He stood staring into the hallway before him in a daze. It seemed to wind through the school, no longer heading in a single direction. For every second that passed, his senses were distorted twofold. In that moment, it was the first time since entering the building that he felt his strength begin to falter. His limbs seemed to grow light, and Kevin had to fight it in order to keep moving. Too much smoke had gotten in his lungs, and even the abnormal strength of his body wasn’t going to be enough to hold out for much longer.
The screams were louder now, and as he got closer he was able to perceive the direction of the cries. Closed doors were everywhere, but so were the flames, closing in from what seemed like every side. From some angles the flames seared his skin and blinded him, but the pain didn’t stop him. He had a goal, and it wasn’t one he was about to give up on. Kevin ran onward, kicking open each closed door open as he passed; yet there was no sign of the missing children, even though he could still hear them. Each door he opened to nothing began to deepen Kevin’s growing panic. His own mind was beginning to fail, he had to find them soon.
Kevin ran further, deeper into the flames and the thickening smoke. His body was weakening against the heat, and he could feel ash and chunks of other debris stick to his slick, sweaty flesh. He heard the screams again, but this time more clearly. He instantly turned to the nearest door, knowing that finally, he may have found them. Without hesitation his foot slammed into the wood of the door, breaking it from the hinges and sending it flying into the room, where it split in half against a nearby desk.
There was something different about this room, Kevin realized, once he took a step inside. He’d inhaled a breath of fresh air; somehow the fire’s smoke hadn’t managed to find a way inside the room. The relief of the gratifying, small gulp of fresh air was erased from his mind when he heard the panicked slamming of limbs against another door inside the classroom. His ran in that direction. The sounds seemed to come from the classroom’s closet.
Kevin’s hand grasped the strangely cool handle and turned it, his blood ran cold. It was locked, or jammed. He couldn’t help but think of the worst; what if someone tried to keep them in there on purpose? Trying to push the horrible thought from his mind, he fought against it to find a way to get the children out.
(To Be Continued Tomorrow...)
[The complete Book ‘MAN FROM TOMORROW’ can be downloaded at amzn.to/2MSf1ng]
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