Born In Flames

  “Well, yeah, they love rich shiny things,” she replied as we set our bags down, “but who doesn’t?”

  “True,” I agreed, poking around the room. It had a full-size kitchen, two double beds, a couch, a TV, a bathroom with a sunken-in Jacuzzi tub, and a desk. A lovely home away from home.

  “I can’t believe that I’m one of them, you know?” I admitted.

  “What do you mean?” she asked as she plopped onto a bed.

  I sat across from her on the other bed and replied, “I mean, I’ve always known that I was different, that there was more to me than just me, but when I step back and think about it all, I mean really think about it, it begins to feel unreal, like I fell and hit my head or something.”

  She started giggling. “I can tell you now, you haven’t hit your head. This is exactly where you’re meant to be,” she insisted, turning to her side and propping up on an elbow.

  “I can feel that it’s right, like you say, but I can’t help but think what if… What if Astral hadn’t sent me over here, or if Soothe hadn’t decided to cut a piece of the prophecy out, or if Fenn never had to go…” I rambled on. She put her hand up to stop me.

  “Rory, if I could give you any advice on the current situation, it would be this—you can’t become who you’re supposed to be if you keep looking back on what might have been.”

  I pondered that thought for a moment, impressed by her depth of thinking. “You’re right…onward and upward,” I declared with a smile. “Now if you’ll excuse me,” I said, pushing up from the bed, “I’m going to take a long soak in our tub to prepare my muscles for this socalled hike tomorrow.”

  “Okay, I guess I will take a walk then and ‘soak up’ as much as I can of this place,” she said, heading for the door with a laugh.

  About an hour in, a loud pounding on the bathroom door took me from my blissful quiet time. “Rory!” Lexi shouted from the other side.

  I pulled the plug in the tub and ran to the closet, pulling on a robe. “Hang on a sec,” I called out. She seemed rushed. That alerted me. Zane, I thought.

  She practically busted through the door, almost knocking me over before I could reach the handle. “I thought you may have drowned when you didn’t answer.”

  “Geez, you scared the crap out of me,” I huffed as I rolled my eyes at her dramatic antics. She followed me over to the tub, chattering in my ear. “I walked myself down to the pool and took a dip thinking that you would be out before I got back.”

  “Sorry, I was nodding off. Tends to happen when you’re relaxing in a bathtub,” I explained under my breath, shaking my head.

  She was in a hotel robe as well but was wearing it completely wrong. I burst out laughing, tears gathering in the corners of my eyes. She placed her hands on her hips and tilted her head to the side, eyes curious. I pointed to the mirror so she could see what was tickling me.

  “What’s so funny, prune girl?” she countered as my laughter began to pick up again. I couldn’t help it, she was so oblivious.

  “Well, nothing really, except your robe, it’s all wrong…” I broke off into more laughter. I had never seen anything like it before. I ran and grabbed my purse, taking a quick picture before she noticed what I was doing. Blackmail for later.

  “What?” She looked at me, pausing with a raised eyebrow before looking into the mirror. “Oh fizzle.” She had somehow fit each leg into the arms of the robe, pulling the end of the robe up halter style and tying it closed. I would have died laughing if I had been an onlooker at the pool. It was a mystery how she didn’t flash anybody.

  “How could you let me go out in public like this?” she blurted, wrapping her arms around herself defensively. I held in another giggle and said, “You’re the one who took it upon yourself to go for a dip alone.” She huffed and stalked off.

  I walked over to my bag by the bathroom door and scavenged for some jammies, finding the same sweats that I wore the night I kissed Fenn.

  Sliding the pants under my robe, I turned my back to Lexi and slid on a tank top. I walked past her and plopped onto the bed, switching on the TV. I decided MTV was a suitable channel to wear me down.

  Lexi changed into some sweats and a baggie shirt that I packed for her and then walked back over to her bed, stifling a yawn. She slid into her bed, shifting the covers around her. She was (as with everything else) amazed at the TV.

  “To be able to see people from all over the world inside a tiny box is truly wondrous. I will be sad to leave this behind.” She adjusted her weight and began twirling her short hair through her fingers, huffing quietly as if pondering something.

  She shifted again to face me, staring at the side of my face. She was probably waiting for me to look over so she could say whatever it was she was thinking. I waited a moment just to mess with her, and then turned my head.

  “We need to discuss a backup plan in case Zane returns before we find the last two keys. We need to ensure you get there safely, and most importantly, that your Oraculus is kept safe.”

  I had already packed it into my backpack that rested at arm’s reach on the floor. I didn’t want to take any chances on someone finding it.

  “Zane may come back with back-up this time. He knows who you are now and that puts you in serious danger. Not to mention your amulet is basically a tracking device right now. They don’t want you to make it to the cave.” This was the conversation I had been dreading.

  “Why not?” I asked, unsure as to what cave we were even going to. I knew they wanted me dead so I wouldn’t stand in the way of Zordon. I just wasn’t sure why exactly they needed to stop me before the cave. What was in the cave?

  “Because that’s where the doorway you came from is located. And when you are in the cave with the keys and amulet under the full moon, you will be reunited with your powers.”

  “Do you think he has the other map?”

  “I sure hope not,” she fretted.

  I frowned. “Me too,” I replied, trying to modulate my voice.

  “In the meantime,” she said, changing her tune, “if he does so happen to make another appearance, I will be better prepared. I want to teach you a simple immobilizing spell.”

  A spell? I was at attention.

  “You need to understand that he knows you have powers now so he may expect it and deflect. And the spell may not work because of the realm we’re in.”

  I nodded earnestly.

  She almost smiled. “Okay, repeat after me. Immoblatio.” Her hands lit up with green energy as she shot a ball at her pillow.

  I held my hands up and closed my eyes, searching for the source of power within me. I’d used it enough now that I could feel it even when I wasn’t angry. Touching my amulet seemed to help. I opened my eyes and held my hand out, saying the word.

  I guess I should have paid attention to where I was pointing because Lexi’s eyes got real wide as she toppled over like a stiff board on the bed.

  My stomach twisted as my heart raced. “Oh crap, sorry, Lexi. Oh no,” I said, sitting her back up and patting her incessantly.

  Her eyes were frozen in place as she sat there, unmoving and rigid. “Please do something,” I begged, “I don’t know how to undo this.” Nothing happened.

  I huffed.

  Then her paralyzed body relaxed as she let out a pent-up breath. “Thank the gods you’re not into your full power yet or that would’ve stuck,” she said with a grateful sigh.

  I hid my horror.

  “At least we know you can do it now,” she said smiling. I still felt panicked. “Don’t worry. I’m fine,” she encouraged through a giggle. “So just use that, and don’t worry about me next time. You making it is the only thing you should be concerned about, otherwise this was all for nothing.”

  I waited for the pace of my heart to return to normal, then said, “Okay, Lexi, I’ve got this. I actually feel…empowered, if you can believe it.” She looked content with that and also a little sleepy. It was the first time I saw her eyes droop. I wonder
ed if my spell had drained her.

  “Tired?” I guessed.

  She replied blankly, “Just a little. On a more serious note though, I uh…wanted to ask you something,” she said quietly, moving to my bed and sitting next to me.

  The trust that was growing between us felt so normal. I didn’t usually like someone being this close to me, but she was becoming a fast friend. I wanted a friendship, scratch that, needed a friendship. I’d never had one with a girl before. Fenn was it for me. Maybe this was all a good thing. It seemed almost healthy that I break away from the old me.

  Then I thought about what she had just said. Me? She wanted to ask me something? It was slightly strange flipping the tables. I was usually the one with the questions.

  “Okay, so ask. What’s up?” I said, rolling over to prop up onto my elbow. Her hair smelled of chlorine.

  “I’ve been wondering how you knew you were in love with Fenn. Only because there’s someone back home that I’ve been promised to. I’ve only talked to him a few times and he’s really nice, but I’m not sure that he’s the one for me. I don’t want to be promised to someone that I don’t love so I figured if you could tell me how you knew, then maybe I could learn how to fall in love with him.”

  She exhaled the thought like it had been pent up inside her for days.

  I wasn’t expecting that. Promised to someone? What am I, in an eighteenth century romance? I didn’t exactly know what to say to her. How did you make yourself fall in love with someone? It was kind of like—because you couldn’t pick, you would automatically rebel against it. Well, at least I would.

  I shifted uncomfortably, “Umm, well, I guess I feel that you just know when you are in love. This is not my area of expertise,” I added gruffly. “Ask me how to screw love up instead.

  “That’s not true, I’ve seen you with Fenn,” she blurted out. “What I mean to say is,” she spoke quickly trying to recover, “even though you may not have looked at it as a relationship, it really did seem like it was one.” She was staring intently at me.

  “First off, Lexi, it’s a little creepy that you watched Fenn and me. As creepy as Soothe and his photos. And now you are asking me to give you advice, well honestly, look what happened. I screwed everything up. I even made him leave. It seems we’ve been doomed from the get-go. I really don’t think my ‘relationship’ is a good example.”

  She looked tongue-tied and though a part of me felt bad for being so harsh, I felt better for being honest. “I’m sorry Aurora,” she spoke softly as her words died off. “I didn’t mean to impose.” Then she rolled and faced the ceiling.

  Now I felt bad. She was, after all, just looking for advice. This is why I stayed away from making friends. Too many complications and hurt feelings. But it was time I made a change, in myself.

  I backpedaled. “Listen, that special person would live in your every thought, consuming your day-to-day life. He would be as much your rock as you are his, helping support each other through it all. The words ‘I love you’ would never be enough to profess how much he genuinely means to you.” I paused, feeling awfully exposed, and then added, “And I’m not speaking from experience. This was something I picked up out of one of those ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul’ books. And no, I don’t own the book, just read it in a store while waiting for Fenn one day.” I hoped she would buy that lame lie.

  She looked at me questioningly, mouthing, “Chicken Soup?” and then shaking her head.

  “Never mind.”

  “No…that does help. I definitely don’t feel that. I’ve just never had the chance to talk to anyone about it. Frankly, I don’t know how chicken soup ties in with love here in this realm, but hey, who am I to judge?” She smiled and then rolled onto her back. “My mom doesn’t believe in love anymore so I never bother her with it. I think my father may have hurt her when he left us, killing her chance of ever loving again.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said softly. “I didn’t know he had left you.” I could understand what her mother felt, to an extent. I blamed my parents leaving me for much of the reason I had screwed things up so much with Fenn. It was hard for me to open up and trust someone with my true emotions.

  She looked back to the ceiling and said, “It’s okay. I never knew him. It can’t hurt as much when you don’t have those emotional ties with someone. Never knowing him saved me from the same despair my mother carries.” I wish I had that much resolve when it came to my parents.

  “You definitely clarified things for me. I could never feel that for Brohm. I have to figure out how to get out of my promised marriage.” She went back to her bed and situated herself under the covers. She didn’t sound confident.

  “So his name is Brohm? That’s a very…um…sturdy name.” It sounded so otherworldly. “Maybe you should just try talking to him. You never know, he may surprise you with an amazing personality.” She started to laugh, and I joined her. “Okay…” I said, “so maybe not. But I’m sure we’ll figure something out. Especially if we can find the keys in time.”

  She yawned, nodding in agreement as I situated myself, feeling the same drowsiness overcome me. I gave up on trying to think and let sleep take me, anxious for our exciting morning to begin.

  Chapter 25

  The Tour From Hell

  THE NEXT MORNING WE STOOD in the hotel lobby in the midst of a small crowd of eight. Lexi was still laughing about almost falling down the stairs after we decided racing each other would be a good idea. She cheated by tripping on the stairs and somehow managing a twisted back flip, landing at the bottom in a cat-like position. If it wasn’t for her clumsiness, she would never have beat me.

  “Don’t be such a sore loser,” she said, smirking.

  “Don’t be such a sore loser,” I mimicked snidely.

  I glanced around, noticing a couple in our group that clearly believed in PDA. They were practically wrapped around each other, sucking faces as if they were octopuses mating. Maybe this was their honeymoon?

  An older man stood a few feet away from them, next to the tour guide and his helper. Over to the left, leaning against a large pillar by an inside waterfall, rested an Oriental guy with a beanie and an Mp3 player. He looked up at me, smiled, and then looked back at his music player.

  I leaned into Lexi and asked, “So are you ready?”

  “Huh?”

  She was distracted by the tour guide’s helper who was sneaking glances at her while speaking to the man beside him. Lexi batted her eyelashes in return and did a little finger wave.

  “What are you doing?” I asked, elbowing her off balance.

  “Eyeing the hot guy, what does it look like? Don’t try to steal my thunder.” I rolled my eyes. “There is nothing wrong with enjoying the fine youth of this realm.”

  “Enjoy it while you can, my dear, for we won’t be here much longer,” I said, laughing.

  “Okay everyone, gather around, we have a few things to discuss before we depart,” called the tour guide. He was tall, around six feet, with blonde hair and easy blue eyes and was dressed in full hiking gear. His skin was leather brown—you could tell he spent most of his time in the sun.

  We all circled up, glancing at each other but trying to maintain focus on what he was saying.

  “My name is Matt, should you have any questions, and this is Logan, my assistant.” He motioned to the guy Lexi was making eyes with. “Now this is going to be an all day journey. I hope everyone read the memo…?” He paused, giving us the eyebrows as if to ask.

  We all nodded in unison, smiles lighting up our faces.

  “Great. Does everyone have their bags?” Once again we nodded.

  “Okay, then let’s head out,” he finished with a clap.

  “Here we go,” I said to Lexi as I picked my bookbag up from off the floor.

  The day was a clear sky kind of perfect, tricking our worries about finding the keys away. We spent most of the morning hiking and listening to the tour guide talk about the island and its history.

 
I wondered what the beanie guy (who introduced himself as Adam) was listening to because, with the way his head was bobbing to and fro, it sure wasn’t the tour guide’s description of the island’s history.

  My hands skimmed across the top of the grass that came up to our thighs.

  “I love the tall grass on these hills. It’s almost as if it’s dancing in the wind.” The calm surroundings made me believe that there couldn’t possibly be any danger after me. That up here, in this peaceful heaven, evil didn’t exist. If only.

  I pulled my camera out so I could take a few pictures.

  It must have been my lucky day. A cloud covered just enough of the sun to reveal what looked like a second sun that seemed to be hidden by the rays.

  I snapped a picture quickly and then shook Lexi’s shoulders. “I see it,” I said, a little too loudly.

  “See what?” she asked.

  “The second sun! I saw it,” I replied, turning to face and point to it. But it was gone. “I swear it was right there,” I said, bummed that it had disappeared.

  “You can’t always see it, Rory, but it’s always there. The Fates are all around. They may not be as strong in your realm, but they are present.”

  “Good to know,” I grunted.

  We were going up a massive hill, which I’d overheard Matt say was the second highest point on the island, only lower than the volcano.

  Lexi smiled and looked ahead at the massive hill that seemed never ending. My legs began to burn in anger.

  “This hill is killing me,” I whined. Lexi giggled and picked up the pace without even breathing hard.

  When we finally made it to the top of the hill everyone sat scattered about, eating packed lunches and drinking an overwhelming amount of water. Matt and Logan were talking in the distance.

  “These sandwiches are delicious, Lexi. What’s in them?” I had mustard smeared on the side of my mouth, but I didn’t care to wipe it. It reminded me of Fenn.

  She giggled a little and said, “Salami, mustard, ham, provolone, lettuce, a hero sauce, whatever that means, and some pickles. I felt very creative this morning when I read a sign at the deli in the store that had those ingredients on it. I’d hoped that they would turn out okay with me not knowing, but the lady at the deli was kind enough to let me try a bite of the meats and cheeses.” She looked proud of herself.