fire starter | l.s [1]

twenty-seven

Liam called out my name as if it belonged to a god. The screams ripped from his throat but I didn't turn around, I pushed past a group of frightened teenagers. It was cruel to ignore him, but he had to understand that I was doing this to keep him and his friends safe.

Knowing that he was at a high price on the skip-tracer network, he had to be kept safe and not on Clancy Gray's bad side. I could only hope that he understood that. Soon, Liam's cries stopped, or I had drowned them out with my own thoughts. Distressed teenagers were running at me from all sides, knocking into me and not bothering to even mutter an apology. I didn't mind, there were more important things at hand. 

Finally, I had reached the edge of the forest and the camp looked completely destroyed. The once white tents that had housed us for the past month had collapsed with burnt holes littered across it. My eyes scanned the almost vacant area, trying to find any sign of Ruby or Clancy. 

There was a loud whirring sound above my head, causing me to divert my attention up to the sky. Two helicopters had crashed into each other, sending them flying towards the ground. A gasp escaped my dry lips as my eyes searched desperately for Ruby. I spotted her almost instantly, her eyes trained on the falling aircraft. 

Kicking the soles of my feet off the ground, I dashed towards her and pushed her body away from the fire. During the process, I managed to hold up a shield of my own fire, protecting me from the blow. I felt an unfamiliar sensation occur at the tips of my fingers as I absorbed the fire. When it had cleared from the air, I dropped to my knees to check if Ruby was okay. 

"Are you alright," I asked softly, ignoring the headache pulsing behind my eyes and around my head.

Ruby nodded slowly, holding a hand over the side of her head. I put my arm around her shoulder, pulling her up into a seated position. I brushed my fingers over her busted lip, collecting the dripping blood and wiping it on my pants. 

"That was quite impressive, Amelia," said a chilling voice from behind my back. 

"Back away Clancy, I'm not afraid to fry you into smithereens," I warned, turning towards him and pushing myself up from the ground.

"Don't try to fool me, I know your plan and it doesn't involve killing me," Clancy smiled and looked behind me, at Ruby. 

"Wha-what is he talking about?" Ruby asked from behind me.

I turned to her, she was on her feet now. I stared at her for a few seconds before looking back at Clancy. Ruby asked again, this time her voice was more demanding. My eyes drifted to the dirt on the floor, Clancy's laugh filling my ears. It wasn't a laugh laugh though, it was something more sinister. 

"She wants to go with me, in order to keep you guys safe. Keep you off the network. How selfless," Clancy explained, taking a step closer to us.

"Amelia, are you dumb? You're really going to do this to Liam? To us?" Ruby asked, anger lacing her words.

"It's to keep him safe! And to keep you safe," I argued, my eyes meeting hers now.

"I don't care! We have to stick together," Ruby explained, reaching out to grab my wrist but I pulled away before she got the chance. 

"Sticking together isn't going to keep us safe, Ruby. Look, we tried to escape and Clancy is clearly angry and he clearly had other plans for us. Just, let me do this. As a thank you," I sighed as I watched Ruby's dark eyes gloss over with tears.

She whispered a soft protest, her face falling. Clancy pulled out a device from his pocket, it looked something like a touchscreen phone. Ruby and I waited in silence as he dialed a number on his phone and brought the device to his ear.

The conversation was quiet, and I couldn't make out what Clancy was saying but I could tell by the accomplished look on his face, it wasn't going to be good. One of the PSFs who wasn't lying face down in the dirt had come over to me and roughly pulled my wrists up towards him. Despite Ruby's protests, the man clamped a pair of handcuffs tightly around my wrists. 

"Amelia, you don't have to do this," Ruby cried out as Clancy placed a hand on my shoulder, beginning to turn me away from her.

"I know but I want to. I'm sorry," I say, digging my heels into the dirt so I could at least say goodbye to Ruby. "Ruby, please tell Liam that I'm sorry." 

The girl nodded with tears in her eyes, ready to reply but it was cut short by the whirring of a helicopter flying from above. The PSF gripped my shoulder tightly and turned me fully around, shoving me forward. I almost tripped over my own feet but caught myself before I could hit the ground. 

As the helicopter landed, I felt my heart sink. Closing my eyes slowly, I pressed my lips together and sighed through my nose. There was a weird feeling in my gut but it wasn't the usual anxiety. I wasn't scared, surprisingly. It felt more like a loss, loneliness. I knew I was doing it for him. To keep him safe, and I hope he did too but I missed him. I missed him so much. Already, we'd barely spoken to each other over the course of two weeks and now I was leaving him, for god knows how long. 

The doors of the chopper swung open and half a dozen men jumped down onto the grass. One of them walked straight toward me, holding a pair of rubber gloves in his hand. The man was middle-aged, wrinkles revealing his old age and I was at least 3 inches taller than him. His large hands reached out and grabbed for my constrained ones. The older male slipped them from the cuffs and slide the gloves on. He then brought the cuffs back to my wrists, locking them tighter than what they had been before.

"Okay, let's get this show on the road," Clancy clapped his hands together, "We've already got the Leauge on our tail so we better get out of here."

And with that final order, I was thrown into the back of the helicopter, accompanied by all the PSFs and their wondering eyes. Usually, I would have minded, I would have been uncomfortable but this was for Liam. I'd do anything for Liam.

the end. 

thank you for all the support on this story. it means the absolute world to me. 

sequel coming soon.