Destiny's Fire (25 page)

I smiled. “You’re so serious.” I stroked a stray hair from his eyes. “Are you jealous I’m stronger than you?”

He laughed. “Hardly. You might have that badass shield thing, but you’ve yet to take me on.” He wrapped his arms around me. “I think you’d find my power, when it comes to hand-to-hand combat, is pretty fierce.”

“I have no doubt.”

He cocked his head. “Are you patronizing me?” He smiled, his elongated eyeteeth looking sexy as they brushed his bottom lip. “I don’t mind being with a girl more powerful than me. Kind of turns me on.”

I rolled my eyes, but enjoyed being able to banter comfortably with him again. It felt safe. “Of course that would. I think I could knock the crap out of you and it would turn you on.”

“Definitely. In fact, let’s try it out.” He stood, pulling me up with him.

“Really? You want to spar?”

“I think I owe you a match.” He winked. I remembered his cocky attitude during our power matching session. Yeah, I definitely owed him.

His eyes became serious, and he stilled, tilting his head.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, glancing around the fall.

“Nothing. Thought I heard something.” His brow furrowed, but then he shook his head lightly. “It’s gone. Probably a deer.” He smiled at me. “Ready?”

I couldn’t help smiling as I took in his form. The points of his ears just peeking from beneath his dark hair. His fair skin, smooth and perfect. I wanted to shift for him. More than that, I was ready to face that fear and shift for myself. Somehow, seeing Jace and Reese almost destroy each other had put things into perspective. I’d been holding back—scared of hurting someone. But I’d been hurting myself. I was different but still Kythan. I’d hurt my mom, but not on purpose. I didn’t want to fear my power anymore.

I began shifting, feeling my features change. I trembled as I held back the power, but I completed my shift without the White Flame making an appearance.

Reese smiled, and his eyes scanned over me. “You’re beautiful, Dez,” he said and walked toward me. He cupped my face, pressing his lips to mine. Then he pulled back. “Now, prepare yourself.”

Before I could counter, Reese swept my feet from under me. I hit the ground.
Crap
. That was my move. “Sidetracking me with hot kisses? Is that the only way you can beat me?” I peeled myself from the ground.

“Have to use what I got.” He lunged at me, but I countered, blocking his white blow. So we were going with
our
power.
Fine
.

My stomach felt a little nauseated as I summoned my White Flame. I was hesitant to use it in combat, especially this close to the other person. But I had to practice it sooner or later. I had to know what I could do. I just didn’t want to hurt Reese. Pressing my palm against my leather breeches, I felt my crystal. I trusted it would keep me from losing control.

I came at him, throwing punches as the white light surrounded my arms. Reese blocked every one. “Stop holding back,” he grunted, taking a hit to his side. “I can tell.”

“It sounds like it’s hard to speak from where I’m at.” I punched his ribs again.

He twisted my arms in his, bringing my face close to his. “You’re still holding back. Don’t be afraid of it.”

I fought back, pushing the image of my mother’s scarred wrist out of my mind. I couldn’t lose focus. I had to learn to use my power. I unlocked my arms from Reese, kicking off him. Staring him down, I raised my arms and sent a beam of light soaring through the air.

I panicked for a moment, thinking I’d sent too much power, but Reese brought his arms up and crossed them, blocking it. “Good.” He sent a beam back at me.

I mimicked his move. My shielded arms absorbed the power. I looked at my hands. Normally, when fighting with opposite power—Charge and Flame—our shielded arms only deflected the blow, sending it someplace else. But this power was different.

Before I could think about my next move, Reese shot another beam at me. I blocked and ran for him. I couldn’t beat him by using my power that way. We’d absorb each other’s blows all day. I had to get up close.

I fell to my hands and cartwheeled, kicking Reese in his stomach and sending him backward. He slid across the bank. I got back to my feet and jumped, attempting to land a blow while he was down. He rolled, reaching out and grabbing hold of my foot, taking me down.

That was the second time he’d put me on my back. Aggravated, I bounced up and faced him. We sidestepped, circling each other.

Fighting Reese was different than sparring with Jace. I realized in that moment, that if the fight would have gone on between them, Reese would probably have won. Not by using our white power, just on his hand-to-hand skills alone. He was quick.

Reese took a shot, coming at me from the side. I turned, bringing my fist around and jabbing him in his kidneys. He grunted, but came at me again. I didn’t see the head butt coming and stumbled from the impact. He took advantage of my falter and sent a blow to my side. He was definitely faster than me. But I was more creative.

As he prepared to send the finishing blow, I jumped into his arms and wrapped my legs around his waist. It worked; he was caught off guard. He stared at me wide-eyed as I clasped his face and twisted his head. “You’re dead.”

Reese shot his head back around and grabbed my butt. “Best death ever.” Then he kissed me.

Sparring with Reese had its advantages. I melted against him and ran my fingers over his strained muscles, feeling his body tense. I could tell he was restraining himself.

Pulling away, I looked into his eyes. “No holding back, huh?” I tilted my head and tugged on his ear with my elongated teeth.

He let out a small groan. “Don’t tease. Sometimes holding back isn’t a bad thing…and it’s harder than it seems.” He buried his head in my neck, his lips caressing my skin. “Especially when you look so hot.”

“Then don’t.” I looked into his fiery, red eyes.

Reese studied my face for a moment, then his lips met mine, hard. He knelt, bringing us both to the bank, and lowered me to the ground. He slid my hands above my head and held them there before running his warm fingers down my arms. I shivered as they roamed along my body, feeling their way across my stomach. Warmth spread over my skin as he slowly slipped his hand under my blouse.

I skimmed my hands along his back, feeling his muscles work. Then I released a small current rippling over his body. He shuddered and deepened the kiss. Lost in the moment, my hands found their way to the fastening of his pants. I tugged at the snap, and it gave between my fingers.

Reese’s head shot up. “Dez, you don’t have to prove anything…”

“I know,” I said. “I want to.” I began to unclasp my breeches, but he grabbed my hand, stopping me.

He released a heavy breath. “And believe me,
I
want to.” He dipped his head and quickly kissed me. “But not like this. Not when you’re still upset, and definitely not here.” He brushed his fingers through my hair, his eyes trailing over my face. “I care about you.”

I stared into his eyes as they changed from red to violet. We hadn’t known each other very long. But time wasn’t a factor for us. We were the same. We shared something deep and secret that other Kythan didn’t. And I didn’t want to be separated from him ever again.

I finally spoke after a long moment. “I care about you,” I said, taking in his anxious expression.

The crease between his eyebrows relaxed. “For a minute there, I was worried.” His lips spread into a relieved smile. “I thought I’d scared you off.”

I shook my head against the ground. “Never.” I kissed him, feeling his lips—the lips I wanted to kiss every day. I slowed the kiss, and he pulled back.

“But you’re right,” I said. “This can wait. There’re other things going on right now. We need to stay focused.” He nodded. “But thanks. You know, for wanting to make it special.”

Reese sat up, bringing me with him. “You’re special, Dez.” He smiled, his face brightening. “Are you hungry?”

I laughed at his sudden change of topic. “If it’s not sex with you guys…it’s food,” I joked.

He arched an eyebrow. “Have to have something to satisfy me after a match like that.” He winked. “Come on. I know a place.”

Reese hovered up to the front of the Steam Pipe, an eat-in diner not far from Cogs. After parking his levibike on the bike ramp across from the autowalk, he lowered the kickstand and shut off the engine.

I slid off the back of his bike and looked around then down the roadway. Something seemed off. Sundays were normally slow in Haven with the usual bustle of the town halted for a day of rest, but today was unusually quiet.

We hopped across the autowalk and headed into the diner. I’d been inside the Steam Pipe a few times. The walls were lined with copper, as if you were inside an actual steam pipe. The tables were, in fact, giant gears made of brass and iron with deep cogs. It was cliché, but the food was great, and I liked the atmosphere.

Reese and I sat down at a table near the back, and I glanced around. “It’s really slow today.” Two other couples and a group of three Narcos were scattered throughout the mostly empty diner.

“Yeah it is.” He furrowed his eyebrows. “Even for a Sunday.”

“I was just thinking that.”

I opened my menu as the waitress approached our table. She held a small tablet. “What are we having today?”

I quickly scanned the menu. “I’ll take a burger and shake.”

Reese ordered the same, and she punched our order into her tablet. She turned to go, but I called out, “Um, wait.” She sidled back up to our table. “Are you the only one working the floor today? Normally there’re a few girls…” My face flamed as I trailed off. I wasn’t trying to embarrass her. I was only curious.

“Yeah, I am.” She rolled her eyes. “No one else showed up for work today except a few of the kitchen staff.” She blew her blond bangs off her forehead. “Not happy about that, but it’s dead anyway.” She shrugged and bounced off.

“Weird,” I muttered. I checked out Reese’s reaction, and I knew he felt the strangeness, too. There was something not right. I didn’t know how I knew, but I could sense it.

He looked around the Steam Pipe. “Something’s going on.”

I nodded. “Think it’s an epidemic? Like the flu or something?”

“I don’t know.” He scooped up our menus and placed them back in their copper holders. “But I think we should get our food to go.”

After packing up our lunch, Reese and I sped along Haven’s roadways, studying the empty storefronts and alleys. By the time we made it back to the Academy, I wasn’t hungry anymore. Reese tossed our food into a trashcan, and for the first time ever, we walked hand-in-hand—Shythe and Narco—into the Academy.

A group of Shythe halted mid-conversation as we passed them in the hallway. Reese squeezed my hand. We had discussed that revealing our relationship was the right thing to do, but I still felt sick to my stomach as I imagined Jace running into us. I didn’t know how I’d handle that scenario. I pushed the thought away. No matter what the Councils were up to, we still had to support their decision to end the prejudice against the races. And we also figured by publicly supporting the Councils’ decision, we could get closer to them—and the truth.

As we pushed through the doors to the courtyard, I noticed downcast faces everywhere. It wasn’t our display that was upsetting people, though we did get some angry looks. There was something else going on.

I pointed to a bench. Reese led us over, but before we got there, Lana sprinted up to me with fear deep in her blue eyes. “How come you didn’t answer my data message?” she asked, creasing her forehead.

I shook my head. “What message? I didn’t get any messages.” I took out my communicator and checked. I hadn’t received a message since Lana the day before.

“Crap,” Lana said under her breath. “That means the transmission has been shut down.” She ran her hand through her hair.

“What’s going on?” Reese asked.

Lana studied him a moment, her eyes tracing his face. Then she glanced between us. “You mean you don’t know?”

“No,” I snapped. “What is it? Is it Jace?” Panic flooded my body. I didn’t know if I could handle something happening to him or him doing something stupid at this point.