Phoenix Tonic (6 page)

The huge presence that she’d been aware of the moment before vanished. Kira let go and the hood disappeared from her head. Thick, warm air assaulted her lungs. Hailey sighed and rubbed her eyes. If she were claustrophobic, she would have had a meltdown by now.

She took a deep breath of the musty, blue painted locker room. Rows of lockers lined the room, and beyond them stood the steel showers. Almost everything in the area shone metal, except for the smooth cement floor.

Kira pointed to the left wall, where stacks of white towels and mats sat, folded on top of each other. “You can get what you need over there. Shampoo, conditioner and soap are in the first stall.” She turned, locked the door they had just entered from, and headed to the other end of the room. “I will be standing outside this door if you need anything. You have thirty minutes.”

Hailey stood for a moment before testing the handle of the door. Yep, locked. Well, she had to try. She sighed and headed down the aisle of lockers, peeking through the slats as she walked by. Almost every locker had items or clothing in them. Where ever she was, there were a lot of other people around. The realization made her that much more embarrassed. She wondered if scores of people watched her on the screen, passing around a tub of popcorn, laughing every time she burnt her clothes off.

Her temperature began to rise and she pushed the thoughts away. Though impersonal, the locker room offered the first moment of privacy she’d had in a long while. She stripped just outside the first stall and groaned as she stepped under the steaming water. The soap and razor were the first thing in her hands. As she pulled the blade over her legs, her brows rose when they shaved the same as always. Since her hair now seemed to be fire-proof, a part of her thought this little task would have changed. But thankfully, it remained the same.

She sniffed the shampoo and shrugged. The generic name didn’t ring a bell, but she wasn’t about to complain. It didn’t stink, and it got the job done. After fifteen minutes she shut off the shower and wrapped a stiff white towel around her mid-section.

While wringing the remaining water from her hair, a rattling behind the lockers brought her head up. She froze and looked around. “Kira?”

A man’s voice whispered from the doorway she’d entered from. “Comet? Is that you?”

Only her family called her Hailey’s Comet... She blinked and rounded the shower stall carefully. “Brian?” Her brother stood in the doorway she’d come in. Despite the khaki colored uniform he sported, his sandy blonde hair and wide blue eyes were unmistakable. He apprehensively walked through the locker room, squinting at her through the low lighting.

She had to be imagining this. How could her brother be here?

As he moved forward his body breathed a sigh. “Oh my gosh, I actually found you.” He rushed forward and threw his arms around her. “We have to get out of here, now. I have a spare suit for you to change into—”

Hailey’s body stiffened in his grasp. She knew the importance and danger of him being here. But the thoughts drifted from her mind. Her skin warmed everywhere her brother’s made contact. All of her senses picked up ten-fold. She could smell the perspiration from his body, and it thrilled her. The hiss of his whisper filled her ears like a foreign melody. She wanted more. She noticed how attractive his etched cheekbones and strong jaw were…

Her lips turned down at the corners and she shoved him away with all her might. “Get away from me!”

Brian staggered back and blinked at his sister. “Hailey, we don’t have time. They told us that you’re too volatile, and that they may never release you. I’m here to get you out.”

She shook her head frantically as she backed into the shower stall. “You’re my brother. You’re my
baby brother
. What kind of sick thing have they done to me?” She clutched the towel to her chest and slid down to the floor.

“Hailey—”

“Stay away from me, Brian! It’s too late. I’m dangerous.” Tears began to roll down her face, evaporating to a fine mist before they reached her chin.

Her brother began to lean down to pick her up. His nearness caused her body to react again. She wanted to touch him, but instead she shoved him away again. “Leave,” She shrieked. “Get away.”

Brian stood up and stared from her, to the sudden presence of someone else.

Kira appeared to his right.

The girl’s long dark hair shone like a reaper’s hood as she stared back. She held out her arm to the side and pointed to the far end. “The exit is over there. I suggest you use it.”

Brian took one last anguishing look at his sister before he jogged for the exit and disappeared.

Kira’s gaze locked on Hailey and her smoking towel. Kira stepped into the shower stall and flipped the cold water on.

“What have they done to me?” She shivered under the cool spray. Her mind filled with disgust and abhorrence over what had just happened.

Kira ignored her. “If you had escaped with your brother just now, I think I might have killed you. But, that went much better than expected.” She turned around and walked away. “I’ll give you an extra ten minutes.”

Hailey didn’t know what frightened her more, the fact that she believed Kira would have killed her, or her sickening reaction to her brother. She shuddered as the stinging drops of water put out her fires.

Chapter Nine

The door closed and locked behind Hailey. She took a few steps forward until she stood in the center of her room.

“Markham!” She screamed his name until the breath wheezed from her lungs. She didn’t hold the flames back. Instead she fueled it, filling the whole room until the fire burned white hot, tipped with blue. After a moment there was nothing left, and she didn’t care.

“What have you done to me? You knew I would want to jump my brother! How dare you do this to me, to anybody.” The roar of her fire filled her ears. Her nails dug into her palms as her fists balled up tight at her sides. “Answer me Markham! I know you can hear me. Get in here right now. Tell me to my face what you’ve done to me, or so help me I’ll burn this entire place down.”

Not ten seconds later did she hear the door to her room open. Her consuming flame blocked her vision of the door. She couldn’t see anything but the accursed fire. She assumed it was Kira come to stop her, since they had the same ability.

But it wasn’t.

A large, masculine outline filled the door way. Her flame receded out of fear that she might kill whoever it was. But as her flame grew smaller, the figure moved forward.

Their presence was comforting at first, similar to the presence she’d felt on the way to and from the shower. But, as they came closer, the comfort changed to overwhelming submission. She wanted whoever it was to accept her. There was something about the figure that called to her. All she wanted was to see his face, hear his voice, smell his scent.

Her fire snuffed itself out completely as he closed the door on them. He stood with his back to her. Rippling muscles flexed under golden skin, exposed clear down to his waist. Had she burned his shirt off? His shoulders were broad and square. His tightened forearms leaned against the closed door in the silence. A pair of black slacks covered his lower half, along with a set of highly polished black shoes.

His form anchored her existence in the now fading-red steel room.

“Hailey,” his voice sent shivers down her spine. The resonance of his tone traveled through every fiber of her being. Her muscles tensed like an animal. The thread of reason nearly snapped as his intonation weaved itself through her mind. All she knew was she needed more of that voice. She needed it in her head like she needed air. “Please, call me Kallian.”

Then he turned around.

Confusion battled against the overwhelming instinct inside her. The face she gazed into belonged to Kallian Markham. But it couldn’t be him. Of all the men in this world how could it be Markham? She’d never wanted anything more than this man in all her existence. Her hands longed to wrap around him and never let go.

But it
was
Markham, the man she hated.

Hailey’s knees buckled over the internal struggle. She crumpled to the ground and drew her knees up to cover her bare body.

Kallian took one step after another, slowly moving forward. He never took his eyes off her as she cowered on the floor in his presence.

“You hate me, don’t you?”

Her head swam at the tenderness in his voice. Her head shook “no,” but her lips said “I hate you.”

Kallian Markham knelt before her.

Hailey trembled at his nearness. Her fingers tightened around her knees, drawing blood. She wanted him so completely, this man she hated.

“You must loathe me more than anything,” he whispered to her hiding face. Tendrils of his pained voice permeated her mind, wreaking havoc on her defiance. “I’ve never seen anyone resist the way you are.”

Her eyes peeked out from between her knees. She didn’t want to look at him, but she couldn’t tear her eyes away as he knelt before her.

His fingers, very gently, found their way to her chin. Though she locked tightly against her chest, he had only to graze her jaw, and it lifted. Her body’s compulsion to obey him was winning against her mind. Hailey’s breath came in ragged heaves. Her face now completely tilted back, as he wished. Despite her mind telling her to keep her eyes closed, they opened to him.

Kallian’s reddish brown eyes softened at the edges. Dark hair fell into his face, framing his square jaw and sloping nose. But it was his lips that held her gaze. They were full and slightly parted, letting his breath slip in and out. His mouth hovered inches from hers. And she wanted to know if those lips were as soft as they looked…

His touch began to travel up her cheek, causing her to tremble violently. The sensations filled her skin with heat, but not one that burned. Her body yielded to him, her spirit sighing under his hand. But her mind screamed once more
“It’s Markham!”

Her jaw locked tight as his touch worked its way to her mouth.

Kallian sighed at her stubbornness. The warmth of it washed over her senses. He held a small plastic cup to her line of sight. His fingers caressed her lips, beckoning them to open. She couldn’t remember why, but she knew she couldn’t give in to him. A tear escaped the corner of her eye, as sign of her refusal.

Kallian’s brow furrowed at her obvious struggle. “You need to take the suppressant, Hailey.” He paused as he let the words sink in, but she was too stubborn. “Or,” his lips inched painfully closer to hers, “Would you rather kiss me?”

The invitation was too much. Her lips parted ever so slightly against her will.

“That a girl.” Kallian grinned. She melted at the man who smiled, and caressed, and knelt over her. Her head tilted back like a lion submitting to its handler. His fingertips coaxed her rose petal lips open further, until she felt the foreign plastic cup against them. He emptied the contents into her mouth and closed her jaw with his drugging touch.

As he waited for her to swallow, his warm eyes met hers for an aching moment. Her body longed for him to kiss her. And for a moment, she thought he would.

Instead, he abruptly stood and looked down on her. “I’ll return in twenty minutes.”

The words were simple and lacking emotion. The absence of his nearness made the air between them cold and cruel.

He turned and left the room. The closing of her door cut puppet strings that held her up. She slid to the blackened floor and curled on her side in a ball. The realization that Kallian Markham was the most powerful force in her existence was overshadowed by the fact that he’d just rejected her.

Chapter Ten

Kallian shut the door to the adjacent room and shook off the charred remains of his socks and shoes. The emergency siren still blared throughout the facility, and the backup lights illuminated the rooms.

Malachi glared at his brother as he punched keys on a dead computer. “Were you able to placate the poor girl?”

“Yes,” he sighed, leaning against the door. His brother was so irritated he wondered if he was going to blow next.

“Why the hell did you do that? You could have sent any man to her. But her own brother, Kallian?” Malachi’s mouth actually hung open at his brother. It was a rare moment when someone took him by surprise.

Kallian’s eyes narrowed. “I did
not
let him in.”

Malachi’s mouth closed. “If you didn’t, then who did? Who would know exactly where she would be? And how did he get a uniform?”

Kallian frowned. An individual did come to mind, but Malachi would never believe him. He’d have to confront the person directly.

“If you’ll excuse me, I have something I need to check on.” Kallian punched speed dial as he left the monitoring room, still shirtless and shoeless. He was already on his way down the hall when the other line picked up. “This is Kallian. I need you in room four, now.”

Just a few doors down the hall he let himself in an empty private room. After flipping on the light he paced along the wall to the tempo of the emergency siren. A moment later his guest arrived.

Kira closed the door behind her, and faced Kallian. “Yes, my Lord?”

He had to make this quick. Hailey needed him. “Kira, we have a problem. Somebody let Hailey’s brother into the facility. Do you know who?”

“Yes.” She blinked. “I did.”

Kallian’s biceps flexed. He thought so. “Why would you do such a thing?”

“She was refusing your commands. And her brother was just as headstrong.” Kira cocked her head. “Your approach was ineffective. I thought exposing her to the truth would help her understand. And I was correct. Her brother will no longer attempt an escape and she will be more likely to take the suppressant after such an incident.”

Kallian’s teeth ground. “But what you’ve done has traumatized her. She threatened to kill people she was so upset.”

“Then she does not deserve you.” Kira dipped her chin. “I was trying to protect you and Malachi from the danger she presents. I will gladly accept any punishment knowing it is in the service of protecting the Golden Brothers.”

Kallian sighed. He couldn’t punish her. She was trying to help. “Okay, I understand why you did it. But please come to me before doing anything like this again.”

She bowed. “Of course, Lord Kallian.” She watched him walk around her and opened the door. “Will you be telling Lord Malachi I betrayed his research?”

Kallian glanced at her emotionless face, knowing she was suffering at the thought. Nothing mattered more to Kira than Malachi’s acceptance. “No. You were trying to help. It would serve no purpose to tell him.”

She nodded once. “I thank you, my merciful Lord.”

Kallian heaved a sigh as he walked back to the monitoring room. He wished she would act less formal in this place. It’s not as if anyone here cared about his lineage or titles. It never really mattered to him, at least.

Wincing at the still-blaring siren, Kallian slammed the door behind him. Malachi’s hands moved like lightning over the computers and switches. “Can we turn that siren off?”

Malachi glanced at his watch. “It’s set to turn off if no further smoke is detected in about thirty seconds.”

“Thank goodness.” The lack of beeping and whirring indicated the equipment was still offline. “How are things in here?”

“We’ve lost all the data stored in this room,” Malachi growled. “Her little fit must have melted the wiring in the walls. And it doesn’t look like you had time to protect the lighting or cameras.” He punched a few more buttons on the computer towers.

Kallian shook his head. “No. Is everyone evacuating?”

Malachi stopped and turned toward his brother in the rolling office chair. “Yes, they’re all leaving.”

“What did you tell them?”

His forehead creased. “What do you think I told them? I said there was a fire.” Kallian nodded and crumpled into a chair. Malachi sat back and made a steeple with his hands as the siren finally shut down. “Judging by the amount of time you were with Miss Simmons, I’m assuming you two didn’t mate?”

Kallian shook his head. “Of course not.”

Malachi glared at his little brother. “It would have been better if you had. At least then we know she would submit to you in all things.”

Kallian glared back. “I’m not going to take her will from her. I want her to choose me.” He grabbed his blue button-up shirt from the floor and yanked it on. “Besides, there’s no guarantee she wouldn’t leave me once the tonic finally cycled out of her system.”

His brother threw his hands in the air. “Our kind mates for life, Kallian—”

“Action word being
mate
, Malachi. I’m not going to rape her.” He slipped the buttons back through the holes of his shirt, tucking it in roughly. “That woman hates me.” Kallian’s jaw locked together as he recalled her nails digging in her flesh. “She didn’t move when I walked in the room.”

Malachi stared at him dumbly.

“She wouldn’t even reach out for me. She just sat there on the floor, completely defiant.”

Malachi leaned forward, his scientific curiosity overriding his anger. “You mean she wasn’t attracted to you at all? How is that possible?”

“Oh, she was attracted, all right. She started shaking like a leaf the closer I got. And I managed to get her to take the suppressant by threatening to kiss her. But the only words she spoke to me were ‘I hate you.’ And you should have seen the blood streaming down her legs where she clutched her knees.” He quickly slipped his tie around his neck, and tightened the knot. “Have you ever heard of such resistance?”

Malachi shook his head thoughtfully. “I’ve heard of female hybrids saying they tried to resist, but all gave within seconds. Same with the men. Maybe we lessened the effect of the hormonal changes by removing the pain of the transformation?”

Kallian frowned as he buttoned his wrists. “No brother. I think she just hates me that much.”

~***~

Hailey shivered. She could have grabbed one of the blankets left behind by Markham, but she didn’t care
.

She wiped the ash from the floor and eyed her muted reflection in the titanium. The girl that stared back disgusted her. “You almost killed your mother. You almost assaulted your brother. And you submitted to Markham, you coward.”

But it wasn’t only that. Markham was the one who sentenced her to death. He said he loved her, but his actions spoke otherwise. And just now, she wanted him more than anything. And yet again, he denied her. If there was one thing she’d learned being an heiress to a multimillion dollar company, it was that actions speak louder than words. And Kallian’s actions said he didn’t want her.

Nothing made sense anymore.

She sat up. Her head hung as those eyes met the reflected ones. She didn’t even recognize the face staring back.

“I’m not Hailey Simmons anymore.” Her voice hollow as her reflection carried on her empty conversation. “I would have never put my mother in danger. And what I almost did to my brother… I can never face them again. Ever. Mom doesn’t return my emails anyway. But Brian? How could I ever explain what happened with him?”

Then, the realization hit her.

“I can’t. It’s too sick. I’m sick.” She stood up, and staggered back from the reflection, only to see it staring back at her from each wall. Her scream echoed back as she slammed her hands to her ears. “I’m wretched and abhorrent. I’m going to murder with just an errant emotion. This body wants to take out its lust on any passing male. And Markham had complete control over me when all I could do was cower on the floor.”

Tears streaked down her cheeks. “It would have been better if I had died,” She told the reflection. “I want to die.” The realization floored her. She was always a fighter. Always had been. But this weight far too heavy on her. “I’m dangerous in so many ways.” The words rolled softly off her tongue. “Whatever the tonic is, it isn’t good. It’s mutated my body and mind. I’ve become a walking time bomb…”

A thought suddenly hit her like a light at the end of the tunnel. “But, if I wasn’t here, Markham would have no reason to continue holding my family’s company. I would be dead, just like I should have been two weeks ago. And he can set Mom and Dad free. Dad will get his company back. And no one else would suffer because of me.”

She would have never thought there was anything greater than the physical pain she’d suffered through with the cancer. But the mental torture overwhelmed the pain, in its own way. She faced the girl on the ashy floor. “I will not allow myself to kill innocents.”

With final determination, she grabbed one of the blankets on the floor and tied a loop in it. Balancing on top of the metal slab of a bed, she reached for one of the burnt out lights. It was a recessed can, but she wiggled it lose and fed the fabric around it. Once satisfied, she gave it a quick tug to see if it would hold her weight, but the whole light fell out.

Hailey glared at the spindly wires it dangled from. “That won’t work.”

She searched around and spotted the door handle. Her brow knit.

It would have to do.

~***~

Kallian entered the room to see Hailey still lying in the soot on the floor. She shuddered when she saw him, and sat up.

He softly closed the door.
Poor thing. She looks so defeated.
He took one step closer. “How are you? Better?”

She didn’t answer. Instead, she looked down to the scrap of burnt white fabric in her hand. He cocked his head, and out of the corner of his eyes he saw the hanging light from the ceiling. Odd. That had never happened in all of her other fire fits.

“Why can’t I die?”

Her small, strangled voice echoed a severe note. He looked back at Hailey, and Hailey pointedly stared right past him. Her eyes focused on something, and he turned to see what it was.

Three different colors of bed sheets, the same ones he’d just left for her, were wrapped around the door handle. But, all were partially burnt. He stepped closer and saw that the sheets had been twisted and tied, burned through, then another replaced the last. The remains of a half burnt noose lay next to his shoe, grimly staring back at him.

She tried to kill herself?
Heat surged in his blood. He turned around and saw the broken shell of the woman he fell in love with. She used to be so full of life, ready to conquer anything… And the thought of being with him had driven her to this?

“Am I really so bad?” She looked up slowly as if his words hadn’t registered. He grabbed what was left of the noose and held it out to her line of sight. “Is the thought of being with me so bad that you have to kill yourself? I made one mistake a year ago. I’m sorry I’m selfish, but I told the truth. You didn’t qualify for that grant. But I’ve been trying to fix things and you just what? Run away?”

She blinked at him for a moment before opening her mouth. “That’s… That’s not it.”

She fell silent again, but her eyes never left his. He wanted clarity, but she didn’t seem willing to continue. “What’s not it?”

“You,” she said simply. “The world is safer if I’m gone. I almost killed my Mom,” tears sparkled at the corner of her eyes, “and what I did to my brother… I have to go away. I have to keep them safe. And if I’m not a threat then you don’t have to hold my father’s company anymore.”

He sighed. It was what had happened with her family that plagued her. She wanted to protect them. At least Hailey wasn’t exactly running away from him. “Okay Hailey, I’m going to be outright and honest with you. All of those fears can be nullified. You took the tonic and became like a butterfly. You’re something new and beautiful.”

She scoffed at that, but he continued. “Your uncontrollable power is tied to your emotions, which are a roller coaster right now. What if you could straighten out the tracks of the rollercoaster? It would be one hell of a ride, but without all the peaks and valleys. And your lust can be focused to one individual, greatly reducing your body’s reaction to all males. You and your family’s freedom would be restored. They would get their company back, and you could leave your cage.” He knelt down within arms-reach of her bare body. “You only have to do one thing. Marry me.” He sighed at her blank stare. “As an alternative to death, you could decide to be with me.”

He waited patiently for her answer, but she only stared motionless at the wall. Maybe she still wasn’t ready for this? Or maybe what had happened with her brother had really been that bad? He decided to give her a moment. “I’m going to go get something to cover you up with and I’ll be right back. Can you stay alive for that amount of time?”

She rolled her eyes, which actually made him a little happy. A touch of her personality still shined through.

~***~

Why was it Markham never seemed to make sense? Why would he get angry over what she thought about him? And why would he all the sudden act like he cared, and then spout off cryptic marriage-fixes-everything crap?” He must be nuts…