California Fire And Life

132

Outside the fire spreads quickly.

The wind picks up the flame like it's been waiting for a lover and sweeps it across the dry grass.

Into the trees and onto the roofs.

The whole sky on fire.

The sun setting over the ocean a ball of fire.

The ocean ablaze in reflected flame.

On land the sky a red-and-orange glow from the fire that's spreading, blowing north from Dana headlands up toward the Ritz and Monarch Bay.

The fire sweeps across the headlands, over the grass and brush, then ignites the juicy eucalyptus trees, which crackle and pop and it sounds like a million firecrackers going off. The fire races on and ignites the trees that flank the Ritz, encircles the gates of the resort like a besieging army while another arm of the fire races across the top of Salt Creek Beach, pushing on toward Monarch Bay.

Where it doesn't stop at the gate. Doesn't wait for the guard to buzz it in. The wind pushes the flames through, into the trees, into the expensive landscaping, burning up the trees, building up the heat to ignite the roofs.

Natalie and Michael stand in their room, looking out the window and watching the fire come toward them. They can't see the flames from where they stand; what they see is an orange sky turning blood red as the sun sets. They can smell the smoke, the acrid burning sensation in their eyes and noses, and they're scared.

Mommy is all burned up.

Daddy is gone again.

Even Grandma is nowhere to be seen.

There's nobody there but the men that Daddy has around and they're busy spraying water on the roof and they're paying no attention and the sirens are screaming and people are yelling and voices from unseen loudspeakers are commanding in stern voices to "evacuate" and there's a yell from a dozen voices as a wood-shake roof ignites, and Natalie struggles to remember if she knows what "evacuate" means as Leo hops and twirls and barks. The fire crackles in the tree outside the window like a voice from a bad dream, and what Natalie is thinking is, This is how Mommy died.

Out on the street Letty tries to get in but a cop stops her at the gate and tells her no entry to civilian vehicles, and she yells, I have children in there! but they won't let her through so she gets out and leaves the car there and heads in on foot.

Toward the house.

She runs toward the house as the trees hiss and pop over her head. People in cars and on foot stream the other way past her. Here and there a house has gone up now, the smoke is thick, it would be dark but for the flames, and then she's at the house.

It's on fire.

Flames dance on the roof.

"Natalie! Michael!"

A fireman stops her from rushing in. She fights him, screaming, "There are two children in there!"

"There's no one in there!"

"There are two children in there!"

She wrests herself free and runs toward the front door.

Inside it's all smoke, heat, and darkness.