In The Burning Heart Novels & Stories

The smell of burnt pine is making it hard to breathe. Panic is setting in as I realize I have no way to put the fire out. Anytime trouble starts I have a hard time focusing and I can’t think, like right now. Come on Clara you have to do something. I look around me, I can feel my heart racing faster than the speed of light. I can barely see through the sweat dripping in my eyes, I spit my gardenhose in the lake -I can use that to put to try putting out the fire.

Bri Beau blazed a trail over every inch of my body that burned down into my tattered heart, my soul, my very being. He was right this wasn’t fucking. Our souls were bared to one another, the one line held between us, which we knew we could not cross for our own sanity, and yet we continued to tease ourselves, egging on the other to make the first slip. These men and I were addicted to the dangerous game we played. One wrong move and our lives would be impossibly bound and tethered for the rest of our existence. But I couldn’t throw away this, this love. I would soak it up, and bathe in it, as selfish as it was. We deserved so much more.

Instead, it was to honor my father's legacy. Before long, the Moretti family returned to its former glory. We became the strongest force in the underworld, and I was known as the coldest, most untouchable woman. The old me died in that fire, yet from its ashes, I rose anew. What the flames didn't consume was my heart. It still burned, but it would ache for no one ever again.

“Despite that, it wasn’t your fault, you should be wise enough to know that you need a break before catching any so-called feelings for anybody.” “Your heart needs to heal from all of this. Don't you get it Emily?” Never in my life have I seen Aunt Claudia exert so much intensity in her anger. Well, not like I have known her for long but I have only always felt a sort of happy aura around her. “I'm sorry Aunty, I understand this.” I was just about to explain myself further but our conversation was interrupted by a similar anonymous text message again and I quietly read it to myself at once.

The fire crackled in the center of the camp, the flames dancing in the twilight as the group settled around it. The night air was cool, but the tension in the air was palpable. Elena sat apart from the others, her eyes distant, her thoughts far away. The Heart’s power still pulsed through her, and she could feel it—alive and hungry, constantly pulling at her, trying to dominate her every thought. It had been days since the battle, and the damage was still fresh in her mind. The Heart’s power had been unleashed, and she had no control over what it did.

Malrik stood in front of me, silent for a long moment. His gaze traced the faint glow under my skin—my veins lit with a soft ruby pulse whenever my heartbeat jumped. He reached out and brushed one knuckle along my cheek. Barely a touch. Barely contact. But the sensation struck through me like a fuse sparking. “You’re burning,” he whispered. The words scraped something raw inside me. “I know.” “Does it hurt?” “Only when I try to stop it.” His jaw tightened. “Don’t stop it.”

-----~[AMELIA]~----- My heart is pounding rapidly. My entire body is sweating with nervousness. My system is vibrating with a superb uncontrollable Force as I lean against the door trying to catch my breath thinking about the big hell I am currently in. What the hell am I going to do now? This is just too much to take in. That guy is relentless and he's not going to stop until he gets what he wants. How the hell am I supposed to keep away from him when we are in the same building for crying out loud?

But inside her chest, there was no peace. Burn. The sensation was constant. A searing heat right over her heart, pulsing in rhythm with her heartbeat, reminding her. It wasn't just pain; it was a brand. A leash. It felt as if a red-hot iron had been pressed into her soul, and it never truly cooled down. It was always there, a dull ache that flared into agony whenever she dared to disobey. “Why do you hesitate?” The voice grated against her mind like sandpaper on stone. It was everywhere, filling her head, leaving no room for her own thoughts. It echoed in the hollow spaces of her skull, loud, demanding, and cruel.

Her breathing is heavy and I know she is feeling the ache of a loving heart just like me. “My hearts been burning for you Beauty since before I even knew you existed, and it's still burning. I'm still waiting for you. I know you told me that you fell a long time ago baby. You guarded, and I understand THAT. But you, Amariya are everything I need to breathe. I am the one falling hoping that if there is something there for me IN those shards, it will join me.” She opens her mouth, and takes a deep inhale, as I let out a huff.