“Good!” exclaimed Tom. “The radiator burst, of course, and soaked them. Good enough, Mary. They will be just the thing to protect our heads and faces. It’s mighty dangerous to breathe smoke-laden air. Now we’ll have a better chance!” He saw to it that Mary had the wetter blanket of the two, then, with the coverings held in readiness to use should they approach too near any flame, the two in such a desperate plight started in that direction where the flames and smoke seemed least thick and menacing. All about the girl and the youth the fire was raging. There was no difficulty now in hearing the crackling of the flames or the crash as some big tree, burned through, fell in the path of the raging element. Tom listened, thinking he might hear the shouts of the fire-fighters, and it was his hope that they might come to the rescue. Though there might have been men and boys near the two imperiled ones, their presence could not make itself known above the roar and crackle of the flames. For a time it seemed as if Tom and Mary might win through to safety by keeping on in the direction they first took. They went on for some distance, now and then stopping to let what wind there was blow aside a curtain of choking, blinding smoke. So far had they progressed that Tom was on the point of calling: “I think we’re going to make it, Mary!” when, almost as he spoke, a curtain of smoke was swept aside and they saw a line of flame directly in their path over which it was impossible to leap and through which it was certain death to pass. Hitherto they had jumped several little, low lines of fire, which were low because they had little on which to feed. But this ahead was part of the main blaze, and it needed only one glance at it to tell Tom and his companion that further progress was blocked in that direction. “No go!” gasped Tom, shutting his eyes a moment to ease the smart and burn caused by the smoke. “I should say not!” agreed Mary. “Suppose you go down that way and try a little to the left. It doesn’t seem quite so smoky there.” Tom looked, and was of the same opinion. “Better put the blanket over your head,” he told the girl. “It seems to be getting hotter and more sparks are falling. They might catch in your hair.” The thickly woven blankets, wet as they were with water from the broken engine radiator, would prove a good protection against sparks. Accordingly, Mary threw hers over her head and Tom did likewise. Then he dashed in the direction the girl had indicated. But they did not get as far along this trail as they had on the other before they were stopped by a wall of fire. “Oh, dear!” sighed Mary. “What are we going to do?” She felt helpless and almost hysterical, but for Tom’s sake, resolutely held herself in control. “Got to try some other direction!” gasped Tom, opening the blanket around his face a little so he could breathe more freely. “We’ve got to get out!”