Burned (Keeper of the Flame Book 1)

by Lila Kane

  When he starts the truck, I feel my hands begin to function again. “I’m sorry,” I whisper.

  He shakes his head. “It’s not your fault.”

  “But…I didn’t get out. Why can’t you leave?”

  “Only witches can travel outside the cursed area since they’re the originators of the spell.”

  He’s still driving quickly, clearly trying to get away from something. Or to get to something.

  “Now what?” I ask, shifting in the seat, flexing my hands.

  “We get somewhere safe.”

  “I mean, now what I do about leaving? Try again tomorrow?”

  He doesn’t answer.

  My stomach clenches. “The next day?”

  His hands tighten on the wheel. “No, this was your only chance.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “All four original families were inside the town border when the full moon came out. The first part of the reversal of the curse has been completed.”

  “Meaning?”

  He glances at me, eyes unreadable. “Meaning you’re stuck here now, too.”

  #

  I must have closed my eyes and dozed because when I open them again, the truck is stopped and Ryan’s opening my door. He reaches inside, unbuckling me and lifting me off the seat.

  “I’m fine,” I say, my voice hoarse.

  He settles me to my feet, but doesn’t let go. “Let’s get inside.”

  “Are we safe in there?”

  “Yes. How’s your ankle?”

  I sigh. “It feels better.”

  But still, he nearly lifts me off my feet in his rush to get me up the stairs. He fumbles with the lock and shoves the door open.

  I step inside. “Is it true vampires can’t come in without being asked?”

  “It’s true.” He follows behind me and closes the door firmly. “Especially now that the first phase is complete.”

  I guess that’s why Logan hadn’t come into my motel room the other night. He’d lingered at the doorway, kept asking to be invited in, but never stepped foot inside.

  Ryan peers through the curtains before walking to the living room and closing the blinds. “You can stay here tonight.”

  I look around the house I broke into only days ago. Now it’s home. At least for tonight.

  When Ryan comes back to the entryway, where I still stand, he stops and looks at me. “What is it?”

  “Logan has all my stuff. My bag, my purse, my phone.” I look away. “My mother’s Book of Shadows.”

  He doesn’t answer right away, like he doesn’t know how to respond. Finally, he says, “We can try to get it back.”

  I nod numbly. It’s hard to process that everything really happened tonight.

  “I think you should rest. I think‒hell, I think you need to see a doctor.” He shoves a hand through his hair while he glances to the door. He’s nervous or worried. “What you’ve been through tonight. Did he…” Ryan clears his throat, unable to meet my eyes. “Did he hurt you?”

  “No.” I sigh. Logan was desperate for this to work, but ultimately, he hadn’t done anything to harm me. “He didn’t hurt me.”

  Ryan meets my eyes, searching for something more. I feel like he doesn’t believe me. “I think we should take you do a doctor.”

  I laugh and it turns into a cough. My lungs don’t feel like they’re working properly still, but I don’t want to leave. Ryan said it’s safe here. I don’t want to risk running into Logan again, not after what I did to him.

  “No doctor,” I say. “I just need some rest.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. If it’s not…okay for me to stay here, I can go somewhere else. Or‒”

  “No, you’re staying here.” He rubs his hands over his face and then glances around. “Okay. Let’s get you set up. Can you get upstairs?”

  I laugh again. “Yeah, I’m good.”

  My legs feel heavy, but I trudge up after Ryan. He glances back several times with a frown, but I want to prove to him I can still be strong. I’m doing okay as long as I don’t think about his words from the car. I’m stuck here. I can’t leave Shadow Hill.

  “I’ve got extra pillows,” Ryan says, pausing at a closet in the hallway.

  I snap my attention back to him when he hands me a pillow. I clutch it against my chest, watching as he shuffles through a stack of linens to grab a pillowcase and some sheets.

  When he guides me to his room, I freeze in the doorway. “This is your bedroom.”

  “I don’t have a spare bed,” he says apologetically. “Just the couch.” Then his eyes widen and he shakes his head. “I’ll sleep downstairs.”

  “No, I wasn’t worried about that‒I just, I don’t want to kick you out of your room. Maybe I should find somewhere else.”

  Ryan drops his load of linens on the bed and pulls the pillow from my arms before grasping my shoulders. “You could have died tonight. You tried to stop this whole thing even though you don’t know what’s going on, and Logan kidnapped you. I’m not letting you out of my sight. I need‒I want‒” He clenches his teeth. “I want to help you.”

  His eyes say he wants to take care of me. I sense a little guilt, too, though he couldn’t have known this was going to happen. He was trying to stop it by getting me to leave.

  “Okay.” I nod. “Thank you.”

  He steps back and grabs the sheets. “I’ll make up the bed for you if you want to use the shower or wash your face or something.”

  “No problem.”

  I leave him to make the bed and lock myself in the bathroom. I wait until the water is running full force before I let out a sob. I splash water on my face and a few tears mingle with the wetness, but I still feel so numb.

  I’m stuck in Shadow Hill. With at least one vampire and one werewolf, and whatever Ryan is.

  Once I turn off the water, I peek into the bedroom to find Ryan is gone. He’s set a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of flannel pajama bottoms on the bed. I dress quickly, pulling the strings on the pants tight around my waist. They’re too long since I’m several inches shorter than him, but they’re better than my jeans.

  When I hear his voice downstairs, I creep to the door.

  “…couldn’t get out…”

  I listen closer, and when his voice fades like he’s walked to the kitchen, I creep into the hallway and down a few steps.

  “…nothing we could do…I know. Hell, don’t you think I know this, Cheyenne?”

  I straighten. He’s talking to Cheyenne? What’s up with them anyway?

  “No, she’s here,” he continues. He’s quiet for a moment, then he gives a heavy sigh. “Yeah. Not tonight. Soon, though. Okay, ’bye.”

  Ryan comes around the corner and spots me on the stairs. I tuck my fingers into the ends of his shirt sleeves.

  “Willow.” He shoves the phone in his pocket. “Sorry, I didn’t know you were standing here.”

  “If I’m causing a problem between you and Cheyenne‒”

  “No, it’s not a problem.” He shakes his head, and when he realizes what I’m getting at, he shakes it more firmly. “We’re not together or anything. We’re friends. She’s from one of the original families‒this wasn’t good news for her.”

  I just keep letting people down. Cheyenne’s got to be pissed.

  He starts up the steps. “This isn’t something you need to worry about. Not tonight.”

  I turn and precede him up the rest of the stairs and into the bedroom. The bed looks so warm and comfortable. I don’t want to deal with anything else tonight, but I don’t know how well I’m going to sleep.

  Glancing to the window, I ask, “You don’t think he’ll come here do you?”

  Ryan folds his arms. “I’m not sure.”

  My stomach churns. He won’t hurt me, though, right? Logan said he wouldn’t hurt me. He just needs me for the spell. But it still scares me that he might be out there waiting.

  “What else can I get you?” Ryan asks.

/>   I shrug. “I think I’m good.”

  “Really, Willow. What do you need?”

  I turn to face him, tucking my hair behind my ears. Then I give in and close the gap between us. His arms come around me in a hug and I lean my cheek against his chest.

  “Can you just…stay up here with me for a bit?” I ask, voice quiet.

  “Sure.”

  Ryan sits on the bed, settling his back against the headboard. He pulls me close so I’m leaning against his chest again, and I close my eyes.

  “Please tell me you’re not a vampire,” I say.

  I feel the rumble of laughter in his chest. “No, Willow. I’m not a vampire.”

  “Good,” I whisper. Then I fall asleep.

  Chapter 14

  When I wander down the stairs the next morning, Cheyenne is in the kitchen with Ryan. She sees me, smiles and exclaims, “I’m your babysitter today!”

  My eyes go to Ryan where he’s perched against the counter by the sink. He frowns.

  “I have to work,” he explains. He shoves a hand through his hair and shakes his head. “It’s crap, I know. All this stuff is going on and I have to go to work.”

  “No, it’s fine.” I nod at him. “I understand. You have a life to live.”

  The words hang in the air. Yes, they both have lives here, and my life outside of Shadow Hill is officially cut off. I try to pretend this is not big deal, but it still doesn’t sit well with me. Especially since I’m a traveler, I like to move around. Here, I’m stuck.

  “I can stay a while longer,” Ryan starts.

  Cheyenne waves him off. “No, your crew is already waiting for you.”

  “I don’t need a babysitter,” I tell them, folding my arms.

  Cheyenne smiles and starts buttering a piece of toast. “Of course you don’t.”

  I can’t tell if she’s trying to placate me or she knows I’m an adult who can take care of myself. I took on a vampire yesterday. And I won.

  Ryan angles his head to the hallway and I follow him from the kitchen. When he stops near the foot of the stairs, I lean against the wall, my arms still folded.

  “I didn’t want you to have to be here alone,” Ryan says.

  “As long as I stay inside your house, I’m safe?”

  He nods. “Logan can’t come in.”

  “I need to know what’s going on.”

  “I know. Cheyenne will tell you‒and I…I’ll be back soon.” He reaches out as if to touch my arm, then pulls back. He clenches his jaw. “We’re going to figure this out, okay? Lay low for today and we’ll talk later.”

  I breathe out, trying to release some tension. “Okay.”

  He doesn’t move for another minute, then gives a curt nod. “Okay. See you soon.”

  Ryan leaves through the front door, and I don’t miss the vigilant look he casts around the property before he closes the door behind him.

  When I return to the kitchen, Cheyenne is scooping scrambled eggs onto a plate. She adds sausage to it and a slice of toast. “Have a seat. Breakfast is ready.”

  I remember the breakfast Logan made me yesterday. The kinder moments when he didn’t seem like someone who was holding me hostage. Why am I thinking about this?

  I sit across from Cheyenne and butter my toast. “You don’t have to stay if you have to be at work.”

  “Nah. I had my part-timer open. She’s an early riser‒not a big deal. I’ll head over there later. You doing okay?”

  “So far so good.”

  She wrinkles her nose. “You don’t expect me to believe that, do you? A vampire kidnapped you and‒who knows what else‒”

  “He didn’t hurt me,” I say.

  She lifts her eyebrows.

  “He was actually trying to be nice for the most part.” I’m not sure why I’m sticking up for him, though. It’s not like what he did was right.

  Cheyenne’s mouth opens in surprise. “What? You’re defending him? You’ve got that thing‒what’s it called? You know, when hostages fall in love with their captors and‒”

  “I am not in love with Logan. I just don’t want you to think he spent the whole time torturing me or something. Yeah, so he’s kind of insane to want to be a vampire and to have kidnapped me, but he’s not a total maniac.”

  She nibbles on some sausage, pointing to my plate. “You need to eat. You don’t have to tell me what happened, I just think you need a little emotional recuperation, is all. It was a traumatic experience.”

  It was.

  We’re quiet a few minutes while I eat the eggs. Cheyenne gets up to pour coffee and sets a mug by me.

  “Thanks.” I wait for her to sit down. “I need to know the details.”

  “The original families, the full moon, the spell‒all those details?”

  “Yes.”

  She stirs sugar in her coffee. “Right now? You sure?”

  “I’m stuck here, Cheyenne. In some town I’ve never been to before last week. If there’s a chance of breaking the curse‒or spell‒and I can still do it, I want to. I don’t want to be here forever. No offense.”

  She shrugs. “It’s not all that bad. I’ve been stuck here since I turned fifteen and my dad died. Ryan’s been here his whole life.”

  “He’s never left Shadow Hill? Ever?”

  Cheyenne shakes her head. “Not once. He was born here. Once you’re inside the borders of Shadow Hill‒at least any of us that are part of the spell‒we’re stuck. Well, except for the witches.”

  “But you said you didn’t get here until you were fifteen? You didn’t know about the spell?”

  She sighs, sips her coffee. “I knew, but my family grew up here. My father came back because his mother was sick, in the hospital. He was on his way to see her when he got in a car accident. He‒” She glances away. “He was on life support. I had to come say goodbye.”

  My throat dries. She hadn’t had a choice. And then she’d lost her father.

  “So,” she says, flashing a small smile. “Here I am. And now we both know how it feels to be stuck somewhere we don’t want to be.”

  “Is it permanent?” I ask.

  “I hear if the spell is renewed, everything put in place before will return, including you being able to leave Shadow Hill. But…” She taps her fork against her plate. “I don’t know that for sure.”

  “Okay, what if that’s possible? Can the spell be renewed right away? Like today?”

  “Ambitious,” she says. “If I had to guess, I’d say it has to be on a full moon. Like the original spell.”

  “That’s a whole month away.”

  She nods. “But you’re here. And you can’t leave. So I guess that gives you time to figure it out.”

  I push my plate away. “What about the rest? Logan said I had to undo a spell. So that means, even though I’m stuck here, the four original families being in town at the same time didn’t mess with the spell?”

  “It’s the first step,” Cheyenne says. “And Logan probably figured if he got you stuck here, then that would buy him more time to work on the spell. Reversing the curse will bring back all the characteristics in each of us that the original spell took away. But having someone in the bloodline of the four original families living in Shadow Hill makes it stronger for the time being.”

  “What characteristics?” I ask.

  “The ones I don’t want. The ones Ryan doesn’t want. I don’t want to have to change during a full moon. I don’t want to feel those same animal instincts that creep up on me at the strangest moments. I can control them‒or I could before. That’s how I changed into a wolf when I saw you in your mother’s house. But now, I might not have a choice.”

  “What about Ryan? What characteristics does he have to deal with?”

  Cheyenne gives me a sly smile. “He hasn’t told you yet?”

  “No. Is it a secret?”

  “He tries to keep it that way.” Cheyenne stands with her dishes. “He refuses to use his ability. And before now he had that option.”

/>   “Now he has to? He’s forced to? Cheyenne‒”

  “He’s a shapeshifter.”

  My hand freezes on my mug. “A shapeshifter?” She nods and starts washing dishes. I bring my plate over to her and lean against the counter. “So how is he forced to use his ability then?”

  “He never learned how to control it before. He’s going to have to figure it out now. Just like you and your fire. It’s unpredictable.”

  I push away from the cabinet. “There’s got to be something we can do. Something I can do. This spell was put into place before, we can do it again, right?”

  “We can try.”

  I look at the clothes I’m still in. Ryan’s pajamas. Great, I don’t even have anything to wear.

  Cheyenne grabs my arm. “Ryan said Logan has all your things. I brought clothes.”

  “Good.” I follow her to the living room where she starts digging through a bag. “He took my car somewhere, too.”

  “Asshole,” she mutters. She tosses me a pair of jeans. “I think we’re close to the same size.”

  I take the spare clothes she gives me and bring them upstairs to change. It feels strange to be in someone else’s house, with someone else’s clothes on. I don’t have anything of mine left. Not even the Book of Shadows‒which isn’t really mine but would be amazingly helpful right now.

  However…my mother’s house is next door. She might have something inside that will help. Or maybe she’ll be back soon, and she can help us.

  When I walk downstairs, Cheyenne is on her cell phone. She says a few more words and then hangs up.

  “Work emergency?” I ask.

  “Becky had a few questions,” Cheyenne said. “We got a new computer system and it’s hard to explain over the phone.”

  “Why don’t you go in for a while?”

  She shakes her head. “I don’t want you to be here by yourself.”

  That’s exactly what I need, though. I’m not sure she’ll want me traipsing over to my mom’s house. But I need to do something productive. Once Ryan gets home, I can see if he has my mother’s number to call her.

  In the meantime, I have a plan.

  “I don’t mind being alone,” I say. “I need to gather my thoughts, figure out the next step.”