opened the glass cabinet behind the sofa , the noise from the study had died . Adeline pulled a bottle of Corrigans , which Edward had been gifted on his tenth year of teaching , from the cabinet and poured the whisky onto the sofa , onto the carpet and the curtains . She held the lighter to it all . If anyone was walking down the street now , they could see the flames rising through the window . What will the neighbours think ? “ I know what they ’ d think ,” Adeline said , backing out of the room . She turned left and opened the front door . She stood there for a moment , between the heat of the fire and the cold of the outside .
Smoke rose from under the door of the study . Smoke drifted over from the living room . And the crackle of the flames turned into a roar that drowned out the crunching . “ Good for her .” Adeline shut the door , and she skipped down the path towards the street . One of her slippers fell off , but she left it there . She giggled as she came to a halt on the lawn and the grass tickled her foot .
Out here , she could finally see her work . The flames had spread across the living room and were now reaching out the window , as if to scale the house . The smoke rose dark grey and thick into the morning sky to melt into the clouds . Like a spirit leaving the world behind . Going home .
“ Going away ,” Adeline said , quiet now , soothed by the roar and the crackle of the fire .
If Edward could see her now , standing out here in
51