Max sprung from the car before Sammy could even put it in park, dashing down the street where the old lady saw Ember.
When all sidewalks were empty, he buried his hands in his hair, letting out a frustrated growl.
But he took a deep breath, closing his eyes and focusing on all thoughts.
Jesus... when can we close so I can go home?
Not her.
Why do all these puppies look so adorable? I just wanna rub my face on them.
Not her.
But then he paused, hearing a soft mind sobbing silently:
Where do I go now? I have no one...
Ember.
He kept his eyes closed, following the sound of her mind in hopes to find her.
It was freezing out here, the sidewalks drenched with a previous rain.
I'm so cold... and hungry... and so tired... but I can't sleep...
She was getting closer.
I'm hurting... he could feel her curling up and holding herself, making something sharp pierce his heart, I'm hurting!
He was almost there, her voice was growing louder.
Make it stop... please someone make this stop!
He opened his eyes, the sound of her mind drowning out by a rattling air conditioner.
She was here-somewhere.
He was in an alleyway of sorts; one that was big enough to have trucks rolling through it, but he searched the darkness for her, not finding her form.
But he stepped further in, listening for any voice or whisper...
He heard something else, though.
Sobbing-faint sobbing.
He followed the sound, circling around a bunch of trashcans to find a girl there, curled up on the concrete.
Ember.
She was shaking, shuttering, crying.
An empty bottle of water rested next to her, blowing gently in the wind.
He knelt down in front of her, eyes softening as he lifted his hand and brushed the back of his fingers along her arm, something inside him shattering at all the goosebumps prickling from her skin.
Ember stiffened at the feeling, gazing up.
She shot up and scrambled away from him, shaking her head.
He remained in his position, staring at her gently.
"How did you find me?" she questioned, eyes glowing with sorrow and regret.
"That's not important," Max whispered, making her face crack slightly, "what I need you to do right now is to come back to the hotel with me, okay?"
She shook her head, tears slipping down her cheeks.
"Ember," he warned.
"You told me that I only think of myself!" she sobbed, face breaking. "If you really think that, why are you doing this?"
He breathed out softly. "I didn't mean it."
"Yes, you did," she spoke.
"I didn't," he responded, looking up.
YOU ARE READING
Hell Fire (Wild Fire: 2) (FINISHED)
Teen FictionHe's dangerous, but I love that about him. Two months ago, I met Maddox Jones; a stuck-up teen boy who suddenly stepped into my psychology class in the middle of the semester; the same man who vowed on the day my father died, to protect me. I was a...
