Heart of Fire

Chapter Two

I clearly didn't think this through. I stop in front of the large gates of the castle, the heavily armed guards standing in front of them. I need a second to gather my thoughts before going in there to see the man who murdered my parents.

As I stand here, the guards simply look at me, shifting awkwardly on their feet as if they are the ones uncomfortable in this situation.

They must know about me then. Kenton approaches from behind me and lightly grabs my arm, urging me further. I immediately rip my arm from his grasp.

"Don't touch me." I demand, still not going through the gates.

Kenton sighs, rubbing his forehead frustratingly. It brings joy to me to know how easy it is to get under his skin.

"You cannot just stand out here, you actually have to go inside." He says, impatient and inconsiderate.

Not listening to him, I stay where I am standing, not making a move to go into the castle. This isn't something simple and easy. This is exactly what I've been trying to avoid for the past five years. Something like that will make a person hesitate, justified or not.

"I will go in when I want to. You are lucky I came here in the first place." I say. Not exactly true, seeing as though he most likely would've dragged my dead body here himself before letting me run away. Right now, being dead almost seems like the better option. Almost.

Kenton doesn't speak for a few moments, his only movement being to cross his arms across his broad chest, his eyes not leaving mine. I don't say anything either, trying to keep my focus on staying calm and not immediately going to rip my way through the castle and murder every living thing in it slowly and painfully. Well, everyone except for Hudson.

Wait, Hudson.

Shit.

"Where is Hudson?" I demand.

Kenton looks at me in confusion, as if that was the last thing he expected to hear from me. Yet, he knew about Hudson sneaking off to see me. He knew and didn't say a word to his father or any guards. Why didn't he? Another question for another time, I suppose.

"He's in the Castle." He starts, "Maybe you could see him if you went inside instead of standing out here like a coward." He says, clearly still annoyed.

Hearing that Hudson is just inside those doors is enough for me to start walking through those gates, the hesitation in my steps vanishing in an instant.

"Take me to him, I want to see him before talking to your father." I say, not looking back at him. I won't take no for an answer.

Kenton catches up with me in a few steps, his long legs making it easy compared to mine. Not that I'm the size of a child, I'm merely a few inches shorter than any average woman. He is just so ridiculously enormous that he practically towers over me. I take a mental note to add that to the list of things I dislike about the brute.

"You know, I was told to bring you to my father right away, but yes of course, let's do whatever the hell dearest Adira wants to do!" He says sarcastically.

I roll my eyes at his commentary. If he wanted to fight me on this, I would be able to keep up with no trouble. I was trained the same way the castle guards are, the same way he was trained, if not better. I'd like to find out, but that will have to wait for another day. Right now my focus is on getting to Hudson before King Batsian gets to me.

The moment I step into this dreaded place, everything feels different. The air is heavy and stuffy, the stone walls making the inside a bit too chilly, it smells like metal and sweaty man. I hate it. It brings me right back to what my life once was, like I am once again 13 years old, running around with Hudson, playing pranks on Kenton and laughing when we would see him get upset over them. Back when I didn't hate everything and my life wasn't a big game hide and seek. I can't breathe in here. Kenton must notice my shift in energy, because his tone softens as he speaks to me.

"Come on, Hudson should be in his room."

I fall into step next to him, staying quiet. I'm afraid to speak in fear of him hearing weakness in my voice. I try to steady my breathing, my heart is beating way too fast to appear calm.

We get to Hudson's room quite quickly considering the size of the castle. Kenton knocks on the large door twice before stepping back beside me. A few moments pass before the door opens, revealing a very stressed out version of my best friend. His eyes land on me immediately, then they flicker to Kenton so fast I wonder if I imagined it. Kenton isn't the only one who has changed over the past five years. Hudson matured as well, though I guess I never really noticed since I've seen him every month, unlike Kenton.

Before I can get any words out, I'm wrapped in familiar arms, holding me as if I would disappear if he let go. He holds me like he would on those late nights, when I was shaking and crying and lost. He was there for it all. He saw me at my worst and he watched as I picked myself up, he was the only person I would ever let see that side of me.

Kenton clearing his throat causes Hudson to break his hold on me. He pulls back, keeping his hands on my shoulders, looking over me as if searching for any sign of injury. Surprisingly I haven't ended up with any, yet. I assume that Kenton told him that he was going to look for me and that they found out about me having abilities.

"I'm so sorry Adi, I tried to stop him from going to you, I promise I didn't tell them anything. Did he hurt you?" Hudson blabbles, scanning me for any sign of harm once again. I shake my head, not needing an explanation nor an apology from him.

"It's fine, I'm okay." I say sincerely.

Truthfully, I'm far from okay, but I need him to believe that I am, he can't be worrying about me all the time. He has already gone through that one too many times with me.

"Have you spoken to my father yet?" He asks me.

Kenton cuts in before I can answer.

"No she hasn't, she insisted on seeing you first, but I can assume he is growing impatient." He adds, grumpy as ever.

Hudson looks at him with nothing but pure repulsion. I haven't forgotten about all the times Hudson told me about his feelings toward his brother; their relationship isn't particularly in a good place. He would tell me how Kenton would shut him out or how he was purely hateful towards everyone. Not that they were ever that close, or that he was ever a joyful person. He was always distant when we were younger, always thinking in his own head, not bothering to talk to either of us. He was, and still is, a complete mystery to me. A mystery I can't seem to care enough about to unravel. Though I can imagine his father has a lot to do with his behavior.

"Well then, let's not keep him waiting any longer." I say, shocking myself with my own words. I realize that I will have to face my nightmare sooner or later. I will never be ready, but it must be done.