In Embers (The Ember Series Book 3)

by Madison Daniel

  “Yes.”

  “The girl in the picture,” she added. She put her arms straight out at her sides as if she were trying to take flight.

  “That’s right. She was my sister.”

  “Where is she now?”

  Quietly, I hid behind my bangs, “Gone.”

  “What do you mean?” she inquired, with a scrunch of her nose.

  “She passed away a long time ago,” I said, trying to hide my misery. Madi stopped and sat down on the bench, her bony legs folded over each other.

  “How?” she asked. I flipped the hair from my eyes and squinted under the bright sunshine on my face. I positioned my right hand in front of me and nodded. Her big green eyes focused hard on them. With a snap, my fingers came alive with flames. They were yellow with strips of white twisting through them. Quickly, they crawled over my hand and down my forearm. I waited for her to pull back in fear, but she just watched me burn, silent and still.

  “It was an accident,” I whispered. She cocked her head and reached out for my hand. I tried to pull it away, but she was too fast. Her tiny fingers gripped my knuckles through the fire and she squeezed my hand into a fist. Instantly, my fires extinguished, but not from me. She made them disappear.

  “I have accidents sometimes too. Mommy tries not to get mad at me when they happen, but I can tell it scares her.” Madi scooted from the top of the bench and sat down next to me. I wondered just how strong her powers were. Was she destined for the same agonizing life I had when I was younger?

  “What kind of accidents? I thought you could only…you know…heal things.”

  She smiled up at me and shrugged. “Sometimes I can make fires too…kinda like you.”

  “Show me,” I insisted. She looked around nervous and shook her head no. I decided to convince her. “Can you do this?” Instantly, I made a ball of fire ignite in my palm. It spun around cooking the chilly sea breeze.

  With a shake of her head. “Not exactly.”

  I leaned down to her and whispered, “It’s okay…show me.” Her brow furrowed as she seemed to think about it much too seriously for a six-year old. Finally, she pointed to a tall orange and red slide across the park, at least fifty-feet away. She closed her eyes and unbelievably a giant burst of fire erupted from the center of the twisting piece of the slide. The plastic and metal surrendered to the heat in seconds, folding in on itself. Pops of dying metal echoed everywhere and the entire slide fell to the sand in burning chunks. When Madi opened her eyes again, the flames disappeared in a flash, leaving trails of black smoke reaching for the cloudy sky.

  “Supernova,” I mumbled to myself, remembering Asia’s words.

  “Is that okay?” she asked, worried.

  I wasn’t sure how to answer that. She was just a child and already as strong as I was, or at least close. I carefully brushed her tangled hair away from her face and smiled.

  “Madison Lee, that just might be the coolest thing I have ever seen. You’re amazing,” I praised.

  She blushed in shock as if she were waiting for me to get mad at her. “Mommy says I have to be careful. She says people won’t understand what I can do.”

  “Mommy’s right,” I sighed. “Mommy’s always right.”

  Madi studied my face. “Really?”

  “Ever since I’ve known her,” I laughed. Madi turned to me and spoke softly.

  “Mommy said you love me…”

  I smiled. “That’s true.”

  “She said you love me as much as she loves you.”

  My daughter’s words locked me in place. I tried to un-hear what she had just said, but it was impossible.

  “I think we should head back home.” I waited for her to say something else but instead, she hopped off the bench and walked toward my vehicle. I surveyed the damaged park equipment one last time and ran to catch up with her.

  Back at my house we watched a movie and ate popcorn. Afterward, I showed Madi a recorded video of Kai and I singing at a local karaoke restaurant and she laughed wildly at it. When it was over she asked me to play a song for her. I was hesitant at first, but once I started, I couldn’t stop. I sang for her. She danced for me. Hours passed and she stole my heart all over again. What started out as a miserably nerve-racking morning had become one of the best afternoons of my life. Little Madison had my heart, but tomorrow her mother would marry my best friend and leave the island again. The thought crippled me. I wasn’t sure I could handle losing her again.

  An hour later I was walking Madi up to her grandparent’s house with Sam awaiting us with a wave and a smile.

  “Aloha, Madi-Bug! How was your day? You have fun?” Sam asked, kissing Madi on the lips. Madi squeezed her neck and giggled.

  “Yes, Mommy.” She looked up at me and smiled.

  “I can’t wait to hear all about it,” Sam hugged her and stood up and faced me. “How about you?”

  “Best day ever,” I stated, with a nervous heat building in my palms. Sam studied my eyes thoroughly. Madi tugged on Sam’s shirt impatiently.

  “Mommy…”

  “What, Madison?”

  “Max sang for me!” she said, as if she was cheering. She called me Max and not Dad. Ouch. Madi hugged me quickly and then ran into the house. Sam waited for me to grow angry and folded her arms together.

  “Well, it’s a start,” I surrendered, and turned away. Sam reached out and grabbed my arm.

  “Max, are you okay?”

  I looked around my surroundings, letting the finality of my situation fall on me. “I have to be.” I pulled my arm from her and tried to walk away again.

  “Wait,” she called out, abruptly. Sam ran around me and blocked my path. “Please, wait…”

  I stepped closer to her, and whispered, “Why?”

  She couldn’t answer me. I waited for another painful moment and then offered her a polite smile.

  “Thank you, Sam, for giving me this day with Madi. I’ll never forget it.” Quickly, I walked past her and entered my car and drove away. Sam never left the spot she was standing in.

  She just watched me disappear down the road.

  TWENTY-EIGHT: RENDEZVOUS

  ~ I Never Told You: Colbie Caillat ~

  About a mile from Sam’s parent’s house a pair of headlights rolled up on the back of my car. They furiously flashed behind me, wanting me to pull over. Not trusting the situation, I pushed my car faster. The mysterious vehicle doubled its pace and began honking its horn. My hands filled with hot rage as I was sure this was some kind of trap. Maybe Avery was closer than we thought.

  Just as I was about to slam my mother’s sedan into the crazy stalker, the vehicle sped past me in a flash and slammed on its brakes. I had to swerve at the last second to miss smashing into the side of the car. In a cloud of smoke and dust, I jumped from the car completely infuriated.

  “What the hell!” I screamed “You trying to kill me?” A small shadow pushed through the bright headlights of my car and I stepped forward ready to throttle my attacker.

  “Max…” Sam called through the settling dust.

  “Sam? What are you doing? Are you crazy?” I roared. She ignored my anger and stepped up to me, fearlessly.

  “Don’t go.”

  “What?” I didn’t understand what was happening.

  “Don’t go yet. I need to talk to you,” she said, shaking.

  “Sam?” My hands popped with heat and beads of sweat broke out all over my arms. “What’s going on?”

  She started to cry. “I don’t know…”

  “I’m not going anywhere,” I said, wearily. Her eyes stared up at me and they spun with confusion.

  “I don’t know what I’m doing. All I know for sure is you can’t leave me yet.”

  “Why?” I asked, and I hadn’t even realized my hands had started to burn. She reached for my left hand and I quickly made the flames fall away.

  “Come with me,” she whispered, wiping away her tears with her free hand. Her other hand locked around mine and began p
ulling me toward her.

  “Samantha…” I stuttered.

  “Please,” she pleaded. Her grip on my hand was tight but gentle. I could actually feel her engagement ring along her finger and it made the world start spinning. She lightly sobbed and pulled at my arm harder.

  Ignoring every warning in my heart, I said, “Okay.”

  We slid into her car and she quickly drove down the road not saying anything else. I watched her drive in a fit. It was obvious she had no idea where she was headed. I don’t think she thought this plan out at all. She was acting on instinct. She pulled off the main road and headed down a street I’d never been on. The stars in the night grew brighter as we drove further away from civilization. When Sam finally turned off the road and put the car in park, I was already beginning to panic. I had left my phone and my keys back at my abandoned vehicle. Basically, I was her prisoner.

  Stepping from the car in a fit, Sam ran into a large field of what looked like smaller stalks of bamboo. The wind followed her and made the featherlike ends of the brush sway like the ocean. I exited the car and walked up to her. The moon danced off her golden hair and flickered inside the tears in her eyes. I looked around us in awe. The fields of green leaves and tan stalks went on for miles. In the distance was an old decrepit building in the shape of an ancient mill or factory. It towered over the vegetation like a tombstone. It was magical.

  “Sam, where are we?”

  She let her breathing settle a bit before answering. “Nowhere.”

  “Oh.” I frowned.

  “I think were on the edge of the island, at the beginning of an abandoned sugarcane plantation.” She looked over my shoulder at the haunted mill and nodded yes. “I think I took some photos there once.”

  “Why are we here?” I asked, with my voice almost drowned out by the thick rustle of sugarcane in the breeze.

  “I’m not sure,” she said, with her hand on her chest. “I don’t know what I’m doing anymore.”

  “It’s getting late, maybe we should head back…” I tried to say.

  “Do you still love me?” she blurted out. Her feet pushed her closer to me. I could feel her breath on my neck and chin.

  “Does it matter? You’re getting married tomorrow,” I rumbled. I threw my arms in the air and turned from her breaking face. “To Kai!”

  Her hands fell onto my back and she leaned into me. I wanted to run from her, but for some reason I couldn’t. Quietly, Sam asked the same question again.

  “Max, do you love me?”

  My head fell to the ground and I took a deep breath. From over my shoulder I asked, “Do you still love me? Is that what this kidnapping is about?”

  “I don’t know…I can’t sleep at night. I can’t think straight anymore.” She stumbled back from me and I turned around. “The wedding is so close.”

  “You’re probably just stressed out,” I said, trying to be the calm voice for once in our relationship. “Maybe I’m not the one you should be talking to.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked, stunned.

  “Sam, your about sixteen hours away from spending the rest of your life with Kai. Are you sure that’s what you want?” I asked, point blank. She just stared at me with those heart wrenching eyes. “Are you truly in love with him?”

  “Max…” she froze in place.

  I stepped up to her and calmed my heating hands. “You know I will always have strong feelings for you, but it doesn’t matter what I feel.” My hand found her cheek. She wilted a little and the wind flipped her hair along her face. Quickly, she swiped at it, carefully tucking it behind her ear again. When she did, a bright flash sparkled from her ring finger. The diamond in her engagement ring winked at me one more time and I pulled away from her again.

  “All that matters is how you feel, Sam. So, the real question you need to ask yourself is…do you still love me?” Before I had time to process what I had just said, she lunged forward. Up on her toes she pressed her lips into mine and grabbed my shirt in two tight fists. Her soft hair tickled the edges of my eyes and cheeks. Her strawberry scent was everywhere. Even though it felt amazing, I slowly pulled from her and stepped away. I couldn’t do this anymore. Asia was my song now, my other half. No more bouncing back and forth. I started to walk away in the direction we had drove in. Sam stood still for a moment, not following me. Then, she called out through the swishing waves of sugarcane.

  “Max, I love you! Please wait…”

  Her words snagged me like an animal in a trap. I turned back to her and she cried out again, “Do you love me?”

  With a lump in my throat, I sang back, “Of course I do.” Sam wiped her eyes and took a small step toward me, but my next words cut her off. “But is it enough?”

  She fell silent and wrapped her arms around her small frame as the wind had finally filled her with a solid chill. She looked down at the ground and then back up at me.

  “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Sam.” And with that, I found my way back to the road. I ran the rest of the way back to where Sam had hijacked me. It took me over an hour to find my way back to the street just past Sam’s house and my mother’s car. It sat crooked on the side of the road and was left exactly how I had left it. That meant there must have not been any other drivers on this particular road tonight. Lucky for me.

  Slowly, I pulled back onto the street and drove off. From the middle of my car my cell phone flashed with a missed message. I picked up my phone and saw that it was a call from Asia. I swiped my finger across the screen and called her back. She answered before the first ring even finished ringing.

  “Max.”

  “Hey,” I said, quietly.

  “Are you on your way home?” she asked.

  “Yes, just had a bit of car trouble.”

  “Are you all right?”

  At the same moment, Sam drove by me in the other lane, heading back to her mother’s place. Our eyes found each other in the dark as if we were in slow motion. From the phone came Asia’s worried voice. “Max?”

  “Yeah, nothing I couldn’t handle. I’ll be home soon.” I hung the phone up and watched Sam’s taillights disappear in the side mirror.

  With a click of the radio, I cranked its song up letting the music spill out of the opened windows. I let my arm slip outside the window and surf the cool air. My chest filled with a nervous fire as one thought ravaged my brain.

  Tomorrow would be the hardest day of my life.

  Back in my bedroom I sat on the edge of my bed watching Asia sleep with the moonlight painting her curves along the sheets. I couldn’t sleep at all. The drama that had become all too familiar in my world was torturing me. Living in this constant whirlwind of emotions was taking a toll on my sanity. My fires fought my heart, and my heart raged against my soul, and my soul wrestled with my morals in a giant battle that never seemed to end. I feared I’d never be free of this.

  World War me.

  Dreading the coming dawn, I walked over to my unpacked bag and reached deep inside of it. With a heavy sigh I pulled out Uncle Frank’s envelope. My hands locked around it for a moment before they finally tore at the folded seam. My fingers removed the contents slowly. A single sheet of paper was wrapped around a thin cloth with something concealed inside of it. I unwrapped the piece of paper first. In Frank’s handwriting was six haunting words…

  THE SUN HAS SET ON ME.

  I traced each letter with a warm fingertip and gently set it aside. My chest tightened as I carefully undid the white cloth in my hands. Even before it opened completely, something fell from the center of it. A small USB card. In silver marker another message awaited me…4MV.

  I whispered to the dark room, “For Max Valentine.” I turned and placed the card into the USB slot on the side of my computer. The monitor screen came to life, illuminating the whole room in a bright glow. I clicked on the folder that popped onto my desktop and held my breath.

  A box opened with a flash, and it filled the whole computer screen. It was a movie file. Auto
matically it began to play. I reached over and stuck my headphones on and snapped their adapter into place. My uncle’s voice rang through the speakers, filling my head with his legend.

  = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

  “Aloha, my son… I bet you never thought you’d see

  my handsome mug again…at least not this soon, huh!

  Ha, ha, ha. Well, I’m guessing my health took a turn

  for the worse and you’ve met Kris. She’s a tough

  cookie, isn’t she! Ha. I never really intended to keep

  her a secret from you, Max, it just kind of worked out

  that way. Besides, I figured you had your hands full

  enough with matters of the heart. You didn’t need this

  old time bachelor bringing you down. Anyways, Kris

  is very special to me and that is why I entrusted her

  with this message…I guess…my final message, huh.

  You can trust her with anything, my son. But I bet you

  know that already, don’t you.

  So, I bet you’re wondering why I’m talking to you from

  beyond the grave. One reason and one reason only, Max.

  I love you.

  I love the man you have grown into. I love the man you

  keep striving to be. I love the father you will become.

  After all the hardships, after all the bad luck, after all

  your trials and mistakes, you’re still here, still standing

  and I’m so proud of you. I have nothing more to teach

  you, my son. Except one last lesson.

  Where does your heart belong? With the eternal fire that

  will always be a part of you, or with the sensitive soul

  that lives deep within you? The answer is easy.

  It’s both.

  Stop fighting them. Listen to both of them. Let them

  both show you the way. There has always been only

  one path, my son…and I think you already know that.

  You just have to believe in it. Understand?