Page 1 of Fire
Prologue
Thirteen years ago
Axe
“You’re nothing but a cocky seventeen-year-old. One of these days, that attitude is going to get you into trouble, boy. Getting a bloody lip is going to be the least of your worries.” My dad’s eyes matched his tone. They were hard and dead set on mine. “Now get me a fucking beer.”
I held back the hatred I had for my dad as I swiped my tongue across my swollen lip—my lower lip was still tender from the last time he smacked me for telling him he was nothing but a worthless drunk. In three more months, I would be free. By then, I would be eighteen, and I could leave this shithole and the constant abuse from him. It wasn’t so much the physical abuse that hurt. It was the continuous mental games he played that really dug deep. He was right, though. I did only steal air meant for people who mattered. I could barely read, having had to quit school to take care of my mom because my dad gave more attention to his liquor than he did to her. After the day she passed, his drinking only got worse. That was three years ago. I thought for sure by now, he would have seen what it had done to him and gotten some help. Instead, I got the brunt of all his anger for Mom dying. He blamed me for not taking better care of her. I was fourteen years old, for Christ's sake. How was I supposed to know how to make my mom better? The doctors gave it a fancy name,chondrosarcoma. All I knew was she was sick, and cancer had invaded her bones.
I pulled the refrigerator door open and shook my head. Instantly, my stomach grumbled with hunger. Other than the six bottles of beer, there were only three slices of moldy bread, a few condiments inside the door, and two shriveled oranges, which didn’t look very appetizing but were likely the only food that wouldn’t make me sick. Grabbing two beer bottles, I stuck one in my back pocket and twisted the cap off the other before kicking the refrigerator door closed. Maybe if I drank a beer, the pain across my lip would feel better and the grumbling in my stomach would go away.
With unspeakable thoughts of what I wanted to do with his beer, I stretched my arm over my dad’s shoulder and placed the full beer bottle on the kitchen table in front of him. Without so much as a “thank you,” my dad handed me his empty beer bottle while taking a long pull from the other. I wrapped my hand tightly around the neck, trying hard not to lose my cool. I turned toward the trash can and tossed the bottle inside, giving my dad the finger as I left. The bottle clattered against the empty bottles inside, causing a chain reaction of noise.
If I didn’t want to lose my cool, I had to get out of here, away from the worthless man who was only a sperm donor, in my opinion, because he most definitely wasn’t even close to being a father.
Before I pulled open the front door, I twisted the cap off and pressed the bottle against my lips. It was garbage day, so instead of drinking my beer while I walked, I downed the contents and chucked it into the overflowing garbage can. Being charged with “minor in possession” wouldn’t be good for me. It would only give my dad another reason to beat the crap out of me.
There was nothing good about this day except that it brought me one day closer to my freedom. The day I turned eighteen, I would finally be old enough to sign up for the army and get the hell out of here. I couldn’t care less how it would affect my dad. Drinking himself to death would suit me just fine.
The army recruiting office was only a few blocks from where I lived. I hadn’t been there for a few weeks and found the need to check in with Sergeant Wilkerson to see if he heard anything about my application. Sergeant Wilkerson assured me he would try and pull some strings to get the basic requirements out of the way before I was eligible to enlist. With my eighteenth birthday only three months away, and knowing my situation, he was pretty sure he could. I couldn’t wait until I was finally away from this shitty town and my shitty life.
When I opened the door to the recruiting center, Sergeant Wilkerson was assisting a guy about my age sitting with an older man who I assumed was his dad.If only my life could be so simple. As I took a seat in the waiting area, I pictured myself doing the same thing with my dad.Yeah, right? Like that would ever happen.
I watched Sergeant shake the guy’s hand first and then his dad’s. The smiles on their faces spread from cheek to cheek with appreciation. Before they got to the entrance door, Sergeant Wilkerson’s eyes connected with mine. “Take a seat in my office, Mr. Riley. I’ll be right there.”
Nodding my head, I quickly stood and headed to his office. When I entered his office, the American flag standing upright in the corner of the room greeted me proudly. The privilege to serve my country consumed me and made me proud to be an American.
Sergeant Wilkerson walked up behind me and placed his hands on my shoulders.“I’ve got some good news for you, Axe. You can start the enlistment process if you leave your home and show that you can support yourself.”
It sounded simple, but how would I be able to support myself?“How am I supposed to do that?”
“It’s easy. I own an apartment building, giving you an affordable place to live. You can work here for a handsome wage to pay for your rent, food, and anything else you might need. After thirty days of living on your own, with no support from your dad, the army would have no reason to turn down your enlistment application.”
Everything that Sergeant Wilkerson said seemed too good to be true. I had to trust that he knew his stuff. “How soon can I do this?”
“You can start living on your own today. I’ll float you enough money to cover your rent and food until your first paycheck.”
“Why are you doing this for me? There is no way I could ever repay you. No one has ever been this nice to me.”
Sergeant Wilkerson’s expression turned serious. He leaned forward in his chair and looked at me with an unnerving grin. “When you decide you have had enough of the military life, I’ll be in touch. For now, though, all you have to do is serve your country the best way you can.”
I didn’t know what he meant, but it was a no-brainer. If I wanted to escape my current situation, I had to do this.
~1~
Axe
What the hell was I thinking? Getting involved with a woman was a bad idea. But Kenzi Horton had my attention from the day I met her. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. Her spitfire personality drew me in from day one, and there was no way I could pull back and get the hell away from her.
My life was too complicated to bring another person inside. If Kenzi found out who Axel Layton Riley really was, she would run for the hills. The shit storm I left behind years ago was about to hit. I thought for sure I buried that life for good. Boy, was I wrong! Learning that the man you’re dating blew up buildings for a living wasn’t exactly a hot topic of conversation. “Oh, yeah, Kenzi. Did I happen to mention I blew up buildings for a living?”
“So, you used to demolish old buildings?”
“Not exactly. I blew up buildings. If the little guys who owned the buildings didn’t agree to sell them. I would come in and make the decision for them.”
I was totally screwed. Why the hell had Van Wilkerson called me after ten years? There was no doubt that it was good money. A half a million was nothing to cry at. Why didn’t I tell him no? Kenzi Horton, that was why, or at least it should have been.
“Axe, I want to stop off at my apartment before we head out to Reyna and Davian’s.” Kenzi’s sweet voice broke my thoughts.
