Scorched

by Jadyn Chase

  I stepped forward the glance into the hall. The house loomed empty and still. I gave Isabel a tug. “Come on.”

  We advanced into the corridor and I headed for the living room when it happened. An almighty concussion thumped through the house. It hit me all over—in the face, in the chest, in the legs. It stung every inch of my skin all at once.

  I caught one glimpse of Isabel. Her golden hair and her arms and legs shot out in front of her as the shockwave flung us both backward. The next minute, we slammed into the wall and a blast of splinters and broken glass and sheetrock pounded us in a hail of fury.

  The impact knocked me senseless for a second. I collapsed to the floor next to Isabel’s slumped form. At that instant, a plume of fire woofed through the house. A belch of flame and scorching heat erupted through the living room. It licked my cheeks just long enough to burn before it withdrew toward the garage.

  I launched to my feet and swiveled to the side. “Get up, Isabel!” I thundered. “Get up! Run!”

  She didn’t respond fast enough. I grabbed her in both arms and dove for the hall just in the nick of time before a catastrophic wall of fire smashed the house apart. It darted through the door and ignited the wall where we just sat.

  Isabel screamed, but I shut my ears to the sound. I hauled her to her feet and this time, thank Christ, she responded. We bolted down the corridor with the flames nipping at our heels.

  I bolted into the bedroom. Isabel clung to me screaming all the way, but I didn’t mind. As long as she was here in my arms, at least I knew she was still okay.

  I rushed into the bedroom and slammed the door behind me. The heat died, but only for a moment. I glanced around. “We have to find a way out of here.”

  “How?” Her eyes lit up. “The bathroom window! I got through it the other night when I tried to break in.”

  We ran to the bathroom. Sure enough, the small window above the shower stood open to the night air. She climbed into the tub, the same bathtub where we made love just a few hours ago.

  She laid both hands on the windowsill. “Give me a boost, will you?”

  I took a step toward her when another monstrous explosion rocked the house. The bedroom door blasted off its hinges and pinwheeled across the room. It struck the far wall and embedded its wooden point in the sheetrock. A snake’s head of flame rippled into the room.

  I spun around and bent over to take hold of Isabel’s foot. I braced my back to lift when a devastating boom startled me out of my wits. At the same moment, a powerful thump hit me in the back and sent me tumbling headfirst into the shower. Isabel lost her footing and landed on top of me.

  She screamed in my ear and that sound seared my brain. I listening to her scream for two days, but never like this. The spiking, furious noise ripped my world apart.

  I blinked to see a raging tempest of fire and mayhem seething and roiling above Isabel’s head. The intense heat sizzled my eyelashes. It was right on top of us.

  I never got a chance to think. That fire did something to my soul. I couldn’t change what I was. The mixture of fear and rage broke forth in the age-old demonic figure of the dragon.

  I shot up so fast I tossed Isabel off. I felt the creature taking over my mind. In my last desperate struggle to cling to humanity, I twisted over on one side and yelled out with all my might, “Get out, Isabel! Get out of here!”

  “Cisco, no!” she screamed.

  I didn’t hear any more. I launched straight into that fire, into the heart of the glowing pit of Hell that was my ancestral home. The minute it hit my scales, I lost the ability to think. The rational human part of my brain ceased to exist.

  My neck stretched and my wings extended from my back. The flame scalded my scales and I roared to Heaven. One thing remained constant and clear in my mind. Isabel.

  I spread my wings and let the fire pound my chest and neck and face. I reveled in it. I loved it. I drank in its heat. It could exhaust itself on me.

  My head punctured the roof and the walls crumbled away on all sides. Isabel cowered in the bathtub screaming, but only for an instant. When I glanced back at her through the flames, I saw her scrambling out of the window.

  She dove headfirst onto the lawn, clawed her way to her feet, and bolted into the night. I didn’t need to see anything else. She was clear.

  I closed my eyes and turned my face into the flames. I stretched my wings wide and enjoyed the lovely sensation of the hot tiny tongues caressing my scales. I could do this all night.

  It couldn’t last, though. A fire that started from an explosion like that couldn’t last very long. It began to die sooner than I wished, but that’s the way it goes.

  The walls toppled in on themselves. The roof titled at an angle until it flumped into smoldering embers. The flames still danced around me, but not with the furious intensity of the original explosion.

  I stepped aside. My scales still glowed with heat, but the ecstasy of the moment cooled. I scanned the neighborhood and saw no sign of Isabel. She would be miles away by now.

  Red and blue lights blinked along the highway and a siren wailed closer. The fire department would be here any second, not to mention the neighbors. I let out a long breath and released the dragon’s ancient hold on my being.

  I shrank into a man, but I couldn’t stick around here watching my house burn to the ground. My hog was in the garage, too, but I couldn’t save it.

  I turned away and trotted off in the direction I saw Isabel run. Behind my back, the fire trucks howled up to the wreck. I vanished into the night.

  I picked up her scent a few blocks away. I tracked her to a backyard a mile away. When I peeked over the fence, I didn’t see her. I hopped over and landed on my bare feet next to the kid’s swing set.

  I stood still and listened. Yes, there it was, the ever-so-faint sound of high-pitched wheezing breath strained to the breaking point. I held still for a minute, but this wasn’t going to get any easier.

  I tried to stall for time. I thought I could live in a little haven of safety at my house. I tricked myself into thinking the outside world would never catch up with us.

  I sauntered toward the sound and spotted her crouched behind the sandbox. She huddled in a ball hugging her knees to her chest. She rocked back and forth giving that keening whine like a whipped dog. I flashed back to the night I met her. She looked exactly the same without so much blood.

  I eased around the sandbox and stood in front of her, but she didn’t look up. She didn’t see anything but her own terror.

  I squatted down and laid both hands on her shoulders. “Isabel, it’s me. It’s Cisco.”

  She lurched to break away. She cried out once, but I wrestled her still and made her face me.

  “It’s me, Isabel. It’s me, Cisco. Come on. We can’t stay here. If we get caught, we’ll be in trouble with the cops. Come on. I need to take you somewhere safe.”

  Her breath escalated to a screech. The sound set my teeth on edge. I dreaded every second that someone would find us.

  I couldn’t wait around for her to snap out of it. I wrapped my arms around her and forced her to her feet, murmuring, “Come on, Isabel. Come on. We’re going.”

  To my eternal relief, once she got upright, she didn’t fight anymore. She staggered forward and let me steer her out of the yard. I had to search to find a gate, but once we got outside, things became easier.

  This was one time I was glad not to be wearing my colors. I was just a guy walking down the city streets at night in my pants and no shirt. If someone didn’t look to close at my tats, they would never know who I was. Isabel was just a normal woman in a long, floppy sweater that nearly reached her knees.

  The farther we got from the fire, the more she calmed down. She huddled in my arms and I supported her with my whole heart. I was happier than I could ever imagine that she was all right and that she was here with me for a little while longer.

  We couldn’t stay on the streets, though. I guided her to the warehouse. I knew long be
fore I got there I would get an ass-chewing for bringing her in unannounced, but that couldn’t be helped.

  I refused to let her go when I approached the gate. If I had left her standing on the sidewalk across the street and gone in to explain the situation to The Boss, things would have gone easier. I wouldn’t do that. I would never leave Isabel unguarded again—not until I handed her back to La Muerta for good.

  I stopped outside the gate and jerked my chin at the guard. “Órale. Let me in.”

  The guy did a double-take before he recognized me. “What the…?”

  “I said let me in,” I barked.

  I flashed him my, Don’t fuck with me, Ese, glare. He jumped a foot in the air and hustled to the padlock and chain. “Oh, right, sure, man.”

  They cracked the gate. Both guards raised their eyebrows when I escorted Isabel inside. I walked up to the big roll-up door and spotted El Jefe, Carlos, Kane, and Logan all standing around the table. My hackles went up ready for the worst.

  I half-carried, half-dragged Isabel inside and lowered her onto a couch in the corner. Then I advanced on the table. All four of them stared at me like I’d grown three heads.

  I greeted The Boss. “Órale, vato. Qué pasa?”

  His eyebrows flew up. “Qué pasa? Is that all you have to say for yourself, coming in here at this time of night looking like you just rolled out of bed and bringing that with you?” He jerked his thumb at Isabel. “I should be asking you, ‘Qué pasa’.”

  I squared my shoulders at him. “I did just roll out of bed. The dipshit that ruined her face just burned my fucking house down, Ese, so you’ll excuse me if I’m not in the mood for any bullshit right now. And as for bringing her in….”

  The Boss held up one hand. “Don’t even start on her. We already got the summons. We’re meeting them tomorrow at sundown to hand her back.”

  I bristled. “Is that all you’ve got to say for yourself—we’re meeting at sundown to hand her back? Is that the best you can do?”

  “What do you want me to do?” he demanded. “You knew all along she belonged to La Muerta and you didn’t even have the decency to bring her in. You were too busy dipping your stick and having a grand old time. I ought to sack you right now.”

  I opened my mouth to say something, but when I did, all the fire drained out of me. I hung my head. “You’re right. You should.”

  He glanced around. “Where’s your ride?”

  I shrugged. “It was in the garage.”

  A deathly silence fell over the group. No one moved. A man’s bike was sacred. Most of these vatos would rather lose an arm than their ride.

  The Boss spoke first. “I’m sorry to hear that. Is there anything we can do?”

  I jerked my head to one side and kept my eyes averted. I didn’t want to see them looking at me with that pained mixture of pity and disgust. A man wasn’t a man without a bike. “It was insured.”

  “We still need you tomorrow night,” he went on. “You can use Zander’s old bike until you get a new one.”

  My head shot up. “I can’t. He’s….”

  I didn’t finish. Zander died in the line of duty. No member of our club would dare to touch a fallen brother’s bike. That would be sacrilege.

  The Boss arched an eyebrow at me. “I can’t have you going into battle on foot, now can I? You’ll take it. Under the circumstances, I think he would be pleased to see it used for a good purpose.”

  I bowed my head. “Yes, Sir.”

  “All right.” He rounded on the others. “You all have your orders. You can go home until further notice.”

  I dared to peek up at him. “Excuse me, Ese. If you don’t mind, I’d like to keep her.”

  He locked his wicked eyes on me. “You’re out of your tree.”

  I held up my hand. “Just listen a second, Ese. That asshole nearly killed her the other night and he attacked me. If you send her back, El Jefe will hand her back to him to do the same thing all over again.”

  He compressed his lips. “This has nothing to do with that. You want to keep her for yourself. Admit it.”

  I shrugged and looked away. “I won’t lie about it.”

  “Forget it,” he snapped. “There’s no way. We’re not keeping her.”

  “La Muerta accepted her,” I pointed out. “She’s been a branded member of their club since…”

  I sensed the ice beginning to crack beneath my feet, but I wasn’t ready to let this go just yet. A few days in bed with Isabel turned my mind to madness. If I didn’t fight with everything I had to keep her, I would never be able to live with myself afterward. If I lost her to La Muerta, at least I would be able to look back and say I tried.

  The Boss glared at me with an expression I didn’t like at all. One more word and he would cut me loose along with her. I couldn’t live with that. I bowed my head in silence.

  “Go home,” he snapped. “Oh, wait a minute. I guess you can’t. You can bunk up here for the night until you find a place to stay, or you can come home with me. You’re welcome to our guest room for as long as it takes, but only if it’s you…..alone. Understand?”

  I nodded. I didn’t trust myself to answer.

  He blew out a long breath. I sure didn’t envy that guy his job. He eased a step closer and rested his hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry, brother. I really am. I can see she means a lot to you, but it’s impossible. If she was one of us, it would be different. You have to understand that.”

  I couldn’t think of anything to say, so I just blinked down at the floor in shock. It really was over. Then, out of nowhere, a bell rang. A clear, pure summons from another world pealed through my despair and shattered the stillness. “I’m not white.”

  11

  Isabel

  Every head in the room whipped around to stare at me. Why did I say it—now of all times? The five of them wheeled and the younger one gasped. Their jaws dropped. Cisco gaped at me with his mouth open like he didn’t recognize me.

  The leader recovered first. Of the group, he was the only one with short hair and it made him look ten times more ferocious than the rest of his men. His enormous shoulders dwarfed even Cisco. “Do I know you?”

  I sat up a little straighter. I knew that question. He already knew who I was. That was a rhetorical question designed to get me to declare myself. “I’m Isabel. Isabel Williams.”

  Cisco waved to his Boss. “Isabel, this is Roman Santiago. He’s El Jefe of Los Diablos.”

  I nodded at Roman. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  Sure enough, he dispensed with the pleasantries in a heartbeat. “What do you mean you’re not white?”

  No one laughed. They all stared at me like I’d just sprouted another head. “My mother was Mexican. She belonged to a motorcycle club. I’m not sure which one, but it might have been La Muerta. She left it when she was young. She hid her identity and dyed her hair blonde. She never wanted anyone to know where she came from. No one knew until just a few months ago when my dad found the documents and a bunch of pictures. My mother was Mexican. I’m only half white.”

  Cisco blinked. No one answered until the leader pursed his lips again. He bent over the table. “Well, that’s something, but we still have to hand you back. You’re a member of La Muerta, that’s what really matters.”

  “What if I can get El Jefe to release me?” I ventured. “Would you accept me then?”

  He glanced up. “If you can convince him to release you, I’ll take you under consideration for initiation. I won’t absolutely guarantee you’ll get in because I can’t make that guarantee to anyone, but at least you would have a chance.”

  He turned his attention to his papers and maps by way of dismissal. The conversation was over. One by one, the other men drifted away. They mounted their bikes and rode out of the warehouse. They left their leader alone with Cisco.

  The two of them murmured over their plans for a long time. I sat on the couch and stared at them in blank stupefaction. So that was it. I came all thi
s way. I got attached to Cisco and now I had to leave him.

  We both knew this would happen when we first met. Now nothing could stop it. Not even finding out my mother was Mexican could change my fate.

  Once Los Diablos handed me back to La Muerta, I would never be rid of Diego—not ever. If I lost Cisco now, my heart would never recover. I observed him move around the table in his Boss’s halo of influence.

  I never met a man as considerate and protective and comforting before. I didn’t just become attached to him. I came to depend on him. He became my lodestar, my one touchstone in a world gone insane.

  No matter what happened, I knew I could always depend on him. I would always be safe with him. As long as I knew he was out there somewhere, that a man like him really could exist in this world, I could survive anything. I could face all the horrors in front of me as long as I held him in my heart.

  Sitting on that couch, it struck me like a thunderbolt. I loved him. I loved Cisco. I loved him with all my heart and soul, and I always would no matter what. No one could take that away from me. Diego couldn’t beat it out of me. La Muerta couldn’t burn it out of me.

  No man would ever win my heart the way Cisco did. No man would ever touch me again. They could do what they wanted with my body, but they could never come close to my heart. That dwelt with Cisco for all time.

  The realization crushed me under its weight. How could I love him when I couldn’t be with him? At that moment, he looked up and met my gaze. A charge of understanding passed between us.

  He said something to his Boss and crossed the warehouse to sit down next to me. “Are you okay?”

  I nodded down at my hands. “I’m all right. Are you?”

  “I’m fine. I’m bent out of shape about this, but there’s nothing we can do about it. We just have to make the best of the situation.”

  I stole a peek up at him. “You won’t leave, will you? You’ll stay with me, just for tonight, won’t you?”