The woman motions us outside. “You have approval. Mike will go with you to test the water and ensure you have not contaminated it.”
I step aside and let them lead. “Just want to help if I can.”
The guards escort us outside and across a pathway to the pool. Two men hold the doors for us as Brynna and I walk outside, and for a moment, I pretend they’re treating her like royalty instead of treating me as a threat. But I know the difference. It’s in their eyes, the way they all follow me.
They open the gate and usher us inside and onto the pool’s concrete deck. I unzip my race suit and drop it to my ankles.
Brynna looks away.
“I am wearing fireproof shorts. I am not dumb enough to trust ABR with my pride.”
She steals a glimpse at me and blushes.
I kick off my boots and look at Mike, who walks in, then slams to a stop when he sees me. The gate clangs shut behind him and makes him jump. He mutters to himself, shakes his head, and sets a kit on a nearby reclining lounge chair.
“Can I have use of my wings?” I ask a nearby guard.
“No,” a human guard replies. “That is a hard no from Ohni herself. If you need to release your wings, there is now a chamber where you can do that. It is between the simulation facilities and the male dorms.”
I prefer not to heat up when my wings are folded, but this will have to do. Crossing my arms over my chest, I grab the edges of the spark arrestor plate and pry it free. It is a painful sensation that makes me shudder. But the moment it’s free, I feel instant relief.
My chest lights up as my Inferno awakens, and I let it, uninhibited. Orange fissures run through my blackening flesh until I look like a molten man with bound wings.
“Might be a bit too hot,” Mike warily suggests. “Don’t want to evaporate the pool.
I set the plate on a bench and calm myself with several deep breaths. At his nod, I descend into the cool water of the shallow end. It steams and fills the air with clouds until I cannot see Brynna or the others. And I do not like that.
“Marco…” she calls out.
“Who’s that?” I ask.
“Ah, never mind. I just wanted to make sure you were still in there.” She sounds happy, and that’s what I want.
“I’m not a swimmer. This is…awkward.”
“I bet.”
I circle the pool for a few minutes, stirring up the water where I can still reach the bottom, and bringing the temperature up significantly. When I return to the shallow end, a shadow moves in front of me. Brynna rises smoothly from the water like a mermaid from human legends and wraps her arms around my neck.
“Oof, you are hot.” Brynna pulls back and eyes the steam coming off my body. “Was hoping to get a kiss, but I’m thinking maybe I should wait.”
“You should.”
“Darn.”
Mike calls out from the misty edge that we’re good, then packs up his test kit and hurries away from the pool. So I rein in my monster and steal a timid kiss from Brynna. Stadium lights kick on around us, and more couples begin to walk over.
“Guess our privacy is gone,” she pouts.
I pick her up by the hips and carry her out of the pool. “I know where we can get more.”
“Your room or mine?” she asks.
“I was actually thinking of giving you flying lessons.”
She waggles her brows. “I like the sound of that.”
14: Brynna
