Lost in Embers (Rising From Ash Saga #1)

Chapter 22

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

A s I’m beamed back to the safe ground, there are no healing beams this time before the next round. Another change that Higgins probably put into place. He is out of control and too willing to cause others harm. While I know I’m not dying, I’m losing a lot of blood and my body is weakening.

The door on the beam opens, and I get a full view of the land. Many look to be injured. I see Kai and Kieran and make my way to them. They look tired and slightly defeated. Kai’s uniform is missing patches of fabric, and he has a cut running down his face. Kieran seems to be relatively unharmed, minus his arm that he rubs with his right hand. I keep looking for Efron, but he’s nowhere to be found.

“You guys look splendid,” I joke. “I’m sorry I took so long.” I still have the flag in my hand, unsure of what to do with it. “Where is Efron?”

Kai looks directly to the ground; he’s not prepared to answer my question. Kieran moves closer to me, taking note of the blood running down my shoulders. I shove him back; my question needs to be answered.

“Well, where is he?” This time I direct it at Kieran, who frustratedly runs his hands though his hair.

“Ava,” he says, pacing.

I do not like the look of this.

“Cornelia, she got out of control when she saw that Efron was reading their thoughts. She attacked Efron, and when I went to go stop her, some green giant man was teleported down, and I was too busy trying to fend him off to get to Efron. Then you got their flag and everything stopped. We were beamed up and Efron lay there lifeless, covered in ice.”

Oh no, I did this, I was too slow. I pace back and forth now. I’m furious. I can feel the energy boiling inside of me. “Where is he now?” I shouldn’t pace so quickly, I’m just losing more blood.

“We were told he’s in the infirmary.”

I hold up my hand as a gesture for him to stop talking. The thought of a helpless person purposely being put into that pain sends anger through every inch of my soul. First Brionna, now this. Not to mention Higgins again, sending those people help by teleporting that beast to fend off Kieran.

I spot her, the dark-haired Ice Queen, casually joking with her teammates. It looks as though she’s recreating scenes of the battle. She’s actually laughing. How dare she! I walk toward her, and she turns and scowls in my direction when the ogre points out my presence. Her hands turn to ice and she has more space now than she did in the locker room. She creates an ice fortress around her and her teammates.

The electricity in my body reaches a boiling point I cannot control. I approach the castle she built, and with one hand I touch it, harnessing all the anger kept inside of me, and release it on the stature. So much electricity courses through me that it is actually painful for me to let go; screaming, I bring the whole ice fortress down. As the walls come tumbling down, her face comes to my sight, filled with fear as she meets my gaze. Ice shatters against the faces of her teammates, drawing blood and pushing them back.

“You.” I point to her and without knowing it, release the last bit of electric shock and send her flying backward. I planned on having a fight with her, but my body did this without my control and without me touching her. The yellow team does not stand in my way as I walk slowly over to where she lies. Looking down on her, my gaze scolds her as she opens her eyes, terrified that my face is the first one she sees.

“No one will help you now. I’m not going to kill you, even though I wish someone would.” With those words left to her, I walk away, knowing she will not rise against me.

Kieran runs in my direction. He grabs my hands, and much to my surprise I do not shock him.

“Ava, I have never seen you that dark. Your bright green eyes could be seen a mile away.”

I nearly fall into him because I’m so weak, that pulse has taken me out as much as her. “They change color when I’m passionate about something, or so I have been told. She was hurting innocent people for no reason. I didn’t mean to shock her that badly; it came out of me without my control.” I turn to look back at the girl, now being taken off the field on a stretcher, and the ice that shattered covers every inch of this once-neutral field.

“The important thing is you wanted to cause her more pain but didn’t. Now I know why the Pureck chose you.” He drops his hands from mine, and we walk back to Kai. My eyesight is distracted by Higgins standing there with a grin on his face, as though he’s proud of the pain he has inflicted on us. That energy boils once again inside of me as I storm off to confront him.

Tact is something I should have while speaking to Higgins, but I won’t. There is too much inside of me, too much that I want to say. When he lowers his hood revealing his face, he’s as hideous on the outside as he is on the inside. We are face-to-face, and I turn for a second to see Kieran running toward me.

“You are probably a Grimmer, and the worst one at that! For one of light would not have a soul as hideous and unfair as yours. We volunteered to be a man down, to help a little girl, and for that you punish us. You teleported that thing”—I point over to the green man— “to help fight off Kieran so that bitch could cause severe pain to Efron. You have the darkest soul of them all and should be put to sleep. Not to mention,” Kieran’s hands on my waist distract me as he tries to pull me away, but I keep screaming, “you teleported me to the volcano, like the unfair…”

I don’t know how Kieran manages to pull me away from Higgins without me hitting him in the face, but he does. He throws me over his shoulder, stopping my words mid-rant.

Higgins steps down from his podium of power to look me directly in the eyes once Kieran puts me down. “You don’t see Verguisse complaining, do you?” He moves closer to me so the venom in his words hits me on the side of my face, causing me excoriating pain. I drop to the ground and hold the side of my face until the pain goes away. His power is to literally cause pain with his words and kill them if he so chooses.

I spit towards his feet, and his eyes gleam almost as though he’s happy, “There she is. Destruction. Utter chaos. Just what I wanted to see.” His eyes grow twice the size, taking me in, and a smirk hits his disgusting face. “And without that soulmate of yours to keep you in check, you are a ticking time bomb. One I would like to use.” His voice is calm, but almost a whisper.

“You can’t kill me even if you wanted to,” I spew.

The darkness in his eyes is untrusting. If he had the chance to inflict more pain on me he would.

“You need to learn to control your bitch.” He speaks directly to Kieran, who lifts me off the ground. I can see in Kieran’s face that he wants to say something, and I use the strength that I have left to nudge him not to, but he doesn’t listen.

“You did all of this… threw the rule book out the window to push Ava… to see her destruction…”

Higgins doesn’t deny it and my stomach sinks. The realization of what I’m capable of hits me, and I’ve not even really started honing my powers.

As if to answer my unasked question, Aidan’s sweet, luring voice melts into my mind. An instant rage consumes me. He gets into my head, but won’t show up for me.

I call you Ember because everything you touched would burn. It was beautiful to see. The fire inside of you, draws me closer.

Were all of those dreams I had before about me losing control? No. I have to do better. Be better for everyone.

We walk away, and Higgins leaves us with his parting words: “Both of you are disqualified. Kai will fight Verguisse in the final round.” There is no doubt that Kai will be able to defeat the ogre-like reality warper, but who knows what Higgins has up his sleeve ?

“Ava, let’s go visit Efron in the infirmary. Maybe they can do something about the green veins on your face that Higgins left behind and remove that poison.” It was as though Kieran was reading my thoughts. It was either that or go sit in the boxes and watch the battle from above, which is something I have zero desire to do. I want to rip Higgins apart, but Higgins is too powerful, and my skills haven’t fully developed.

“Hey, can I ask you a question?” My voice is small as he carries me off the field.

“You can ask me anything, always. I think we have been through enough together.” It’s good to see his lighthearted smile reach his cheeks.

I smile back at him for a second, then frown at my question. “Do you think because I said something to Higgins, he will take it out on Kai?” It would crush me if I were the reason Kai couldn’t naturally walk off the course.

Kieran senses my fear and looks me directly in the eyes. “Kai can take care of himself. Don’t you worry.” Well, those words aren’t as comforting, almost as if they mean, “Yes, Higgins is going to play unfair once again, but this time it is your fault. However, you shouldn’t worry because Kai can take care of himself.”

I sigh at the thought. Kieran holds me with one arm wrapped around me and pounds on the large exit door with the other. I scoot away, despite his attempt to hold me still and watch the huge door open.

“Marcus!” I fling myself into his arms for a huge hug. He puts me down and Laila jumps into my arms, but I’m not strong enough to hold anyone up other than myself. Without missing a beat, she jumps from my arms to Kieran’s. I have never seen someone else hold her, and dismay crosses my face. He pets her behind the ears and giving her kisses. She loves it.

“Ava, I saw what you did.” Marcus speaks to me in a concerning voice, but I’m not able to give him my full attention. Seeing Laila loving this man that barely spoke to me before tonight is strange.

“Sorry, what did you say, Marcus?” I ask, finally able to pull my attention forward and look him in the eyes. The sound of the big doors banging closed behind me can’t even draw my focus away now.

“Ava, what you said to Higgins, it took over the screens in the boxes. That and how you went off on Cornelia.”

I stand there speechless. What am I supposed to say? I know. I was there.

“That was incredibly stupid. The last thing you need is to be on Higgins’s bad side. There are things happening here behind the scenes, and you might have stirred up a hornet’s nest that shouldn’t have been touched. Aidan can only protect...”

I cut him off, “It’s kind of too late for that,” I chuckle. “I don’t understand. He is supposed to be good, yet when I touch him or look into those eyes, there is nothing but evil.” That’s a fact.

“There are some who are currently under investigation by a group of Manayunks. He is one of them. This is not the place to talk about it, and I shouldn’t have even said that much to you.”

“Understood; we will talk about it later.” Meanwhile, this conversation is finished, and Laila now has Kieran playing with her on the ground. I smile at the two of them. If only she could be this nice to everyone.

“So how did you find the entrance to the portal this evening? It was meant for only Elders, Manayunks, and myself to be able to see.”

“I think John was probably right. Lately, I have been more in tune with nature, like it speaks to me. Tonight, a path was lit directly to the portal opening as though I was meant to see it and be there, with Kieran. That’s about all I can say, it’s all I know.”

“It doesn’t make sense. You and Kieran were able to travel through the portal together that is heavily guarded. The portal is set up with a defense to incapacitate those it was not programmed for. So, you, maybe. Kieran… maybe. Curious.” Marcus speaks, but his wheels are turning. He tries to digest what I have said and the thoughts that have come out of his mouth.

He mumbles to himself when I interrupt his thoughts. “You know how my father said only those who I link souls with can kill me? Does that mean the feeling has to be mutual? Or if I love someone, give them my soul, and they do not love me back, they can kill me?”

“That is the question that is centuries old, isn’t it? What makes you ask?” Apparently, I have posed this question before. I wonder if I have ever received an answer.

“I ask because I’m unsure. Someone recently brought it to my attention, and I did not know what to say or how to answer.” I glance over and smile at Kieran and Laila still playing.

“Does Aidan know about this?” Marcus seems confused as he points back and forth between Kieran and I, as he manages not to answer my question.

“What do you mean? Kieran and I just started speaking tonight.” Not sure where Marcus is going with this, but this is the first time Kieran and I have gotten to know one another, and it was because of a battle. We had no way to avoid it.

“There is so much you do not know. Kieran will do anything to protect you, and you he. I saw the actions on the mountaintop and on the forest edge. You two have become quite the pair.” Marcus’s brow rises in curiosity.

“This training battle has given me many people to read; most intentions are ones of harm from those I have come across. When I touch him, there is nothing but kindness and a good heart. I’m not sure of his actions toward me before tonight and his disdain for me, but I trust him to fight beside me in whatever battle life throws my way.”

“Looks serious over here.” Kieran is by my side, trying to make the situation more at ease. “Ready to go visit Efron? Come on, puppy,” he whistles to my adorable pooch, and she comes running.

“Her name is Laila, not puppy, silly boy. And yes, I’m ready to go.” As we leave Kieran’s arm wraps around my waist to help me walk, and Marcus shoots me a look, one that says he doesn’t agree with my actions. I’m not sure why, though. He yells for me to remember to call Aidan, clearly wanting Kieran to know I’m spoken for in some weird, warped way.

We walk through the woods, and finally my strength starts to come back. I’m still bleeding, but the venom in my face hurts less, and I manage to hold myself up. I find it odd that the infirmary is in a different building, outside the dome and deep in the woods. Nothing is what I’m used to anymore. The woods are eerie and completely silent, and both of us are on heightened alert. Finally, we reach a small cabin in the woods, maybe like 20-foot by 20-foot, with one lone window. As we walk up the steps and open the door, it is massive on the inside. At least one hundred times the size of what the outside would make it appear to be, and that is just the entryway. I turn to close the door behind us and let out a scream.

“What is it?” Kieran asks, he and Laila by my side instantly.

“I think Huffnalgers are following me. They appeared to me on my trip back from Mexico, again when I went running through the woods, and now they are outside again. Two of them.” He leans over and looks out the door that I have yet to close, and his eyes widen in awe.

“They cannot get to us in here. Those are the biggest Huffnalgers I have ever seen.” His deep voice rolls with anger, not fear.

“I cannot camp out here. I have to get home at some point so I can rest and get to work in the morning.”

“It already is morning. You are not leaving with two fully grown Huffnalgers outside. They would only be here for a reason, and apparently that reason is you. We will find a way out and that will be in the light of day.”

I decide not to argue with him, fully knowing that I can sneak out if I want to. Plus, I was able to outrun them before; this shouldn’t be any different. Maybe my wounds will slow me down a bit. I shut the door and follow Kieran’s lead. He asks a nurse where we can find Efron, and she says he’s located in the south wing of the building. All of the nurses’ outfits look like something out of some weird space magazine, silver chrome pant suits that look like they would squeak, with red crosses on the back.

This place is really quite huge now that I can take a look at it. There are high wooden beams holding the tall ceiling up, with old, tarnished-looking gold chandeliers that do not match the cabin feel of the interior. The entryway is plain with seating areas to the right and left, filled with red couches. The huge wooden staircase leads up to the second-level's south wing, where we can find Efron. The old wooden banister feels rough on my skin as I lean all my weight on it to make my way up the stairs. The venom still runs through my body, more so in this place, and I stop to catch a breath for a minute. While I look down, without my consent, Kieran picks me up and carries me up the stairs and does not put me down once we have reached the top.

It is like a maze trying to get through this infirmary. Apparently, it is not just used for the training battles but is the biggest hospital on the East Coast. It services all of the Northeast as well as the Carolinas. They have smaller, less equipped infirmaries in all states, but this is the big one to treat all ailments. After about a ten-minute walk through the large, wide, chandelier-lit hallways, we approach Efron’s room. Kieran places me down and our knocks on the door are in sync. There is no answer, so we just enter the room as soft-footed as possible, sure not to wake him.

He lies there, still, just like the silence in the room. I enter further so I’m on the far-right side of his bed. A white tarp loosely hangs over his bed, creating a canopy and a soft mood. His eyes are open and moving around. I call for Kieran to come over, and it is clear that Efron is awake, just unable to speak. Efron is in a full-body cast from his chest down. It seems to be heated. She has really done a number on him. Laila starts barking and jumping at the side of the wall near the door. I walk over to see what she tries to grab with her teeth, and it is a medical chart of sorts.

I reach down to scratch her behind the ears and then grab the chart off the wall. “Cannot speak due to frozen vocal cords.” I pass the board off to Kieran; I cannot read any more of this. She has literally frozen the inside of his body; now we have to wait for him to thaw. I don’t know whether to feel sad or angry. I take a seat in the chair next to Efron’s bed, pull my knees to my chest, and close my eyes. It was noted on the paper that his sister, Zalethia, has been notified and she will be here at some point late tonight. Where are his parents?

“Oh no! I’m going to be late for work!” Son of a biscuit. The window lets in shining light, and there is no way I’ll make it to work on time. It is morning, and I fell asleep here. Someone placed a blanket on me and managed to change me out of my training attire. I look around the room confused, then I spot Kai, Kieran, and Efron holding back their laughter at my frazzled state. I scoff at them as they laugh at me. I stand, and the blanket falls to the ground, revealing the barely-there pale pink nightgown I’m sporting. I immediately pick up the blanket to cover myself as my face flushes scarlet.

Kieran’s skin, the same tone as mine, goes a bit red. He walks over to me while he slips off his zip-up sweater and hands it to me. Then he turns around and all the guys cover their eyes. At least they are being gentlemen about it. I put on the zip-up, and even though the gown is short, I feel much more comfortable.

“You can look now, guys.” They all turn to look in my direction, then the thought hits me: Who dressed me?

“Don’t worry, none of us dressed you. Efron couldn’t even move until this morning. One of the witches came in here, worked her magic, and dressed you without waking you.” Kieran is a sweetheart.

He hands me my backpack. “But Efron could still see,” I joke, knowing I was out of his eye range at the time. Kieran goes on to say that Marcus stopped by when I was sleeping to give me my backpack and advised that I had work very soon.

“Oh, I hope you don’t mind. I called your boss and said you were in the hospital and that you couldn’t come in. Even one of the nurses got on the phone to speak with him. Technically it wasn’t a lie.” Kai called my boss! That was the last thing I expected to hear this morning.

“Thank you, Kai. As long as you didn’t go all assassin on him…” I smile, and Kai returns it right back to me.

“Oh, before we forget,” Efron speaks up. I’m glad to see him laughing, talking, and overall, in good spirits. “There is a meeting in NYC this weekend to discuss building the safe zone for our kind. Our inside source says the militia are getting ready to advance to capture as many of us as possible. The Grimmers’ plan has still yet to be found out, but it is all starting. Come to the meeting with us; we are leaving Saturday.”

“Saturday night I have a charity event for work to attend and run. I wish I could.”

Confusion mars all their faces. They do not understand why I’m trying to lead a normal life when that clearly is not my life anymore. They don’t speak those words to me, but it is what they are thinking. They change topic to the training session. Kai won and was unharmed.

Efron will be released this evening into his sister’s care. Kai is going to visit with Marcus to discuss tactics going forward or some mumbo jumbo like that. Kieran has offered to drive me back to my car, since he managed to get his car here this morning when I was still asleep.

“So, tell me about this charity event. Do you have a date?” He’s unable to stand the silence, just like me, probably why I’m always talking to my dog like a crazy person.

“I did have a date, then something happened, so I had to ask someone else last-minute. I’m not sure about him to be honest. My boss has a charity event every year to help raise funds for the Ronald McDonald House, and this year I got to plan it. It will be held at the Ritz Carlton in Philadelphia, an absolutely beautiful venue. We have raffles and auctions, amongst other things. It will be a night filled with laughter and dancing, for such a good cause. I hope my battle scars clear up by then.”

“Sounds like you are passionate about it. If you need a stand-in, I’m available.” His boyish grin makes me smile. “I can push going to NYC until Sunday morning, and then you could come up with me for the meeting; you really shouldn’t miss it. And…”

“And?...” My eyes linger on his.

“You have to be safe. There’s still so much you just…” I stop him right there; nothing can change the fact I will lose my job if I do not attend.

“You’re sweet; if only you had enjoyed talking to me last week.” I look down at my folded fingers and feel my face turning bright red. I would so much rather have him accompany me than my current date. “I like being able to help others, so I’m passionate about it.”

Laila is actually calm and relaxed in his backseat, enough to sleep there peacefully. As we pull up to my car, I keep trying to unlock my door, but he telekinetically keeps pushing it down. He gets out of the driver’s side, smirking, as I keep trying to open the door. With his long strides, he’s by my door in no time, opening it. I have met plenty of chivalrous men lately, and it is amazing in such a harsh world. Then again some of these men are centuries old.

“Seems like you have an easier time talking about other people than yourself.” He reaches his hand out to me, and I take it, making it easier for me to get out of his small Audi.

“Yes, quite the observation. So can I ask how old you are?” We stand there in silence, both looking at the warehouse, such a different place from the battleground we witnessed earlier this morning. The warehouse is still, no movement inside whatsoever.

“I’m twenty-eight and, believe it or not, on my first century, or life as you call it as well.”

He walks me to my car, and as I open the door, he gives me a kiss on the head from behind.

“Thank you.” I’m not saying thank you for telling me his age or kissing me so tenderly. It is a thank-you for being by my side these past few hours.

“I will see you soon, and I’d love to get to know you, hear you talk about yourself the way you talk of other people.” A promise rolls off his tongue, through my ears, and hits my heart. A fire sparks inside of me as I turn to look at him, wanting his lips to touch mine for some unknown reason. That driving force shows up, and with it, comes the wind. Maybe it’s the bond we had to create, no that I had to create to survive, and he does this all the time. Trying to avoid the feeling and my face that will give everything away, I put my head towards the ground and awkwardly back up to sit in my car. Laila jumps right over me, and I shut the door with his lingering eyes looking back at me with longing. He wanted to kiss me, too, but now he’s walking away .

Screw it.

My door flies open, and I rush to grab his arm, pulling him back to me. “Kieran...” My eyes grow bigger as they look into his. Maybe I misread this, and my arm falls from his, accepting defeat and the fact I’ll never be able to speak to him about what’s inside. About my wants. So, I turn on my heel to leave.

He spins me, his breathing heavy, his eyes filled with desire. He searches my face and my body relaxes under his touch.

“Please…” It’s all he needed to hear from me to grab me by the nape of my neck, pulling me in close and sealing his lips over mine. Heat quickens inside of me, desperate for more as our tongues search each other like our lives depend on it, like it is the first and last kiss we might share.

My hands finger through his hair, and I grab tightly, pulling him closer to me, earning me a muffled groan of his pleasure through his throat. Oh, this is bad, I can’t stop, don’t want to stop. Sparks ignite through us, and he grabs me by the ass lifting me up. My ankles lock around him, urging him in closer. The grind of his hips against mine has me flustered, grasping for air, but he doesn’t quit, urging my lips apart again, needing me. I kiss him harder, deeper. This is wild, hot, but more than anything, desperate.

The wind courses through our hair and rain pours, only stopping long enough for us to look into each other’s eyes and smile. He rests his chin on my head, pulling me closer and not letting my feet touch the ground. Like he wants to hold me here forever.

“You are my undoing.” With a sigh and hesitation, he releases me .

“Kieran…” I reach to touch his face, but he grabs my hand to stop me and it almost breaks my heart in two.

“Sorry for making you an enemy, but I did it to protect my heart. Now, now we are…” He searches for the words.

“Friends?” I question.

“I hope you don’t kiss your friends like that.” He raises a brow towards me, and a low chuckle rumbles out of him, “You have to go. You’ll be late.”

“Crap!” My stomach burns with a need for more of him, but I actually need this job. He laughs over his shoulder as I scurry back to my death trap of a car, and he doesn’t take his eyes off of me until I’m safely inside with the door locked.

What just happened? This is unbelievable. I haven’t been with anyone since Lucas, and now in this new world, I’m overcome with all sorts of feelings. Kieran and I have been through so much, and it draws me toward him in a similar way that I’m drawn towards Aidan. Aidan is so dark and dangerous, and Kieran now just seems so open and welcoming and caring for me. Despite his antics previously, which just showed that he loathed me.

“Wait!” He flings the door open and yells to me, breaking off the lock inside, as his phone presses aggressively against his ear. “There’s been a bombing at one of the facilities, and apparently a lot of our kind are dead. They are going to do recon and get the names, some of the people from our dome challenge were there. We cannot go back to that training spot again. They are implementing even more protocol, and this warehouse is shut down… well, they are going to destroy it. Ava, this is too close to your home for you to stay here. Even waiting a moment longer is dangerous. Stay with me. I will drive you to work and pick you up every day, until the charity event, at least to buy you some time. ”

“What does this mean for us?” A simple yet complicated question.

“They have the big guns on it.” He sends me a reassuring smile and is on his way. His eyes glaze over as he does a once over of my car, “Get out.” I follow his command and a smile jerks up in the corner of his mouth.

He walks back to the trunk of the car and opens it, finding the kit that Dino left me with. He eyes it suspiciously, dumping the contents on the ground. A small device flashes red and my eyes widen in shock. You have got to be kidding me.

“I had a feeling. A tracking device.” He eyes me, suspicion running through his pulsing vein on his forehead, “Who gave you this pack?”