Inside the Fire Book One in the Warden's Series by Heather Glidewell

single one of his fifty calls nor did I answer any of his
hundreds of texts.
    Everything was happening so fast, there was
no slow road with him. All this talk about love, and this claiming
word that kept coming up. It was all just too quick.
    What is love?
    I mean really. Other than some emotion where
your heart pounds, and every moment you are apart you feel like you
are being ripped into two million pieces. I blamed my erratic
emotions for my dreams becoming more intense. It was happening
again. Several times I awoke to the smell of burning fabric to find
I had singed my bed sheets in my sleep. This was happening far more
than it did when I was a tween.
    I wanted him more than anything and being
without his touch had sent me reeling into an alternate reality.
One that made him a key character in my dreams so it seemed. I
questioned the subtle changes though. The green eyes that made
little sense. I was always enamored with his blue eyes why would I
subconsciously change them to green?
    How does someone fall in love in a matter of
days?
    I had never felt love before, never knew how
it encased the entire body in warmth. How you would long for your
other half when they were only a door away. The feeling was nice,
but it was not one I truly enjoyed having, at least not right this
second.
    He deserved better, he deserved a mortal
girl that could give him everything he wanted and desired. He
deserved to have someone capable of love to love him in return. I
had already taken so much from him, and I couldn’t bring myself to
take more. Even the thought of letting him go for his own good was
tearing at me. I just couldn’t fathom doing it, he was mine.
    I picked up my phone and looked at the time,
two a. m. I sighed and tossed it back on the nightstand. Running my
fingers through my hair I got up, a little shaky at first but I
gained my balance. I was feeling light headed and a little groggy
as I made my way out of my room and into the kitchen. Holding
myself up on the counter I looked out the window and into the
night.
    I was watching the wind blow the leaves of
the trees when I saw something run across the yard. It appeared to
be traveling extremely fast. Before I could control my feet I tore
out of the kitchen and into the night. A hundred yards ahead of me
I saw a shape stop and turn to look at me. It appeared human with
glowing red eyes, and it was looking at me very curiously.
    I willed whatever power I could into my
hands and stepped closer to the figure. My fingers sparked
noticeably, and a wicked smile spread across the creatures
face.
    “Wer bist du?” The words flowed from me like
they were my own, however they were not. I had simply asked who are
you and instead said it in German.
    What was happening to me?
    “I am the thing you fear most.” It replied
in English. “I am your death. I am your salvation.”
    “I do not fear you.” I said to her as she
turned to get a better look at me.
    She put her nose in the
air and took in a hefty breathe.
    “You should.” She teased me.
    “And why is that?” She was creeping me
out.
    I mean really who runs through someone
else’s yard at two in the morning for no obvious reason?
    “Your blood. It smells different,” She
smiled at me this devious smirk. “I have not eaten in so long. What
is just a little taste?” The creature lunged for me.
    I felt my body shift as instinct took over.
She was clawing at me her hands reaching for my neck. There was a
prick of teeth on my skin but the pain faded as quickly as it
started. By the time I knew of what was happening the creature was
dead at my feet. I looked around in a panic and kneeled down on the
ground pushing the creature’s hair from her face feeling for a
pulse, but there was nothing. Those dead red eyes just peered back
at me.
    I didn’t know what I had done to kill her
but at least she didn’t get to me. I put my arms out in front of me
inspecting. It would appear that she had broken no skin after all.
The shock