She could hear a voice but it sounded like it was far away, as though it was underwater. Further behind that she could also hear muffled screams. And it was raining too — she could feel water dripping onto her face. She tried to open her eyes but it was too dark to see. Exhausted, she shut them again. The air smelt acrid and tasted of smoke. Her chest tightened and she began to cough.
‘Anna!’ There was the voice again, familiar but still sounding distant. She tried harder to open her eyes, this time managing to keep them open. Bending over her was a familiar shape, and a hand came out to clutch at her shoulder.
‘Anna!’
She groaned, unable to form any proper words.
‘Oh, thank God! I thought I’d lost you.’
She heard a scrabbling sound and suddenly her body felt lighter.
‘You’re covered in rubble. Let me get it off you.’
‘Daniel?’ She croaked his name, overwhelmed by the sound of his voice, relieved that she was not alone.
She started to pull herself up but his words stopped her. ‘Lie still until a paramedic has checked you over.’
‘No, I need to get off the floor.’ She needed to get away from the dust that was filling her lungs. Gradually she pulled herself up until she was in a crouching position, then leaned on Daniel’s arm as she managed to stand up.
‘What happened?’
‘Some kind of explosion, I think,’ he replied. She tried to make out what was going on around her, but it was too dark to be clear.
‘Why is it raining?’
‘It’s the sprinkler system.’
Through the ringing in her ears she could hear low moaning and intermittent screams.
‘Let’s try to get you out of here. You need to be checked by a medic.’
‘No, I’m fine,’ she said. Her head felt muzzy and her body battered and bruised, but she sensed there were people worse off than her and she had an overwhelming need to help them. ‘It’s so dark.’ She felt at a loss. ‘How can we help if we can’t see?’
‘Have you still got your phone?’ he asked.
She reached into the back pocket of her jeans. Miraculously her phone was still there. She pulled it out and flicked on the torch, shocked at the sight of the devastation around her. ‘Oh, Daniel!’
Daniel too had switched on his phone and seemed to be at a loss for words.
‘We’ve got to help,’ she said, suddenly galvanised into action. Taking a tentative step forward, she moved towards a body that was almost completely covered in rubble.
‘Hello, can you hear me?’
The body made a slight groan.
‘What’s your name?’
When she didn’t receive a response she asked again. Eventually a faint voice said, ‘Eva.’
‘Okay, Eva, we’re going to get you some help. But a lot of stuff has fallen on top of you, so the first thing we’re going to do is to try to get it off. At least make you a bit more comfortable.’
‘’Kay.’
It looked as though half the ceiling had fallen on the woman. Anna was afraid of what they would find under the debris, but both she and Daniel worked diligently at trying to release the weight of it from Eva’s body.
Realising how quiet Eva had become, Anna said, ‘Eva, are you still awake?’ When there was no response, Anna said again, ‘Eva? Eva?’
The woman groaned.
