Page 5 of Flames

“Didn’t Pete the vamp drive a truck like this?” Tanner asks, pulling the door shut.

“Yep.” Kole does a U-turn and heads back in the direction he came from. “But I’d say he owes me, wouldn’t you?” He fixes his eyes on the road and I nod in agreement; Pete sold Kole out to the League then took over his bar. So, yeah, he fucking owes him.

As we drive down Main Street, it strikes me how eerily quiet everywhere is. The manic energy that seemed to grip the town a few short hours ago has faded. There are no lights and no signs of movement. “Where is everyone?” I ask, frowning as we pass Rev’s place—even her lights are off.

“Maybe they felt it,” Tanner replies. “Maybe they felt what is happening.”

“What is happening?” I ask. “I mean, what happens now? Did we stop it? That voice—if it is The King—has Nova’s name. But they didn’t take her. So, does that mean something went wrong? Or was all this just about Ragnor getting his dead wife back? And the real shit’s going to happen later?”

Kole doesn’t answer me, and neither does Tanner. My litany of questions simply hangs in the air between us, making the air tight and clammy. Usually, I’d keep those kinds of thoughts to myself. Make a list. Investigate. But right now I need to know I’m not the only one feeling like we just fucked something up.

For the next few minutes, we sit in silence. When we reach the turn-out at the edge of the wood, we park up and head for the cabin. Signs of Snow’s thundering footsteps are everywhere. Crushed leaves, broken twigs, bent saplings.

As we approach, I rub my palm over my closely shaved hair and clench my jaw. Kole is striding out ahead of Tanner and me; the blood bond he shares with Nova is pulling him toward her at speed.

At the bottom of the steps, I stop and take hold of Tanner’s elbow. “You remember when I built this place?”

Tanner blinks at me as if he’s surprised by the question. “It was half-done by the time I arrived,” he says.

“Yeah, but you and Kole helped me finish it.” I meet his eyes. “It was like therapy for all three of us. It gave us something we needed… time to heal.”

“What’s your point, Luther?” Tanner asks, pushing his fingers through his hair.

“Nova hasn’t had time to heal from what Johnny did to her, or what happened to her parents, or what Thessaly showed us at the commune, and now she’s lost her brother.”

Tanner clearly thought I was about to start lecturing him because defensiveness is etched all over his face. But right now, I’m more concerned with Nova than I am with the effects of his jumping.

I meet his eyes. “She hasn’t had time to heal from any of those things, and she’s not going to get the time. Not yet.” I fold my arms and sigh. “What I’m trying to say is that I’m guessing what happened back there is just the beginning, which means Nova needs us to be strong for her. You’re the expert on emotions, Tanner. You know her better than any of us. You know what’s inside her. You’ve felt it since the day you met her.”

Tanner shakes his head. “I—“

“You have to stay strong for her.” I reach out and squeeze his shoulder. “I know you can do it, Tanner.”

He’s about to reply when we hear Nova scream.

4

NOVA

I have no idea how long it takes to get back to the cabin. Snow is soft and warm, but when he stops—huffing loudly into the dark night air—I realize the fur around his neck is damp from my tears.

He stoops toward the ground, and I slide off him. My chest is cold without the heat of his body against it, although I’m surprised I can feel the cold at all. Usually, when I flame like that, I’m running so hot that I’m immune to any warmth that isn’t my own.

Suddenly, though, I’m shivering. Snow is still breathing heavily, but he walks toward me and nuzzles into my chest. I stroke his head and he makes a low grumbling sound that’s almost like a purr. I expect him to shift back into Mack, but he doesn’t. He moves around me and walks up the steps. At the door, he waits for me to open it then enters first, barely fitting through the doorframe, sniffing the air like he’s checking for intruders.

He grunts at me, then turns and walks back through the door. When it closes, I move to the window and catch the white echo of his silhouette moving past the trees. He stops, as if he’s straining his ears, then carries on moving.

I watch him until he’s out of sight. Barely a minute later, he reappears, and I realize he’s pacing the perimeter of the cabin. Patrolling until the others return.

I turn away from the window and slowly cross the living room. Alone in the dark, I stand stock still. Emptiness presses down on me as memories dance through the room like ghosts. I look at the stairs which lead to the bedroom. As if he’s really there, I see Sam slowly ascending them, pausing to tap on the door, then pushing it open. I see his eyes widen and picture him watching me on the bed with Tanner between my thighs and Mack behind me. I see his face when he kissed me for the first time. I remember looking into his eyes and knowing he was the missing piece I’d been looking for all my life.

“I love you…” His words fill my ears and bring me to my knees. I wrap my arms around myself and fight for breath as guttural sobs pummel my body from the inside out.

I don’t remember feeling this much pain the first time I lost him. I don’t remember it hurting this much when my parents died, but perhaps it did. Perhaps it was exactly like this, and I’ve spent twenty years blocking it out because to remember would be too much.

Behind me, something moves. I don’t stand up or turn around. It could be The Shadow King himself, come to extinguish me, but I don’t care. He can take me. It would be better if he did take me; at least I wouldn’t have to live through this pain.

A hand touches my shoulder. I turn and through eyes clouded with tears, I see Mack. He doesn’t speak, just strokes my hair from my face and kisses my forehead.