Tested

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-One

“Okay, this is close enough,” Parker whispered when we came into view of the fire.

A fire brigade wailed in the distance. Guardians struggled to put out the flames, but the fire was Parker’s fear and anger; only he could deal with it. That woman was still there, throwing some kind of magic at the fire, her face creased with frustration.

“They’re so confused,” I said. “It’s the perfect fire.”

“If I could control it. I just need to calm down and stop feeding it.” He blew out a heavy breath. “That’s all. Not hard. Not hard at all.”

I took pity on him and held his hand. He stared at the fire and tried to concentrate. I felt his tension. He wasn’t dangerous. Not really.

As he calmed, so did the fire, gradually becoming less of an inferno. The woman had moved, standing directly in front of the building. As the fire drew back, she looked around and found us. She began to walk toward us.

“Run!” I cried, but when I tried to move, something stopped me. My legs felt tied together, and I almost lost my balance.

“What’s going on?” Parker asked. He grew anxious, and the roof of the building exploded.

“There you are,” the woman said, grabbing my arm. “A very important man desires your company.”

I tried to shrug her off, but she held tight. Her breathing grew heavy, her eyes murky but intense.

“I’m not going anywhere!” I struggled. My legs had been freed, but magic still held me to her.

“Let her go!” A burst of flame hit the woman’s hand, and my arm, flinging us apart.

“You little—”

“Jess!” Dad cried, running to us.

The woman gestured with her uninjured arm and Dad flew against a wall.

“Dad!” I ran to him, urging him to be okay. His eyes were dazed, but he was conscious.

Heat filled the air, making me sweat. A line of fire burned across the path, separating Dad and me from the woman and Parker.

“Parker?”

“Run,” he called over the roar of the fire. “She’s after you. She knows who you are. Get out of here. Don’t look back. I’ll be okay.”

I looked at Dad, terrified. “We can’t leave him. What do we do?”

“We run,” he said firmly. “We can find Parker later.”

I hesitated, but the fire wouldn’t burn forever. Parker would tire.

"Go, Jess!" Parker commanded.

“We’ll look for you!” I shouted, helping Dad to his feet.

The fire was too much. The heat, the smoke, and the flames from the building jumped and danced as if trying to reach the sky. Shouts of fear came from every direction. I took one last look at Parker. He was face to face with the woman, his arms held out and his hands balled into fists.

Dad and I kept running, as we always had. We would never rest easy, and I had lost yet another friend. A friend who had saved me from a woman who used magic that made my skin crawl.

Dad limped with me, and we reached the shop, but the old woman was there, wringing her hands as she stared at the fire.

“You can’t be seen coming in here now,” she said from the doorway of the shop. “But there are other places.” She shoved a piece of paper in Dad’s hand. “This is a safe place for you. Go there as quick as you can. Watch out. The streets are dangerous. Especially around here. Keep away from those Guardians if you have any sense, or they’ll make you sign the register. They take the children, so don’t let them have your girl, mister.”