The Fire Inside Read online

  The Fire Inside: A Heated Bad Boy Romance

  By Alice Ashes

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1: The Embers Start

  Chapter 2: Kindling the Flame

  Chapter 3: Sparks Flying

  Chapter 4: Hot and Fresh Out the Kitchen

  Chapter 5: Slowly Burning

  Chapter 6: It’s Like Murder She Wrote

  Chapter 7: Stoking the Flames

  Chapter 8: A Full On Forest Fire

  Chapter 9: Burnt to the Third Degree

  Chapter 10: Singed Memories

  Chapter 11: S’mores on a Campfire

  Chapter 12: Those Who Play With Fire

  Chapter 13: Get Burned

  Chapter 14: Smoldering Remains

  Chapter 15: Thrown in the Incinerator

  Chapter 16: Only Ashes Remain

  Chapter 17: Burning My Soul Up

  Chapter 18: Flames of Discord

  Chapter 19: Rain Drowns the Flames

  Chapter 20: Epilogue

  Chapter 1: The Embers Start

  "Okay, so no one has actually SEEN her in how long?"

  Daniel glanced around the table at L's diner. He looked to Benjamin who stared back with worry apparent on his young features. "I haven't seen her since the wedding, man. And I've only talked to her once." Benjamin looked at his lap, feeling guilty. He hadn't even noticed, to be honest, as wrapped up as he was at the Anderson Toy Company.

  Eric had a similar expression, feeling shamed as well. "I did invite our princess to lunch 2 or 3 times since we saw her at the wedding, but she told me her classes were taking up all her time." He sighed. "I didn't really think anything of it until we didn't see her for Christmas." Eric had been busy building his custom tailoring business and his free time was very limited.

  Daniel considered. "Yes, even if she was busy at school, she was on break at Christmas. But she said that she and Jacob were celebrating it alone together this year." Daniel rubbed his temple. "I don't particularly like it, but I felt like we needed to honor her wishes."

  "Except since when do her wishes involve not wanting to see us...” Mason growled under his breath. "Something is WRONG. I can feel it. We NEED to see her." He slammed his palm on the table.

  Ethan placed his hand on Mason's shoulder and met Daniel' gaze. "I haven't seen her either. She'll barely take my phone calls." Mason growled louder, his fists clenched on the table.

  Daniel looked at Mason's face, searching his expression. "Mason, I know this whole thing has been difficult for you, but you need to accept..."

  "DON'T YOU FUCKING START WITH THAT SHIT, DANIEL!"

  Eric reached a hand between Mason and Daniel. "Mason, calm down."

  "NO, I will NOT!" Mason spat through gritted teeth. "I HAVE accepted that she loves Jacob. I HAVE accepted that they're married." A flicker of pain crossed his face. "I know she's not mine."

  He glared at Daniel, lowering his voice so he wasn't yelling anymore. "Her being happy is enough, okay! If she's happy, I..." Mason took a deep breath, steadily quieting the anger down until it was manageable. "But when has Olivia ever shut us out before, all of us? Hmmm?" He looked at each brother, searching their faces, looking for any challenge or denial of his words. He found none.

  "This isn't something she would do. Something is wrong, we have to see her, we...I have to know she's safe, okay?" He looked at Daniel, pleading and rage showing clearly in his expression. "Please, I need help! She won't see me, or any of us, if we just ask her. She'll brush it off, like all the other times."

  He looked to Ethan. "We need to surprise her, where she can't run, and just make sure she's whole, you know?" He grabbed Ethan's shoulder. "That's the only way we can make sure we get answers. And I need you there to make sure we can trust she's telling the truth."

  Daniel cleared his throat. "Mason, maybe we should reach out to Jacob first and see if he can shed some light on this."

  Mason growled even louder. "I already did that...that asshole told me that she was "not my concern."

  Ethan snapped his head to the side, eyes wide. "Really?"

  "Yes, really," Mason replied. "Am I the only one who finds that suspicious?"

  Benjamin wrinkled his nose. "No man, that's pretty sketchy."

  "I agree." Eric looked to Daniel. "Didn't you say that with Jacob filling the new VP role, he seems to be struggling with the new level of responsibilities?"

  Daniel looked uncomfortable, starting to doubt his assertion that Olivia was probably just busy. "I did say that, but I hadn't really made any connection there."

  "Well, there still may not be,” said Benjamin.

  Jacob had not been any of the brothers' idea of a good match for Olivia, but in the end, she seemed happy. Ethan had even confirmed she was, watching a gentle fondness bloom in Olivia's heart for the man. Jacob had an edge to him, something deep inside that all the boys found unsettling, especially Ethan. But he was always on guard when Ethan was around, and generally avoided the demon if he could. He was very proficient at keeping his mind blank, and what worried Ethan is that he felt he had to do that. What was he hiding that was so damning that he could never relax around the mind reader?

  Eric looked down into his coffee, not meeting anyone's eyes. "I know we don't talk about it, but... we are all in agreement that Olivia is very different since we returned from the war?"

  Everyone nodded. "I really thought with time, and Jacob, she would be okay." Ethan said. "But now...instead, she seems to be shutting the world out."

  Mason looked at his brothers. "But if there is a chance that she's...we have to make sure she's safe...and happy." He looked down. "She deserves that."

  Daniel looked at Mason. He was right; they owed it to Olivia. She had been nothing but good to them and they all loved her. She was family. He should have noticed how strange her behavior was sooner. "Alright, let's make a plan."

  ---

  I stood at the balcony outside our bedroom, wearing nothing but a thin robe over my camisole and worn, flannel pajama pants. My hair was blowing wild in the biting wind, but I hardly noticed. The cold though, that I felt. My feet were beginning to lose feeling and my teeth had been chattering for 10 minutes. But at least I actually FELT something.

  After coming back to the human realm, after my time in the Abysmal Plains, nothing was the same. Jacob was not the same, and I definitely wasn't. I was sure that sending the boys while he stayed behind had made him feel more than a little emasculated. It did not escape me that the other incubi's wives had come, so it obviously wasn't impossible for a human to make that journey. He stayed in the human realm anyway, and I could only guess why, probably afraid of what he would find in the plains. In all honesty, I didn't care. His willingness to let others rush into danger, while refusing to do so himself, was not entirely uncharacteristic; although, I hadn't learned it yet. Even in business, he was paranoid and heavily invested in self-preservation. I had no delusions that Jacob would come traipsing into the Demon Lord's castle (or so I told myself). It was funny how blissfully happy I had been to be marrying and building a life with Jacob, while never bothering to see past the image he projected. Well...it didn't take long for that image to shatter to pieces after he had claimed me for his own, legally. I often wondered which he had wished to posses so deeply: me or the marriage license? Did he love me or simply want all the little extras that came with me as a package? Before the Demon War, I had never considered it. But when he hadn't come for me, hadn't tried to save me, I realized that my usefulness to him was limited. After all, a marriage to the heiress of Anderson Toys secured his future, but how much that was worth was debatable when faced with the unpleasantness of the Demon Plane. I was pretty sure he loved me, in his own way. The way one loves a classic car or a colle
ctible long sought. Jacob wanted to possess the things he loved. But who was I to judge him for complicated emotions? At least he felt something.

  It was 3 days. 3 days in the Demon Lord's castle, 3 days in chains, 3 days of knives, of fire, of violation, but only 2 days of screams and tears. After the second day, I just abandoned my body. My soul hovered on the ceiling, seeing the atrocity below me, but not registering it. Apparently, one of Diana's soldiers (of all people) had sensed me passing through the shadows and tried unsuccessfully to rip me from the imps that took me before I arrived in the ruler of the demon world's hands and bed. When the boys came, they fell through that rip.

  The one who came for me was Mason. They called him "the brute," but despite the rage in his eyes, his hands were gentle as he removed my bindings and pulled me, still in my sweat and blood stained wedding dress, against his chest. As I snuggled into him, I assumed this was a hallucination. But oh, it was such a nice hallucination, so I clung to him all the same. I was vaguely aware of the carnage we walked by, demons and imps torn to shreds for standing between Mason and the room I was kept in. Later, I learned that the rest of the brothers, as well as Diana, were fighting the Demon Lord at the very moment Mason was making a path blazed in blood to save me.

  Mason had grit his teeth the rest of the hours we spent in the Abysmal Plains. He wouldn't look at me, and while it hurt, how could I possibly blame him? What happened was disgusting, and it was only normal for him to be disgusted by it, and by me. After all, it was his own father's doing. I understood perfectly, on the rare occasion the shame broke through the constant numbness. It was sad, it took the trauma of what happened to realize who I really wanted to be with. But it was a little too late for that. So, with no real reason not to, I did what was expected of me and married Jacob.

  The boys had fought their way to save me, so for them, I smiled, pretended that I still had a life to live. I smiled as though I was so happy to be marrying the man of my dreams. I kept my thoughts focused on the cake, the flowers, the music, and when required, I called up an older memory of Jacob and spoke into my mind, so that Ethan would hear. "I'm so happy."

  Then I started to steadily distance myself. I knew I had been exactly what they needed when they came here, 2 and a half years ago. They thought they owed me something. But the only real emotion I had left in my heart was my love for them. They had fought so hard to rid themselves of the demon plane and I sure as hell wasn't going to drag them back there with me in my mind, because a piece of my soul would always be trapped there. So I slammed the door on my gilded cage and waited for them to go away and give up. They would go live their lives, the ones they deserved, and I would stay here until the lights in my eyes finally went out. I found it was not an unhappy thought, to simply cease to exist.

  I had loved Jacob, before all of this. I had been reasonably happy. But now...I was too broken and he was too angry. His work was too much for him, it was obvious to me. He really wasn't built to be that far up in the company. Too much responsibility was filling him with rage, and all of the controlling behaviors and the verbal assaults weren't enough anymore, apparently. Jacob, who hated his father, slowly became a mirror of his image. His jealousy of the brothers went from a small spark to a roaring fire, especially Mason and Ethan. Mostly it was pushing and throwing things, but lately things had deteriorated. There had been a few smacks, and more than a few times I got thrown at a wall or onto the floor. On New Years, when I thought I was alone, I had quietly and with wistful tears toasted the boys, even though they weren't there, as I had done for the past 2 years. It made me feel close to them, even while knowing what I had to do. Jacob saw me and he snapped, pushing me to the wall with his hands around my neck. He had stopped before I passed out, but then he shifted his hand to the back of my neck and dug his fingers in until I yelped. There was a lot of yelling and my arm being twisted in ways it certainly wasn't supposed to be before he finally stomped off to bed. After, he apologized, said he was drunk, please forgive him, never again, the usual. I gave him a hollow smile, accepted the flowers, and walked away. I still wore the bruises under my hair, the fingerprints darkened now to a sick purple and yellow. I watched him escalate over time, but did nothing to prevent it. This was not headed to a pretty end. There were barely any glass decorations left in the house because they were the first place he vented his anger on. He tried to cut me down, told me all sorts of things in an attempt to lay me low. Somewhere in my mind, I was vaguely aware this should bother me. But, when I tried to feel the outrage, to feel the sting of his words so I could respond in kind, I felt nothing. With the boys gone, there was simply nothing left.

  Chapter 2: Kindling the Flame

  Daniel stood at the Mansion door, waiting for Olivia to answer. The brothers had decided that Daniel was the best candidate to get in the door, since he could reasonably be wanting to talk to Jacob. The fact that Jacob had been sent to a last minute dinner with a potential new client was not something Daniel would necessarily know (even if in this case, he arranged it.)

  "Who is it?" came Olivia's voice from the other side of the door. "It's Daniel, Miss. I was hoping to have a word with Jacob. It's important."

  Daniel heard shuffling on the other side of the door, before Olivia's voice rang out once more. "He's at a dinner with a client. He isn't here right now."

  Daniel tried not to be hurt by the fact that he was talking to Olivia through a door right now, because she wouldn't open it to him. Olivia, who he and his brothers had lived with for a year. Olivia, who he considered his sister. Olivia, who he was responsible for, just as he was responsible for all his brothers.

  "Olivia, please?" Daniel placed his hand on the door, wishing he could reach out and ruffle her hair with that hand instead. "You know it's an hour commute for me and I really have no choice, I have to speak to Jacob tonight. I tried his phone, but it appears to be turned off." (Or Benjamin lifted it while I told him about the dinner. One of the two.) "Could I please just come in and wait for a bit?"

  Daniel listened, hearing silence for so long he wondered if she had simply retreated into the house without saying another word. Finally he heard the deadbolt slide, and the door opened. He stepped in and closed the door behind him before he turned to Olivia with a smile. His arms were already rising to hug her hello when he stopped, shocked into stillness for a moment.

  Olivia was sick. All the hopes about her being busy deflated and slammed to the floor. Her lips were blue and her top was almost see through. Her feet were even more blue than her lips. Her hair was tangled and flat, lacking it's usual shine, and her eyes, which roamed the room to focus on anything but him, were dull. Large swatches of bluish black painted her face below her normally beautiful eyes. Daniel' mind flashed with the image of a porcelain doll falling and shattering to pieces. That was who stood in front of him, the fragments of a once vibrant girl.

  "Olivia..." Daniel said, his voice barely a whisper. After hearing her name, Mike turned on her heel and began to walk back into the inner rooms of the mansion, away from Daniel.

  "No, Olivia, wait!" Daniel said, moving to go after her. Olivia's pace quickened and as Daniel strode to match hers, she broke into a sprint into the backyard. "Olivia, stop! Olivia, your feet, don't go in the snow like that, their already..." And she bounded out the door.

  "Damn it!" Daniel cursed under his breath, trying to catch her without terrifying her. "Marquis! Thebe! Breaux! Gerard!"

  ----------

  I ran. I wasn't really sure why, the damage was done after all. Daniel would report back that I was not, in fact, okay and then they would all show up and demand to help me and the sad truth was, they couldn't. That's why I stayed away from them. I was a lost cause.

  But why did I open the door without changing then? Honestly, the plan was to let him in, send him to the sitting room, and disappear with some excuse. I had been so nervous to hear him at my door that I forgot how I must look. Well, his widening eyes had told me exactly how I looked and based on his face
, I must look like a lunatic. Running away from him probably wasn't doing much to dissuade him from thinking I had gone mad.

  Maybe I wanted someone to SEE me. Was this a cry for help? If it was, I was doing an exceptionally bad job at asking for it.

  I vaulted over the back stairs, landing with my numb toes in the snow, and I kept running. I didn't look behind me, didn't consider how there was no way I was going to out run a demon, I just sprinted for the forest. I had barely been eating and hadn't trained in months. I was unbelievably out of shape, and I started seeing black at the edges of my eyes, my body threatening to give out when faced with this brutal and sudden ordeal. But the adrenaline still kept me going, for now. My only goal right now, this second, was to put off looking Daniel in his face for as long as possible. I felt a pulse behind me and with a glance back saw the unmistakable bright light of a summoning.

  Mason. Super Speed. Fuck.

  I didn't even get my head turned back around before I ran straight into Mason's arms. For a moment, just a few seconds, I felt my body relax in the safest place in the five worlds: Mason's arms. So warm, so safe. My last thought before I passed out was how ridiculous it was that I was constantly fainting into one of their arms and wondering when that became my normal.

  ---

  Blood. She smelled blood.

  Her eyes fluttered open to a familiar scene, although not a welcome one. Chained to a bed, feather soft and damp, from a disgusting mixture of sweat, tears, and that red, coppery liquid that leaked from more than one open wound. One of her eyes was swollen shut, but her other could see the filthy room around her.