4. CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FOUR
Maxar Rane
Koh Tao, Thailand
Easiest fucking gig of my life.
And no matter what they paid me, no matter what they offered, I kept the mystery alive by never revealing my secret.
“But how do you do it, Mr. Maxar?” they would all ask. “How can you touch the fire like that? How can you manipulate it and swirl it? How can you put it on your tongue and in your hands and not get burned?”
Magic, bitches.
But to the tourists and locals alike, I was an attraction. Dinner entertainment on the beach as they sipped their drinks, dug their toes in the sand and watched me do more than just fire poi or the fire stick.
No, I made fire my bitch.
I wove it and spun it, condensed it, and stretched it like fucking Silly Putty until they tossed millions of Baht into my hat.
I grinned as a Thai woman I’d spent more than a few nights with walked past, serving drinks to some obnoxious tourists. I couldn’t even tell where these fuckers were from. One minute I thought it was Texas, the next minute Ireland. They were too fucking drunk to keep their accent straight.
As long as they tipped, I didn’t give a shit if they were from the fucking moon.
I winked at Busaba, and she winked back. We had a no-strings thing that suited us both just fine. And I helped keep the more handsy tourists from getting fresh with her.
She walked past me again, after delivering the beverages to her customers, and gave me a sign that two guys at the far end sitting on pillows needed to be watched. I nodded and kept doing my fire magic shit, smiling for my audience as they oohed and aahed.
“Hey, baby! Another drink, stat!” one of the men called out to Busaba. “If you want that tip, you’ll hustle those tight Thai buns.”
My nostrils flared and my body temperature went from what it was normally at—around two hundred degrees Fahrenheit—to closer to two-fifty.
Busaba nodded at the men and went up to the bar.
“Yo! Fire Boy, show us something cool. Swallow a flame or some shit.” They laughed like the morons that they were.
“Oh, you mean like this?” I asked, snapping my fingers and instantly producing a flame.
The crowd went, “Ooh!”
“That’s all smoke and mirrors. Do something that nobody can figure out how you’re really doing it,” the same cocky bastard hollered. I could see in the eyes of many other beach-goers that these two pricks were ruining the evening for everyone.
I smiled at the men and put the flame on the tip of my finger into my mouth. I closed my eyes and blew, and like steam coming out of a kettle, flames burst from my ears.
Applause thundered, echoing off the calm water.
Busaba walked past me and I kept a keen eye. She brought the men their Chang beer, setting the big bottles down on the squat table with a smile. “That’s right, baby. Give us a little wiggle.” Then the louder one pinched Busaba’s ass .
His friend chortled to encourage him. Then they were both laughing.
A red ball of fire flew from my palm like a baseball destined for the strike zone and landed square in the man’s bare chest.
He screamed, and his friend dumped his beer on his chest in an attempt to douse it.
It was magic fire. You couldn’t put it out like that. You couldn’t really put it out, period.
He continued to scream. Then he got up and found a patch of empty, loose sand. He flopped down and rolled back and forth, crying like a little bitch.
People crowded around him, beating him with the pillows they’d been sitting on to snuff out the flames. Casually, slowly, I walked over to where he writhed in pain.
Not only was it a controlled burn, but it wasn’t even that fucking hot—the pussy.
I stood over him. “Do we touch women without consent?”
“Huh?” He’d had his eyes shut. His face was pinched into one of unbearable agony.
I crouched down. “Do we touch women without consent?”
His eyes opened, and he focused on me. “N-no.”
“Do we bark orders at the waitstaff and act like obnoxious tourists, ruining the vacations of others?”
“N-no.”
“Are you going to apologize and tip Busaba handsomely?”
His eyes darted to his friend.
“Dude, you’re fucking on fire. Give him whatever he wants.”
The man nodded. “Y-yes.”
“Do you promise?”
“I promise. I promise. Now put it out.”
Rolling my eyes, I slid down to my knees. “No manners with this generation.”
“Please!” he screamed.
“That’s better.” I angled my face over where the flames danced across his chest, pursed my lips like I was about to suck from a straw, and instead, sucked the fire back into my mouth until there was nothing burning left on his chest. Only a first-degree burn—similar to a bad sunburn. “You’re going to want to put some aloe on that.” I stood up and dusted off my legs.
The roar from the crowd was deafening now, and it followed me all the way up to the thatch-roofed bar where the bartender, Jai, handed me a tall bottle of water. I chugged it.
“Never ceases to amaze me when you do shit like that, Max,” Jai said with a laugh. “I don’t know how you do it.”
“All smoke and mirrors, my friend.”
I glanced out at the sky and the endless stars. It would be the full moon party on Ko Pha-Ngan in a few days. I usually went over because the money was good. Twenty thousand people on a beach, and almost all of them were really drunk, or high on psychedelic mushrooms. I could light a match and put it out on my tongue and they’d all think I was a fucking god.
Busaba came over with a drink tray full of empty glasses. Several Thai Baht were tucked safely beneath one big glass. She pulled out a bill. “Thank you.”
I held up my hand and shook my head. “I don’t charge you for protection. We’ve had this conversation before. We’re friends, Busaba. I’m going to look out for you—free of charge.”
She batted her thick lashes at me. “Can I come to your bungalow later then? Thank you properly?”
Jai chuckled.
“Now that’s a ‘thank you’ I can get on board with.”
“Hey!” came a familiar, stupid voice. “I don’t know what kind of shitty stunt you just pulled, but it wasn’t funny.” Dum-dum, who I pretended to almost torch, stomped his too-big-to-be-natural—unless he was a shifter—body over to me. “I don’t gotta apologize or put up with a puny little shit like you. Making a fool of me like that. You owe me an apology.”
I loved my life—except for this part.
Taking a deep breath, I exhaled out a big puff of smoke, making him cough and step back. “I don’t, actually. Because although you may be bigger than me. I am smarter than you. I am kinder than you. I am older than you. I am more dangerous than you. Let’s just be honest here. I’m just better than you.” I stepped toward him, snapping my fingers again to bring up green flames this time. “The people on this beach just want to sit, have a drink, and enjoy some cheap—albeit incredible—entertainment. Don’t deprive them of that. Sit down, shut up, and enjoy the show. Or fuck off.”
He eyed my green flames with as much caution as curiosity. “What the fuck are you, dude?”
My smile was nothing short of evil. “I’m your worst fucking—”
Crack!
Lightning flashed through the sky, illuminating the entire beach. A giant, jagged fork crashed down from the stars and plunged directly into my chest, knocking me backward onto the sand.
People screamed.
I was still conscious, but rattled, and when I looked up from where I was on my back, a crowd formed around so tight I couldn’t see the sky.
Jai and Busaba pushed their way through, telling everyone to get out of the way.
Jai crouched down. “Max, my friend, are you okay?”
Busaba’s hand landed on my head, but I instantly flinched and shook her off. Her face turned sad, but she didn’t try again.
I knew what that lightning strike meant.
I’d seen it happen to others.
My mate had come of age.
And now, until we mated, to be touched by another woman would cause me pain. My heart, mind, body, and soul belonged to only one person now. And I had to get to her. I had to find her.
“Can you get up?” Jai asked. “Or do we need to call the ambulance?”
“I’m fine,” I grunted, my mouth tasting like ash. “Just help me up.”
Jai offered me his hand and yanked me to my feet, steadying me when I wobbled a little.
“Look!” A woman from the crowd pointed to the sand I’d landed on. “Glass.”
I turned around where, sure enough, the heat from my body and the lightning had melted the sand and turned it into glass.
A kid bent down and picked up the big, oddly shaped, clear piece. “This is so cool.” He glanced up at me. “Can I keep it?”
“Fill your boots, kid.”
Lilac, honeysuckle, and cayenne filled the breeze that wafted beneath my nose. I turned toward it, inhaling deeper. My mate’s scent.
I needed to leave. Now. There wasn’t a moment to waste. Nodding at Jai and Busaba, I headed off down the beach.
“Where are you going?” Jai called after me.
“I don’t know. But I gotta go,” I replied, not looking back. I didn’t have time to wait for one of the shuttle boats in the morning. I needed to start moving now.
I woke up my friend, Somchai, who had a boat, and paid him to take me to Koh Samui which had an airport. From there, I caught a flight to Bangkok, following my instincts that my mate was in the States. I didn’t know where in the States, so I paid for a flight to LAX, and would go from there. Her scent would lead me to her door. Of that, I was sure.
I arrived at LAX the next evening. As soon as I stepped outside, I could feel her closeness, and her scent was as strong as ever. I needed to head north.
Renting a car and driving would take too long, so I hopped on the next available flight north, which took me to Chase City. It was just south of Seattle and about two-thirds the size. I’d never been, but again, my instincts told me that when I touched down, it wouldn’t be too long before I was with my mate.
“Sir, you’ll need to bring your seat up and return your tray table,” the flight attendant said to the man across the aisle from me. “We’re preparing to descend.”
“I don’t understand the big deal,” the guy argued, pulling out one ear bud, and opening one eye to glare at her. “It’s another thirty minutes before we’re on the ground. I want to be comfortable and I still have stuff in my cup.” He put his earbud back into his ear and closed his eyes again, ignoring her.
She touched his shoulder. “Sir—”
He jerked away hard, unintentionally—from my vantage point anyway—swatting her in the breast.
She gasped.
People around gasped too.
“Are you all right?” I asked her, careful not to touch her.
She held her breast against herself with her forearm, her young, tanned face one of fear and confusion. “T-this is only my first week.”
I nudged the idiot’s elbow. “Apologize to her.”
He pulled out his earbud again and glowered at me. “Who the fuck are you?”
“Apologize to her,” I repeated. I really fucking hated repeating myself.
“She touched me first.”
“And you assaulted her, because you can’t control your reflexes, or do as you’re asked by airline staff. Apologize to her.” I made sure that when he was looking at me, I tossed some freaky flames into my eyes.
His gaze widened, then he glanced up at the flight attendant. “Sorry,” he muttered.
“Now, sit up, finish your juice, and put your tray table back in its secured position, like you’ve been asked,” I went on.
Giving me his best death-stare, he did as he was told. The flight attendant hesitantly took his empty cup, mouthed a “thank you” to me, then skittered off down the aisle.
“Well done,” said the elderly man beside me. Thankfully, I’d been seated beside men on all my flights. Even an elbow bump with a woman could cause me pain. “Some people can get so belligerent.”
I lifted my brows for a moment. “Some people just don’t know how to be decent human beings anymore.”
I chuckled on the inside. As far as human beings went, I knew only a few who were actually decent. Like Jai and Busaba—and maybe this old guy trying to talk to me. But as a whole, the species was weak, selfish, and unevolved.
We landed without a care, and unloaded off the plane, pouring out into the domestic arrivals portion of the terminal. I didn’t have any bags with me. I didn’t even have any fucking carry-on. Just my phone, my wallet and my passport.
One of the guys I sat next to on the flight from Bangkok to LAX said I was “raw dogging” the flight, as I didn’t have earbuds or anything to keep me entertained. He was stunned that I didn’t even watch a show or read the SkyMall magazine.
All I did was shrug. I had enough in my mind to keep myself entertained. Thoughts of my mate kept me busy. What was she like? What did she look like? What was her name? Was she a mage too? And if so, what kind of mage?
The fates worked in mysterious ways. Mages were the wild cards of the bunch—in my opinion—and although mages were usually fated to mate other mages, we seemed to have more variety thrown at us than the other species which bonded mostly with themelves. This was probably why there were so many variations of mages: fire, earth, spellcaster, necromancer, healing, psychic and more. We evolved because our genetics were more diverse. Both my parents were mages, but my uncle’s Fated Mate was a very nice fox shifter named Gilda. It was just a theory, but one a lot of mages believed. Who really knew what the fates were up to with their pairing choices?
It was slow moving, funneling off the plane on the jet bridge, but eventually I broke free of the bottleneck and wove my way through the trudgers and saunterers. I needed to get outside. I needed to figure out which direction to go.
It was dark outside now, and raining, but that wouldn’t impede her scent.
Taking a deep breath as soon as I stepped through the open doors, I grew woozy from just how strong I could smell her. I wanted to run. I wanted to run to her now; she was so close. I could practically taste her. And I bet she tasted even better than she smelled.
So I ran.
“Hey!” someone behind me called. “You don’t want a cab?”
“I’m good,” I replied, continuing at a steady jog.
The dark didn’t scare me, and the rain felt good as it sizzled and steamed on my skin. And the closer I grew to my mate, the better I felt. The stronger and more confident. The more excited I became.
My legs pumped harder and faster until I was sprinting. Time ceased to exist. I had tunnel vision. I was focused on the beautiful, blurry figure before me, waiting to be claimed. Waiting for our life to begin.
It was close to midnight when I rocked up to a warehouse converted into an apartment building. What a weird part of town. I bet a lot of hipsters lived here. Just from where I stood, I could see a kombucha shop, a butcher shop, two craft breweries, a gluten-free bakery, and a hot yoga studio.
Oh yeah, this was definitely hipsterville.
Hopefully, my mate wasn’t a hipster.
Even if she was, I’d love her.
We could overcome that. I could grow to like microbrew beer and for someone as warm-blooded as me, hot yoga would probably be a piece of cake.
I scoured the building for a way in, finally finding an open sliding glass door on a balcony on the second story. The lights were off inside. Chances were whoever lived there kept the door open for fresh air, or they had a cat that came in and out on its own. I parkoured my ass up to the balcony, barely making a sound as I landed over the wrought iron railing, pausing to see if there was any snoring or sounds within.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if this was my mate’s place? Maybe she left the door open for me?
I crept inside, mindful of where I placed my feet on the floorboards.
A gentle breath in the single bedroom echoed through the high-ceilinged unit.
It wasn’t my mate though. Her scent wasn’t strong enough in here for it to be her.
I made my way to the front door and, just as quietly as I had been so far, I opened it and stepped out into the hallway, taking a deep inhale to orient myself.
She wasn’t on this floor.
I needed to go up.
So up I went, poking my head onto the third floor.
She wasn’t there either.
Ah, my lady fair was on the top floor. The top of the castle for the queen of my heart. How utterly fitting.
When I stepped out into the hallway of the fourth floor, I pulled her perfect scent deep into my lungs and headed in the direction my heart tugged me, stopping in front of unit 405.
Lifting my fist, I knocked on the big metal door, eager to meet my mate and start our lives together. Hopefully, she was just as excited to meet me.