The Devil She Knows

Prologue

I screamed in agony. Every part of my body seemed to be on fire. I tried to wiggle and move my body however my arms were hung up above me, tied by a very thick rope that didn't seem to be giving away anytime soon. 

Around me, the fire raged. It reached my ankles which were probably burned and charred to pieces. Something wet touched my cheeks. I struggled some more, the ire now licking up my calves, although the blindfold that covered my eyes made it impossible to see anything. 

I felt helpless as I continued to struggle, the fire my unrelenting opponent and time my worst enemy. I couldn't even think straight because of the smoke that clutched my throat in a tight grip, not allowing oxygen to pass through. 

"Focus Cecilia. If you do not want to die tonight, I suggest you do something. Otherwise it would be very disappointing to find your charred remains on the ground." A voice from the speaker phone behind me spoke. 

He was right. I must survive. For no reason other than he indicated I should. I stopped struggling for a moment and let my body do what I thought it needed to do to get free. 

Using my muscles, I hoisted my legs up and around the rope that tied my hands. Using muscles and the force of sheer will, I hung on as if my life depended on it, which it kinda did. Since my eyes were blindfolded, I had to depend on my other senses to get me out. 

I completely stilled and expanded my senses outward. I could hear the flames slowly trying to grap me but failing because of the height. I could smell the sweet crisp of the fire below and the smoke which slowly tried to suffocate me.

I could also smell the stale scent of the room which suggested I was probably in the testing chambers. Again. I could practically taste how dry my mouth was which meant I would have to work fast. 

Using my senses, I felt around the ropes to get a good visual image. I felt a knot that looped around each wrist twice before entangling itself into a big mess.

I smiled for the first time in what felt like forever. I made quick work of the celtic knot that bind my arms, making sure to keep a tight grip on the rope. One of the first things Salvatore taught me was how to unbind knots. Well, one of the first things Salvatore hired my teachers to teach me. Then killed them after they were known to be misguided about their intentions. 

After about 2 minuets, my arms were loose and I hung on only by my legs. I tore off the blindfold and saw what my senses had already told me. 

The fire reached out and receded again, but not after it caught on some of the bottom of my hair. I looked at my hair for a moment. Fascinated as a very small part of the fire ate away at my hair slowly, as if it was a minor obstacle to the real prize. Me. 

Remembering that, I grabbed the end piece, quenching the fire before it did any damage. Well more damage than it had already. 

With my legs, I swung my arms up and around the rope, looking below. I could barely see anything, my eyes watered as I tried to navigate through the thickness of the smoke. Knowing it was useless, I closed my eyes and once again expanded out my senses to help me. 

I could sense the fire as it grew twice the amount as before, and had to climb higher on the rope to avoid getting burned. Although this caused 2 new problems for me. The smoke was even more thicker if that was possible and the end of the rope was very close to the fire, fearing it might catch on. 

I coughed and kept a vise-like grip on the rope. There! I turned my head to the direction I smelled a tiny bit of fresh air. The smoke had divided up for a second before closing up again. 

The end of the rope caught on fire and that signaled the end of my time. Without knowing what lay in front of me, I jumped into the smoke. 

The years of training and DNA allowing me to jump way farther than the average human. I landed in a THUD sound, rolling to allow momentum to carry me instead of lying in a heap at the floor.