wait until it’s knocking on our door with fiery hands before you disturb us!”
    Jane looked embarrassed and miserable, but managed a curtsey before apologizing and withdrawing. I followed her out and closed the door quietly behind me.
    â€œNever mind,” I said, trying to be comforting. “You did what you thought best.”
    She nodded but said nothing. I went back to my room and tried to settle Pip down again, but he jumped about excitedly until I picked him up. I stood on my bed so that I could peer out of the tiny window that was set into the sloping ceiling. I could still see the glow of the fire in the sky and thought that it might have got a little bigger and brighter, but it was hard to tell. Pip seemed interested and snuffled at the glass, so I lifted the handle and pushed the small window open. Immediately the warm night air rushed in, bringing with it the faint scent of smoke.
    â€œLondon’s burning, Pip,” I said and he whimpered in reply.

CHAPTER 3
    I went back to bed and then woke again at my usual time and got up. It was five o’clock on September 2nd and the sun had not yet risen, but there was enough light in the sky for me to dress without needing to light a candle. Master Pepys wouldn’t be up for another three hours or so, but in the mornings I would help lay the fires in the kitchen and fetch and carry for the cooks and kitchen maids. Before I went down the service stairs, I stood on my bed with Pip in my arms again and gazed out of the window to where I’d seen the glow of the fire the night before. Only now it wasn’t a glow. It had definitely grown and spread in the last few hours and a huge plume of smoke rose up from it like a storm cloud. A shiver of fear went through me.
    I’d seen lots of fires in the streets before, but they were usually put out quickly. This one had been burning all night and was still getting bigger. I felt a strange knotting in my stomach as I thought of all the people who could have been trapped by the flames and burned to death. And the knot got tighter when I realized that if it spread even further the fire could even reach Master Pepys’ house.
    â€œMy God, I hope they put it out soon, Pip. Otherwise we might be looking for a new home…” I paused and shivered in fear before adding: “if we’re still alive that is!”
    Pip gave a small yap as though he understood what I’d said. But then he started to dance around. He needed to empty his bladder as usual so I quickly opened the door and followed the sound of his skittering claws down the back service stairs. When I reached the ground floor I slipped out into the garden to make sure Pip came back in and didn’t run off now that the fire was getting bigger. I couldn’t bear the thought of him getting lost in the chaos of fire and smoke. I don’t know what I’d do without him. As I leaned against the house and took a deep breath of the morning air I was immediately hit by the smell of burning. Master Pepys’ house stands on Seething Lane; it’s on a hill and looks down on most of the city north of the river, so I was able to look out over the houses south towards the Thames and Billingsgate where the fire