Embracing The Inferno (Dragon Within #5)

by Kyra Dune

  Once we were back on the highway, I turned to Zack and asked, "How much gas do we have left?"

  "Not much. We should switch rides when we stop."

  "At a gas station?" I asked. Sure, it was starting to get dark but it's not like somebody wouldn't see us. "They have security cameras at those places, you know."

  "What do you want to do, walk?"

  Not exactly the most appealing idea, but it had to be better than taking a chance on getting arrested. "I can walk. It's my arm that's broken, not my legs."

  "Fine." That famous scowl of his was coming back. No big surprise there.

  It didn't take long before we found a truck stop. Zack parked the van in the spot furthest from the door and we went inside, where there was a regular convenience store plus a shop selling all different kinds of things.

  "I'll meet you out by the road," Zack said, slipping into the shop carrying the backpack.

  I had the feeling he was about to put his shoplifting skills to work again so I made a beeline for the bathroom. I wanted to get out of that place as quick as possible. Thankfully there wasn't a line. I took care of business, washed up, then hurried outside. The entire time I was all tensed up, sure we were going to get caught any second. I didn't know what I would do if that happened, but worse I didn't know what Zack would do. He was so much quicker to jump to violence than I was.

  Turns out I didn't have to worry about it. Whatever Zack stole he must have done it under the radar, because he was waiting for me just down the road from store. We fell in side by side and started walking.

  We didn't have much to say to each other for awhile. I don't know what was going on in Zack's head, but I was thinking about something I needed to ask him. Something I knew he wasn't going to like. It took me awhile to work up the nerve to say it.

  "I need to ask you a favor."

  "What?" He cut his gaze sideways at me, a wary kind of tone in his voice.

  I took a deep breath, then spoke in a rush before I could chicken out. "I want you to battle train me." I bit my lip, expecting him to blow up at the suggestion. He didn't, but I couldn't help noticing how he went all tense.

  "It's not a good idea."

  "Why not?"

  Zack scowled. "I told you before, it's too dangerous."

  "Yeah, but that was months ago, before I had control of my powers. It's different now."

  "Really? You can control your powers? All of them?"

  Something in his voice set off warning alarms in my head. I ignored them. "Yes."

  "Fine." He stopped, dropped the backpack on the ground, and turned to face me. "Show me your fire."

  "What? Out here in the open?" We weren't on the highway anymore, we had exited off onto a less used two lane road. But there were still cars coming by every ten minutes or so, and plenty of houses here and there. We were way too exposed for me to be using my powers.

  "Show. Me. Your. Fire."

  I crossed my arms. "No."

  "That's what I thought," he said. "You're afraid of the fire. Fear makes you weak. And the weak can't be battle trained." He snatched up the backpack and started walking again.

  I stayed where I was for a minute, staring daggers at his back, before jogging to catch up to him. "You're being a real jerk right now, did you know that?"

  "I'm being realistic." Zack shifted the pack on his shoulder. "Battle training is not for hybrids. It's not even for most regular dragons. Did you forget what happened when I tapped your powers on the beach that one time? You nearly killed us."

  "Oh my god, that was forever ago." He was being so stubborn it made me want to scream. "I've learned a lot since California, but it's not enough. Zack." I grabbed his arm to make him stop. "It's going to come down to Megara and me in the end. We both know that." I wished he would meet my gaze instead of scowling straight ahead. "She's stronger than I am. I need battle training to give me the edge."

  "No." He stood rigid in the gloom, his jaw set. "I will not battle train you. I can't."

  I swear I wanted to haul off and hit him, I was that frustrated. "You're a coward." I spat the words, looking for a chink in his armor I could use to pry him open. "What happened to you? What happened to that guy who did whatever needed to be done, no matter the consequences? Because right now he'd be a lot more useful to me than you are."

  Zack spun around and the look in his eyes had me taking a step back. For a split second, I thought he was going to hit me. Instead, he pulled me into an unexpected fierce hug. "You want me to battle train you?" He spoke the words against the side of my head. "And if you get hurt, or killed, because of it, do you think I could live with that?"

  "I...uh... wha..." I blew out a breath, not sure exactly what it was I wanted to say. "What makes you think I'd get hurt?"

  "Because on top of the stupid, you're driving me insane," Zack muttered. He sighed, blowing a warm breath across my skin. I'd never heard him sound like this before. "I'm too close. I... Battle training is about control and when it comes to you... I have none. That night, on the beach, you weren't... I mean..." He growled under his breath. "I could have stopped you before the wave got that big but being so close to you, tapping your powers, it... You make me careless. I can't train you."

  His intensity was incredible, but kind of frightening. I buried my head against his chest. "You always want to protect me, but sometimes you can't. Hannah almost killed me. And you weren't there." I felt him stiffen, making me wish I'd phrased that a little better. "That's not an accusation. It's just a fact. You can't always be there to protect me and you know that."

  "I don't want to know it."

  "Zack," I breathed out his name, wishing I didn't feel like I had to keep pushing the subject. "Please. I need this."

  He was still and silent a long moment, and then he stepped back. Whatever he'd been feeling, it wasn't on his face. "I don't think I like this new, level headed side of you. She makes too much good sense."

  "Blame it on Brandy." I tried on a small smile and was surprised it actually fit. "I'm just trying to think like she would."

  Zack huffed, shoving his hands into his pockets. He frowned down at his sneakers. "There's a tracker in Idaho. Someone I trust. Sort of. I... I suppose I could take you to her."

  "Her?" I swear I tried really hard not to feel that little spark of jealousy. I didn't want to be the kind of girl who freaks out over every other girl her boyfriend knows. But it was kind of hard not to be that girl when Zack didn't want to look me in the eye.

  "Sam." He stared up at the sky, rubbing the back of his neck. "Her name is Sam. I worked a hunt with her a few months before Alastair sent me after you. She'll help us. She owes me one."

  "Oh. Okay. Well... That's great." Yeah, I know, real convincing, right?

  "Yeah." Funny, Zack didn't seem any more enthused over the idea than I was. That made me feel a little better.

  "So, where are we going to sleep tonight?" I asked, as we fell in side by side and started to walk again.

  "We'll probably have to sleep out."

  "Out?" I asked. "As in, out here?" I waved my hand to indicate the whole of the outdoors.

  "Yeah."

  Wonderful. Surely there was nothing I wanted to do more than sleep outside on the cold, hard ground. With the bugs. And the wild animals. I shivered just thinking about it. But I was determined not to complain. Zack already thought I was weak, after all, no reason to give further proof of it. Probably 'sleeping out' was no big deal to a tracker. That thought got me to wondering if he'd ever 'slept out' with Sam, which of course had my mind turning to all the other things he might have done with her. Not helpful.

  We walked until deep into the night, then jumped a fence into a pasture. Well, Zack jumped, I levitated myself over. I didn't want anyone to see me using my powers, but climbing over a fence is kind of hard to do one handed.

  Not too far away was a little wooded area with a pond in the middle. It oddly remind me of that special place in my mind. Except my imaginary sanctuary didn't sme
ll like cow manure.

  "This looks like a good place to stop," Zack said.

  No, actually, it didn't. But what was I going to say? It's not like we had a lot of other options. Besides, I was tired. That all over achy feeling I'd thought came from sleeping in the back of the van had only gotten worse, and I felt kind of queasy from all the junk food I'd eaten. I just wanted to take a pain pill and go to sleep.

  Zack and I settled down under the trees, with me using the pack as a pillow. I'm sure you've laid out on the ground before, I know I have. When you're a kid it's kind of a fun thing to do. But it's way different when you're starving, worn out, and in pain.

  I fidgeted, wishing I had a fan or something. As if the grass poking me in the back wasn't bad enough, it was horribly hot. The kind of heat that makes you feel like you want to peel off all your skin. Which was kind of weird, because it hadn't been that hot just a little while ago. I figured the trees must be blocking the wind.

  "Will you be still and go to sleep?" Zack snapped.

  I stuck my tongue out at him even though he had his back to me and couldn't see it. But I did stop my fidgeting. No reason we should both be kept awake just because my broken arm wouldn't let me shift into a more comfortable position. I lay there, staring up at the stars through the canopy of leaves, for a long time before the singing of the crickets finally lulled me off to sleep.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  When I woke up it was barely dawn. My entire body shivered with chills, but I was so hot it was like somebody had turned a furnace on inside me. I swear I could feel every fabric of my clothes pressing against my skin. When I tried to sit up, I was hit with a jolt of pain so sharp I screamed.

  Zack jumped to his feet. "What is it? What happened?"

  I moaned as I collapsed back to the ground.

  "Abby?" Zack knelt beside me, pressing his hand to my forehead. "You're burning up."

  I flinched away from his touch. "Huh?"

  "I'm going to look at your arm."

  Every word he said was a word I recognized, and yet it was like he was speaking another language. My brain simply couldn't grasp the meaning behind the words. They just bounced off the inside of my skull. My stomach rolled and a nasty taste rose up in the back of my mouth.

  Zack's fingers fumbled at the knot holding my makeshift sling in place. When he got it loose, my arm shifted and the world went white. I don't think I passed out, exactly, but I was definitely gone for a few seconds. When I came back, I found that I'd puked all over myself. Lucky for me I hadn't eaten much lately so it was mostly clear stuff, kind of like water. Still smelled, though.

  I heard Zack say something sharp under his breath and I tried to turn my head to see what he was doing, but it made me feel like puking again so I stopped.

  "Abby." Zack pressed both hands to the sides of my face. Normally, I loved his touch, but right then I would have swatted him away if I'd had the strength to move my arm. His hands felt like blocks of ice.

  "Can you hear me?" he asked.

  I couldn't answer. Mostly because, at the time, I didn't know what he was saying and it was starting to sound like he was talking from under the water.

  "Stay here," he said. "I'm going to find help."

  Where did he think I was going to go? I couldn't process the sound of words, let alone make any part of my body do anything even resembling moving. Everything was getting really fuzzy and dim. And even though I was sinking further into this state of helpless confusion, I was aware enough to realize something was seriously wrong with me.

  My thoughts were getting slippery and it was really hard to focus. I know Zack must have left, but I don't actually remember it. I just remember lying there, feeling like the world was trying to tip out from underneath me.

  My eyelids started to feel heavy and droopy. Not exactly like I wanted to go to sleep, but something close. I remember a hand touching my face because it was like all my nerves were hyper sensitive and everything hurt me. Even the brush of the air.

  I think I said Zack's name, but I'm not sure the word ever made it past my lips. I'm kind of piecing this little episode together from blurred memories and how I figure it probably went. I'm not sure exactly, just so you know. I mean, I was burning up with fever, so give me a break here.

  "We have to call nine-one-one," an unfamiliar female voice said. "She needs a doctor."

  "No." Zack spoke in a low, measured tone. "No hospital. You said you could help, so help."

  "You told me your sister was hurt," the woman replied. "This is not hurt. This is a serious infection. She could die."

  I stirred at the sound of their voices, trying to force my eyes to open.

  "Don't move." She pressed firmly again my uninjured shoulder. "You'll jostle your arm. I'm going to call -- Hey!" The pressure disappeared.

  "Listen to me." Zack's voice was all cold steel. "You are going to take us back to your house, and then you're going to help her. And you're not going to call anyone. Do you understand?"

  The woman yelped. "All right. I understand. Just... rewrap her arm first and be careful when you pick her up."

  "Don't try anything," Zack warned."

  Hands on my arm again and everything went gray. I passed out, I guess. I really don't remember anything else at all until I woke up in a strange bed. I blinked, totally confused and a little scared. But I felt way better when I turned my head and saw Zack sleeping in the chair next to me, his feet kicked up on the edge of the bed and a little drool dripping down his chin. I still had no idea where I was or what was going on, but as long as Zack was with me it was okay.

  A check of my arm showed me it was all wrapped up in bandages and resting on my chest in a real sling. I pressed my other hand against the mattress and cautiously pushed myself to a seated position. No pain. No black spots in front of my eyes. No feeling like I was going to throw up.

  It crossed my mind to wake Zack, but I figured if he was sleeping instead of pacing the room like a caged tiger then we must not be in any immediate danger. Might as well let him get some rest.

  I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, one arm held out just in case I got dizzy or something. I didn't. I was feeling really great. After one last glance at Zack, I tiptoed across the room and into the hall.

  We were definitely in a house. Sam's place? I did remember hearing a woman's voice, but I didn't see how Zack could have gotten in touch with her. Neither of us had a phone. I followed the hall to a brightly lit kitchen. A dark haired woman about my mom's age sat at the table reading the paper. Through a glass door leading out into the backyard I saw darkness. How long was I out?

  The woman lowered her paper to the table as I stepped into the room. The shaggy golden retriever lying at her feet got up and ambled over to me, wagging his tail. He seemed friendly enough, so I went ahead and petted his head, but I never took my eyes off the woman. After everything I'd been through, I couldn't help being a little suspicious of a stranger.

  "Hello there." The woman smiled, crinkling her eyes at the corners. "I'm glad to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

  "Good." I shifted my feet. "Are you the one who fixed my arm up?"

  She nodded. "You have good luck that your brother flagged down a nurse and not some random person who wouldn't have been able to help you."

  Okay, so Zack had told this woman he was my brother. I had no idea why he would do that, but if he thought it was right then I was willing to play along. "You're a nurse?"

  "I am," she said. "My dad was a doctor. He used to run a clinic right out of this house. Are you hungry?"

  Hungry? I was starving. It felt like forever since I had any real food. I shrugged. "I guess I could eat. But... Why didn't you call the cops on us?"

  "I thought about it." She got up from the table and came around the bar to the refrigerator. The dog followed, watching her with a hopeful expression. "Max, you already ate." She laughed. "I swear, dogs always think it's dinner time."

  "So why didn't you then?" I ask
ed. "Call the cops, I mean."

  "Because you're obviously in trouble," she stared pulling stuff out of the fridge, "and I wasn't sure if calling the cops would make it worse. But if your fever hadn't broken by morning I was going to take the chance. I wasn't about to let you die."

  I leaned against the bar. "I was kind of worried it might be because of something Zack said. Or did. He doesn't always have the best people skills."

  "So I noticed. He did threaten me, but that's not what I based my decision on. Besides, I slipped something in his drink to put him to sleep, so it's not like he could have acted on his threat if I had decided to call the police." She smiled. "By the way, my name is Marie. What's yours?"

  Was I little stunned she had drugged my boyfriend? Um, yeah. Was I worried how he was going to react when he woke up? You bet I was. Was I a little impressed with her anyway? Definitely. "Abby."

  "Nice to meet you, Abby. Why don't you go over and have a seat at the table while I cook us up some burgers."

  That sounded like a great idea to me. I felt a whole lot better, but standing for even that short amount of time had my legs all wobbly. I was only too glad to sink into one of the kitchen chairs. Max glanced in my direction, then decided to stay where the food was.

  After getting the burgers on the stove, Marie opened one of the counter drawers and pulled out a thermometer. "Mind if I check your temperature?"

  "Go ahead."

  It's weird, but sitting there while she fussed around putting the thermometer in my mouth made me think about my mom. Most of the time, I tried really hard not to let my mind go there. Thinking about my parents and what they were going through wondering where I was and if I was okay, made me feel like a really bad person. Plus, I missed them like crazy and it was just easier not to dwell on it. Even with everything else going on in my life, I'm kind of ashamed to admit it was a little too easy not to think about them.

  I tried my hardest to sit still and not fidget while the thermometer was busy trying to pick up a reading. Those things seem to take forever, don't they? And it's so uncomfortable having that thing stuck under your tongue.