Aflame (Apotheosis) (12 page)

“I can’t take all this nice.” Grayce held up hands that glowed a crimson red. Sweat beaded across her skin. Her core churned with molten energy.

“Here she goes again,” Nikolas proclaimed, wearing a shit-eating grin as he placed himself between his wife and Grayce.

In a blurred sequence of actions, Grayce was lifted, sucked through a vacuum, then set on a giant rock. The boulder protruded from the shore out across a crystal blue lake.

“All right baby, this good? You pissed?” He cocked his head and gave her shoulders a squeeze. “Let it out. Let it all out right here.” Zander took a step back, placing himself between Grayce and the water and only a few feet from the edge of the slippery rock. “You wanna hit something? Here I am. You wanna burn something?” He slapped his fist against his chest and winked. “Bring it on.”

What the fuck was he doing? Grayce trembled with hands fisted at her sides. Her mind reeled from the fact they traveled from the kitchen to wherever they were in mere seconds.

“Come on baby. Give me all you’ve got.” Zander squatted and bounced, shifting his weight from side to side. What? Was he trying to piss her off more?

“That sick fucker fucked you up real good, didn’t he?” He taunted.

Oh. He didn’t just go there. Why would he do that?

“What? You don’t like the foul language? You can dish it out but you can’t take it?” Standing up straight again, he folded his arms across his chest. “Maybe you don’t want me bringing
him
up?”

Her stomach clenched. White heat burned deep in the pit of her soul. It swirled and spread, searching for a way out.

“That’s it Grayce, come on. You getting pissed?” Back in a semi-squat, arms held wide, he jutted his chest toward her, as if bracing for impact. “I can see how angry you are baby. I can feel it.” He smirked and nodded. “Now show it to me.”

Oh fuck no. Was this a challenge?

“You fucking bastard.” Her body grew hotter by the second. She didn’t want to do this.

“He’s out there right now, looking for you.” It was obvious by the catch in his voice that it pained him to speak those words, yet he continued. “He’s coming for you. What are you gonna do about it? He wants you baby. You’re his, remember?”

Oh God, why would he say that? The world turned red. Heat and energy swirled around her in a dizzying frenzy. Leaves, twigs and dirt blew around her feet, caught in a tornado of outrage. Energy snapped and popped in her ears as it buzzed through the air.

“You want to go back to that cock sucker? You want him back? You like the way he made you feel?” Zander’s lips were drawn tight and an icy steel gaze hammered into her, threatening her sanity.

The last string of reason that held her psyche in balance snapped. All at once, Grayce was nothing but fire and fury. She wanted to kill him and keep going until every fucking male was wiped off the face of the planet.

The surrounding trees bowed and bent with the force of her vehemence. The energy consumed her as it traveled through her blood and cells, danced across heated skin, freed her from the binds of limited physical human ability.

She had ultimate power.

Zander continued to goad her, except she no longer heard his voice, only the current pulsing through her veins. The hypnotic rhythm encouraged her. Hands raised toward Zander, Grayce guided the heat, the fire and hatred right at his beautiful warrior body. “You motherfucker!” Her scream was surreal. She doubted it came from her lungs.

Zander stumbled backward, but maintained his composure. He shook his arms, cracked his neck and nodded, as if giving her permission to go again.

Yeah right, like she needed permission.

Oh fuck, the release felt good. With a confident step forward, she struck again.

Eyes flashing with disbelief, Zander leaned into the assault and slid farther along the boulder until he teetered on the edge.

She didn’t allow him time to recoup his balance. When she hit again, he was lifted off his feet and disappeared beneath a plume of water. A wave temporarily flooded the rock and soaked her clothing.

Seconds later, he surfaced. “Good job, baby.” He dared to wear a prideful grin. “That was awesome.”

Why was he smiling? Didn’t he know he was about to die?

Grayce stepped to the boulder’s edge. “Oh...baby.” She shook her head slowly. “I’m not finished yet.” She didn’t recognize her own voice. Deep and fearsome. Horror flashed through his baby blues before he ducked back under the water.

Grayce simmered in one big burning ball of energy. With a deep breath, she sucked in all the rage, all the hatred and anger and fear. She drew it deep into her being and with all that she had, with every god forsaken bit of her soul, she forced it at him. A thunderous roar tore through the wilderness as the entire contents of the lake were pushed in one giant swell, up and over the trees.

No longer able to bear weight, her legs collapsed beneath her. On hands and knees, she watched the massive wave devour everything in its path with a deafening rumble. Trees broke under the weight of the water, the force sweeping away the forest floor.

She was spent. Her lungs refused to take air and she struggled to remain conscious as she leaned forward onto trembling arms.

Was he dead? Did she kill him? Oh shit, what did she do? A thick steam rose from the lake bed making it impossible to see the bottom. Grayce looked to the left, then the right. The forest was decimated for at least a hundred yard radius. Nothing left except ash.
“Oh fuck, I killed him,”
was her last thought before blackness consumed her.

* * * *

Feeble fingers gripped the bark of a hefty fir. Exhausted and hungry, the small boy crouched behind the tree taking extra care not to make a sound. He peeked around to find a giant man and a tiny woman standing on a huge rock above the water. He watched in silence as they argued. He was good at being quiet and very good at hiding.

He rubbed his eyes when a red glow formed around the woman, afraid it was his imagination. As it grew brighter and wider around her, his own insides warmed. The sharp hunger pains in his belly melted away. Blood pounded through his veins with the need to be near her. He felt strong and brave, and for a moment, like nobody could ever hurt him again.

No way. She’s like me.

He should’ve been scared. Should’ve run, but he couldn’t stop watching. The red glow swirled like a tornado around her and then flew at the man like a ball of fire. The man’s body sucked it up. Sucked it right up. He was so huge it didn’t even hurt him.

Then the air got super hot and he couldn’t breathe. Still, he watched. It seemed like she pulled all of the fire into herself and then just exploded. He didn’t see much after that. Everything turned black and the force of the blast threw him into the trees. His fingers were torn and bloodied from his tight grip on the rough bark. Oh man, it was hot. As ash blew around him, he ducked deeper into the ground. When the air cleared enough for him to see, he snuck around the tree in time to watch the woman fall. The giant man with huge muscles picked her up, walked toward the thick trees, and disappeared in a flash. Whoa.

They’re both like me. I’m not a freak.

The small boy, weak and frail, hobbled back to his tent, stuffed as much as he could in his backpack and fought off a smile. Smiling hurt and made his lips bleed, but he couldn’t stop. Maybe he didn’t have to be by himself anymore. By sheer determination alone, he managed to lift the heavy bag onto his shoulder, and head in the same direction as the fighting couple.

6

Pain hammered her skull as Grayce struggled to lift weary lids. It was too damned sunny. She attempted to lift an arm to block the painful intrusion on her optical nerves, and found she was unable to move. A sweet, melodic voice came from her left and subdued the panic that rose within her like a bat out of hell.

“Grayce, you’re awake. Oh thank goodness.” Chelsea stood bedside and straightened the thin sheet. The lingering scent of fresh baked cookies ignited a rumble in Grayce’s stomach. “Nikolas. Honey, she’s awake.” Delicate fingers worked at Grayce’s wrists. “Here, let me get these off.” Chelsea released the cuffs that bound Grayce’s arms to the bed. “You were thrashing. We didn’t want you to rip out your IVs.” Grayce massaged her wrists while she shielded her eyes from the damned light.

“Is that too bright?” Chelsea pattered to the wall and hit the dimmer switch. “Sorry about that.” Back at Grayce’s side, she offered much needed comfort with the simple gesture of holding her hand.

“Well, well, well. Look who’s decided to join us.” Nikolas leaned over Grayce’s chest and gave her a scrutinizing once over. “How are you doing, girl?” With a sympathetic pat to her thigh, he checked her vitals.

“Did I kill him?” Grayce winced. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to...” Tears became a nuisance under eyelids that felt like sandpaper.

Chelsea provided a reassuring squeeze. “No, Grayce. Oh heavens no. He’s fine.”

“You scared the ever living shit out of him though.” Nikolas interrupted. His pearly whites were a stark contrast to his olive complexion. He was laughing. How could he make light of this?

Chelsea leaned over Grayce and punched him in the shoulder. “Knock it off Nikolas.”

“Why am I here? What happened?” The room was decorated in soft muted tones. Medical equipment surrounded the bed. Opposite where she lay, a large flat screen television hung on the wall. A peaceful nature scene adorned the wall to the left. To her right a picture window overlooked a small grassy area shaded by an overgrown maple tree that looked to be over a hundred years old. The room resembled a luxury suite at a hotel rather than a hospital.

“Grayce.” Nikolas scratched his head. “How can I put this simply?” He looked to Chelsea for guidance and continued after they exchanged warm smiles. “You burned yourself out, so to speak. When Z brought you here, you were dehydrated, exhausted and well...done. Wiped out, mentally and physically. You’ve been sleeping at least…um let’s see...” He glanced at his watch. “Forty-seven hours now. I’ll get these IVs out of your arm.”

“Why is my skin burning? Shit, it itches like hell,” Grayce complained and rubbed frantically at her arms.

“Hmm. That’s interesting.” Nikolas poked and prodded for a few minutes then turned to his wife. “Darling, how long has Zander been gone?”

“Close to an hour now, lover.” The way Chelsea regarded her husband made Grayce’s heart ache. Such love and adoration. And it came so naturally.

“Grayce. You’re having withdrawals.”

“No, I’m not. I’ve never taken drugs. Not even to experiment.” Drugs were her mother’s gig. No way did Grayce want to follow in mommy’s footsteps.

Nikolas laughed. “I want you to rest. When you’re feeling up to it, we’ll sit down and talk. There’s plenty to tell you.” The doctor blew his wife a kiss. “I’ll be outside if you need me.” A quick wink to Grayce and the door closed behind him.

“Where’s Zander?” Grayce asked with a shameful tremble to her voice. Chelsea plopped herself on the edge of the bed and blew an unruly hair from her forehead.

“He’ll be back. He’s been by your side the whole time. Something important came up. It killed him to go.”

“I tried to reduce him to ashes. Why would he want to come back?” Turning a heated cheek into the pillow, she replayed the events in her head. How could she lose control like that? Or was it take control? It was amazing and terrifying at the same time.

“You’ve got some serious shit bouncing around that brain of yours.” Chelsea clasped a hand over her mouth, as if horrified for saying
shit
.

“I know.” Grayce almost wanted to smile at the expression on Chelsea’s face. Almost.

“Someday, you’ll have to open up about it. It’s not healthy to hold such dark secrets. I hope if it’s not Zander, you’ll trust me enough to share. I’m a good listener.”

Grayce managed a half-hearted shrug. “I’ve never trusted anyone. Don’t think I know how.” That was a little white lie. She had trusted somebody once. He stole her soul.

“I’m going to get lunch ready. I’ll be back soon.” Chelsea tossed a remote on the bed. “Here, help yourself. There’s at least three thousand channels to choose from. Should keep you busy until I’m back.” Grayce was left alone, hungry for cookies and facing a huge decision. What channel should she watch?

* * * *

Homemade chicken soup and warm wheat rolls had satisfied her appetite, but did little to soothe the violent itch ravishing her flesh. Neither did the stunning view through the picture window. Channel surfing had offered some distraction before lunch. Maybe she’d try again.