“Caleb!” Jules cried.
With a fast look around to ensure people were sheltering, Caleb rushed back to her, all but diving under his own table.
The noise grew deafening, as more items fell and people cried out in fear. He grasped Jules, pulling her close. “It’ll be all right.”
“I know.”
“The building won’t fall down.”
Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw the redwood chandelier shift. One of the anchor bolts popped and the whole contraption dangled precariously, the glass floats raining down. “Look out!” he cried.
Then the chandelier crashed two stories to the floor.
Caleb craned his neck, immensely relieved to see it had hit the open kitchen instead of a table.
“Anybody hurt?” he called down.
“I don’t think so.” It was Fred’s voice, and Caleb saw that a group of staff members had clustered with him around the rock wall. That was a good decision. The wall was anchored in concrete set deep in the earth.
As the shaking started to subside, Caleb could see flames licking up from the gas grill, through the redwood chandelier.
He clasped Jules’s hand and looked her straight in the eyes. “Everybody needs to get out of here.”
“What can I do?”
“Help that older couple.” He pointed. “I have to make sure the gas is turned off.”
She nodded.
“You okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine.” She looked calm and capable.
He was grateful for that.
The shaking had all but stopped, and he stood again. The lights flickered but stayed on.
“There are five exits,” he called out. “One in each corner on the first floor, plus the main entrance where you all came in. There’s no need to panic, no need to run, but you should leave the building and gather at the back, away from the beach. Staff will help anyone who needs it. I repeat, slowly leave the building and gather at the back away from the beach.”
He leaned down to Jules who was crawling out from under the table. “You’re good?”
“I’m good. Go. Put out the fire.”
Caleb left her to help the older couple and made his way downstairs. Fred was there to meet him, along with the manager and the head chef.
“The gas needs to be shut off,” he said.
“We’re working on the back kitchen connections,” said Kiefer, the head chef. “But I’m worried there might be leaks in the lines.”
A couple of staff members arrived with fire extinguishers and doused the flames in the central kitchen.
“Is there a main valve outside?” Caleb asked.
“Behind the kitchen, but you need a wrench,” one of the staff replied.
“Where can I find a wrench?”
Fred answered, “There should be one in the basement, on the bench in the utility area.”
“Make sure everyone evacuates,” Caleb told Fred.
“Yes, sir.”
Then Caleb spoke to the manager, Violet. “You’ve called the fire department?”
“The lines are jammed, but we’ll keep trying.”
“Shut off everything you can,” he directed Kiefer. “Absolutely no open flames.”
The lights went off, sending up a collective gasp from the people who were still shuffling their way out the doors. The battery lights came on immediately. It was dim, but people would be able to find their way.
“We have to assume we’re on our own for a while,” Caleb said. He could only imagine emergency resources were stretched thin. And there could be damage to roadways. “Who knows first aid?”
“Three of the kitchen staff are certified,” Violet said, “along with me.”
“Grab whatever we have for first aid kits, and check out as many people as you can. Get someone to distribute bottles of water.” Caleb caught a small movement and saw that it was Jules.
“What can I do?” she asked.
“I need to find a wrench in the basement.”
“I’ll help.”
His first instinct was to say no, to tell her to go outside to safety, but he wanted to keep her with him. He told himself a second set of eyes would help find the tools quickly. And the priority was to shut off the main gas valve.
“This way,” he said, wending his way through the upturned tables toward the basement stairs. “There’s glass all over the floor,” he warned her.
“I’m wearing boots.”
“Good choice.”
“We have Melissa to thank for that.”
Caleb opened the basement door. He thought he caught another whiff of gas, and he knew they had no time to waste.
Six
Three hours later, with the gas shut off and the customers safely on their way home, a firefighter approached Jules and Caleb at the front of the building.