I glanced out one of the broken windows; since the floor below me didn’t appear to be on fire, I decided that I was probably on the eighth floor. Unfortunately, that glance out the window also showed me that most of the women who’d jumped hadn’t survived the fall. Below me, the fire department stood staring in horror at their dry-rotted nets that had been torn to shreds. It was almost as bad as the men working to raise ladders that couldn’t reach past the sixth floor to the eighth, ninth, and tenth where the fire was in full force. No wonder this event changed things, I thought grimly. Looking up, I spotted what was supposed to be a fire escape partially detached from the wall and crumbling. Was Agent Chris on one of the two floors above me? If I knew this event better, I’d know what other options I had to get up to the next floor, but I didn’t. I made a mental note to do a study simulation on this one with Elliot in the very near future, and where in the world was Elliot? The nitty-gritty factual stuff was his specialty, not mine. A fact that was all too apparent as I stood there considering the fire escape. Compared to fumbling around inside a burning building for an unknown exit, this seemed like my best bet. I bit my lip. My next move was going to make or break the mission.

The sound of frantic screams behind me made me turn as an elevator appeared and was immediately rushed, people cramming themselves into the only escape they could see. I caught a glimpse of the elevator operator who’d been brave enough to risk his own life to save others, and I wondered if history would ever recognize him for the hero he was. Not everyone would risk their own life to bring that elevator back. As the doors closed, I made my decision and headed out the window and onto the barely attached fire escape.

I tested the ladder’s weight with one foot. It held, so, taking a deep breath, I stepped into thin air with nothing between me and an eight-story drop but a rusty twisted frame of metal, and I was reminded again that this was the real deal. If I fell here, I would be just one more victim of this tragedy.