Smoke hung in the air over camp now, the fire getting nearer.
How much time did they have?
Chaska called out to the counselors. “Naomi will drive the van, and the owners of the two other vehicles will drive their own cars. We pack as many kids in as we can, and then you drive.”
“What about the rest of us?” asked one of the counselors.
“I don’t have an answer for that yet.”
Naomi returned with the keys, clicked the fob, opening the sliding door.
“Come on, kids.” He helped Mona into the van. “Go all the way to the back, Spider Girl. Keep moving. Hurry now.”
He picked children up, one after the other. “Big kids, hold a smaller child on your lap. That’s right. Squeeze in as tight as you can.”
One of the counselors got in his face. “You can’t pack so many kids in here. There aren’t enough seatbelts.”
Chaska fought to keep the irritation out of his voice. Did people not get it? “Seatbelts don’t matter right now.”
All that mattered was survival.
He saw Old Man helping children into one of the counselor’s SUVs, while Naomi did a head count amid the chaos.
They managed to cram twenty kids in the van—not even standing room left. Another eleven fit in the SUV. Eight fit in the little blue Prius. That left Kat and her three children, together with fourteen camp counselors, Old Man, and Chaska.
Naomi got into the driver’s seat, tears in her eyes. “I can’t just leave you here.”
“It’s going to be okay.” He cupped her cheek. “You need to take care of yourself and the baby—and all of these children.”
He gave her a quick kiss, helped her into the driver’s seat, shut the door. “Don’t stop for anything. You need to be gone before the fire reaches the road. Go!”
She started the engine, backed up, and turned, driving down the dirt road toward safety, the Prius and the Ford Explorer following.
Chaska exhaled in relief.
The sound of a siren.
Flashing overheads.
Old Man grinned. “It’s the cavalry.”
A sheriff’s vehicle sped toward them, passing the van and the other vehicles. In front of it was a familiar SUV.
“Gabe!” Kat ran forward.
Rossiter pulled to a stop, jumped out. “Kat, you and the kids are leaving—now.”
“You’re going, too, right?”
Gabe shook his head. “We’ve got room for the kids plus a couple of adults in there. I’ll stay here and wait for the next sheriff’s vehicle. Deputy Marcs got a call off to Dispatch. They know we’re here.”
But Kat didn’t budge. “Are you sure they’re coming?”
The hard set of Rossiter’s jaw told Chaska he knew there wasn’t time.
“I’ll be fine.” Rossiter took the car seats out of the car to make more room. “Alissa, Nakai, come on. Get in. You’re going to sit on someone’s lap.”
Deputy Marcs called out to them. “I’ve got room for five adults, maybe six, but we have to movenow.”