Trial by Fire

Chapter III

Arron's eyes fluttered open as the stark fluorescent lights shined down on him. His mind was still hazy as his head spun around trying to gauge where he was.

"Slow down kid, you're okay," the soft voice of his aunt came from somewhere in the room.

The haze slowly lifted from his mind as he took in his surroundings. He was in a grey room, shadows covering most of the walls. His aunt was kneeling in front of his concern in her eyes. He could see about four more figures, the closest seemed to be a shorter woman with brown hair on top of a table with a lanky male next to her.

"Where I am? Really" Arron asked his eyes narrowing suspiciously. The lanky male stepped into the light as the room grew colder. The cold blue eyes bored into Arron as he answered

"You're in a safe house off the coast of Eve and Summer's bay," He seemed to be unbothered by the temperature. A stoic expression present on his face and Arron could help but be intimidated.

The shorter woman rushed up next to him with a bright smile that started to put Arron at ease.

"Yep, you're perfectly safe and Alexander," she said looking up at the taller man, "Stop with the ice, you're scaring the kid." With a sigh, the temperature returned to normal as a small blush appeared on the pale-skinned man. She snuggled closer into the male's chest as Arron looked away from the happy scene sensing that it was private. His aunt stood up with a small sigh as she offered a hand out to the still confused boy. Arron cautiously took the hand not fully trusting the woman who had just drugged him.

"I'm sorry about the water kiddo, but you really needed some rest and couldn't well have you freaking out when you saw this place," Melly said pulling Arron off the cold metal seat with minimal effort. She was much stronger than she looked.

"Why would I have freaked out?" Arron asked finding his footing on the cold concrete floor. Melly looked at the other people for an answer. The small woman walked over to the front of him with an unreadable expression. She sighed looking at Melly with eyebrows raised.

"Just tell him," Melly sighed turning away. Arron's confusion grew as his breathing became labored. Melly never hid anything from him, that was one of the few reasons he trusted her. He could feel his pulse speeding up, a steady thump in his mind.

"How do I put this.... I suppose I should be blunt about this. Kiddo, we're villains," The sorter woman admitted. What... no this can't be real, she has to be joking. Aaron's mind spun as the edges of his vision went hazy. Warning lights flashed in his subconscious warning him to get his breathing under control. His chest tightening he backed up, stumbling over the chair he was formally sitting on. He quickly whipped around to face a looming figure. Two tall hands gripped his thrashing arms, holding him still. He looked up to see soft green eyes that seemed out of place on the man's face, made up of harsh lines and gruff features. Still panicking, he didn't register the calm voice talking to him. In the back of his mind, he could register the unnatural ringing in his ears but it couldn't drown out the pounding of his heart and his harsh breaths. His eyes clamped shut letting tears stain his cheeks. Is mind went blank as pure panic overcame his scenes.

"No ...no this can't... b-be real," his voice was weak and uncertain, but it was there. Melly knew that meant that he was only in the third stage of a panic attack. She rushed over to him as the taller man handed him over watching the boy curled up into himself. She whispered soothing things into the anxiety-ridden boy's ears. She stroked his hair carefully not wanting to frighten him more. He could faintly see a light shining down on his face as a calm began to spread within him. He unconsciously snuggled into her hand his mind started to clear. The tears began to dry on his face as they slowed to a halt. As he gathered his thoughts, he pushed away from the older woman. His jaw tightened and his eyes flitted around the room. They held a mix of fear and betrayal as he spoke,