When the fire started at the back of the van just a minute ago, Rita's eyes widened in shock. She quickly held Evelyn tightly as they stumbled back, smoke filling their nostrils.
Both women stared at the raging fire, its reflection in their wide, terrified eyes. Smoke filled the van, stinging their eyes and suffocating them, while their bodies pressed closer in fear. Now they were trapped between the blazing inferno and the frenzied mob outside, each threat equally deadly.
"Shit!" Rita cursed in Italian. The flames were closing in fast; if they didn't escape in the next few minutes, they would be burnt alive, completely engulfed by the van. Even their remains wouldn't survive a cremation, the fire was that terrifying.
"Oh, we're doomed!" Rita murmured as the fire crept closer, the door too far to reach. She hurried back, leaving Evelyn clinging tightly to the driver's seat.