Page 60 of Burning Ember

He pops off his stool though and smiles as he gestures for me to come at him. So I get closer.

“Better dance boxer boy,” Griz hollers.

Four feet away, I lunge for him.

Taz jumps back and starts bouncing on his feet. “Come on, little stray. You can do better than that. Let’s see whatcha got.”

I’m surprised. Who knew Taz had a fun side. I sure as hell didn’t.

He puts his hands up boxer style. When I try to touch him, he uses his hands and does some crazy wax on, wax off stuff as he bats my hands away.

“Watch out man, she might be small, but she’s fast,” Griz warns. “Maybe even as fast as you.”

“Not possible. Maybe he means you like it fast. Is that it, little stray?” Taz taunts.

I attempt to touch him, but he swivels and spins out of the way a second before my hand can make contact.

“Or maybe youlikeit hard. Hard and rough and fast. Bet you like to be dominated, don’t ‘cha?” The game suddenly loses its lightheartedness. At least it does for me.

I drop my hands. My jaw tightens.

No, Em. This is what he wants. Don’t let him get to you.

I turn away from him and say, “I guess you’ll have to wait and find out.” The words are hollow and I can hear how shaky my voice sounds.

I hear footsteps behind me a split second before thick arms circle my waist and suddenly I’m lifted off the floor. I scream. Everyone laughs. But my heart’s in my throat and all I can think about is Warner, and me being thrown on the bed, forced down against my will, my face to the mattress, my ass in the air. And him forcing himself on me, while I screamed like the damned for him to stop.

Bodie’s laughing like this is the funniest thing as I struggle against him. I know it’s not Warner, but the memories are right there, beating at the door of my mind and I’m doing everything to push them back. They don’t belong here.

“Don’t!” I plead and squirm in Bodie’s arms. “Please . . . put me down!”

I hate being man handled. I hate that my pleas and rebuffs have no effect. That I’m powerless.Again.But at least people can hear me. In that basement, no one could hear me. No one could help me. I could have died down there and no one would have known.

“Please, stop!”

Don’t freak out.I’m freaking out. I try to sound incredulous not panicked.

“Grab her arms!”

Ice skates down my spine. “No. Don’t!”

“What in the fuck’s going on?” Mav shouts from the doorway.

Instantly, Bodie drops me and steps away with his hands up. “Just playin’ the fuck around, man.”

Mav’s amber eyes shoot over to my face. There seems to be a question he’s asking, but not with words. His forehead’s wrinkled with concern and anger.

I hear it before I see it.

I turn just in time to watch Taz step away from the spilled bucket of mucky water. Spilled at just the right angle. So it floods the part of floor I recently finished.

“Fuck! You can’t leave that shit in the middle of the room,” Taz shouts as he jumps to a dry spot on the floor.

Heat floods into my face and ears. My chest burns. I open my mouth to tell them all to fuck off and to rot in hell. And I’ve never in all my years had the urge to tell someone that, so I know I’m close to losing it. But somehow I manage to hold it in.

Taz barks out, “What? It was a fuckin’ accident.”

I breathe heavily through my nose, knowing I need to pull myself together. I walk from the room, into the kitchen, and straight out the back door. Once outside I fall back against the building and stare up at the clear sky.Breathe, Em. Breathe.