Mari Mancusi - Scorched

“Well, there’s no place like home,” she declared, flashing the Lollipop Guild a smile she didn’t feel. Now if only she could score some ruby slippers…

As Rashida retreated back into the crowd, a sudden rumbling echoed through the mall. Trin’s eyes lighted on an elevator at the center courtyard, its doors yawning open with a loud groan. The crowd immediately parted like the Red Sea as a man and a woman stepped out and made their way toward Trin and Caleb.

They were dressed simply—not unlike the rest of the Potentials. But something in their manner—something fluid and graceful—made them stand out from the pack. They were also older. The man was probably in his late fifties, black hair speckled with gray. The woman’s age was harder to judge; she had a seamless face but dark, serious eyes and long blond hair cascading down her back like flowing water. They glided through the crowd, and the Potentials bowed their heads one by one as they passed.

These had to be the Dracken, Trin determined. The real ones who had come back from the future with Caleb.

“Welcome,” the man said, his voice warm and rich, a blinding smile spreading across his clean-shaven face. He reached out, pumping Caleb’s hand vigorously while the woman opened her arms, enveloping Trin into another hug. These Dracken people certainly were touchy-feely. She shot a furtive glance at Caleb and realized he was smiling broadly.

“Trinity, I’d like you to meet Darius and Mara,” he said. “Darius is Master of the Dracken and Mara is our Chief Birthing Maiden.”

“Um, hi,” she managed to spit out, not sure the proper Miss Manners etiquette for greeting visitors from the future. “Nice to meet you.” She realized her hands were shaking and shoved them behind her back.

Thankfully the Dracken didn’t seem to notice. Darius turned to Caleb. “You have done well,” he told him. “Even with the extenuating circumstances. I am very pleased.” He gave him an approving smile and Caleb beamed back happily. From the way he was acting, Trin got the feeling the Dracken leader must be some kind of father figure to him.

“And you, my sweet girl,” Mara said to Trinity, her voice light and musical. “Welcome to our humble headquarters. I know this must all seem very strange to you, but we hope you will find a way to make yourself at home here. You are our honored guest. Our Fire Kissed. And we are here to meet your every desire. Anything you need, you must only ask.”

“Can I go home?” Trinity blurted, not missing a beat. She could hear the other Potentials snicker until Darius shot them a look. “Sorry,” she muttered. “But you did say anything .”

Mara gave her an apologetic smile. “You’re right. I did. And if only we could honor your request. It would be my greatest pleasure to allow you to return home. But I fear it’s not safe for you there, and your safety is of utmost importance to us.”

Trin frowned. Of course they’d play the safety card. And, she had to admit, it was a tough one to argue with. “I’m sure I’d be okay,” she tried. “If I could only—”

“I don’t think you understand,” Mara interrupted in a kind but firm voice. “Your government has labeled you a terrorist, dealing in what they consider biological weapons of mass destruction. If they capture you, they will hold you without trial for as long as they wish. Torture you even. Are you prepared to face something like that?”

Trin stared at her, heart pounding in her chest. Terrorist? Sure she’d broken some laws. But terrorists were Osama Bin Laden, the Taliban, not teenage girls from West Texas who only advocated violence when it came to zombie-blasting video games.

“Not to mention the Hunter is still at large,” Darius added. “If he tracks you down—and I have no doubt he would if we allowed you to leave—he will kill you in order to slay the dragon. And we cannot, under any circumstances, allow that to happen. After all, this little dragon holds the future of the world in her hands. And so, through her, do you.”

Trin swallowed hard, looking around the room. And here she thought Caleb was intense. What had she gotten herself into? She tried to force her pulse to steady, to order her thoughts. Okay, fine. They wouldn’t let her go. It wasn’t a big surprise, really , she tried to tell herself. But there was one thing she could ask for. Something they might still agree to.

“If I can’t go home to my grandpa,” she said, after gathering her nerve, “then can you bring him back here to me? He’s the only family I have and I won’t be able to settle in until I know he’s okay.”

Darius looked at Mara. She nodded. “Now that’s something we can arrange,” she said.

Trin’s shoulders slumped in relief. “Thank you. That would be great. Really.”

“We’ll put our best men on it,” Darius assured her, laying a hand on her arm. “They’ll find him and bring him back here and he can live as our honored guest just like you. If we’re quick, perhaps he’ll even be able to arrive in time to witness the dragon’s birth.”

Trinity nodded enthusiastically, loving the idea of her grandpa getting to see Emmy hatch. After all, he was the one who had brought the egg into their lives in the first place. Without him, none of this would be happening.

“Thank you,” she said sincerely. “I can’t tell you how much that means to me.”

“Not half as much as you mean to us,” the Dracken returned grandly. He turned to Rashida, who was still hovering at the front of the crowd. “Now, would you mind, Sister, taking our guest to her chambers? She must be exhausted from her trip.” He turned back to Trin. “We have prepared everything for your arrival—rooms, clothing. Even now your handmaiden is drawing you a hot bath.”

Trinity raised her eyebrows. She had to admit, a bathtub sounded good in and of itself after their days on the dusty road. But a freaking handmaiden to boot?

Emmy, we’re not in West Texas anymore.

But where am I? she wondered as she followed Rashida down the darkened hall, the creepy feeling returning with a vengeance the further they went. And what do they want from me, now that I’m here?

“Hey! Fire Kissed! Over here!”

Rashida waved wildly across the food court, attempting to get Trinity’s attention. Trin waved back awkwardly, then headed over. She could feel the stares of the other Potentials as she wove through the tables and tried to acknowledge each of them as she passed, not wanting people to think she was a snob. At school, Trin always tried to avoid being the center of attention, but she realized there was no helping that here.

“This place is like a maze,” she remarked as she slid into her seat. “I got lost three times trying to get here from my room.”

“That’s because you were given a crap tour guide,” the tall, blond boy across from her quipped, playfully poking Rashida, the tour guide in question. She poked him back twice as hard.

“As if you don’t still get lost going to the bathroom,” she retorted, “and you’ve been here half a year.”

“This was the biggest mall in Nevada before they shut it down.” The petite Asian girl on Rashida’s left looked up from the journal she’d been scribbling in. Some kind of poetry, Trin noticed. Or maybe song lyrics? “But I found the original blueprints if you ever want to learn your way around.”

“If you ever want to be a complete nerd,” the boy shot back, but he was smiling at her.

“This is Aiko,” Rashida introduced, ignoring him. “Our very own rock star, straight from Japan. She may look like a tiny little thing out of an anime film, but don’t let her fool you. The girl’s got mad pipes.” Aiko blushed prettily, closing her notebook and reaching out to shake Trin’s hand. Her fingers were dainty but calloused on the tips, assumedly well acquainted with guitar strings.