Chapter 4
The Fire
Maria leaves the faculty lounge and returns to her apartment. She showers, puts on a
nightgown, turns on the electric blanket, sets the control on six, gets into bed, and after agonizing over her situation with Peter falls asleep. The next thing she remembers is hearing a whooshing noise and seeing a wall of fire coming at her from the foot of the bed. For a split second she thinks she’s having a nightmare but it’s not a nightmare. Her nightgown and hair are on fire. She leaps out of bed screaming. She is burning alive. Frantically she runs toward the bathroom. Abruptly she changes her mind, runs to the door, opens it, and runs screaming down the hallway.