Keeping the Genie (Genie's Love, Book 3) (20 page)

Chapter One

That’s one hell of a fire.

X-Ray parks the jeep on the side of the road and the three of us pile out. The heat latches onto my skin. Smothers me. Maybe this isn’t such a great idea.

“We doing this?” Stretch asks, scratching his eye mask.

I stare up at the apartment building. They’re alive, the flames. I’ve seen infernos on TV, but standing fifty feet away from one is something totally different. Saliva gathers at the roof of my mouth, under my tongue, between my teeth. But I don’t swallow, because I’m not afraid. I came here for one purpose and one purpose only: tonight, I’m going to be a hero. Yeah, I’m fourteen and saying that makes me sound like a little kid. But I can dream.

“Let’s go,” I say.

The guys follow me as I edge closer to the last place any sane person would think of nearing. They huff behind me. Some firemen stand around, others hose the place down, a few are on a ladder. A group runs inside. Bystanders are around, too, as well as the cops and news reporters. Lights flash from the trucks and police cars.

I nod to X-Ray. “Anyone inside?”

He steps forward and squints his eyes. They get as black as his uniform. Looks freaky, like he’s possessed. He raises a hand to the top floor. “A girl and a baby. Trapped in the bathroom. Firemen can’t find them.”

“Is there a window?” I ask.

“Backside.”

We’re not supposed to be here. If word gets out, we’ll be in a crapload of trouble. But the guys and I are sick of sitting on the sidelines. Tonight we’re doing what we were born to do.

“Hang on,” Stretch says. He raises his arms over his head, stretching them along with his torso up the back wall while his lower body stays on the ground. X and I climb him like a ladder.

“Hey, you kids!” a fireman yells. But we’ve already reached the top of the wall, so it’s not like anyone can stop us now.

Phase one, complete. Now on to phase two.

I cough as smoke enters my lungs. Stretch slides over to the bathroom window, with X and me hanging onto his shoulders.

“Hurry up,” he says.

The heat makes me sweat in my uniform. Ashes cover us. It might be a problem having to explain the conditions of our uniforms to the League’s housekeeper, but forget about that now. I’ve got to focus on the civilians trapped inside. The baby’s screeching and the girl’s yelling for help.

I’ve got to do this, save them. Be a hero.

Sticking my fingers under the window’s ledge, I heave it open. The girl is crouched in the tub with the baby on her chest, and the shower curtain is wrapped around them. There’s hardly any air in here.

I jump down and am about to push out my chest and announce, “Kale Zenith is here to rescue you!” But I stop. Now’s not the time to show off.

I take the girl in my arms and she clutches tightly onto the baby. Her eyes are big and terrified, but I’ve never seen anyone so thankful. Like I’m her guardian angel or something. I hand them over to Stretch, who makes a blanket out of his body and tucks them close. X reaches for my hand to help me up, but just as I’m about to haul myself out the window, the flames blast the bathroom door open with so much force that I’m knocked off my feet.

My back crashes against the tub. Dammit! That hurt. My head rings like a million bells are vibrating against my skull. I can’t move anything. Are my bones broken? Crap. This wasn’t part of the plan.

“Get him out!” Stretch yells.

Too late. I’m burning all over. My arms, my legs. My face. I’m smoldering like the coals from last night’s barbecue.

At least I did one thing right tonight. I was a hero.

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Chapter One

My head throbs like someone smashed it against a pile of rocks.

I try to move my limbs, but they feel like they’re buried in cement. When I pry my eyes open, I’m blinded by something bright and strong. The sun? My eyes snap shut and tears seep out.

The throbbing travels from the back of my head to my forehead. I moan as images come. Memories. It all rushes back to me. The killer waves this morning, almost as high as towers. The itchy sensation pricking every nerve of my body as I imagined riding them. My stupid self ignoring the warning bells telling me it was too dangerous. Paddling into the ocean and popping onto my board. Getting swallowed by the massive wave. Thrashing my arms and legs as my mouth desperately sought oxygen, only to get salt water instead. My limbs growing weaker until I blacked out.

Something touches my fingers. No, touching isn’t the right word. Rubbing, maybe? It feels nice. Soothing. Slowly, I open my eyes. A face stares down at me. The sun shines behind his head, creating a halo.

An angel? Am I in heaven?

He has dark blue eyes and long, golden hair brushing his shoulders. Definitely an angel. I
am
in heaven.

“Cassie!” a voice calls.

The angel disappears and I hear a splash. I try to raise my head, but the throbbing turns into hammering, and I groan. When I turn my head to the side, I realize I’m on some sort of boulder in the middle of the ocean.

“Cassie!” the voice calls again. It sounds like my best friend, Leah. I hear an engine. She must be on a boat or Jet Ski.

I open my mouth to call to her, but nothing comes out. The action alone takes up so much energy that my eyes droop.

Through the fog in my head, I hear the engine approach. A hand shakes my shoulder. “Cassie? Are you okay?”

I open one eye. “Leah?”

She’s sitting on a Jet Ski, dressed in her wetsuit. Her green eyes are wide in alarm. “Thank God you’re alive.”

When I try to sit up, my head spins. “Easy,” she says, climbing out of the Jet Ski and settling near me on the boulder. She wraps an arm around my shoulder and helps me into a sitting position. “We need to get you to the hospital.”

“I’m fine,” I mutter. “What happened?”

“You wiped out. I saw you go down and I grabbed the Jet Ski to go after you. I’m taking you to the hospital. You have a nasty bump on your head.”

I finger the spot. Ouch. “How did I end up on the boulder?”

Her eyebrows crease. She scratches her dark brown hair. “Did you swim here and pass out?” She takes me in her arms, hugging me close. “You have no idea how freaked out I was when I saw you lying here. I’m so glad you’re okay.” She pulls out of the hug. “I was searching forever. I really thought…” Her voice cracks. “I really thought you died. Don’t you ever do anything like that again!”

I stare down at the small waves hitting the boulder. “There was a guy. An angel. An angel saved me.”

“An angel?” She surveys the area. “I didn’t see anyone.”

“Maybe I went to heaven.”

She doesn’t say anything. I know what she’s thinking—that I hit my head and am talking nonsense. Am I?

“And when you called my name, he disappeared. I’m telling you the truth, Leah. I’m not crazy.”

“O-kay. What did Angel Guy look like?”

Those eyes. So deep, so blue, like the ocean. And golden hair that I’ve never seen before, not even in the movies. “He was beautiful.”

Her eyebrows crease again. I know she doesn’t believe me, but I couldn’t have been hallucinating. The hands rubbing my fingers were real. His face was real.
He
was real.

Or was he? I shake my head because none of this makes sense. Maybe I am hallucinating.

Leah gets on the Jet Ski and helps me climb on behind her. I’m still a little groggy and dizzy, but my headache is disappearing by the minute. She steers us toward the shore.

I look back at the boulder. He had to be real.

We make it to the beach and climb off the Jet Ski. Leah wraps her arm over my shoulder. “Feeling okay?”

“Fine.” I keep looking back toward the ocean, hoping for—I don’t know. For Angel Guy to pop out of thin air and reveal himself?

“I still think you should see a doctor. We hear so many stories of people hitting their heads and thinking they’re fine, when they sustain major head injuries and—”

“Leah, quit worrying. You’re worse than my mom.” Mom has never really liked me spending most of my free time hitting the waves. I guess as her only daughter, she wants someone more…like her. A daughter who would go shopping with her and give her fashion advice and stay up into the early hours of the morning talking about guys.

Leah stops in front of Misty’s Juice Bar, the place she’s currently working at, and faces me. “You’re just so reckless, Cass. I know I’m not a great surfer, but even I know you shouldn’t have been in the ocean with those waves.”

I press my lips together.

She touches my arm. “I know you’re still hurting from the breakup with Kyle—”

“We are
not
talking about that.” I nod toward the shop. “Your boss is giving you the death glare. I’ll see you later, okay?”

Rubbing my head, I notice the pain is almost completely gone. I squint toward the ocean. It’s wishful thinking, hoping my board will somehow emerge. Chances are it’s in pieces at the bottom of the ocean.

My eyes move to the sky, which is growing a little gray and cloudy. We’ll probably have a storm later today or tonight.

When I enter my beach house, a familiar scent tickles my nose.

“Mom?” I hurry into the kitchen and find her sitting at the table, munching on a chocolate bar and flipping through a magazine. I take in her familiar chin-length, dyed red hair and light pink nail polish.

“Cassie!” She stands and pulls me into her arms. I bury my face into the side of her neck, feeling the stiffness of her business suit against my arms. She’s been gone for over two weeks. As much as I enjoyed the freedom, I missed her terribly.

She steps out of the hug and studies me like she hasn’t seen me in years. “You look great, honey. Except, what happened to your head?” She reaches to touch the bump, but I move back.

“Oh, nothing. I tripped on the stairs. So um, how was your trip?”

“Busy, but good.”

I peer into the living room, where her suitcases are lined against the wall. “Need help unpacking?”

She bites her lower lip, regret clouding her eyes.

My heart sinks. “You’re leaving again?”

She sighs and drops down on the chair, running her hands through her hair. “I fly out again tonight. Sorry, Cass.”

I walk to the cupboard and rummage around until I find my gummy worms. Mom works in sales. She travels all over the country selling a new line of women’s cosmetics. It’s been her dream job ever since she started college. Then I came along when she was in her last semester and ruined her plans. She got her degree, but had to kiss the dream goodbye. Dad was chivalrous and married her, but he left us when I was ten. Not very chivalrous. Now that I’m eighteen and will start college in the fall, Mom can finally live her dream.

I stick a worm between my teeth and slice it in half. She was a complete mess when my dad left us, and now she’s finally putting her life back together. I can’t take that away from her, no matter how much I miss her.

She gets to her feet and takes me in her arms again. “I’m sorry, sweetie. I didn’t think I’d have to travel this much.” She draws back and looks into my eyes. “You know you’re always welcome at Uncle Jim and Aunt Lisa’s and the gang if you get too lonely. And Leah’s parents would love to have you over any time.”

I don’t say anything, just continue to devour my worms. I stayed with Leah the first few times my mom was away. We had a blast. But after a while, I wanted my mom. That’s how it’s been for the last few years of my life—just Mom and me. But I suppose I need to get used to this, to the future. College, a real job, my own apartment.

She touches one of my blonde braids that’s curled over my shoulder. “And there’s always your dad.”

I push away from her.

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry.” She reaches for me again and plays with the bottom of my braid. “He’s trying, Cass. At least give him a chance.”

“Mom—”

“That’s all I’m going to say. Just to give him a chance.”

I clench my teeth.

Mom squeezes my shoulder. “We have the next six hours to spend together. Let’s make the most of it. What do you say?”

I force a smile onto my lips. “Okay.”

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