Chapter 22
Angel on Fire
(A Fake Excerpt)
The
flames wrapped around me like a blanket, making me want to just … roll over,
curl into a ball … and … sleep. Just for
a moment. The heat was so warm, it was
almost welcoming. I wanted to close my
eyes. Just for a moment. They were stinging from the smoke
anyway. And, I couldn’t catch my
breath. All I needed was a moment to
reorient myself. I knew I was still in
the warehouse. I knew I was there
because I’d never left. I remembered
coming in, but never leaving. If only I
could make my way back to the exit. It
was here … somewhere. Except … the smoke
was so thick, I couldn’t find anything
anyway. Everywhere I turned was darkness. Deep, billowing, rolling darkness. Every time I’d reach out into the darkness,
it would part for a moment, then encircle me once more.
Cough!
A
moment, just a moment …
All
I needed was a moment.
So,
I closed my eyes. And, the next thing I
knew, I felt myself drifting away into the best sleep ever. Only problem was --- why was it so damn
hot? I didn’t feel like getting out of
bed to turn the heat down. But, it
wasn’t the heat I needed to turn down. And,
I wasn’t in bed. I was in a
warehouse. On the floor. Knees curled almost to my chest, going fetal. I was in a warehouse where a murder had taken
place earlier in the week. And, I was
following a lead that led me here.
An
open door that should have been locked.
A
light that shouldn’t have been on.
A
trail of muddy footprints leading inside.
And
suddenly, there was a fire. And, its
heat was telling me that I really, really, really
wanted to sleep. So, that’s what I
did. My eyes closed and refused to
open. I felt myself drifting away. And, it just got hotter and hotter. That’s when I felt arms scooping me from beneath
my back and under the crook of my legs.
Strong arms scooped me upward until I felt another body against my own.
And,
I saw the face of an angel.
