The Doll's House

7

Having finished tweeting, he turned the phone off and stowed it safely in his jacket pocket. He checked again that the coast was clear, but he was being over-cautious: no one penetrated this deep into the forest.

Pushing on, he made his way slowly through the undergrowth, careful not to snag his clothes on any of the thorns or brambles. His synthetic clothing was unlikely to leave any fibres behind, but you could never be too careful.

He emerged into a small clearing. The foliage was less thick here, the soil sandy and dry. Perfect for his purpose. Clearing a small patch of vegetation, he retrieved the large bundle of sticks from his rucksack and laid them carefully on the ground. Soon he had a good pile, encircled by the little trench he had dug carefully with his trowel. The trench would catch any stray sparks – a forest fire here would be catastrophic. Safety first, always safety first.

A little crumbling of firelighter to set it going. This was more dangerous than using newspaper of course, but newspapers could provide useful clues to a half-intelligent police officer, so paraffin it was. It seemed odd to feel the heat of the fire on an already warm Saturday afternoon, but needs must. If anyone did see it, they would think it was holidaymakers having a barbecue – there were loads of them about at this time of year. Anyway, he’d be long gone by the time anyone did find it, so…

The thought of discovery, as ridiculous as it was, prompted him to action. He pulled Ruby’s pyjamas from the bag and laid them on the fire. He watched them burn, riveted by the slow conflagration. They resisted stubbornly at first, then came the first flicker as the fibres began to catch, before eventually they succumbed to the inevitable.

It was stupid to enjoy it as much as he did. But he couldn’t help it. It was beautiful – the leaping flames, the glowing embers and finally the gossamer soft ash. He was moved by what he saw, aware of its wonderful significance. This was the end of Ruby. She was dead and gone now, but from the fire, from the ashes, something new and beautiful would rise.