Bella is penned in by panicking workers. She feels like an animal, but she refuses to accept her situation. The fire rolls toward Bella and Jane, consuming shirtwaists in its wake. They run for the fire escape. Jane questions its safety as Bella starts to climb out. Bella looks down and sees the bodies of many other girls who have fallen.

Yetta ushers Bella and Jane toward the Greene Street stairs. The flames and smoke are disorienting. Bella lifts her skirt over her head to shield herself from the smoke. She puts aside day-to-day anxieties about modesty.

Jane worries about the girls in their father’s office, but skirt catches fire before she can reach them. She starts to move toward what she thinks is a bucket of water, but Yetta warns that it’s actually machine oil. The fire streaks rapidly along the strands of oil.

Jane screams for Bella to find the girls and make sure they’re safe. She promises to find Bella and meet her later. Bella sees the path to the stairs closing and knows that in a matter of seconds, it will be gone. She rushes forward.