#Chapter 42: Through the Flames

Abby Just as I’m leaning forward to make sense of the strange spark in the back of the oven, something ignites. I jump back with a yelp just as the heat nearly consumes me. My heart races as the orange flames dance menacingly from the oven, cutting off the symphony of our dinner rush with its threatening roar. The scent of burnt food mingles with a more acrid, electrical smell. An electrical fire. Panic courses through me. “Fire! Fire in the oven!” I shout, reaching for the nearby fire extinguisher. My fingers barely grasp the cool metal before I feel the searing heat engulf my arm. A sharp pain lances through me, and I draw back with a sharp hiss, dropping the fire extinguisher. My arm pulses with intense pain, the skin red and already blistering. “Abby!” Karl’s voice cuts through the chaos, and before I know it, he’s beside me, effortlessly wielding the extinguisher to smother the flames. Within moments, the roaring fire is reduced to a