Chapter 11 - Fire in the Forest
The first incendiary round pierced the cabin's tin roof, showering sparks across the wooden floor. Thomas didn't hesitate. He grabbed Leo, bundling him tightly inside a heavy woolen blanket, shielding the boy's head with his chest.
""Elena, out through the cellar crawlspace!"" Thomas commanded, guiding his wheelchair toward the trapdoor near the kitchen.
""The ramp won't fit down there, Thomas!"" Elena shouted, coughing as smoke began to fill the small room.
""I don't need the chair,"" Thomas said with absolute clarity. He tossed the wheelchair aside, strapped Leo securely to his chest with a heavy nylon harness, and lowered himself onto his stomach. Using only his powerful forearms and shoulders, he dragged his weight and his son through the square opening in the floor, dropping onto the earthen cellar below.
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Elena followed, sliding the heavy trapdoor shut behind them just as the cabin above exploded into an inferno. The cellar led into an old root trench that opened behind a granite outcrop fifty yards into the dense forest. Thomas crawled through the damp dirt, inch by agonizing inch, his elbows digging into rocks and roots, his body forming an impenetrable shield over his son.
Leo whimpered quietly against his neck, trembling with fear. ""I've got you, Leo,"" Thomas whispered against the boy's hair, feeling every jagged stone tearing through his uniform pants. ""Your daddy will never let go.""
