Lone Pine Bride (The Brides of Lone Pine #1)(15)

“And he’s not accounted for?”

“No.”

“What’s his name?”

“Antony Lanford.”

“Antony!” Hannah shouted through the window and once again Seth thought how musical was her voice. If she sang as well as she spoke she and Rachel could get together because Rachel would be able to accompany her on the organ at church. The organist wanted to retire so it was a good thing Rachel had come.

There was no reply and Hannah put her head closer. “I think he’s in there,” she said. “I’m going to slide through the opening to see.”

Seth frowned. “You can’t do that. It’s too narrow and it might collapse.”

“Get someone to bring something to hold the wall up above it and ask them to bring the horses to pull the bricks away above.”

“I can go in,” he said.

“You’re wasting time and you’re too big. I’m long but I’m slim.”

“But....”

“Please go,” she said and all he could do was obey. He turned, ran and Rex began to organise what should be done. But by the time Seth returned Hannah had disappeared.

Seth threw himself on the ground in desperation. She’d gone in and now she would be killed. Surely it was better for an eighty year old to go rather than her. He felt guilt as the thought shot through his mind. Whatever the age, he didn’t want anyone to die.

“He’s unconscious and the dog has broken a leg or something. I’m pushing the dog out first.” Hannah’s voice came from inside.

A head appeared and Seth pulled the animal out gently. “I can only get the man near to the window but he’s too big to push through. The opening has to be widened.”

“You need to come out first,” Seth said.

“No. I’m not doing that.”

“Please come out.” Seth’s tone was rather desperate and the feeling which came over him he could not quite understand. Because she was so young, he decided, and she just couldn’t die. “If you can pull him near the window you can come out and we’ll pull him together.”

“He’s too big,” she said.

“Please, Hannah. Do as I say.”

He could hear sliding and the ground beneath him began to tremble. The house was going to collapse, he was sure, and both of them would be killed. He pushed his legs in, went to go further and she grabbed his foot.

“Get out. I’m coming.”

Seth shot out again, Hannah pushed her way through the opening and turned to begin pulling the man. Seth lay right next to her, pulled as well and Antony’s head appeared. Behind them Rex and a couple of other men inserted a large crowbar and pushed it up with all their might.

Antony groaned, Hannah and Seth pulled harder and he started to slide through. Seth rolled away from Hannah, the men bent to help them and the man slid through the window. They lifted him, all of them ran and the house behind them crashed to the ground, bricks, tiles and glass flying everywhere as it went.

Seth put his arms round Hannah without thinking and held her tightly. “I thought you were going to be killed,” he said. He moved back abruptly. That was really disloyal to Rachel but he had been so frightened. “Sorry.”

She looked at him briefly and tried not to verbalise in her mind that she liked the hug. The Reverend, who had been helping across the road, tore over holding a stretcher which he had been bringing backwards and forwards into the village. The men lifted Antony onto it and carried him to the wagon.

“I need someone to come with me to keep an eye on him,” the Reverend said, looking at Hannah.

Hannah didn’t reply as she just stood looking at the house and one of the men followed the stretcher. “I’ll come,” he said and within minutes the wagon was on its way to Lower Pine.

“What you did, ma’am, was the bravest thing I have seen today,” Rex said.

“No braver than anyone else,” Hannah replied. “Everyone is doing their bit.”

“We have just heard from Lone Pine,” he continued. “They have finished searching all the houses and twenty seven people have died. This is the last house here and everyone else has been accounted for.”

“Who died?” Seth asked.

“Twenty seven!” They spoke at the same time, Hannah’s tone horrified.

She put her hand out towards Seth involuntarily. He screwed his face as Rex told him the names and Hannah felt a pang of sadness. She didn’t know these people but Seth obviously did and he was upset. She also felt she had an affinity with the place, despite only arriving the day before. She had helped rescue people. She had seen the Reverend, also his wife though only briefly. She had communicated with the rescuers and those who were rescued. To her it felt more like home than she had ever felt at her own home.

Which was silly, she knew, because her parents loved her deeply and had always shown her their love. They would have sorted out her problems, even those connected with her father’s associates, if she had confided in them. He had always been there for her, whatever the situation. He worked hard to give them everything they needed.

But she took it lightly, so lightly that now they wouldn’t be at her wedding and didn’t know where she was. She had lied to them and it wasn’t fair on them. But she mustn’t think of that because she had a marriage to embark on and a man to meet she hadn’t met before.