Page 46 of Shadows in Bloom

I push forward, the sounds of his footsteps sloshing through the mud sends me into a panic. My drenched clothes weigh me down with each step as I struggle to keep moving.

Another burst of electricity surges through my body, causing me to cry out in agony.

“Justice!” his voice is louder now, taunting. “Are you still running, my love?”

I groan as I claw desperately at the muddy ground. Rain lashes at my face, blinding me as I roll over and reach out with trembling hands. My fingers curl around a thick branch and I use it to pull myself forward, every muscle burns with exhaustion, but I refuse to give up.

Wind howls through the forest. A crack of lightning pierces the sky before rumbling thunder fills the air.

I run, even knowing I’ll never be free from this torment, I can’t force myself to stop.

When another crack of lightning lights up the sky, I catch a fleeting glimpse of the rushing river, but seconds later, my legs give way as my body violently convulses.

A violent bolt of electricity surges through me, this time, the collar is on its highest setting, and as I land on the wet ground just meters from the river, I blink against the storm.

His face comes into view seconds before I lose consciousness.

CHAPTER 12

SALEM

As I trail my fingertips over the myriad of scars that cover Justice’s back, I think about the night I almost lost him. I lean down and press soft kisses to his back, one by one I smother his scars with love, with promises, and with the hope that one day, I’ll be able to give him the life he deserves.

19 years old…

With the fire already engulfing the second story of the house, I ran past the onlookers and around to the back door. I raced through the laundry and into the kitchen where I stopped in my tracks.

Alex, Justice’s nineteen-year-old brother, was sitting at the kitchen table, in his hand, a box of matches. He sat there, calm as fuck, lighting match after match and letting them burn down to his fingertips while his family was burning to death upstairs.

When his eyes met mine, and he smiled, I knew. Not only was he obsessed with fire the same way I was, Alex was like me in every other way, too.

I took a step forward. “How did you get out?” I asked, confused. I thought I’d been meticulous. I’d been there earlier that evening and added sedatives to all but Justice’s drink. I’d blocked the bedroom doors with furniture from the outside, and ensured the trail of lighter fluid I left behind, saturated everything flammable.

Alex shrugged. “I saw you. You didn’t even notice me…” His eyes darkened. “As fucking usual.” His frown morphed into a wide smile when the sound of glass breaking came from upstairs.

“You still want a little brother, Sal?” he asked. “I let him out of his room, told the brat to run and hide. Maybe he’s not dead yet.” When I didn’t reply, Alex huffed out a laugh. “You think I haven’t seen you watching him, following him? What is it about Justice?” He lit another match. Blinked as it slowly burned down to his fingers. “We were friends first,” he added. “You were my friend, not his.”

I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the tiny flame. My fingers kept twitching, mimicking lighting a match against a striker.

“You into little kids, Sal? Are you one of them pedos?” Alex asked.

Bile rose in my throat at those words. “Where’s Justice?”

Alex struck another match, his eyes fixed on mine as he held up the lit match, then blew it out.

In the distance, sirens wailed.

The sound of more glass breaking caught my attention, and I flicked my head to the side to look down the hallway. “Where is?—”

Alex attacked. His punch sent me stumbling. We grappled, and as I pushed him into the wall, a muffled cry distracted me.

With Alex in a headlock, I dragged him backwards and kicked open the door that led into their home office. “Justice?” I called.

There was a cough, then a cry of “Help!”

Stopping, I tilted my head to listen, the coughing was muffled, and through the thick smoke that was beginning to fill the air, I could barely see. I glanced up the stairs to find the fire spreading rapidly. The window halfway up the stairs was covered in thin curtains, the bottom of them alight with flames.

Clamping my hand over Alex’s mouth, and with my arm still choking off his air, I dragged him up the stairs then shoved him face first into the flaming curtains. His screams of agony sent a rush of adrenaline through my veins.

---