Eternal Bloom - Book 5 (The Ruby Ring Saga) Page 7

“In the end, they’ll try their best to make you look like an idiot,” Liz said. “And then they’ll kill you.”

  Erica shook her head. “You’re not talking me out of this.”

  Liz stood. “I smell smoke.”

  Erica glanced around. “I wasn’t cooking anything.”

  When I darted into the kitchen, I gasped. Dozens of small flames flickered to life.

  “Fire!” I shouted.

  “The front door,” Liz screamed, pulling my arm.

  Beth tried to turn the knob but it wouldn’t budge. “Somebody’s locked us in here.”

  “The window,” I said.

  Beth, Liz, and I tried to open the windows but it was like they were nailed shut by an invisible hand. Erica came back with an axe and slammed it into the window. It didn’t even crack. The window had some kind of protective barrier to keep us from breaking through it. And that’s when I knew who was behind this little attack.

  “It’s the Immortals,” Liz shouted through the smoke engulfing us.

  I could barely see in the hazy blue-gray smoke swirling around me in billows. Hungry flames leapt, and heat radiated from all around me. I could feel the intense, blinding heat on my face. “We have to get out of here!” I shouted over the crackling flames. My lungs burned, and it was hard to breathe. Pulling my dress up over my mouth and nose as a mask, I took quick, shallow gasps.

  Chapter 10

  The fire spread quicker than I’d ever imagined. I’d only come to help Beth interview a witness and now I was fighting for my life. I sucked in my breath as rivulets of sweat started to run down my spine. Coughing violently, I tried to breathe.

  “This way!” Liz shouted over the roar of the fire.

  A shout pierced the air, and I spun around.

  “You’re all dead!” a tall, well-built Immortal announced. He had at least a dozen others with him. How could Liz fight against a small army of Immortals? Erica, Beth, and I would be of no help.

  I bit my lip hard, wondering if we could take so many on at once. Maybe we could distract or trick them somehow. Fire shot across the ceiling. Suddenly, bullets flew at us, and we ducked for cover behind an overturned table Liz had toppled over in milliseconds. “What the...? They’re shooting!” I said. The fire grew and everything was obscured by the leaping flames. I wasn’t sure how to get out of there alive. Letting out a long sigh, I squinted and swallowed hard as the flames flickered and smoke continued to swirl before me.

  “We’ve gotta get out of here,” Beth said, coughing as smoke engulfed the room.

  The bullets stopped and I wondered if they were out of ammo. When I peered over the table, I could see the Immortals fleeing the fire, only leaving a few to deal with us.

  “Kill them!” a man shouted.

  Liz stood and threw a couple of fire balls at them, followed by a few ice balls that knocked out at least three of them. I let out a tiny, silent breath. It was a small victory, but a good one nonetheless. Trying not to panic, I glanced around. All the exits were covered by Immortals waiting to kill us. My heart thundered. As I tried to scramble away, I was quickly surrounded by more dancing flames. I refused to believe that my life was going to end in a raging house fire. On the other hand, if I survived the day, it would be nothing short of a miracle.

  “This way!” Liz shouted. “To the den!”

  My body shivered as I bolted into the huge room. I slammed the door shut, locking it.

  “You have powers too,” Erica shouted hysterically at my sister.

  “Don’t look so freaked,” Liz said. “These powers are going to save your sorry ass.”

  “Sorry ass?” she said.

  Liz rolled her eyes. “You threatened to expose the Immortals. How dumb is that?”

  “How dumb is it to come over and interview a dead woman walking?” she asked.

  My sister huffed. “You knew they were going to kill you, and yet, you didn’t care?”

  “I just wanted justice, even if it meant my death afterward,” she said. “I just planned on doing the television show, and then dealing with the consequences when everything was said and done.”

  “They have us cornered,” Beth said, voice trembling. “What are we going to do?”

  “I’m thinking,” I said. Wisps of smoke floated above me. I coughed between jagged breaths and covered my nose and mouth with my stretched dress.

  “I don’t want to die like this,” Beth whispered. “Back in Dornia, they were going to light me on fire, and now it’s happening again. This is my biggest nightmare.”

  Liz pulled us way over to the left. “Let’s create a defense of some sort.”

  We started making a barrier with a couch, a few love seats, and an overturned desk. I gasped as we crouched down to hide behind it. It wasn’t much, but it might help bullets from hitting Beth and Erica. Liz and I could take a hit from a bullet, but our human friends couldn’t.

  Erica gasped between breaths. “Like I said, they’re surrounded the whole house. There’s no way we’re getting past them. We’re as good as dead!” Her voice came thin and raspy.

  Those words stung me. I couldn’t even explain my situation to the Immortals. It was shoot on sight. They wanted all potential witnesses dead. I touched my stomach and whispered to my unborn son, “Mommy will get us out of this. Don’t you worry.”

  I screamed as the walls started to catch fire. Liz’s terrified expression mirrored my own. I knew fire wouldn’t kill Liz or I, but it’d hurt like crazy and I didn’t want to put my unborn child through that agony. Not to mention, the Immortals would just behead me the second the flames stopped anyway. I didn’t want to watch Erica and my best friend, Beth, die before my very eyes. It was like being trapped in a nightmare you can’t escape. I wanted to have a vision, but no matter how hard I tried, one wouldn’t come.

  “Don’t worry,” Liz said. “She touched the burning wall we were crouched up against and it turned into ice, keeping us from getting fried.

  Beth ran to the window on the other side of the room and desperately tried to open it, but again, it wouldn’t budge. Covering her face with her sleeve, she kicked with all her might. By the third attempt, she threw her whole body into it. Bullets fired into the room and Beth dropped to the ground.

  “I’m hit,” she screamed.

  I drew a deep breath, the blood draining from my face. “Beth!” I ran over and scooped her up. She was completely covered in blood.

  “You’re going to be okay,” I said. “Just hang on.”

  My lips trembled; for a minute, I couldn’t breathe. The thought of losing Beth seemed too much to bear.

  Just as I reached the center of the room, the door flew off its hinges and splintered as a fireball burst right through it and flew over my head. As I ducked, I could feel the intense heat flying over my face. The ball crashed into the back wall with a loud crash. The Immortal’s hands shot out showers of bright sparks followed by trains of white and yellow. I covered my head as hot particles rained down. More spinning balls flew toward us, changing in color from brilliant red to dazzling orange to lime green, like a fireworks show on the Fourth of July.

  An electrical crackle filled the air, and thick, black smoke erupted as another fireball blazed across the room, leaving a trail of yellow sparks behind. The explosion sent me staggering forward, and I felt like someone had just kicked me in the back. I fell to the floor on my side. I shielded my face from the yellow flames and black smoke engulfing us, but my eyes continued to water, my lungs burning with the pressure building inside. The fumes made my nose and throat burn as heat singed my flesh. Searing pain in my back made me groan as Erica and Liz helped me up. We carried Beth back behind our pile of furniture.

  I glanced into her eyes and she blinked. “I’m dying. Tell Christopher I love him.” Her eyes fluttered shut.

  “No!” I yelled, rocking her. “Don’t you die on me.”

  Tears streamed down my cheeks. I turned to Liz, my mouth gaping.

  “I can’t heal her by my
self,” she said. “There’s no other Immortals here and you’re broken!”

  “Try!” I begged.

  Liz placed her palm on her chest and closed her eyes, but it was obvious she didn’t have enough power to save her life. Pressing a hand against my own chest, I tried to still my frantic breathing.

  The stench of acrid fumes lingered, and the sound of Immortal voices echoed somewhere in the distance. My jaw dropped as more Immortals stretched across the hall, the scene playing out before my eyes as if in slow motion. Liz aimed and threw more fire balls again and again, watching them fall in all directions, but like a swarm of insects, more Immortals just kept coming.

  My hands were shaking like they’ve never shook before. I panted between breaths. I thought this could be the end for me and my unborn child. As the heat intensified all around me, a tear slipped down my cheek.

  The man in charge walked toward us holding out his hands as fire sprung from them to destroy us all. Liz held out her hands and streams of water poured from her palms. Hissing and crackling filled the air, like the sound of ice melting on a hot bed of coal. Water sprayed everywhere as it collided with the dancing flames in midair. I blinked the droplets out of my eyes.

  Erica flattened herself on the soaking wet ground. I could see how scared she was and she had every right to be freaking out. Getting out of this alive would be a miracle. But I wasn’t a quitter so I’d just keep fighting to live.

  Liz shot me a terrified look, water dripping down her hair and face. “I can’t hold him off forever.”

  “Just try!” Erica said.

  I stiffened as I glanced up. A towering surge of spray hovered above our heads as the Immortal pushed back the water with his streams of fire. Pushing back wet strands of tangled hair, I wiped my eyes.

  The Immortal was winning.

  “Concentrate! Fight harder, Liz!” I shouted, pulling at my wet dress.

  Water streamed off her hair and down her cheeks. She focused and a sudden wind howled, whipping her hair across her cheeks and eyes. A wave of water hovered above our heads and then rolled down with the momentum and force of a mighty tsunami. The mass of water smashed through the door, slamming into the Immortals like a giant fist.

  Within seconds, the Immortal stepped back through the door with an angry look. We’d definitely pissed him off. The back of my throat felt dry, and a rush of heat swept over me in spite of the cold water soaking my clothes.

  “The house is surrounded!” Erica yelled into my ear. “What are we going to do? I have to save Harvey!”

  Erica kept screaming for Harvey. I didn’t know if it was her sleeping son or boyfriend, or even her husband. My heart sank knowing there was another person in the house. I’d hoped the Immortals hadn’t killed him yet.

  Liz grabbed my arm. “I’m going to have to tap into that unstable energy of yours.”

  “What’s that going to do?” I asked.

  “It’ll be like squirting lighter fluid into a fire.”

  My unstable energy could hurt us as well. It would be like a bomb going off. Erica would die immediately if Liz lost control.

  “It’s our only option,” she said.

  I used her stupid symbolism right back at her. “Fine. Use the lighter fluid sparingly and evenly. We don’t need an explosion or more lives lost.”

  “I’m going to put us in a temporary protective bubble. So you don’t get electrocuted. It only lasts for a minute, but that should be enough time.”

  A yellow force field suddenly surrounded us as Liz blinked her eyes shut. Once the bubble was created, Liz’s eyes fluttered opened. As the Immortal threw streams of fire toward us, Liz grabbed my shoulder with one hand, and aimed with the other. As she tapped into my energy, I felt the biggest electric shock ever. She blocked the roaring flames from ever reaching us. The walls and the floor lit up in a blue, electric glow. A huge blaze of swirling electricity engulfed the remaining army. Their screams carried through the air as they crashed to the ground in trembling heaps as volts of electricity shook their bodies.

  Air whooshed from my lungs as I fell backward, splashing in the water. Hands wrapped around my throat and began to squeeze as I was held underwater. Guess Liz’s protective bubble wasn’t working anymore. My lungs burned and screamed for air. Dizziness flooded through me and I couldn’t breathe. I struggled to no avail. My head pounded. I tried to loosen the cold fingers but their grip was too tight. I felt around the water and my fingers wrapped around what I assumed to be a letter opener. With my last bit of strength, I swung at the Immortal’s head. He released me. I sucked in gulp after gulp of air. I couldn’t stop coughing. When I glanced down, the man was down for the count. He didn’t move one muscle.

  This acrid smell assaulted my nostrils, making me gag. My head ached with every single breath and I tried to keep from puking. The fire blazed high in every direction. The house was illuminated by a sea of flames and roared like a freight train. Wood crackled and snapped as they were devoured by the inferno of impenetrable heat rising all around us. The dense smoke, sizzling crackles, and blinding heat made my heart race something fierce. Suddenly the burning ceiling creaked and I glanced up. I took a step back, my entire body suddenly shaking. The burning timber fell toward my face as everything came crashing down.

  A scream froze in my throat.

  I took one last breath and closed my eyes. Victor’s face flashed in my head. I love you, Victor, I thought. My thoughts went back to the dream-like state Victor had taken me to when he proposed to me. I pictured glitter falling on him like snow while butterflies swirled all around him. I focused on his face and beautiful smile. The haze cleared a little, and my mind seemed clearer.

  Chapter 11

  Fiery wood beams fell on my legs, trapping me, pinning me helplessly to the ground. I screamed as the fire consumed my flesh. I knew this was it. I drew in choked breaths and peered around me, a sense of dread settling in the pit of my stomach and encompassing my entire body.

  It wasn’t the unstable energy that would kill me after all, but a house fire, followed by a gruesome beheading by a mob of angry blue-ringed Immortals. I let out one final scream as tears rolled down my cheeks.

  I could feel the cold wet carpet on my face as the flames roared all around me. And then the scene disappeared before me into complete blackness. I froze, my breath caught in my throat. Did I die? Suddenly, light started to emerge all around me. I tried to move but I couldn’t. Within seconds, my face was plastered in the soft, lush grass. Birds sang the most beautiful melodies and I wondered if I was in heaven. When I opened my eyes, my jaw dropped. Liz dropped next to me, Beth and Erica lay sprawled somewhere behind me. I spotted Beth’s car in the driveway. We were in Erica’s front yard. I was alive. My heart pounded. How? What was happening? I slowly stood trying to ponder what had taken place. One minute I’d been laying on a wet carpet with flames burning me, and the next, I was laying in the soft grass comforted by the soothing melodies of songbirds.

  “Sarah,” Beth said, a wave of confusion washing over her face.

  Joy overwhelmed me as my face lit up. I met Beth’s gaze and embraced her in a long hug.

  “You’re alive!” I shouted, my voice choked with emotion.

  “Yes!” Beth said, laughing. “I have no idea how.”

  Liz jumped up and let out a long breath. “It was me. I did a tiny time travel jump. We went back in time about an hour or so. Not really sure of the coordinates. It’s all I could muster up.”

  “How did you do that?” Beth asked.

  “It’s a very dangerous jump that many Immortals die even attempting. Charles made me swear to never use it. I figured we didn’t have any other options. I was dying anyway once those Immortals got their hands on me.”

  I hugged my sister in a giant bear hug. I couldn’t begin to express my gratitude. “You risked your life to save us. I can’t thank you enough.”

  She smiled. “I knew Mom was making her famous pot roast tonight. Can’t miss that.”

/>   I laughed as a tear rolled down my face. I realized my hands were shaking, and I took a few deep breaths to calm my nerves.

  “I can’t believe I’m alive,” Beth said.

  Beth rushed over to Liz and wrapped her arms around her as tears flowed down her face. “Thank you,” she said. “You fought so hard for us.”

  “I used every big trick I knew,” she said.

  I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart, but I couldn’t quiet the sudden panic inside at the prospect of Immortals invading this house at any given moment. And I sure wasn’t ready for Round 2.

  Erica was gasping between breaths.

  “It’s okay,” Beth said, throwing an arm around her like they were best friends.

  “But things haven’t changed,” Erica said, grimly. “They’re coming to kill us.”

  I swallowed hard. “Then let’s get the hell out of here.”

  “But I have to get Harvey,” she said.

  “Her son?” Liz asked. “I didn’t know there was a kid even here.”

  We let her run back inside. Terror filled me knowing her child would’ve died in that house fire as well. Liz chased her inside to destroy the tape. As long as that tape existed, it’d cause nothing but trouble for everyone involved.

  Erica came running out with an animal in her arms. When I peered closer, I noticed it was a pet skunk.

  Beth shielded her face from the sun. “Is that a...”

  “Yep. It’s a skunk.”

  “That’s Harvey?”

  I shook my head. “Must be.”

  “That’s not coming in my car!” Beth said.

  Liz waved the cage as she approached. “I’ve got something to put the loveable skunk in.”

  Beth shook her head. “Absolutely not!”

  “He doesn’t spray,” Erica said. “He’s my pet and I won’t leave him.”

  I petted the adorable Harvey. “He’s cute.”

  “It can come,” Liz said. “Let’s just hurry up and leave. And let’s take a back route so we don’t cross paths with those idiots by accident.”

  My eyes were still burning from all the smoke as I sucked in gulps of fresh air. When I looked back at the house, it was completely back to normal. I took several breaths to slow my racing heart. We all jumped back in Beth’s car including our new found friend Erica.