174 GRIMALKIN THE CAT 
space, littered with red embers, lay in a circle of fire 
which was encroaching ever further and further 
into the wood. The laurels crackled as the heat 
changed them to molten gold and ruby before 
dropping them into the flames. There was no 
time to be lost. Already blazing fragments were 
dropping from the tree into the dead grass at the 
edge of the ' Jungle/ and the brushwood burned like 
tinder when kindled. 
Zoe took up her third kitten, and this time she 
ran faster than before. The old blackbird was 
croaking to her brood, beseeching them to use 
their wings to escape, but they only gaped foolishly 
for more worms. The hedgehog was waddling 
through the grass as fast as his short legs would 
permit. Zoe easily overtook and passed him, but 
the kittens were heavy and the day very hot. The 
sun came through the leaves, and cast chequered 
patterns on the path. The woods were very still, 
but for the rush and crackle of the fire. 
For the third time Zoe toiled back up the hill. 
The air seemed hotter and heavier than ever, and 
smoke hung among the trees. Suddenly she came 
upon the vanguard of the fire. It had leaped the 
path and was creeping into the ' Jungle ' with a 
roar. Alder, fir branch, and briar in turn flared up 
and fell before it, and the yellow flames streamed 
