Read Scorch Online

Authors: Kaitlyn Davis

Tags: #Vampires, #love, #paranormal romance, #Fantasy, #Magic, #Young Adult, #heroine

Scorch (4 page)

BOOK: Scorch
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"But there is one thing that scares me about
this girl, something I would not bring up if the situation were not
so dire. She is good, completely good down to the core. So good in
fact, that destroying evil things feels just. Unlike Punishers, who
kill for the job, because it is what we were put on this earth to
do, Kira kills for the vindication it brings, for the sense of
rightness that settles inside of her heart. And on a normal
conduit, that would not be a problem. But she is not normal. She is
two-halves rejoined, an original. And every time she lusts for the
kill, she falls unknowingly closer toward the darkness. We all know
the histories, the stories that were passed down by our ancestors
no matter what sort of conduit you are. An angel cannot fall,
because if she does, no one on this earth would be strong enough to
stop her."

The silence following his speech was like a
dagger plunging into Kira's chest, stealing both her breath and her
words. He was right—he knew it and the other conduits seemed to
know it as well.

The heat from their stares scorched her skin,
burning with accusations. She stepped back as if punched in the
gut, not knowing where to look or how to escape the scrutiny. But
worse, she couldn't run away from the part of her that couldn't
help but ask if maybe he were right, if maybe it were the truth in
his words that really stung.

And all of a sudden, that little speck of
darkness burrowed in the deepest crevice of her heart slivered out,
expanding just enough to draw Kira's notice. Two days had passed
since Aldrich's castle—two days of denial. But now, in front of an
entire town searching for explanations, Kira couldn't hide.

A filmy oil slipped silently through her
veins, shrouding her light, casting shadows over her power. The
black ghost clinging to her heart expanded, pushing her
always-churning flames to the side, forcing its way through. The
darkness was begging for release, daring her to give in. It was
almost too tempting—an entire town of vulnerable conduits—something
no vampire would give up, an opportunity the evilness clinging to
Kira couldn't pass up.

Subconsciously, she licked her lips. Her eyes
began to glow a bright-sky blue devoid of any hint of yellow and
she leaned forward on her toes, a body ready to pounce.

The part of Kira still together, still
connected to the sun, fought back. She clenched her fists, a
movement only Luke could feel as close as they were. He looked down
at her, mistaking it for fury. But Kira knew better, and she
squeezed her fingers, using her nails to cut deep gashes in her
palms.

As always, the pain shocked her back into
control. Her flames broke through the sticky tar hardening in her
limbs, forcing a retreat. The fire rushed forward and her hands
faintly glowed as her powers took control, healing the cuts.

"Kira," Luke nudged her. For once, he
couldn't read exactly what was going on in her mind. He thought her
anger was making her lose it.

She ignored Luke and stepped forward, closer
to Noah. Pulling her flames up around her heart, Kira pushed the
darkness back into hiding—searing the edges and trapping it once
more.

"And what would you do to prevent that?" She
asked him. Part of her was curious, but part of her knew that
getting angry was the only way to make her flames burn strong
enough to keep her conduit-side in control.

"Anything," he responded coolly.

"Will you kill me?" Kira whispered. He didn't
say anything but leveled an unyielding gaze on her. "So that's it
then?" She shook her head, looking back to the razor sharp eyes of
the Punisher leader. "That's the big plan? To kill me?" He shifted
his gaze to the floor, breaking slightly under Kira's scrutiny. The
silence spoke loudly enough.

The conduits kept their gazes locked on
Kira.

"Have you even thought of all the good I
could do?" She asked, still refusing to give this Punisher a break.
Instead Kira challenged him, walking closer to his sturdy wooden
chair. He had nowhere to move, no way to escape. Her fire settled
in, rumbling like a volcano ready to explode. She felt the flames
lick the underside of her palms, wishing for release.

The image of Tristan popped into her head—his
face fast asleep and free of the sharp-edged stress lines normally
digging deep into his skin. She had saved him—she had done that
with her conduit powers, with her fire. And what if there were
others like him out there? More vampires who wanted to be free of
the curse? Would all of these people just turn their backs out of
fear—was the unknown really so scary?

All Kira knew was the unknown, her life was
uncharted territory. And yes, it was scary, but it was also
exhilarating to write her own fate.

"I saved one vampire—I can save more. Who
knows what we can do? Maybe I can teach you how to heal them, how
to bring the humanity back to a vampire who wishes to be saved. We
can make a real difference. We can forever alter the scales and
take control back from the vampires who completely outnumber us.
All you need to do is give me a chance to prove myself, just one
chance."

"Well said," Kira's grandfather interjected,
using his deep rumble to catch the attention of the crowd and cut
Kira off while she was still ahead. And Kira sensed it—the slightly
favorable note playing faintly through the air—the Protectors were
still on her side…for now. And the idea that she wasn't alone
finally calmed Kira, letting her blood cool off and her flames
retreat.

"We have all been presented with a lot of
questions and very few answers," her grandfather continued, "I for
one would like a night to discuss today's events with my fellow
Council members—a chance to regroup and figure out how we can meet
in the middle to make a united decision."

He stepped off of his throne, reaching to the
side for the wooden cane camouflaged against the chair leg. Without
looking back, he shuffled to the edge of the platform and stopped
right before the first step. Putting his hand out, palm facing the
sun and the majority of the townspeople, he said "May the sun shine
down upon you for all of your days."

"May it protect you until the end,"
everyone—Protectors and Punishers, Councilmen and laymen, and even
Kira—responded.

With the traditional closing words spoken,
the mood around the square visibly relaxed. Councilmen stepped off
of their chairs to their waiting families below. Children began to
run around. Friends began to gossip. The grassy lawn began to clear
as people made their way home. And Kira felt she could finally
breathe again, like the air was somehow fresher. It might have been
a shaky victory, but hey, beggars couldn't be choosers.

So, following Luke, Kira walked off the
platform and took a deep breath, unsure of where to go.

There was always Luke's home, but his sister
was watching Kira like a hawk. Or the hospital, if Tristan were
awake enough to try to face his new reality again. But no, Kira
realized what she needed to do. Her mother was waiting somewhere in
the crowd, armed with either a warm hug or a harsh lecture. Kira
was ready for both.

"Have you seen my mom?" She asked Luke,
confused about how any red headed woman would be so hard to find in
this crowd.

"Your mother is right here."

Kira jumped. She recognized the ice in that
voice.

"Hey, Mom," she said casually, turning around
with a weak smile.

The eyebrow raised and Kira's spirits
dropped. So it was going to be a lecture. What was the point of
narrowly escaping death, Kira thought, if you still got yelled at
by your mother?

"We're leaving," she grabbed Kira's hand,
"good to see you, Luke."

"You too Mrs. Dawson," he said, looking at
Kira like a deer caught in the headlights. "Um, is that my sister
over there?" He waved to no one and slipped away quickly.

Coward, Kira thought with a grimace.

"Come on." Her mom tugged on her hand.

"But Grandpa, he said to go to the house, to
reconvene, to talk strategy…"

The eyebrow rose higher.

"Your grandfather can wait," her mother
said.

Kira took a deep breath, trying to think of a
response, but the air just spilled out completely deflating her
body.

"Yes Mom."

 

 

 

Chapter Three

"Get in the car." Her mother held open the
passenger side door of the black town car she had arrived in—her
eyes were daring Kira to refuse, to give her something to really
yell about.

Kira slipped quietly under her arm, trying to
keep the fight at bay for as long as possible.

Her mother slammed the door and walked
quickly around to the driver's seat. When it banged shut, Kira's
heart jumped. The only noise filling the car was the engine revving
to life. Her palms began to sweat and she rubbed them against her
legs.

From the rearview mirror to her mother's
white knuckles to her own twiddling thumbs, Kira didn’t know where
to look. Her gaze shifted, moving more frantically the longer her
mom remained quiet. It was the calm before the storm—the moment
when you knew disaster was coming and there was nothing you could
do to prevent it, no last minute plea.

They were on the main road, driving aimlessly
through the streets of Sonnyville, moving slowly with no sense of
direction. Kira realized her mother had no idea where to go. Her
eyes were barely focused on the road and Kira could see the wheels
in her head spinning on overdrive. She was thinking about her
lecture, about where to begin. And the fact that it was taking so
long had Kira on edge—it meant she was about to yell at Kira…a
lot.

Her mother's lips were white, sealed together
in a tight line. Even knowing that it would open a floodgate, Kira
couldn't stand to keep silent any longer. The anticipation was
driving her insane. She leaned toward her mom, keeping her face
open and innocent—trying to look like the wide-eyed child her
mother loved and not the disreputable teenager she had become.

"Mom?" She whispered.

Her mother's hands shifted on the wheel,
squeaking against the leather.

"I know you're mad—"

"Mad!" Her mother turned, taking her eyes
completely off the road. "I'm furious! How could you?"

Dang, Kira thought, why did you have to ask
such an open-ended question? Was she mad about Kira going to
England, Tristan being a vampire, the Punishers bringing her to
Sonnyville…the list could go on and on. Maybe if she stayed silent,
her mother would just keep ranting…

"Well, Kira? What do you have to say for
yourself?"

Kira looked around, desperately hoping
something out the window would give her inspiration. At a total
loss for words, she went to her classic fallback. "I love you,"
Kira said slowly, offering up her super wide 'I'm sorry' smile.

"Oh don't give me that—that face stopped
working when you hit puberty. I mean, how did you even get a
passport?"

Ah, England it is, Kira thought.

"Mom, I never wanted to lie—it was just, I
needed to go to see if my birth mother was alive, to see if I could
save her." She wasn't listening, Kira realized as her mom continued
mumbling.

"And Tristan is a vampire? How could you not
tell me?"

"Well, I mean, I thought you would figure it
out. You are a Punisher…"

"And you've killed people?"

"Only vampires—"

"And you let them drink from you?"

"Not from me, jeez, there were other
factors—"

"And you've been lying to your father and I
for months, not even trying to include us."

"In what? In my life as a conduit? You didn't
exactly want to be included, Mom. You could have asked me about it.
You could have checked in once in a while—why is that all on
me?"

Kira shifted in her seat, staring straight at
her mother, trying to gather some strength. This was not all her
fault.

"You didn't tell me about your powers, about
how strong you are."

"All you had to do was sit in on one training
session with Luke—just one and you would have known about my
abilities. You're the one who asked me not to tell Dad, to leave
him and Chloe out of it. You pushed me away. You edged me out of
the family."

Her mom refused to look at Kira, but stared
straight ahead. They were on the main drive, heading out of town.
In five minutes they would be at the gate. Kira recognized this
tree-filled street—she had sped down this road a few too many times
before.

"I didn't push you away. I wanted you to have
a normal life." Her mother's voice had softened slightly.

Under any other circumstance, Kira would have
been amazed at her skills. Somehow she had turned this fight around
and escaped a thrashing. But victory was the last thing on her
mind. The two of them had danced around this fight for a long time.
Kira had been keeping these feelings in for too long—she had opened
a floodgate alright, but it was within her own heart and not her
mother's.

"Well, I'm not normal, Mom, and neither are
you. I'm strong, and powerful, and it's part of me now. And you
have to accept that."

"I won't accept it," her mom pushed her foot
down on the gas pedal a little more, "I won't accept you being in
danger all the time and people arguing over the fate of your life.
I won't accept my own people begging for your head."

"Please, your own people? You don't even know
what being a conduit is. You don't understand."

"I understand that fighting for your life
every second of every day is no way to live. I understand waiting
at home for your family to come back from a mission, never knowing
if they'll show up alive. I understand losing people. And I won't
let that happen to you."

A tear rolled down her cheek and Kira
realized her mom wasn't blinking. Her eyes were wide, staring
straight ahead at something Kira couldn't see. Her entire body was
stiff, unmoving.

BOOK: Scorch
3.56Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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