A Case of Love Read Online Free Page B

that could leave a clue for the police and firemen and he couldn't do that, not if he wanted to stay free.
    He had to stay free. He had to or else the noise would take him over and he would lose himself forever. Picking up the gas can, he turned it on its end so that any gasoline would drip out, leaving it sitting on one of the stairs after wiping it down one last time to rid it of any fingerprints. Then he hurried down the stairs, pushing through the outside door, he stripped off the gloves and pushed the lighter back in his pocket.
    He turned to walk away, refusing to look back even though the sound of the fire called to him, whispered insidiously to him. He'd come back, but only after the fire trucks were there, only when he could see his greatness written in the black inky smoke that would stain the sky.
    * * * *
    Mackenzie made great time across the city, running when her cab got caught in traffic, arriving at the scene of the fire within seconds of the first ladder truck. She watched, horrified, as people streamed out of the burning building, hearing the shattering of glass, the screams of those still inside, the snapping and hissing of the fire. The smell, heavy and terrifying, clung in the air, smoke making the people that escaped, cough and hack when they reached fresh air.
    She wandered among those who'd made it out, listening, asking questions when she could, already writing the story in her head.
    "That's him."
    Her head shot up and she shamelessly listened in to the conversation.
    "Yeah, it is. That's the guy I saw leaving when I came in this morning. I don't think he lives here."
    "Where are the cops? He's probably the guy who set the fire. Didn't you say you smelled gasoline?"
    Mackenzie looked over to where the woman had pointed, seeing the alley that led behind the building. A figure crept back into there, a man. She hurried across the street, ducking behind the yellow barricade and slipped into the alley with the stranger.
    For a moment, she lost him in the smoke blown about by the freshening wind. Then she caught a glimpse as he turned, their eyes meeting before he turned and scuttled away.
    "Help!"
    Hearing the sound of a woman's voice Mackenzie glanced up. The fire escape had been let down by people fleeing the fire. Three stories up, a woman screamed, head and shoulders out the window. “Help me!” she screamed again.
    "Just climb down..."
    "I can't, my baby, I can't get to her!"
    "Oh shit,” Kenzie hissed. She stared back and forth, down the alley as if looking for help, for anyone.
    "Shit,” she repeated, even as she dropped her purse, took a deep breath and reached for the first rung of the ladder. Climbing quickly, she made it to the third floor in a few short minutes, but even that little bit of time was enough for the fire to seem to burn hotter and closer. The panicking woman was grabbing for her, drawing her into smoke and horror, flames and heat.
    "Where is she?” Kenzie gasped, coughing as the smoke choked her.
    "Down that hallway!” the woman screamed, trying to drag Kenzie towards the fire.
    "Wait! Wait, we need towels or blankets in water.” Kenzie grabbed the drapes to yank them down and doused them in the sink full of dishwater. She dragged it over her head watching as the woman did the same. “Which room?"
    "The second one!"
    "Down on the floor,” Kenzie yelled. “Stay low.” The sound of the flames was loud, the crashing as the fire consumed all flammable material was worse. Kenzie flinched as somewhere below them it sounded as if the floor had collapsed.
    They dropped to the floor where the air was at least a little more breathable. Mackenzie crawled first, feeling the heat of the flames heating the water logged drapes. “I have to be fucking nuts,” she hissed, crawling as fast as she could over the carpeted floor.
    Closer to the closed door, she could hear the sound of the baby screaming and felt a surge of adrenaline. She reached up, tapping on the door handle and then