Let It Burn

Chapter 4

Goston is a gorgeous town. Every street lined with trees looks like the subject matter of an autumn painter's latest masterpiece. The trees are in perfect contrast; it's as if someone planned it that way. One yellow, one orange, one red and brown, and one green are in a row. I admire their color as the car slows to a stop at a nearby gas station.

"Gotta fill up," Ian announces. "I don't want to stop on the way back home more than once." He exits the car. "I'll be right back."

As soon as Ian is gone, Holden turns to me. Worry clouds his handsome face, and I cup his cheek.

"What's on your mind?" I ask, but I already know the answer. How could Ian put so much pressure on him?

A frown creases his forehead. "I'm having doubts about doing this. We're about to go into a place we've never been alone, two sixteen-year-olds who have never left their hometown, and my anxiety is through the roof."

"What happened to us taking on the world as long as we're together?"

"When did I say that?"

"Homecoming. It was our last dance, and you gave me this amazing kiss."

It was a night I'd never forget. Six pages of my diary are about Homecoming, the night that solidified my love for this boy.

Holden smiles. "Believe me. I remember the kiss." He moves my hand from his face but doesn't let it go. "But this is different, Iris. It could be life or death." He gazes down at the cross around his neck. "And it very well could be death."

Silently, I let my brother have it. We will talk about this when it's all over.

"I'm not helpless, you know," I remind him. "I've gotten you to the ground before."

He chuckled nervously. "I remember."

Dad taught Ian and me self-defense techniques when we were younger. He said we might need them someday. He used to make us practice on each other. Ian was always the attacker, which I found rather sexist, but I didn't even know what that word meant then. I took Holden down with one of the moves before we started dating. He tried to make a move on me. I was playing around, but it scared the crap out of him.

I still like to tease him about it.

"The point I'm trying to make is that it's not all you, Holden. I'll be there, too, and we'll make it through this. We'll protect each other."

His eyes widen briefly, and then a smile settles on his lips. "I love the faith you have. I'm so pessimistic, especially at times like these. I wish I had a tenth of the faith you seem to."

My lips graze his cheek. "I love you just the way you are, Holden."

He blushes and kisses my lips. The bell of the gas station door pulls us apart. Ian would flip if he thought we were making out in his car.

Ian comes back to the car and fills it with gas. When he gets back into the driver's seat, he's scowling. He glances over his shoulder. "People around here are nosy. The cashier grilled me about where I was headed and said there wasn't much in the direction we were going but Crimson Pass. I perked my ears when he mentioned it. I asked him if there was something wrong with going there. He leans forward on the counter and whispers that the town is closed. I acted like I had no idea and asked him the reason."

"What did he tell you?" I ask eagerly.

Ian grins. "You were right, Iris. The official reason is that there's a gas leak, and they've evacuated all its citizens. The cashier said he knew it wasn't true. He revealed that his cousin lives in Crimson Pass, and he hasn't moved a muscle. Then the guy tells me he was going to call and get the truth about what's going on there, but his cousin's phone is disconnected. He says his cousin pays his bills religiously, so he reckons the town has cut everyone off. Spooky, huh?"