Monday, February 25, 2013

A Rene C. Clayton Mystery Story: Angel on Fire


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.