Home, Sweet Haunt by P.J. Night Page A

stories. This is different. This is about a fire.”
    â€œA fire?” Nora had been lying down on the sleeping bag. Now she sat up and moved to the edge of her bedding. A chill rose up her spine as Aleah began to interpret the report in her own storyteller style.
    â€œThe fire began in the kitchen.” Aleah’s voice was soft and vibrated through the silence. “It was so late at night, it was early in the morning. Very few people in the building were awake.”
    The way Aleah was speaking drew them all into thestory. LL came and sat next to Nora. Caitlin moved near Aleah. They were in a circle, knees touching.
    â€œFour people lived in the apartment. A mother. A father. And two children.”
    Nora knew this story. But she didn’t say anything, not yet.
    â€œThe blaze quickly spread from the kitchen into the living room, turning everything it touched into hot white ash. The mother and father fought the flames with water, blankets, and an old fire extinguisher they’d had in the pantry but had forgotten to replace when it expired.”
    Nora could smell the smoke on her pajamas. The constant reminder . . .
    â€œThe neighbors could hear the children screaming. They reported that the parents sent the kids to safety in a back bedroom. It isn’t fire that usually kills in these situations, it’s the smoke. They warned the children to stay close to the floor and not to open any windows, for fear of—”
    â€œBackdraft,” Nora supplied the word.
    Aleah glanced up at her with curiosity. Nora shrugged as if it was a common phrase that everyone should know, and Aleah went on.
    â€œMen and women from the surrounding apartments tried to open the front door, but it was jammed. They wanted to help, but the heat was intense. Smoke was filling the hallway, making it hard for the rescuers to breathe.”
    â€œThis is horrible!” Caitlin said. “When did it happen?”
    Aleah scrolled down the page. “Um, actually, just before your family moved to town.”
    â€œWhat happened next?” LL asked. “I hope the fire department came.”
    â€œThey did,” Nora said, adding, “But the reporter arrived first.”
    Everyone turned to look at her.
    â€œI forgot you’ve lived in this apartment building a long time,” Caitlin said.
    â€œAll my life,” Nora replied.
    â€œWere you here the day of the fire?” LL asked. “It sounds so awful.”
    Nora nodded, small and timid. “I was here.”
    She’d never talked to anyone except her family about the fire before. Nora could see the other girls were anxious to hear her firsthand account. Not that she didn’t want to tell them. It just felt so strange. Thefire. What happened after. Her parents’ freak-out. The homeschooling and their refusal to let her do anything, because they were intensely afraid of the world.
    She just wanted to be Normal Nora.
    Not this Nora, the girl who’d survived a fire.
    Aleah, always seeking the facts, asked, “Did you know that the fire investigator reported that the fire started because of exposed electrical wiring in—”
    â€œIn the oven,” Nora finished. “Yes. They said that.”
    â€œThe fire department told you ?” Caitlin reached out and put a hand on Nora’s knee. It was a sign of trust and friendship.
    Nora put her own hand on top of Caitlin’s and gave it a squeeze. “They didn’t have to tell me.”
    LL and Aleah reached out and instinctively put their own hands on Nora’s and Caitlin’s, forming a pile. Nora took a deep breath. “I could hear them talking.”
    Get it done and tell the truth. Nora blurted out the last bit.
    â€œThe firefighters were standing in my kitchen.”

CHAPTER 13
    â€œWe survived.” All eyes were looking at Nora. “We hid in my bedroom while the firefighters broke down the front door.”
    â€œAwful!”