Immortal Fire - Book One

I must have fallen asleep because when I opened my eyes, we were parked at a gas station, and I was alone in the car. I sighed. Not a dream then… The sun was starting to lighten the dark sky on the horizon. Rubbing my face, I stretched and put on the heater. I was getting extremely cold. I was still dressed in the black lacy mini dress of Cassie’s and the jacket had gotten torn up so bad from our run in the woods that it was not providing any warmth either.

Rubbing my arms, I looked around the outside of the car. There was a bus waiting by one of the tanks. In the convenience store, I could see Hayden standing at the cashier. He still looked good. Bastard. It was not fair. He had his hood up and just a bit of his blond hair was peeking out from the side that I could see.

He was heading back toward the car and for some reason, I felt self-conscious. Looking in the mirror, I almost had a heart attack.

I looked like shit. My hair was frizzing in all directions and was knotted. Trying quickly to tame some of the mess before Hayden got to the car; I could not help but swear at myself. Hayden arrived and climbed into the driver’s seat.

“I see that you’re awake…” I just looked at him with a dead expression. I might have been trying to make myself look good for him, but I was still mad at him for shouting at me. He looked like he was struggling for words while I glared at him. Eventually, he seemed to have figured out what to say with a sigh.

“I want to apologize for what happened earlier.” Okay. He was apologizing. I do not know why, but I had the feeling that he usually did not do this sort of thing often.

“I shouldn’t have shouted at you. I was taking out my anger on the wrong person and I am sorry for that. It won’t happen again.” It better not happen again, buddy…

“You aren’t the only person going through some crazy stuff Hayden…”

“I know. I’m sorry that I forgot about your problems and just thought of myself.” He was giving me a shy smile now and I could not help but smile back.

“Okay, fine, you’re forgiven,” I said with a sigh.

“Great. I got you something.” He was back to his casual, confident self in less than a second and it made me roll my eyes mentally. He handed me a plastic bag from the convenience store and smiled at me. Feeling curiosity take over, I opened the bag and peered inside. Inside was a turquoise tank top, black sweatpants, and chocolate. I could not help but laugh.

“Are you trying to tell me that I look bad?”

“Well not exactly…” he mumbled, rubbing at his mouth to hide a smirk. I gaped at him. He thought that I looked bad.

“What?”

“You think that I look bad.”

“No! You do not look bad, it’s just that the way you are dressed now will draw attention to us, and I thought that you would be more comfortable in something else. It is all that I could get. If you want me to take it back, I will. I…”

I cut him off mid-sentence. “Hayden, shut up.”

Now he was the one who was gaping. “It’s fine. Thanks. It was thoughtful of you. I appreciate it.” That seemed to calm him.

“Where is the restroom so that I can go get changed?”

“It’s at the back of the store. Just be quick. I do not want to stay here that much longer. Hunter could be anywhere.” Nodding, I climbed out of the car and headed into the store. As I opened the door, a bell chimed, and I was virtually blinded for a few seconds by the fluorescent lighting. Spotting an aisle that sold deodorant and hairbrushes, I headed over and grabbed one of each. I could feel the store clerk’s eyes on me as I made my way to the counter, still barefoot.

Looking outside, I could spot Hayden watching from the car. Most of his face was concealed from the hood he had up over his head.

“That will be $15 miss” Turning back to the clerk, I handed him the money I had in my jacket from earlier and receded to the restrooms. They smelled of bleach and had sickly yellow paint on the walls and ceilings. Even the basins were yellow; from paint or age and dirt I could not decide.

“Ewe, this place is so gross,” I muttered to myself. Digging in the plastic bag I got the clothes that Hayden had bought and got changed.

There was also a pair of black sneakers at the bottom of the bag that I had not noticed before. Looking in the mirror now, I could see that I was getting black rings under my eyes and that my hair looked like a bird’s nest. Brushing my hair was a mission in and of itself. I eventually got it done and sprayed on some deodorant. Hayden was right; I did feel more comfortable. One last glance at myself and I was headed out of the bathroom.

The clerk was still watching me intently. Lowering my head, I reached the front of the store and exited. The air was cool outside, and a slight breeze was swaying the leaves of the trees across the street. The smell of an oncoming storm was thick in the air. A strange feeling in my gut appeared and I looked around. There was nothing; perhaps I was just imagining it all.

About to take a step toward Hayden’s car, the lights of the entire gas station flickered as a gust of hot wind blew through. There was an odor of burnt timber that drifted with it. Eyes wide, I looked towards Hayden, he was already getting out of the car like a predator, wielding an immaculate sword, and he headed towards me with purpose. He was halfway to me when the power of the gas station went out. A chuckle drifted around me, and I felt cold to my soul.

Hunter.