Freeing the Flame
an excerpt

Brigid Brennan sat in the cold bedroom that had been hers since birth. Her worn purple polar fleece blanket was wrapped around her shoulders. Her hands, peeking out of the folds, held a book open. Brigid’s gaze was stuck on the wet, black pane of glass exposed between her half drawn curtains. Rain drummed intermittently against the large family home. It was nights like these that she tried to make the house feel smaller. Her bedside lamp was the light she was reading by and any other noises in the house were dulled by the pattering rain. Shuffling she returned to her book, searching for the phrase she had left behind.

A bang echoed from below her. Was it from the kitchen? Who would be going out or coming in from such weather? The thought was barely formed when the image of her best friend, Emily, heavily pregnant and lying back in pain came to her mind. Pushing the blanket aside, her book lost in its folds she ran out of her bedroom. Her pace was forced to slow when she came out of her room, greeted by a pitch black hallway. Her memory of twenty years in the house came to her and she strode confidently along the hall. She moved around the side table that held an old vase of her grandmother’s, down the stairs to the ground floor and past the wall on which the family portraits hung. Lights could be seen on in the lounge accompanied by the green glow of the television and ahead of her towards the kitchen.

Brigid reached forward to open the door but the door came forward to violently greet her. She leapt back just in time.

“Oh, Brigid! Is Aunt Tricia here? Emily is having the baby!” Laura exclaimed. Emily’s younger sister was dripping rain water all over the floor and was soaked herself, having dashed out of her house without so much as an umbrella.

“Aunt Tricia isn’t here. She’s gone to see Mr Umbridge.” Brigid said, already moving back through the house to get her coat.

“What? Someone has to come! She’s having it now! She made me measure
her, like Aunt Tricia and the doctor said.” Laura wrinkled her nose as she followed Brigid through the house, dripping a trail of water behind them.

“I’ll come.” Brigid said, putting on her coat and reaching in for the large first aid kit her Aunt Tricia kept as a backup for her nursing bag.

“Oh good!” Laura exclaimed, pleased that someone else could take charge of her. Brigid turned and looked at Laura. She quickly reached into the closet for a spare coat.

“Here, we can’t have you getting a cold on us.” Buttoning her coat and hefting the first aid kit into her arms Brigid motioned to Laura that they would leave by the front door.

“Where are you going?” An impertinent voice called down the hall.

“Emily’s having her baby. I have to go help her.” Brigid told her younger sister. “When Aunt Tricia gets back tell her where I am.” Brigid felt a thrill of exhilaration run through her at the thought of being on her own in control of such a situation. Or maybe that was adrenaline, she reflected.

“You can’t go by yourself! What are you going to do? Deliver the baby?” Kathy demanded.

“Yes!” Brigid called as she and Laura slipped out of the front door.