Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13 "Your mother is safe at my house!" Mr. Morrow shouted over the roaring fire. One of Mr. Morrow's friends had taken Mama there in a buggy, hours before. "My house is far to the north," he said. "The flames won't reach there. She didn't want to leave the hotel. But I promised her that I would find you." He explained this as they ran to the corner. The streets were practically deserted; almost everyone else on the block had already fled. Mr. Morrow had stayed behind, risking his life to look for Oscar. Oscar opened his mouth to thank him, to tell him about Jennie and Bruno.

But his voice was wrecked from the smoke and his shouting. And he didn't know how to begin. A cab stood at the corner, the horse covered with a soaking-wet blanket to protect it from the sparks. A familiar voice shouted to them through the smoke. "Got him, Charlie?" It was Joseph, the cabdriver Oscar had met earlier. "I do!" Mr. Morrow called. "Mr. Morrow's got half the city of Chicago looking for you, son," Joseph said as they climbed in. Seconds later they were inside the buggy, and the horse took off in a gallop. The two walls of flame were moving toward each other, but Joseph steered his horse through the middle and then swerved onto a side street that the fire hadn't yet touched. Most horses would have refused to budge in a fire like this, or would be rearing up in wild panic. But the old nag was calm, and Joseph barely had to snap the reins to keep her moving quickly. "Joseph is taking us to the nearest bridge," Mr. Morrow said. "We'll cross the river there and

make our way to my house. There are fires on the other side, but nothing like this." Mr. Morrow shook his head. "I can't believe it, Oscar," he said. "So much is gone." The courthouse was in ruins, Mr. Morrow said. So were the new opera house, the grand department stores, and the huge factories and train depots. Thousands of houses were gone. "I don't know what will be left when this is all over," Mr. Morrow said. The bridge came into view. It was wide, with a roadway in the center and two narrow walkways on either side. Oscar's heart sank as he saw the hundreds of people knotted together on the bridge, the dozens of buggies creeping along. "Charlie," Joseph said. "You're better off on foot. And I need to get up to my sister's house, to check on her." "Of course," Mr. Morrow said. He and Oscar climbed out, and Mr. Morrow reached up to shake hands with Joseph. "Thanks. I'll see you, friend," Mr. Morrow said.

"You sure will," Joseph said. But Oscar could see the doubt in both men's eyes. They were standing in front of a paint warehouse, and Mr. Morrow looked at the bridge. His face was etched with worry. "I don't like the look of that bridge," he said. "The roadway is made of wood. It could burn at any time. If the fire comes, all of those people will be trapped. It will be complete panic." Oscar remembered the horror of being stuck in the stampeding crowd with Jennie and Bruno. He knew Mr. Morrow was right, that the bridge was unsafe. But how else could they get across the river? He looked out on the water. Farther up were boats steaming and sailing in both directions. But this stretch was mostly empty. "There," Mr. Morrow said, spotting a rowboat tied up along the riverbank. "I used to row across all the time when I was a kid. It takes just a few minutes."

They hurried to the boat. "Climb in," Mr. Morrow said. "I'm going to see if I can find another set of oars." It was only when Oscar got into the boat that he realized his whole body was shaking. But the thought of seeing Mama made him feel stronger. "Here," Mr. Morrow said, handing Oscar a set of oars. "We're going to have to move very quickly." Soon they had shoved off and were rowing with all their might. Oil fumes rose up, and something worse — that slaughterhouse stench. Garbage and dead rats floated around them. With so many factories lining the shores, Oscar knew the water must be a filthy witch's brew.

The wind blew hard, sending showers of sparks over the river. Shouts and screams rang out from the bridge. Oscar saw that a wagon in the middle of the