Fuel the Fire

by Krista Ritchie

  “Uhh…” Lily gawks. “I’m not supposed to follow them, am I?”

  I’m all for comradery, but I do not want to join their death brigade.

  “No way,” Lo tells his wife. “We’re not driving off a cliff with Thelma and Louise.”

  Willow digs through her Jansport backpack and takes out a water bottle. “Do they know where they’re going?”

  “Nope,” Lo says. “I hope he gets lost.”

  They were supposed to follow us, so we wouldn’t find them lifeless in a metal heap fifty miles ahead. We even went as far as denying them the address.

  “Knowing Ryke and Daisy, I’m sure that’s their goal,” Connor chimes in.

  I crane my neck over my shoulder, noticing Connor rattling a toy over Jane’s car seat. I just barely spot her tiny hands reaching out. Connor smiles, more relaxed than he has been of late, and it causes my lips to rise as well, hoping that our destination will serve as a much-needed sanctuary.

  “Christ,” Lo says with a cringe. “I swear every time you smile like that a demon sprouts wings. It’s unnatural.”

  Connor looks up and catches my partial smile before it morphs into a withering glare. My husband grins more, but I direct my hostility at Loren.

  “Do you know what else is unnatural? Your face.”

  Lo looks more amused, and he turns to Connor. “Did you hear that, love? Your wife thinks I’m pretty.”

  I’d let out a growl, but the promise beneath this banter from Loren to Connor overpowers any irritation, a promise that says: I’ll always have your back. You’re my best goddamn friend, no one is going to keep that from changing.

  Connor rubs his lips, but I see his grin as well as everyone. “She wouldn’t be wrong.”

  Lo rotates back to me and flashes a half-smile.

  I stretch my arm and raise my palm at him like shut up, but I struggle to reach, seeming non-threatening.

  “You want a high-five, Rose?” Lo mocks.

  I growl this time, about to flip him off, but my phone’s GPS beeps. I hurriedly swivel back to focus on my primary task. “You have two miles and then you turn right,” I instruct Lily.

  The windy roads curve around mountains and create odd forks combined with all-way stops that have had Loren scratching his head. Lily is a better driver than him, so I have faith.

  Birch and maple trees jut into the crystal blue sky, no other car driving along the road. When we’re all quiet, we can almost hear the wind rustle the leaves. The stillness contrasts our normal city atmosphere and the chaotic media presence.

  “It’s so quiet,” Lily says what travels through my mind.

  “As long as we weren’t followed,” I mutter.

  “We weren’t,” Connor assures me. His confidence reminds me that we’ve both worked together to ensure a paparazzi-less vacation. When we left our neighborhood, our bodyguards drove in one direction and we left in the other. Connor and I mapped out our pit stops, calculating the most obscure, non-crowded areas. We were only tailed for an hour outside of Philadelphia.

  “Willow?” I ask.

  She checks her cellphone. “No pictures of you on Instagram or Twitter since yesterday.”

  I asked her to keep track, wanting to include her into our group, even if Lo called me a fun sucker.

  “There they are,” Lily exclaims, slowing our Escalade at a lookout point on the mountainside, the Ferrari parked. Ryke and Daisy stand on the metal railing to view the sprawling green landscape, a massive drop on the other side. Their unleashed dog sniffs the grass beside them.

  “Jesus,” Loren curses.

  I roll down my window the same time as Lo.

  He beats me to the punch. “Hey!” he shouts. “Crazy Raisins!” Ryke and Daisy both look over at the same time.

  Lily mutters under her breath, Crazy for Raisy, to correct his misuse of their couple name. Her preciousness makes light of their rebellion. I’m all for self-expression, but I don’t want to find my little sister in the hospital with her boyfriend. Ever.

  Since they’re still standing on the metal railing, I add, “Follow us, please! Daisy, you don’t need to be driving in the dark!” She bought the Ferrari two weeks ago, her first car purchase.

  “How many times has she driven a car?” Connor questions from the backseat, his tone even-tempered.

  She never really drove before she received her motorcycle license, and I can’t recall a time where she ever sat behind a wheel. I lean further out the window. “Daisy, how many times have you driven any kind of car?!”

  She hops off the railing with Ryke, and he hugs her around the waist, nuzzling her neck with his head. Something foreign wedges in my ribcage. Jealousy? No, not quite. Their love isn’t as blinding as Lily and Lo’s but it’s a bright ray of sugary sweet sunshine that almost everyone can see.

  Daisy says, “Cuatro!” She wags four fingers.

  Oh God.

  “Bro, why are you riding in the deathmobile?!” Lo shouts.

  Ryke flips him off. “We’re fucking fine!”

  Daisy is smiling so wide that it’s hard to say no to her or to question further. Maybe she’s joking. I trust that Ryke knows the truth. Loren and I roll up the windows about the same time, having more faith that they’ll stay close.

  * * *

  “It could be bigger,” Loren says in jest. The seven of us stare up at the four-story lake house, fifty miles off the beaten path, winding gravel and dirt roads leading us to this sanctuary. With two wrap-around porches, the house sits in a thicket of gorgeously overgrown maple trees, shingles painted cherry red. Our relator (who only knows me by a fake name) said that when the seasons change, the leaves will match the hue of the house.

  It’s nestled close to a grassy bank, the house reflecting off the rippling lake, landscaped by the Smoky Mountains. From the naked eye, I can’t spot a single cabin in the distance.

  We all chipped in and didn’t just buy this property. We invested in acres and acres of land surrounding it, ensuring that no one would build near us.

  “It’s purposefully big,” I remind Lo, my hands on my hips in triumph. This will be a safe place for all of us, where we can escape when our lives become unmanageable and hectic. Jane and whoever else may need this as much as we do.

  “Back to spawning eight babies, Fertile Myrtle?” Lo banters.

  I shoot him a look. “Just Jane, Loren. And there are more families here besides Connor and me.” I cross my arms. “Like you.” After Maximoff, his views on children changed, and I realize that he’s a little like me in that respect.

  He was afraid he’d turn out to be his father.

  I was afraid I’d be my mother.

  We’re both too aware of their flaws and too self-aware not to spot our own, and I suppose this is our downfall and our saving grace. It’s made us fearful, but it’s also enabled us to diverge from the paths our parents took and learn from their mistakes.

  “Yeah, yeah,” he says with a short laugh. His amber eyes glitter in the evening light, grazing the house as though imagining the expansion of his family of three. “Maybe someday.”

  Daisy and Ryke walk hand-in-hand to the side of the house, Coconut sprinting down the hill. Ryke stops at the top of the slope, in view of the long wooden dock, I presume. He wears an awed, overcome expression, one I’ve only seen when he’s with Daisy and after he rock climbs. He returned to the sport in April with his doctor’s approval.

  We were all proud that he waited to climb until he received the okay.

  Connor sidles next to me, supporting Jane, asleep in the crook of his shoulder. “It’s perfect, darling.” I lace my fingers with his free hand. He kisses my knuckles.

  “It has a good energy,” I say matter-of-factly.

  “You packed candles, didn’t you?” His brow arches.

  I did think about cleansing the lake house of bad spirits, but that’s not why I brought the candles. I may as well warn him. “I wanted to throw a co-ed slumber party and there are certain traditions t
hat can’t be ignored.”

  “Like?”

  “A séance, and light-as-a-feather stiff-as-a-board, facemasks, desserts, and maybe even the Ouija board if Lily’s not too frightened by then.” Before he spouts his disbelief in ghosts, I add my reasoning, “Apparently when we were younger, we always forgot about Daisy during slumber parties. She was there, but we’d leave her out somehow.”

  It pains me even thinking that I forgot my sister, but I was so much closer to Lily, and the age gap just weakened my relationship with Daisy. I should’ve been more aware…

  “She told you this?” Connor looks shocked.

  “No.” Daisy would never cause me pain from her hurt feelings. “Ryke mentioned it to me a few weeks ago.” He knew that I’d want to make up for lost time with my sister.

  Connor sighs. “Can we eliminate a spiritual event in favor of an intellectual one? It’d benefit greater society and us.”

  “I’ll take your request into consideration and gladly ignore your slight at my slumber party,” I say and his grin expands.

  “So I have this theory…” Daisy spins towards us, hand still clasped in her boyfriend’s. “If we buy a little mini-pig and see which bear forms a friendship with him, we’ve discovered Winnie the Pooh.” She extends her arms and bows theatrically.

  I ask Connor, “Are you picturing the bear eating the pig?” The gory scene almost makes me want to root for the underdog to win, but a pygmy pig has zero chance of survival.

  “Yes, but my image is probably less bloody than yours.”

  “Then it’s incorrect.”

  “A bear would eat anything as small as she’d described in one bite,” he retorts. “No blood, Rose.”

  I roll my eyes, accepting this defeat. He’s right. I just unnecessarily constructed a grotesque butchery in my mind.

  Loren looks at Daisy with an expression summed up simply as what the fuck. “Did you smoke a joint on the way up here?”

  Daisy wags her brows. “Did I?” She spins to Ryke. “You can pat me down for contraband. I like to hide things in my—”

  “Okay,” Lo cuts her off. “I’m already sorry I asked.”

  Lily raises her hand, her other one bracing Moffy on her hip. “Is anyone else scared of bears?”

  “Moose are scarier,” Willow proclaims, pushing her glasses further up her nose.

  “There are moose here?!” Lily’s eyes grow to saucers. “Why didn’t anyone tell me about the moose?! Lo, did you know about the moose?”

  I can’t take her seriously when she keeps repeating the word moose with her high-pitched voice.

  “No, no,” Willow says quickly, “I just meant in general. There were a lot of moose in Maine, but I’ve never been around here, so I wouldn’t know.”

  “No moose,” Connor clears this confusion.

  Ryke groans. “Can we please fucking ban the word moose from now on?”

  “Agreed,” I say.

  “I like a good moose in the morning,” Loren says, just to piss us off.

  “But really,” Lily interjects before I shout a retort at her husband, “there are bears…so no one is scared but me?” We’re all quiet.

  “Wha…really?” She frowns.

  “I’ll protect you,” I tell Lily, confident about this.

  Loren snorts. “By what? Kicking the bear in the balls?”

  I glower. “I have a gun.”

  He blanches. “Wait…you’re serious? I always thought you were joking when you said you had one.” I’ve made a few offhand quips about shooting my gun, so I can see how he thought it was another exaggeration of mine.

  “We obviously need to go over the fucking rules about bears,” Ryke interjects. “Unless it’s hunting season or the bear is attacking you, you can’t shoot it.”

  “Says who?” I snap back. I turn to Connor to confirm, and he nods like it’s more than just an arbitrary rule Ryke made.

  “The fucking law,” Ryke refutes. “I can’t believe I camped with you, and we didn’t talk about this.” He was too busy fucking my sister in a tent. I bite my gums, refusing to unleash this and embarrass Daisy. “Look, I brought bear spray for everyone, so it’s non-fucking-negotiable.”

  “Let’s start unpacking before it gets dark,” Connor cuts into the conversation, checking his watch and then the lowering sun.

  “You guys should look at the house first,” Willow proclaims. “I’ll start unpacking.”

  “You’re not here as manual labor,” Loren says, softening the edge in his voice. “So you should explore the house with us.”

  Willow clears her throat uneasily. “I…” She glances at my Escalade…like she’s hiding something.

  I can’t imagine what though, and I look to Connor for his thoughts. He’s still studying her.

  She takes a deep breath. “I was going to call my mom—I mean, our mom. Or…you know, whatever she is. I just needed a minute alone.”

  The air thickens, and we all look to Lo.

  He nods without falter. “Yeah, I didn’t realize you were in contact with her, but…definitely, as long as you don’t tell her the location of where you are—”

  “No way,” she says. “I’d never do that.”

  “I just had to make sure,” he says, scratching the back of his neck and then he points at me. “We need to talk about the gun thing. Where is it?”

  I walk up the steps of the lake house and everyone joins me except Willow. “My glove compartment,” I tell him. My phone vibrates as soon as I reach the porch.

  We scheduled the plane for the end of the week, so we’ll be there in a couple days. Don’t have too much fun without us. – Poppy

  My older sister, Sam, and their eight-year-old daughter were invited to the lake house, but Maria has school so they’ll be here for the weekend.

  “Is it in the glove compartment all the time or just here?” Lo asks.

  “All the time,” I tell him, walking around the porch to inspect the deck and view from above before I head inside. I pass multiple rocking chairs and an outdoor chess set.

  Lo, Ryke, Daisy, and her husky are the only ones who follow me. Connor and Lily go inside with the babies.

  “Is there a no-guns-in-the-house policy?” Ryke asks his brother.

  Lo spins on him with sharpened features. “You have a gun,” he assumes. “In the house?”

  “I didn’t think you’d be bothered by it,” Ryke says, looking genuinely sorry for not telling him. We reach the front of the deck, and they’re too busy focused on each other to see the sprawling view of the lake. I’ve never been partial to nature, a city girl at heart, but I’m already in love with this.

  “I wouldn’t have been a year ago,” Lo explains. “But there are two babies in that house. Please tell me you keep it locked in something.”

  “It’s in a fucking safe, I promise,” he says. “I can keep it in the car…if you really need me to.” He glances towards Daisy, like he’s checking to see if she’s okay with the plan.

  And I realize—that gun must be for her, to ease her mind when she’s scared at night.

  Daisy scratches Coconut behind the ears. “I’ll be okay without it in the house, Ryke,” she says, not dodging the topic like she usually does. Then she howls, which makes Coconut howl.

  I hate when she does that since I’m not that fond of dogs, but it’s somewhat more endearing in the wilderness.

  “Alright, Calloway,” he says with a nod.

  “You can keep it in the safe,” Loren suddenly declares. “I didn’t know…” He glances quickly at Daisy. “Sorry…”

  An apology from Loren Hale is hard to come by.

  “It’s okay,” Daisy says quickly, not wanting to cause anyone remorse. “Honestly, Lo, we should’ve asked first.”

  I clap my hands together. “Let’s unpack.” Everyone focuses on me, slicing through the tension. I strut towards the sliding glass door, my heels click-clacking across the deck.

  “Yes, your majesty!” Lo calls as I slip inside.
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  We’re here, no paparazzi, safe and away. It’s supposed to be a time of sanctuary, but I have a feeling some of us may kill each other.

  [ 47 ]

  ROSE COBALT

  “There are rules,” I announce to the living room, a candle in hand and a box of matches in the other. Violent rain pelts the deck tonight, which seems fitting for our spooky slumber party. We’ve pushed the oversized leather furniture closer to the wide, floor-length window, the house rustic with cabin décor like quilts and red, bear-patterned rugs.

  “Of course there are,” Loren says, carrying bowls of popcorn with Ryke and Connor into the room. Lily, swaddled in the thickest quilt, unrolls her sleeping bag with Daisy and Willow.

  I strike a match, hoping to appear more threatening. With a flame in possession, I certainly feel destructive. “Number one: you knock over a candle, you have twenty years of bad luck. So be aware of where they’re placed.”

  Connor heads over to me. “I’d take stock in your rule if it wasn’t completely nonsensical.”

  I give him the side-eye, his grin pulling his lips. “You’ve never heard that if you break a mirror, you have seven years of bad luck? It’s the same concept, Richard.”

  “I’ve heard that equally bogus saying, yes.” He blows out my lit match.

  I’m about to combat when I realize it was seconds from burning my fingers. Fine. “Two.” I speak more to Connor than the rest of the room. “No mockery.” I narrow my eyes. “Or you will be severely harmed by fire.”

  “That’s too bad for you,” he says.

  I try to hold my ground, not appearing as perplexed as I feel. “In what way?”

  “I’m too smart to burn alone, so you’re going to be set on fire with me.”

  I think we’ve already been set on fire together…

  Loren passes Connor and tosses popcorn at him. “You two done flirting?”

  “We’re not flirting, Loren.” I scoff, sensing Connor’s ego growing in diameter.

  Connor’s eyes soak through me, his attention one-hundred percent mine. Your importance to Connor depends directly on the amount of time he gives you—and if I travel back in time, to our teenage years, I realize that I’ve always ranked near the top of his list.