Inside the Fire Book One in the Warden's Series (32 page)

He was staring at me astonished. I didn’t
know what to do so instead I collapsed to my knees crying. Suddenly
the images of what had been happening were tearing through my body
and I felt guilt, horrible guilt. I couldn't understand what had
just happened.

His arms were around me in a second holding
me close running his agile fingers through my hair, kissing my
forehead, telling me it would be ok. The want to own him still
lingered in the back of my mind my fingers still itched to cling to
him and I fought the urge to look at him with a seductive grin.

He had forgotten what had happened, he
couldn't have expected this, couldn't have known that I would have
cases of collapsing. That I would remember things, see things, and
be scared to death of any intimate moment for a long time. I should
be thankful for that, who knows what would have happened if I
hadn't been brought back to Earth.

“I forgot.” He soothed my tears holding onto
me tightly.

“It’s not your fault.” I sniffed.

“No, but when I saw you I wasn’t thinking.”
I let out a wet snort, and he kissed the top of my head again. “I
don’t know what I was thinking I suppose. Hormones tend to have a
mind of their own when your girlfriend shows up looking all
sexy.”

Did he really just call me his
girlfriend?

I was definitely not ready for that.
However, this was not the time for me to correct him.

“It’s ok, I wanted to,” I lied, “Then all I
could see was him and I felt so much fear.” I wiped my tears from
my eyes and looked at him through my eyelashes.

He softly touched my face and leaned in
putting his lips to mine. The kiss was light and was meant to be
only reassuring, but it sent a spark through my soul. I felt the
darkness in me squeal but I pushed it back letting the light
through. Maybe it was the fact he was comforting me after all that
had just happened, or maybe it was the fact that he made me feel
safe. I wrapped my arms around his neck and reciprocated the
kiss.

It deepened slowly, but effectively, my
heart slowly feeling warmth instead of rock hard ice, my veins icy
instead of full of fire. My body was confused, it had no clue what
was going on. What had not felt right only moments ago was now. It
felt as if I would die without his touch, without fulfilling this
incredible need, without filling this empty void.

What happened over the next half hour was
blurry and emotionally confusing. Though my body reacted pleasantly
to everything that he did I couldn’t help but close my eyes and
think of my Wesley, my sweet innocent Wesley. When I opened my eyes
again, I could see him hovering over me, that smile plastered to
his lips his blue eyes sparkling. My body felt warm and invigorated
like it was being mended, put back together all scars erased.

Except this wasn’t my Wesley. This wasn’t
the man my heart belonged to, Aaron was just a filler. A body to
keep the void in my heart open, but I didn’t want it open I wanted
it closed. I didn’t want to feel, and suddenly guilt washed over me
as Aaron shuddered. Rolling onto his side I noticed that everything
I had been seeing and feeling wasn’t what I was feeling for Aaron.
I still longed for my Wesley.

We laid there for an hour on his living room
floor, my head on his chest listening to his heartbeat and
thinking. This wasn’t going to work if every time he touched me I
thought of Wesley. Just like that the spell was broken.

"That was…" He paused running his hand up my
spine. "Amazing." he breathed kissing the top of my head.

"Yeah." This was all I could say.

It didn't matter what side of me he got, he
got me and I felt stupid. My heart hardened, my demeanor change,
and the only thought in my head was escape.

"I wasn't expecting that to be so…" He
breathed. “Perfect."

"This wasn't your first time was it?" I
asked softly. If I had taken another boy's innocence I would
scream.

“Oh no, Dawn, no there have been several
before you. You though, there is something about you. I could have
sworn at one point your eyes turned black. I would sell my soul to
be with you again,” He said quietly his heart pounding.

Time slowed, and I felt something click in
my brain but I wasn’t sure what it was. This was like what happened
with Wesley all those months ago. Only this time there was no woman
screaming in my head, there was just silence.

Dad was right. I needed to be more careful
otherwise I would hurt this boy. I may not feel anything for him
but I didn't need him getting to emotionally involved. I sat up and
grabbed my dress from the floor beside me struggling to get it on.
Aaron looked at me confused yet understanding as he grabbed his
clothes and put them on slowly watching me with his every move. I
glanced at him.

Did he know? Did he know that while we were
together I was thinking of Wesley? Of course he knew. How could he
not?

“I need to get home.” I said quietly pulling
my hair up in a messy ponytail.

“Yeah, your dad gives me the creeps. I don’t
want to be on his shit list.” He joked awkwardly.

I gave him a hesitant kiss on the cheek and
let him walk me to my car. He opened the door so that I could get
in. I gave me one last lingering kiss. “I will see you tomorrow.” I
said giving him a forced smile.

“I will be waiting.” He smiled back and shut
my door leaving me to the thoughts in my head and Disturbed on the
radio.

****

I had done the unspeakable. I had let a
simple emotion get the best of me, what started out as hot and
heavy left me feeling guilty. I had wanted to possess him. I had
wanted to own him. Then after fighting I had simply laid back and
used him to fulfill some inner daydream of Wesley.

I willed the cold into my soul and vowed I
would keep myself shut off from here on out. I was not going to let
that happen again. Sleeping with other men wasn’t going to make
Wesley go away. He was always going to be with me, always a part of
me. Even through the cold and ice in my chest I still loved him.
Today had just proven that no matter what I did his face would
haunt me.

The Claiming Explained

When I pulled into my driveway I wasn't sure
what I would be faced with. A familiar silver truck sat in my spot
and a familiar little girl was sitting on the tail gate sobbing
into her hands. I parked my car behind my mothers and flew out of
the driver’s seat tossing my keys to the side, slamming the door,
and taking off into a dead sprint to get to the little girl.

"Melissa!" The words were shrill as they
escaped my lips. She looked up at me with bloodshot eyes.

Jumping off the back of the truck she ran to
me throwing herself in my arms and sobbing into my shoulder. I
could feel the cold wet patches forming on the fabric of my dress.
I put my arms around her and held her close her tiny little frame
shaking.

"He's gone Dawn." She sobbed
uncontrollably.

"Who's gone?" I asked smoothing her hair in
an attempt to soothe the hysterical child.

"Wesley." I cannot describe my emotions.

There was panic, fear, and anger all pouring
through me at once. I gripped onto the child my eyes filling with
tears.

"What do you mean gone?" I asked praying it
wasn't as bad as the images in my head said it was.

"All his stuff is gone. His clothes, his
toothbrush, everything!" She whimpered.

"What happened Melissa, tell me everything."
My hands were shaking I was so scared.

He had run off with her I'm assumed
instantly.

What had she done to him, where was my
Wesley?

I felt a dark hardening in my chest and I
bit my bottom lip to stop from crying out in pain. My heart hurt,
like the stone that surrounded it was being chiseled through and
broken into tiny bits of dust. I fell to my knees the pain was
brutal. I bit my lip harder tasting the bitterness of blood flow
into my mouth.

Melissa was standing over me screaming but
all I could hear was the cracking of my stone heart. My mother came
running grabbing me by my arms, and when I screamed in pain she
dropped me. I lay in the gravel crying, clutching my chest my
mother racing back inside to grab my father. He was out in a flash
touching my face then my chest where my heart had stopped beating,
and he frowned.

My heart had stopped beating!

"Dawn?" I could hear him muffled through the
cracking.

I shook my head because the words would not
come out of my mouth.

"I need to get you inside. It’s going to
hurt but I have to." I nodded again as my father's arms lifted me
with not even a quiver of me being too heavy.

He carried me inside and laid me down on the
couch where he could look at me better. The crackling had stopped
for the most part but my heart still felt as if it was not
beating.

"It's not honey." He said to me touching my
face with his hands. "It will pass in a few minutes you have
already made it through the excruciating part." He held my hand for
another twenty minutes until the pain went away and I felt my heart
slowly start to beat again.

"What was that?" I said dryly my voice
coming out stressed.

My dad’s expression darkened, and he looked
at my mother.

"Angie, take Greg and Melissa to the kitchen
for some tea and cake." He smiled at Melissa as my mother ushered
them from the room.

When they were gone he looked at me
sternly.

“What you just experienced is absolute
heartbreak.” I looked at him like he had lost his mind.

What did he mean heartbreak?

From everything I had read it isn’t supposed
to feel like that.

He rolled his eyes.

“We feel it different from humans because we
are designed to deceive. So when someone deceives us it tends to
hurt a Hell of a lot more. I want your God’s honest answer on this
one Dawn." He glared at me. "Did you sleep with that boy?"

I couldn't say yes, but I couldn't say no. I
mean no would be a lie but this is not something that I want to
discuss with my father. So I nodded at him slowly.

"Jesus Christ, Dawn." He plunged his fingers
into his hair. "And Aaron?"

Now that was a touchy subject, so I looked
away as he flung himself to his feet.

"What part of they are human do you not
understand?" He was pacing the room. "It is one thing to love a
human it is another to actually claim them!"

"I think Aaron claimed me more than I
claimed him." I saw the horror cross my father's face and I
couldn't believe the words came out of my mouth. It made my stomach
turn.

"Oh please, Dawn I don't need details!" My
father sounded disgusted.

"So what was that?" I asked again sitting up
I could feel my strength increasing.

"That was you being dumped for the most
part." He said quietly.

"I dumped him though." I said back at him. I
had been the one to end the relationship, so why was I the one that
had to deal with all the pain?

“Ok let me be frank on this one. Wesley was
claimed by you, and he claimed you in return without even knowing
what he was doing. It can be something as simple as I love you or
I’m going to spend the rest of my life with you that can bind the
two of you together. It's kind of like a binding contract between a
human and a demon.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked
him.

“It is his way of giving you permission to
possess him." he looked lost in thought for a second and then his
eyes rolled, "I am humanish now. I used to be demonish, a bit of a
different form let me tell you. I had the ability to seem solid to
a human. They could touch me and feel me, but I had the ability to
possess their bodies as well. If I claimed them I was able to make
the contract binding. This meant I could possess their body any
time that I wanted until the contract was broken or somehow made
void." He smiled a half smile, like this explanation was way better
than the one he had first given.

“Good Lord Dad are you serious?” I felt my
heart pounding. I let out a sigh of relief feeling the sensation
again.

"Miranda is part demon, as well, so she has
the same ability as you to claim. It is probably done in the same
manner that you claimed him." He blinked and looked to his right
obviously uncomfortable with the conversation.

“That’s not good.” I groaned.

"When you and Wesley split neither one of
you let the contract go. Even though he didn't know he had one with
you it was still there. Pretty much when Melissa told you that he
was gone your body felt at that moment the breaking of the
contract." He looked at me again sadly.

“I don’t understand.” I crossed my arms over
my chest.

“Honey, he let you go. This doesn't mean he
doesn't love you still. It doesn't mean that he will be gone
forever. However, I'm not going to lie he's with another woman so
there is a good chance it is forever. I would assume that Miranda
was able to get him to agree to her charges, he is now hers.” He
looked miserable all of a sudden like he was remembering
something.

He put his hand to his chest. “He broke your
contract, you no longer hold a claim over him, and he no longer
holds a claim over you. However, because you’re a dumb teenager…"
He glared at me again. "You already allowed another human to claim
you. And I hate to say it, weather it was him you wanted or not you
reciprocated the claim. You can deceive all that you want to but
that boy will not feel anything. As a demon you can hold multiple
contracts however if he breaks the contract with you we are back
here again. Unless the breaking of the contract is mutual then you
will both just go on with life as normal."

“How do you know when a contract has been
claimed?” I asked softly.

“Well time seems to stop. If there is
already a claim on the human you will probably hear and agonizing
scream of the demon that he had the claim with. If there isn’t time
just slows and then rapidly picks back up.” He answered me and I
sighed. That explained that, I now understood how I was slowing
time.