Scorched

Chapter One

~

"Blaire!" The light haired boy yelled as he ran towards me, his dark brown eyes wide with fear as the police pushed me down onto my knees and handcuffed my wrists behind my back. The boy's lips parted in confusion as he watched helplessly, Nick was his name, his hands shaking at his sides. I looked away and swallowed tightly, my vision swimming as I was pulled up on to my feet and was shoved towards a black van. Everything went haywire. I wanted the man's hands off of me, but I didn't want him to die. Not at the time anyways. The edge of my fingertip brushed his wrist just the slightest and heat traveled through my veins. He screamed but it stopped almost exactly when it started. I turned around and saw the scorched corpse of the now unrecognizable man. He was dead.

~

I jumped awake, my heart hammering in my chest from the memory/dream. The image of Nick's dark brown eyes bore into my vision as I looked around slowly. The same room. The same ratty mattress, rugged blanket paired with the flat pillow, and the rusty faucet built into the wall that no longer worked. "Ms.Lockhart." The robotic voice echoed through the cell. Breakfast time. I always wondered where the voice came from, because I have memorized these walls and have not seen any indication of a speaker or anything like that. I stood and tip-toed to the solid iron door, waited till I heard the familiar click then took a step back as the door swung open. Two officers stepped forwards and I offered them my hands, which they gladly handcuffed. I felt their roughly gloved hands grab my arms and direct me down a hallway, I had grown tired of memorizing every crack and smudge on the floor of this facility and decided to study the men holding me here. The one on my left had dark graying hair, a square jaw and dark eyes. Creepy. I looked to my right and found a boy close to my age, maybe 18 or 19. His black hair, curled just a little bit at the edges, fell into his eyes and I tilted my head in a curious manor. Almost instantly I scolded myself. He was one of them, I hated him... I had too. I looked away as his gaze drifted towards me, suddenly feeling heat rise into my cheeks. Wow... All he did was look at me. I shook my head, letting my limp blonde hair cover my face from his view and looked down. After a few minutes the officers opened a door and walked me into the dining hall, if you could even call it that. It was mainly just a large room with rows of iron tables built into the ground in separated groups. The boy to my right loosened his grip on my arm just the slightest...I must've imagined it, they would never trust me enough to have even a little bit of freedom. This is why. Right when I felt his grip loosen I reached up and gripped his arm, my foot kicking out to trip him. I succeeded. He fell to the ground with a thud, his hand releasing my arm. I ducked expecting the other officer to swing at me, I was correct again, and slipped around him using the chain of my handcuffs to cut off his airway. I pulled the older man against me, tightening my grip around his neck. I could feel the metal from the handcuffs biting into my wrists but didn't really care, I welcomed the pain. The man's gloved fingers clawed at my arms desperately and I almost smiled, feeling the burn in my veins as I got ready to end his life but froze as the blue-eyed boy stood and pointed his gun at me "Let him go." He ordered, his hands shook just the slightest in hesitation, the fluorescent lights bouncing off the black metal. He wasn't going to shoot me. The thought flitted through my mind so suddenly it shocked me. I swallowed then slowly touched the man's neck lightly, fire burning through my fingertips. In under a second he was a burnt crisp on the ground. It was silent, the only sound was my own heart slamming in my chest. I looked up and the blue-eyed boy was staring at me with parted lips. He walked over to the burnt corpse and bent down, looking over the body before looking back at me "Damn..." his gaze was directed towards the other side of the room when several officers ran into the dining hall, pointing their guns at me "Code 9! Code 9! Asher! Get out the way you idiot!" A grey haired man yelled. The blue-eyed boy, Asher, blinked once then stood and joined the semi-circle of officers and lifted his gun to point at me as well. I sighed and pressed my lips together, staying where I was. They were going to take me back to my cell and not let me have dinner, normal punishment. Although this never happened: The grey haired man that had yelled at Asher nodded as he looked at something beyond my shoulder. Crap. Just as I turned to look at what he was nodding at, I felt a boot dig into my back roughly and suddenly the cement floor hit my face with bruising force. A male voice hissed right next to my ear "No dinner tonight." before hauling me upright and handcuffing my wrists behind my back roughly. The last thing I saw was Asher pushing through the men gathered in a tight semi-circle around me, then I felt a prick of pain on the back of my neck before I slipped into darkness.

~

When I woke, a pair of light blue eyes were staring down at me. I choked back a scream and lifted my hand, fully prepared to burn whoever the hell was invading my personal space. Asher jumped back and lifted his hands in innocence "I'm unarmed." He announced quickly, a small smile tugging at his mouth but it faded after a moment "He wasn't supposed to throw you that hard." He sounded as if he were speaking to himself, which kinda freaked me out. His hand was suddenly touching my cheek and I reacted immediately, slapping his hand and pushing my back up against the wall. He frowned for a moment before shrugging and backing up a few steps, his gaze intently studying me. I bit the inside of my mouth and pressed my lips together, not liking the way he was staring at me "What are you doing?" I could hear the flatness in my voice... I need to talk more. He shrugged slightly and stuffed his hands into his pockets, his sleeves moving up on his arm to where I could catch a glimpse of dark ink. He had a tattoo. "Nothing." His voice was impassive as if it wasn't strange that he was standing in the middle of my cell in the middle of the night. I decided then to change the subject "I was drugged." I didn't try to hide the accusation in my voice, I know me didn't do it personally but he was one of them so... He kinda earns some of the blame. He nodded slowly, rocking back on his heels carelessly "Yes, you were." I rolled my eyes at his response and looked to the right, starting to count the cracks in the wall again. I wasn't going to talk to a guy who was just going to act like I was five years old. I counted 15 by the time he finally spoke "Are you hungry? You didn't eat yesterday." I shook my head after he spoke, continuing to stare at the wall. Sensing him move closer, my body stiffened at his movement. "You have to eat, Ms.Lockhart." I could hear the grin in his voice and it irritated me. I turned to look at him and narrowed my eyes "If your going to kill me, can you do it now? I don't think I can handle any more of this idiotic conversation." My irritation caused my face to flush with heat, giving me what little warmth I can acquire. He took a step back, something flashing in his eyes...pain? But, it had disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared. He cleared his throat and ran his fingers through his hair "Your quite agitating." I raised my eyebrows as he spoke and clenched my jaw slightly "I'm agitating? Your the one who won't leave me alone." A flicker of amusement flashed through his eyes as he watched me, staying quiet. I scoffed and looked to the side, at a particularly large crack in the cement wall. "You act as if I'm the bad guy when I'm only trying to help." A flash of Nick's dark brown eyes flitting in my thoughts, hadn't he said something similar to me once...I couldn't remember but I was vaguely bothered by his choice of words. When I looked over at him, Asher was staring at me like he was waiting for something. Raising my eyebrows, I shook my head and leaned back against the wall "You are the bad guy." He grinned suddenly, his blue eyes brightening "What's your name?" I was a little confused at the random topic change and at why he wanted to know my name... But some voice in the back of my mind egged me on to tell him "Blaire... My name is Blaire."