Free Twice Tempted by Elizabeth Kelly

with
it.  I hope it – “
    She cried out at the sudden loud explosion
from within the bar.  The entire building swayed beneath their feet and she
grabbed on to Penny as the fire alarm went off with a whooping bray.  The water
sprinklers sprayed on, immediately soaking them, and Penny stared at her with
large, frightened eyes.
    “Lucy?  What’s happening?”
    “I don’t know.  C’mon, we need to get out
of here.”  Lucy replied grimly.
    She pulled Penny to the door and pushed it
open.  Immediately, a huge cloud of black smoke rolled in and they were
blinded.  They could feel the heat and hear the crackling of the flames and,
coughing and gagging, the two women stepped back and let the door shut.
    Penny fanned the smoke from her face as
more seeped under the door.  The small bathroom was rapidly filling with smoke
and Penny grabbed on to her with panicky tightness.  Her blonde hair was
soaking wet from the sprinklers and more water was beading down her face.
    “Lucy!  What’s happening?  What do we do?”
    “We need to get out of here.”  Lucy swallowed
down her own panic.  She was terrified for herself and for Penny but she was
also filled with terror for Jason.  Please God, she prayed silently.  Let him
have still been outside.
    She coughed again, the smoke searing her
throat, and stared frantically around the room.  “Penny!  There!  The window –
let’s go!”
    She pushed the smaller woman towards the
window set high in the wall at the far end of the bathroom.  Penny stumbled
towards it and reached upwards. 
    “I can’t reach it Lucy!”  She cried.  She
stared at the door of the bathroom as muffled screams of panic and fear could
be heard.
    There was a large round garbage can tucked
under the sink and Lucy grabbed it.  She tipped it over, paper towels spilling
across the floor, and dragged it under the window, slipping and sliding on the
wet floor.  She climbed on top of it and opened the latch on the window.  It
was a push window and it opened only halfway before stopping.
    “Fuck!”  She screamed.  Penny stared up at
her in terror.
    “Lucy!  We’re trapped!”
    “No we’re not.”  Lucy shut the window and
yanked her jacket off.  She wrapped it around her arm and fist and turned her
face away.  She could barely see Penny through the smoke that had filled the
bathroom. 
    “Penny, turn away.  Cover your face!”  She
shouted before coughing and gagging on the smoke-filled air.
    Penny turned away obediently and, shielding
her own face with her other arm, Lucy hit the glass of the window with all of
her strength.  It cracked but didn’t break and she screeched with frustration
and fear before pounding on it again.  This time the window shattered and she
cried out with relief as a whiff of cold night air drifted through.
    She peered through the window and she could
have sobbed with relief when she saw that it was only about a ten foot drop to
the alleyway.
    She quickly pushed all of the shards of
glass out of the frame and then unwrapped her jacket and placed it on the
bottom edge of the window frame to help protect them further.  She held her
hand down to Penny.  “Climb up, quickly!”
    Penny climbed up and the women clung to
each other, balancing carefully on the overturned garbage can. 
    “I’m going to help you through the
window.   If you hang on to the window frame and lower yourself down, it’ll
only be about a five foot drop for you.”  Lucy panted.  “Watch the glass okay?”
    She put her hand on Penny’s butt and shoved
her up and through the window.  Penny straddled the ledge and with one final
panicked look at Lucy, eased both legs out and hung down from the ledge.  She
looked below her and moaned.
    “Lucy I – I can’t.”
    “Yes you can!”  Lucy coughed and squeezed the
top of Penny’s hands lightly.  “It’s not that far Penny.  Just let go honey.”
    With a frightened squeak Penny let go and
dropped to the ground.  She