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He forced his unsteady legs to carry hi her body in a burned out rooreat trepidation, he stepped over the threshold separating the salon from the wheelhouse The main salon looked like it had been swept by a blowtorch, The thick, durable fiberglass skin had keptthe bulkheads but the terrible heat had broken through the glass s Remarkably, the flah badly scorched, had not ignited

He shot a glance at Deirdre Her once beautiful hair was singed into a blackened , her skin the color of a broiled lobster Light wisps of smoke rose from her expensive clothes like a low mist She had the appearance of a doll that had been cast into a furnace for a few seconds before being pulled out Death had saved her from life within an immovable body

Uncaring of his pain and injuries, he furiously threw aside the furniture he had heaped over Maeve She had to be still alive, he thought desperately She had to be waiting for hi her children He pulled off the last cushion and stared doithfear Relief washed over him like a cascade as she lifted her head and smiled

"Maeve," he rasped, falling forward and taking her in his are pool of blood that had seeped down between her legs and spread on the deck carpeting He held her close, her head nestled against his shoulder, his lips brushing her cheeks

"Your eyebrows," she whispered through a funny little smile

"What about them?"

"They're all singed off, most of your hair too"

"I can't look dashing and handsome all the time"

"You always do to me" Then her eyes went moist with sadness and concern "Are my boys safe?"

He nodded "Al lifted off minutes before the firestorm struck I should think they're well on their way to a safe shore"

Her face was as pale as ile porcelain doll "I never told you that I loved you"

"I knew," heup

"Do you love me too, if only a little bit?"

"I love you with all my soul"

She raised a hand and lightly touched his scorched face "My huckleberry friend, alaitin' round the bend Hold ht I want to die in your arms"