“Ignis. I should have known. It was no wonder the Barkley woman and her brats were hard to find when an element aided them. Don’t deny it; it’s the only reason you’d be here. But even an element can’t outwit the Hunter.”
“Fire, who is he?” Flame asked. “He said his name was Jag. What’s going on, how do you know him?”
“Betelgeuse is a star, not a human. His home is the constellation Orion,” Fire spat.
“A—star?” Flame was amazed.
Orion, the Hunter
. It was no wonder, although young and handsome, he had seemed like an old soul.
“You are no Hunter,” Fire roared, the two powerful-looking men stood toe to toe. “You are only an armpit on the universe. A nothing star, no different from the rest of your kind.”
Jag chuckled. “A very powerful armpit, and soon to be very different.”
“What the hell are you doing here?”
“I will be going supernova within the millennium; I have found the partner I want.”
“Barkley?” Flame whispered.
“Yes, Barkley. The man compliments my strength.”
“He’s a killer,” Flame raged.
Jag looked at her in disgust. “Ignis is the real killer. Have you told her how many bodies you’ve burned, how many screams of terror you have listened to?”
“How many sacrifices have been made in the constellation’s honor?” Fire retaliated.
“Oh, it would appear there are going to be a few more.”
Jag lunged for Flame; she screamed, knowing what would happen. A firewall went up; the yacht began to burn under her feet. Flame felt sick, she could hear Jag’s laughter. Both Fire and Jag were fighting.
“Go ahead, Ignis, burn. When we both hit the ocean we’ll see which of us is better equipped to deal with the water,” Jag taunted. “With your portal doused, you’ll flounder like any human. Then we’ll have some real fun.”
“You dare battle an element? Are you insane?” Fire howled. “It will be Barkley who will suffer my wrath when I take Flame into my dimension.”
“Barkley is already safe from you. Go ahead; call forth your precious portal.”
Fire was a blur of orange, blue and red. Jag was brilliantly alight, haloed in shining white. The man-star kept a position between Ignis and Flame. The cabin was incinerated with small explosions bursting as the beings struck at one another. From Jag’s tone, it was apparent he knew something Fire didn’t and did his best to keep Ignis away from her.
It didn’t take long for the floor beneath her feet to give way and down Flame fell, burning her way through the hull. She heard Fire’s roar of fury. Icy cold water smothered her; it seeped into every orifice to stymie the feel of her once protected body. The wall of fire protecting her was doused and she couldn’t breathe. Flame fought her way upward towards the dying light and surfaced as a horrific crash of thunder boomed and lightning hit the side of the yacht. The vessel exploded. Fulgor had come to save his brother from an ocean romp. The sun that had been streaming in the portal window was gone. It looked like the heavens were under attack. Had Orion declared war on the elements? It would seem so. It appeared Jag did know something Fire hadn’t been privy to. Had Fulgor whisked Fire away into battle?
Flame spun around in the water, the waves tossed her like a child’s plaything. She couldn’t see Nimbus. The water seemed out of control, as though battling itself. From the corner of her eye she saw a vessel. A splash sounded beside Flame and she gaped in horror as Jag grabbed her arm. His once dark eyes glowed a brilliant white, looking eerie on his Cro-Magnon face. He tugged her towards the waiting craft. Her fists pummeled him until they ached. She was pulled by many male hands onto the deck of a different vessel. Barkley stood glaring at her.
“Throw the bitch to the sharks.”
Flame struggled wildly when she heard a scream. She watched helplessly as Melinda Barkley, stumbling as though drunk, was tossed overboard. James Barkley watched impassively for a moment as the woman cried out pitifully until the water closed over her and she was gone. Barkley then looked at Flame.
“You dirty bastard.” Flame snarled. Droplets of rain began splashing onto the deck. “I’ll make sure you get the death penalty.”
Barkley chuckled. “Even if they find her body, she’s had way too much to drink, foolish woman. There are times when your kids make you drink…and times you drink for your kids.”
Flame felt sick, he had forced the poor woman into drunkenness for Lisa.
“What to do with you,” Barkley pondered. “You seem to have lost your little survival kit friend and regained your marbles. Or are you still fond of the huge puppet dog? No? Something tells me finding you was no accident. I’m wondering your roll in all of this. A cop? Doesn’t matter, I hope you can swim. Give my dear sweet Melinda my regards.”
“You need this one,” Jag declared, pulling Flame tighter to his chest when Barkley motioned a man closer. “She’s important in a way you don’t understand, but I will explain.”
Barkley cast a fast glance to Flame then Jag. The star’s eyes appeared normal, but his human stance was guarded. Flame was surprised; Jag meant business, and she wondered why he wanted her spared. Of course Jag wouldn’t care less if Barkley got rid of his ex-wife. Perhaps the star wanted her used as a hostage. From the way the ocean was rolling and the sky was darkening, something else was going on. Where was Fire? James narrowed his eyes briefly then relented as Jag stood firm.
“Take this one below then, and you had better have a good reason.”
“How could you, you stinking pile of filth,” Flame screamed at Barkley. “Melinda is the mother of your children.”
Barkley smirked. “Not anymore.”
Soaking wet, Flame was dragged kicking and screaming below. Her fists beat at Jag. While she spewed the vilest names she could think of. She pummeled at his rock hard chest, wondering if her firewall was staying down because she was wet. Finally spent, she slumped in a corner after being thrown against a wall. She gazed up at Jag with loathing.
“I can’t be burned,” Jag said smugly. “I’m a star, even in human form your precious fire—or should I say Fire, can’t touch me.”
“Ignis will come for me.”
“Right now he and his brothers are too damned busy to come for you.” Flame was right, there was something bad going on to keep Fire from her.
“You found out where Melinda and her children were staying. Her death is on your hands.”
Jag smiled. “A bird’s eye view can be very helpful. And his ex shouldn’t have taken his children into hiding. She should have let him have custody. My James should have everything he wants.”
“All this for one man?” she whispered between clenched teeth. She was seething. Flame wanted more than anything to knock this brute’s head off. “Do you plan on taking his kids with you? Into oblivion? What kind of sick prick are you.”
“Once we become lovers, James will no longer age. We’ll watch his children grow. I’m fond of children.”
“He beats them, will you too?”
“I will temper him. Once he sees how much the universe can offer him, he will have no need to spend his time frivolously.”
“You’re delusional. Does Barkley even know who you are, what you are?”
“He will soon. You’re lucky I am needed in the sky when it darkens or Ignis and I would have squared off before the other boat arrived. That might have been tricky. I would have been furious if any harm had come to my lover.”
“Barkley is gay? Because that’s news to me. Is it to him?”
“He will come to love me.”
“You really are delusional.”
“Am I? He called to me.”
Flame was confused. “He called how?”
“As a small boy James was drawn to me. Never did he wish on any other star. At first, I thought him to be cute, a small boy with big dreams. As he grew he overcame each hurdle and excelled. He was fascinating, never has a human drawn me so close. I began looking for him, watching him. He went from pauper to billionaire. I was with him every step, cheering him on from the sky.” Flame was feeling creeped out. Jag’s eyes were bright and growing brighter as he spoke. The star-man was nothing short of a stalker.
“I bet you spied on him through windows,” Flame said. “Do you get your gassy star rocks off by being a peeping Tom?”
Jag looked annoyed. “The way Ignis lurked about you, no doubt.”
“I knew about Ignis. He never hid what he was; he didn’t stalk me like some weirdo.”
“Humans are so stupid, so insignificant in this huge universe.” His tone was scoffing and derogatory. “You think a star is a stalker? What about an element? Water invades you when you wash. Snow lands on your body. Fire invades your very bones to warm you in a caress. All under the ruse of being an element. The ground squishes up between your toes. Every day a human is touched and fondled by an element in some way. Think on that and then figure out who the perverted stalker is.”
Jag turned and began walking away. “The sun is a star,” Flame said smugly, her arms crossed over her chest. Jag stopped in his tracks. “The sun seeps into your bones; in fact the sun lingers on your skin and darkens it. So in a way the sun claims everyone. A star—go figure. The ultimate stalker who brands humans with her touch. Is she your leader? Because she is way more powerful than a piddly constellation, making a single star seem, oh-so miniscule, so, what is the word…ah yes,
insignificant
. Like a human earthling. Interesting concept, wouldn’t you agree, Jag, or should I call you Betelgeuse?”
Jag slammed the door on his way out. But not before turning and threatening her. “The child Lisa is on board. Once you dry and your flame can activate, you will drown her if you ignite the boat. The elements are too busy to save you.”
“I have no control over it.”
“I do.” Jag’s face contorted into a mass of concentration. “The woman you protect is my prisoner. No one on board is allowed to harm her. Nimbus is busy. Ignite and you will kill her—she’ll drown once your flames go out.” And he was gone.
Flame threw a glass vase at him and watched it shatter as it hit the door. The vessel they were on was larger than the other yacht, still it pitched and rolled as the waves battered it. Flame wondered if it were Nimbus. Could Nimbus save Melinda Barkley? The poor woman must be terrified. Why would Orion take on the elements? It couldn’t have been just for Barkley; was Orion angry Jag was going to go supernova? Jealous? Who would have ever thought elements and stars would wage war.
Her head thumped against the wall, and Flame scooted away from a table that slid across the floor. The battle outside was growing increasingly violent. Items slipped from shelves, shattering near her bare feet. Drawers and cabinets flew open spilling their contents. Flame’s head jerked in the direction of the door when it flew open; she expected it to be Jag. Barkley glared at her for only seconds before storming over and gripping her upper arms. Flame knew self-defense, but she was well aware of the black belts Barkley had accumulated in many styles of fighting. Perhaps he had known, even as a young child, that he wanted to grow up to be a bully.
“Why is Jag insistent on keeping you alive?” he demanded. “He went missing last night; was he screwing you?”
Flame laughed in his face. “If you only knew.”
Barkley tried to backhand her, Flame ducked and he hit open air. She laughed once more; he shoved her against the wall, pressing against her to keep her upright as the vessel was tossed about. “I’m very skilled at torture.”
Flame assumed as much and couldn’t have cared less. “Jag would much rather sleep with you,” she informed him and waited for his reaction.
Skeptical was his expression. “You’re lying.”
Flame could tell he knew she wasn’t. Subtle things suddenly make a lot of sense when they hit you in the face. “He wants you to be his shining star.”
If he only knew the irony of that statement
. She was taunting him on purpose.
“That still doesn’t explain why he wants you kept alive. Ménage? Sounds good to me. I’m not into other guys, but hell I wouldn’t mind the two of us doing you.”
Flame knew she was Jag’s hostage, not Barkley’s. It was why her firewall stayed down as she dried. She felt it simmering, weighing the pros and cons of torching the son of a bitch. Just how far would he be allowed to go?
“Not even if you were the last man on Earth,” she snarled through clenched teeth. “You murdering, disgusting sack of puss.”
Barkley’s face went red with rage, his grasp was now brutal. Flame could feel the tension inside her build and knew what was coming. Barkley howled in pain and released his grip as he stumbled back away from her. His mouth was in a round O, he held his hands up, staring at them in horror. They were a fiery red and blistering into bubbles that burst. His sleeves caught fire causing him to flap his way around the room. Barkley’s skin was melting right down to the bone.
Bet that hurts.
Jag burst through the door and rushed to Barkley who was screaming in agony and disbelief. Jag gripped his hands and blew on them. A white dusting of a sparkling substance flew from Jag’s mouth, coating his hands in seconds. Before their eyes, Barkley was healed. His flaming clothing was doused. He was left only with blackened, charred fabric.
“Damn it, James. I said to let me deal with her.”