Love That Burns

five

"But it's a Saturday, James," you complained as you sat naked on the bed while James got dressed. "You shouldn't have to work on a Saturday."

James couldn't help but laugh at how cuter your whining was. "I'm sorry, baby," he replied with a smile. "Not all of us can afford to take weekends off."

"Hey!" You pouted. "Don't be like that."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He came over and pecked your lips. "Why don't you get dressed and drive with me there?"

"Fine... I have some errands to run anyway." You leaned in, kissing him again. "But next Saturday, you're all mine."

James chuckled. "Fine by me, sweetheart."

~~~

James drove as the two of you headed to his work. He kept a hand on your knee the whole drive there. When you arrived, he parked and turned to face you.

"Love you, sweetheart," he told you before kissing you.

"Love you too," you replied when the took of you broke the kiss.

He got out of the car and you slipped over to the driver's seat. Turning slightly, James shot you a smile before heading off with his coworkers. You drove off, heading to do some much-needed errands.

~~~

Hours later, you were on your way back to pick up James when you saw a man standing in the road, not too far in front of you. Immediately knowing who it was, you stopped the truck. Victor took slow steps towards you as you got out of the car.

"You don't want to do this, Victor," you told him, feeling your hands begin to heat up.

"Actually," his nails extended and he dragged them across the front of the truck, "this is exactly what I want to do."

Victor lunged forward. You threw your arms out, directing a large flame towards him. He cried out as he stumbled a few steps back. You turned and ran off into the woods. You could hear him following. Throwing a fireball behind you, Victor narrowly dodged causing you to hit the truck instead. You were running out of energy, fast, having not trained or practiced your powers much since leaving the team.

Victor used a tree to fling himself at you, his nails pushing into your back. You cried out as you fell forward. His nails ripped down your back, leaving large gashes. He spun you around, slamming your open wounds into the ground. Suddenly, you felt something injected into your neck.

"Ah!" You cry out, another surge of pain.

Victor's nails pressed into your neck as his hand curled around it. "Don't worry, sweetheart," he smiled, "you won't be dead for long." Squeezing your neck, he forced your world to go black.

~~~

James could smell the smoke before he heard cries of pain. His coworkers called out for him as he broke into a run in the direction he believed it was coming from.

"Y/N!" He shouted, knowing it was you. The smoke your abilities caused had a different scent, one he knew well. "Y/N!"

James ran until he reached the truck. Smoke billowed from the vehicle engulfed in flames. He ran to the driver's side, trying to see if you were still in there. It didn't know what to think when you weren't. His eyes caught sight of the gashes up the front of the truck, causing his heart to plummet.

"Y/N!" He ran off, following the scent of the smoke and now your blood. "Y/N!"

James stumbled to a stop when he caught sight of your clothes through the trees.

"No," he breathed out before stumbling toward you.

You were laid out behind some trees. Dirtied and bloodied. He could see the wounds that hadn't healed and smell the grass that had burnt beneath you. James came crashing to his knees beside you, shaking hands trying to feel for a pulse along your neck. You were so cold. He didn't realize how warm your powers kept you until this moment.

When he couldn't find a pulse, James' hands went around you, pulling you towards him. Tears of anger and sadness fell from his eyes and a roar built up inside of him. Throwing his head up, he let the screaming roar out, releasing the emotions held inside of him with it.

James' head fell to your still chest as he sobbed. This wasn't supposed to happen. He was supposed to keep you safe. You were supposed to marry him. The two of you were supposed to live long lives together. Now you were lying lifeless in his arms, your body not even healing yourself from the injuries that Victor had caused.

Victor. Anger grew towards the man James once called his brother. No more. A brother would not do this. Everything inside James was screaming to go after Victor. But what about you? What would he do with your body? You deserved more than to just be buried in the forest.

Grounding his teeth together, James stood up with your limp body in his arms. With a set determination, James carried you all the way to the place you once called home. It was no longer a home to him. Not without you. As gently as he could be, James changed you into a clean set of clothes. The ring on your finger caught his eye, forcing tears into them once again. He pulled the ring off of your finger and searched for one of your plainest and longest necklaces. He looped the ring through the necklace before clasping the chain around his neck.

James pulled the blanket from where it was tucked between the mattress and carefully wrapped your body up in it. He left you on the bed while he dug a hole near the edge cliff outside of your home. Crying, he placed you in the hole before covering you up and marking the grave with a plank of wood. He knelt next to the new grave, shoulders slumped and head hanging.

"I'm so sorry, baby," he whispered, voice breaking. "I should have been there... I should have protected you..." Sorrow transformed into anger. "I am going to find him and I am going to kill him."

~~~

Stryker was walking through your now abandoned home, Agent Zero on his trail.

"Where is Logan now?" Stryker asked.

"The police were just called to a bar and nearby train depot," Zero explained. "Victor injured Logan and left him there."

"Good. They'll take him to the hospital and I'll talk to him there." Stryker paused as he noticed something on the cliffside outside of the house. "Grab the shovel. I found her."

Stryker walked outside while Zero went to get the shovel. He paused in front of the plank, marking the new grave.

"Shame," Stryker muttered, "this is a beautiful view."

Zero joined Stryker and began digging up your body. As soon as he was able, Zero pulled you out of the hole and set you on leveled ground. Zero cut through the blanket with a knife before he got a syringe out of his coat and jabbed it into your neck. You woke with a gasp before immediately being thrown into a coughing fit.

"James?" You rasped as the coughing died down.

You looked around and realized that you were on the ground near your home. Stryker and Zero were looming above you.

Stryker chuckled darkly as he crouched down beside you. "Not even close," he responded. "And, if all goes to plan, you will never see him again." Stryker stood up. "Get her to the Island and then meet me at Alkali Lake. I've got to make a hospital visit."