Pāhonoa te oro

Jessie lifted his head. “Billy?” No answer. “Sam?” Nothing. Sarah coughed beside him. Barely moving. The forest that once felt endless… Now felt like a trap. Jessie stood, pulling Sarah up. “We move,” he said. Her voice shook. “Where?” “I don’t know yet.” But they couldn’t stay. They stepped into the bush—away from fire, smoke, and everything they had lost. And the forest swallowed them whole.