The smell, like that of a burning bonfire, crept into the car through the open window. It reminded me of bonfire night, the sights and the smells, but this was no 5th November, this was now, and the bonfire, a house on my street, a home to some poor family.

Unlike so many people living in this country, I had decent neighbours. Nice, normal people that would say hello if the saw us on the street and often helped Mum and Grandma out with cakes for the school bake sale. Dr and Mrs Fielding, he was the local GP, who even helped when Mum went into early labour with Bradley. Whereas she worked in Little Ladies nursery on the high street. The couple had a little boy who died not long after he was born. The last thing that family needed, was this.

I shoved open the door and threw my body out of the car. Leaning on the vehicle, I stared at the sight of horror in front of me. It wasn't my neighbour's house that was on fire, it was mine.

My eyes widened and filled with tears. A thick blanket of black smoke rose from the roof and bellowed out of the windows. A bright blaze of orange danced upon the curtains of my living room. The fire screamed as if the house was slowly dying, taking all the memories of my family and friends with it.

It had been my home for over six years and although I hated it at first, it had become my home. I wanted to hold back the tears, but they flowed freely like a river of sorrow down my cheeks and quickly consumed my whole body. I could feel my heart breaking inside my chest.

The wails and screams of police sirens echoed from all directions. Piercing shrill noises filled my ears. I couldn't stand it a moment longer. Although my legs and whole body ached like nothing I'd ever felt, I carefully moved towards my mum, one step at a time.

"Mum! Mum!" I called and hurried as fast as I could to be by my mother's side.

A thick police cordon stopped us from getting any closer to the house. She stood there, as close as she could, tears streaming down her face. I watched as a policeman approached us, a serious look on his face.

"Mrs Leighton?" He questioned
"It's McGee," Mum replied.
"Are you the homeowner?"

Mum nodded, "it's not next doors house is it?"

He shook his head, "I'm afraid it isn't your neighbour's house, it is yours. The fire brigade is trying to put the blaze out, but you and your family will have to find somewhere else to stay for the time being. We can arrange hotel accommodation if you would like?"

"No, no, we can stay at my mum's." She paused and looked at me, "can you phone grandma?"

I'd lost everything. My home, my belongings, my tv, but at least I still had my family, or so I thought.

"Someone needs to phone Derek." Said Mum as she wiped the tears from her eyes, with the tissue she kept stuffed up the sleeve of her pastel blue blouse.

I took one look at her. She was clearly in no fit state to be phoning anyone. He was the last person I wanted to phone. I didn't even want to inform my grandma, but we had nowhere else to stay that night.

I grabbed my phone and dialled my grandma's number. It was 11.00 on a Monday morning, so I knew she wouldn't be at Bingo and synchronised swimming wasn't until 1 in the afternoon. The phone rang and rang as if stuck on an endless repeat of ringing.

"The person you have called is unable to take the call. Please leave a message after the tone."

Damn!

Ok Chloe, think. Where would she be at 11 am? Think, what was the last thing she said... I highly suspected swimming club. Gym and a Swim was only a few minutes walk away from the house, but the beating had left me feeling lightheaded and I still aches all over. The last thing I needed was to walk 20 minutes.

Sod grandma! Sorry, but I needed help and fast. Her being stuck swimming with her or pensioner pals wasn't really going to help mum and me in our hour of need. I had had to think again. Maddison. She had a checkup and the hospital after work at Rose Wood Lodge View care home. I'd been told on various occasions never to phone the home, but this was an emergency, a proper emergency. Not like the time Bradley hid the remote control in his pant draw when Lily's favourite show was on. Yes, she phoned Maddison at work.

I had the number on my phone and quickly made the call.

"Hello Rose Wood Lodge View Care Home, Maddison speaking, how can I help you?"

"Maddison, it's me, you've got to come home now! The house is on fire and I can't get through to grandma and we have absolutely nowhere to stay tonight and all our things have gone up in flames and I've been beaten up at school and now mum wants to take me out and she's blaming Reggie and..."

I must have sounded like a demented rabbit with all my and, but at least she was on her way home. That's all that mattered.

"Chloe, calm down. I'm on my way!"

I shoved the phone back in my bag and watched as a policeman approached us."Do you have somewhere to go?"

"My sister is on her way."

"We're evacuating everyone to Stephen's Gate Primary School sports hall. It's not safe here."

I nodded and mum and I climbed into the waiting police car on the short, five-minute drive to Lily and Bradley's school. I suppose they needed to know one way or another that the house they called their home, was now a ruined blackened shell.

We walked in silence from the car to the sports hall. I had that horrible feeling I was being watched. Eyes all over me, staring, watching my every move. The policeman, whose name I didn't know, opened the door. Inside our neighbours, some with pets, dogs on leads, cats and small animals in cages, stopped talking and turned to stare as we entered. I felt sick to my stomach and listening to them gossiping about us made me feel worse.

"Poor family... look at them." A couple of the local busybodies gossiped in a corner. Their beady eyes were hidden behind thick-rimmed glasses and white curled hair quivering with every poisonous movement.

Stupid old bats, the pair of them. Nothing I hated more than gossips.

"It was arson. Saw it with my very own eyes. That man. He's not..."

No way on earth was I going to stand by and let a couple of shrivelled up old prunes bad mouth my family.
"You listen here, you pious old bat, you know sod all about my family. And if you knew anything about the fire, you'd tell the police instead of just gossiping like a pair of old twats!"

"Dear me," replied one of them, Miss Renshaw, to a second, Mrs Greybo, "come away from her, Doris, before we end up like poor Reggie."

See what I mean? Pious old bats. They'd be curtain twitchers if they actually lived on our road instead of somewhere else. I'd heard they'd moved away a year or two ago, but they still lingered in and around our road like flies on a fresh pile of crap, buzzing around and creating drama wherever they went. Sometimes I hated little old ladies.

We took a seat on one of those things primary schools used for Physical Education (PE), but I could still feel their eyes, everyone's eyes on us. The sight of Maddison followed by a policeman came as a welcome distraction. But the look on both their faces made me suspect it wasn't good news. I watched as they walked towards us.
"Can we talk somewhere more private?" The policeman asked.

I nodded and suggested the changing rooms which were in the same building. My sister and the policeman followed us in the direction of the girls changing rooms. It was private, away from prying eyes and gossiping grannies. We opened the door and sat down on one of the benches. The man, PC Dunger, sat opposite us. His face turned from the upbeat, jolly expression when he took us there, to one that I found unnerving. Stern. Worried. Mournful.

"There's been a development." He said as if he didn't know how to word what he really needed to tell us."

"You have managed to contact my husband, haven't you? You do know he's alright? He's safe?"

The man looked at Maddison, who looked at Mum and I. I looked at Mum and then back at them. Placing my hand on my mother's arm, I tried to reassure her that he beloved Derek was fine. That's when I saw the look and the single tear in Maddison's eyes.

No! No! No! Not after all that confusion over the suicide attempt. No!

Thoughts flew around my already confused mind like a drunken hamster on a wheel or one of those balls that they run around it.

"He is alright, isn't he?"

That's when he said it. The few words that shattered my family like a broken window.

"A body was found by the fire brigade around half an hour ago..."

To be continued...