Page 73 of Saved By The King's Gamma

“I’m not smoking.” I tell him, and he pulls a packet out before lighting a smoke.

“Since we have stopped,” he says, handing me the lighter. I step over the gate, and Kyson grips my arm.

“What are you doing?”

“Making sure no more kids ever come back here.” I tell him, shaking his arm off. Guards rush ahead of me as I walk around the outside of the building to the small garden shed out the back. Kyson follows but just watches me as I reach above the low hanging tin roof for the padlock key. I feel around before pulling it down and unlocking the padlock.

Ducking my head, I step inside and see a red jerrycan. I grab it off the small shelf and shake it to find it had a bit of fuel left in it for the mower. I crack the lid and the fumes confirm it is indeed petrol. Stepping out of the garden shed. Kyson gasps, coming over and snatching it from me.

“You are not playing with petrol!” he growls.

“Give it to me.” I tell him, holding my hand out. But he refused.

“Give me the lighter. I will do it,” he says, holding his hand out. I don’t care who does it, as long as the place is reduced to nothing but soot and ash. I hand him the lighter when Liam bounces on the balls of his feet like an excited kid in a candy store.

“Can I help? Liam likes playing with fire.” he says, his eyes sparkling mischievously.

I glance inside the small shed when Liam clears his throat behind me.

“No fuel needed. I always have lighter fluid,” he says and I look at him over my shoulder to see him rummage inside his jacket.

“Here, hold this,” he says, passing me a knife. “Ah, and this,” he says, dropping a pistol in my hand. Kyson growls, snatching it from me.

“Liam!” he scolds him.

“It’s in here somewhere,” Liam mutters, pulling out an apron covered in blood. He sniffs it and pulls a face. “I was wondering what that smell was!” Liam mutters, chucking the apron over his shoulder and rummaging around some more. “Ah, found it!” he announces, holding up a bottle of lighter fluid. He then turns to Trey, who is watching him, like Liam is a madman.

“Here ferret face fuck, hold my shit!” Liam says, dumping his apron and taking the knife from me and his pistol from Kyson. He loads up Trey’s arms, before removing his jacket.

“Genuine leather. Can’t ruin that,” Liam says, dumping it in Trey’s arms. Kyson growls as Liam skips like a kid to the back door. He gives a ninja cry, before kicking in the back door, and Kyson shakes his head.

“Can’t take this idiot anywhere.” he curses, stalking after Liam with the jerrycan in hand. Trey nods for me to follow him.

“Think that man needs a psych evaluation,” Trey mutters to me and nudges me with his elbow. I laugh, following Trey back out the front with the guards surrounding us.

“Call the fire brigade. Don’t want it getting out of control,” Trey tells one of the guard’s, who pulls his phone out. Leaning against the hood of the limo, I listen to Liam singing at the top of his lungs inside the house. I also hear glass shattering before he comes to the front window on the top floor. He waves and I laugh before waving back.

“That man is unhinged,” I tell Trey as Kyson comes out, shaking his head. He reeked of petrol fumes. Kyson stops beside me.

“The fool is going to kill himself one day,” Kyson says, when Liam suddenly sets the curtains of the room on fire, with the lighter he stole from Kyson. He starts cat calling out the window and dancing.

“Liam, get out of there! The room is on fire, you twat!” Kyson calls out and Liam stops the weird ass fire dance he was doing. The entire room goes up and he yanks the curtain rod of the window.

“You smell smoke?” he asks, smiling, and showing all his teeth. Kyson shakes his head again, as Liam climbs out the window, dancing on the roof and chanting about fire gods, or some crap. The room beside him catches on fire and Liam rubs his hands together, getting ready to jump off the small porch roof, when he suddenly vanishes. I blink before hearing a crash, as he falls through the porch roof. He groans sitting up, while Trey erupted in laughter.

Liam holds his hand up. “I’m okay!” he announces before rolling on his side. A tile falls off and hits his shoulder before shattering on the ground.

“That hurt my fanny!” he says, rubbing his butt and skipping down the steps when the entire porch collapses.

“Wow! Talk about in the nick of time!” Liam says.

“I swear, you have nine lives!” Kyson tells him with a shake of his head. We watch the place burn, the roof caving in and the air filled with black smoke. Once we hear the sirens on the way we climb in the limo, knowing they will contain what was left of the burning rubble. But as the wind carries the smoke away I feel myself relax, as if it was also carrying my past with it. Ivy was no more. Mrs. Daley was no more. I knew my past and what we endured would always remain, but the sense of relief that comes with watching that place burn gives me hope that maybe the memories would one day fade. Maybe they wouldn’t hurt as much. Kyson reaches over and squeezes my hand, and I look at him.

“Ready to go home?” he asks, and I nod.

I am ready to go home, and for once the castle felt like home, as much as I am petrified of going back knowing there was someone there trying to sabotage everything, ruin me. It still doesn’t bring the fear this place did. And for once I feel free. Free of everything and this place. Free to try to move on. Because one thing I know, if I can survive eight harrowing years here, I can survive anything.

Nothing breaks a soul more than being suppressed. Nothing breaks someone more than being shackled and trapped in a repetitive loop of torture. Kyson and I have our differences, different beliefs that come with different upbringings, different views of how we should be. Kyson was raised with a silver spoon, while I was raised with whips and canes. Both of us have our own struggles to contend with, and I know what Kyson struggles with most is insecurities. While what I struggle with most, what was beaten into me, engrained making me meek and fearful of everything, something I am trying to work on, yet you can’t beat a dog every day and expect it not to flinch when you pat it. Everything takes time, but I know Kyson can be patient. I just have to remember I have to be patient with him, too.

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