The Glorious Flame (#2)

Chapter 37

Rouhem

    He threw their bags onto the floor as Inferno flopped onto the mattress, tempting him with her round behind. He looked around at the simple setting. 

    One bed?

    This family of hers clearly had an agenda on their mind.

    "What time is it?" 

    Rouhem looked at the clock on the wall. "22:00." 

    "Jesus, and they're still holding that damn meeting?" 

    "Yeah, Jameson said the first cabin. We've officially got-" there was a knock on the door. "Zero seconds." 

    Inferno groaned. "There's no point in having the meeting. We get it, this person is mysterious. You know what's not mysterious? My serious case of sleep deprivation. I need sleep." 

    Rouhem couldn't agree more, but if it would help the process tomorrow run smoothly, then they would have to suck it up. "C'mon, let's get this over with." 

    "Fine!" She snapped. "Give me two seconds, gotta go to the bathroom." 

    His eyes were trained on her. "You should probably get that poppyseed outta your teeth while you're in there." She flipped him off and he grinned.

    Rouhem waited impatiently as he heard her turn on the sink water. He pulled out his phone and wondered if Brexon had charged the phone like he instructed him to? Probably not. He decided to send the text anyway. 

Rouhem: I think we've finally found a lead. 

    He bit his lip and studied the text.

Rouhem: She's my mate. We haven't...

Rouhem: But, I know she's mine. 

    He was forced out of his stupor when he heard a crashing in the bathroom. Then there was a scream.

    "Inferno!" He kicked the door down, nearly falling to his knees as he saw her on the floor, hunched over herself, clearly having yet another episode. 

    Rouhem immediately lifted her up into his arms. She struggled. She clawed at him. "Make it stop!" 

    "What do I do?" 

    She was incomprehensible, almost to the point that he was certain she was speaking gibberish. Black liquid began to fall from her eyes, and this made her scream once again. His heart was pounding and he became frightened beyond belief. "Inferno, tell me what to do!" 

    Her body was shaking uncontrollably and she began to cough. That same black liquid sprayed onto his neck and chest. She kept crying those inky tears. He had never seen her in such a panic. 

    Rouhem didn't know what else to do, so he turned on the shower water and took them both under the coolness of it. Her crying didn't stop or slow. "Hey!" He roared out. "Help us!" 

    He saw their cabin door explode open and in came the entire horde of people. At the front were Micah and Jones, close behind were her parents. 

    "She just collapsed," Rouhem shouted, "please help her." 

    "Oh, Jesus, Jameson," Aine cried out when she saw the state her daughter was in. Jameson wrapped his arms around her. 

    Micah and Jones kneeled beside the bathtub. 

    Jones attempted to take her wrist, but this seemed to worsen her state. He backed off immediately. 

    Micah grabbed her bare hand and nearly fell back from whatever sensations he had felt in response. "Jesús," he got out in between hard breaths. Inferno whimpered, practically snatching her hand away.

    "Do something!" Rouhem demanded. 

    Micah nodded. While still pale in shock, he became calm once more. "It appears to me that your touch is calming her. It would make sense if you are fated?" 

    Rouhem looked down at her beautiful face. "We are." 

    "Okay then, I'm going to need you to undress her and undress yourself. You need as much skin contact as possible." He looked back at the other people. "Give them some space. Wait outside. Actually, grab some of those healing herbs for the water for them, Ira." The brothers, including Jones, exited. The parents were not so quick.

    Both looked stubborn, but it was Jameson who spoke up first to his wife, "C'mon, love." 

    "She needs me," Aine whispered with glossed-over eyes.

    "C'mon, we'll check on them later." 

    Now, it was just the three of them.

    Micah turned a serious eye to Rouhem. "Have you had sex with her?" 

    Rouhem frowned, but knew he wasn't asking without purpose. "No." 

    "Sex is known to have healing properties when performed between soulmates." He nodded between the two with eyebrows raised.

    Rouhem scowled. He couldn't have been suggesting what he thought he was. "You're saying I can cure her with sex?" 

    Micah held the bridge of his nose. "No, but it would most likely alleviate some pain. Just think about it. When she's coherent again, talk about it with her." 

    Rouhem held her closer and placed a kiss on her head. "Alright." 

    "Okay, Rouhem, get to stripping." 

*****************************************************

     They laid in the tub for a while. Rouhem kept their underwear on. It just didn't feel right, exposing her like that without her permission. So, he held on tight and prayed to any god that would listen. He willed the pain to be his, and wished with every fiber of his being that the suffering would finally end for his pixie. 

     The bathroom lights were harsh to the eye, so Rouhem decided to transfer them onto the bed. Her whimpering slipped into silence, but Rouhem knew better. Her uneven breath and the vibrating he felt off her body was more than enough evidence that she was screaming on the inside. He could feel the echo of it in his heart, and he was certain that he too, was dying. 

     "I'm going to die," she whispered after a couple of hours passed. He could tell that she was still in slumber. Never would a conscious Inferno allow so much fear and vulnerability into her voice. 

     That sentence was like a bullet to his chest. He held her closer. "No, you're not. I won't let you." He was a man of his word. 

     He leaned back just slightly so that he could see the way the warm candlelight softened her features. Suddenly, courage bloomed. "I'm not letting you go. Not even death can take you. You want to know why? Because, you crazy pixie, I love you." 

    She remained as still as before. 

    Rouhem sucked in a breath as he realized what he said. He had meant every syllable that left his mouth. He had known for a very long time, maybe before he had hunted her down to Human Earth. He loved everything about her. They way she got so riled up at a moment's notice. Her wicked smile. How she could bring out the light in him like no one else in this universe. She was one of a kind, and she was his. 

    He looked down at her and wondered how many bullets she would empty into his body before she told him too?