The Devil's Fire Read online

She looked down at herself and then back up to him. “I wanna get some bling on my hoo-ha.”

  I made a noise and walked toward her. I grabbed her arm, smiling at the man behind the counter and then I walked her out and onto the sidewalk in front of the tattoo shop. We stood in front of the glass window. I raised my hand and quickly crossed my arms on my chest.

  “You must be insane.”

  She sighed. “Listen. I’ve been thinking about this for a while now. I’ve read about it, and it’s supposed to heighten everything like ten million times harder.”

  “What if they mess up down there?” I looked down at her crotch and then back up to her gleaming eyes. She reached out and touched my arm. “Then I sue them, and I own everything here. Then once I get the money, I buy a new one.”

  “A new one? You mean that?” I pointed at her crotch and then continued. “Yeah, but your—I mean, it could be harmed.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Harmed? Abi, it isn’t some fuzzy bunny, innocent and hiding under a log somewhere. It’s my gha-gha! This girl is tough. She can take it.”

  “I didn’t mean to sound like you couldn’t handle it, it just seems, severe.”

  She leaned toward me. “I heard it’s like an intense orgasm for some people. It’s a pain thing, you know all about that.”

  My eyes lit up. Pain. I understood pain and pleasure. I craved it more than anything. I just didn’t know that she even thought about it.

  “So you like that sort of thing?” I asked, keeping my voice down.

  She nodded to me. “Are you kidding me? You only live once, right?”

  “Yeah, I guess so, but you also only get one of those,” I pointed at her crotch again.

  “Now come on, I appreciate that you care and that you worry! I worry about you too, but trust me. I’m not drunk, this isn’t spur of the moment. I want this.”

  I bit my lip. “Okay, but if you go in there and it looks shady at all, you just say the word, and we are out of here.”

  She touched my face. “I love you. You are so sweet, I swear. I’m good, I promise.”

  I looked inside. The man was chatting away with Brad, and his eyes met mine. I looked back down and then up at Avery.

  “Alright, let’s go back in.”

  She hugged me, and we walked back into the tattoo shop. Avery held her hands up and then clapped them together. “Let’s get this girl saddled up,” she snapped her fingers and pointed at her crotch. I couldn’t help but laugh. I had missed her so much.

  I shook my head, and Brad’s smile forced one to break through my lips too.

  “Okay, well, this is Sky, she’ll be taking care of you.”

  This beautiful girl stepped up with blue dreads and eyes to match. She had a few tattoos on her shoulders, stars, a dragon, a coy fish. All done with great care and perfectly matching her style. I noticed the two ships on the front of her shoulders, both on turbulent seas with a ribbon inscription between them. All that it said was “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” She noticed that I was staring. She touched it.

  “It’s a Lao Tzu quote.”

  “I love it. You have beautiful tattoos.”

  She looked at the man behind the counter and pointed at him. “This guy is the best, hands down. He did all of these,” she turned a little as I inspected all of her tattoos. They were amazing.

  She looked at Avery. “Okay, are we ready?”

  Avery nodded. “More than.”

  I reached out and touched Avery’s hand as she started to walk away from me. She looked back and winked, her expression calm and reassuring. I let her hand go, she walked toward the back of the shop and disappeared around the corner. I was left with Brad and the man who had created the beautiful tattoos on the blue haired girl.

  I looked back at the wall and then at him. “I think I want that one, back here.” I touched the back of my shoulder and tapped it. He eyed Brad and then tilted his head. He leaned on the counter. His green eyes studied my face. I stared at his eyes and then his pierced lip. He was attractive, as far as attractive men go.

  His skin had an olive tint to it, natural, not a tan. His eyes were cradled with thick black lashes, his hair matched. Long on the top, shaven on the sides and back. He had a heart tattoo on the side of his neck, broken in two. I could relate to it.

  “You don’t have any work done, do you?”

  I tapped my fingers on the glass counter between us. He could see the stitches on my wrist.

  “I’m okay with pain.”

  He stood up and ran his hand through his hair. “Okay then. I have an opening if you want to do it now.”

  I nodded to him. Brad tapped the counter. “Sweet! This guy is the real deal, Abi. You’ll love him.”

  I eyed the picture one more time and turned back to face him. “I have no doubt.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  GUILDED CAGE

  __________________________

  I leaned forward as he gently wiped my shoulder. He placed the stencil on and pressed it down. I took a slow breath. I wasn’t nervous, in fact, I was looking forward to this.

  I never considered getting a tattoo before, but after everything I had experienced with Jack, I knew that I could handle it. The pain would be something I would cherish, as well as the image itself.

  He leaned back and spoke to me. “Take a look at this and make sure it’s where you want it.”

  I stood up and turned my back to the large mirror on the wall. He held a mirror up in front of me. I stared at the branches as they faded in about an inch from the middle of my back and spread out to the edge of my shoulder. The cage sat on one of the twisted branches in the middle of it, the bird sat behind the open door. I loved it. It almost brought tears to my eyes.

  Nothing fit me better, well, nothing except Jack.

  I nodded, and he lowered the mirror. I grinned at him, hesitating for only a moment before I returned to the black leather chair. I straddled it, and my back faced him.

  “So, what’s the story morning glory?”

  I rested my chin on the cushioned top of the chair. Gripping the back of it.

  “I love that band, and the song.”

  The tattoo gun hummed behind me. I was amazed at how relaxed I was. I expected at least a little bit of nervous tension to kick in, but nothing. I was calm seas.

  “That reminds me.” He shut the gun off and turned on some music. It filled the awkward silence in the room. The gun hummed again.

  “So, I’m Erik.”

  “Abi.”

  The gun made contact with my skin, and I hissed. The pain spread out across my shoulder. I enjoyed it. I closed my eyes and bit my lip, trying to hold back the moan that may come across as odd. I have no idea how many people get tattooed and sound as if they may be having sex.

  “I figured that we should at least be on a first name basis. Tattoos are very intimate to me, but it’s my art, so I take pride in it.”

  I nodded. “I—wow, that’s really—I’m sorry, I’m just getting used to the pain.”

  He pulled the needle from the surface of my skin and the ache remained.

  “No, I’m good, keep going, please.” I gripped the chair and anticipated the needle to go back in.

  He placed the needle back to my skin. He drew a permanent thin black line across my shoulder, and I closed my eyes. Thinking about Jack and how much pleasure he always gave me. I swallowed hard, and Erik started to talk again.

  “So do you want to talk about it?”

  I opened my eyes. “About what?”

  “Your wrist?”

  He dipped the needle in the black ink and returned it to my skin. His touch was gentle, the pain was not. I felt a little sweat rising on my forehead. I wiped it with my fingers. He leaned over and looked at me from the side.

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah, I’m good. This was an accident.” I held my wrist up so that he could see it.

  He stopped and held his wrist up next to me, I could see the s
car on his skin, it was faded but still there with him forever like mine would be. “Mine too,” he said quietly.

  I flexed my fingers and then relaxed them, something about the pain, and his easy going personality had me feeling vulnerable, probably more so than usual with strangers.

  I spoke softly. “Okay, I did it.”

  “Why?”

  I looked in the mirror and could see him working behind me. The pain continued, some of it worse, depending on where his needle cut into me. None of it was too much to handle, in fact, it could have been worse and I would have probably welcomed it.

  “It’s complicated.”

  He pulled the needle from my skin and dipped it back in the black ink. My blood mingled with it, mixing in and becoming one. “Isn’t everything in life?”

  “Yeah. I have to agree, but it wasn’t a suicide attempt, trust me.”

  “Oh man, I don’t judge.”

  I adjusted my chin on the cushion.

  “It’s a guy,” I said, happy to admit it.

  He stopped and rolled his stool up next to me. “No one is worth dying for.”

  I nodded to him. “No, I didn’t want to die. He’s, we—well, it’s a fetish thing, I guess.”

  “Oh,” he rolled back behind me and placed the needle back to my skin. I could feel it cut across my shoulder toward the outer edge.

  “So, vampires?”

  I laughed. “Oh no, this isn’t Twilight, I swear. Not that Twilight was bad, I loved the books and the movies.”

  He stopped. “Don’t tell anyone, but I did too. That wolf pack was badass.”

  “Right?”

  He shook his head. “Team Jacob, he’s hot as hell. Well, I don’t care if people know that.”

  I laughed. “Well, I went back and forth from Team Edward to Team Jacob. I guess it depended on the day.”

  “I hear that.”

  Knowing he was gay made it easier for me to talk to him. Not that talking to a straight guy who liked women would be a bad thing, but it just took the edge off of the entire situation.

  “I heard that she’s writing another book in the series.”

  I nodded. “I did too. I’ll buy it.”

  “Right there with you, as long as it has some more wolves in it.”

  I grinned. It was nice to have a regular conversation about something I liked again. It was better than always thinking about my life and the mess it seemed to create all around me.

  “So, Brad,” he was obviously curious about him.

  I shook my head. “Totally straight, as far as I know. We went out on a date, well, it was a pre-date.”

  He laughed and held the needle away from my skin.

  “That was you?”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Me, what?”

  “He mentioned the bridge and you, I should have made the connection when you told me your name.”

  “Yeah, that was me.”

  He smiled in the mirror at me. “I still think that he could swing both ways, I just get a vibe.”

  I stared at him in the mirror. “Maybe, who knows? Ask him out.”

  He placed the needle back to my skin and dug in, I hissed, but it wasn’t because he was rough with me, it was just the area of my skin and the sensitivity.

  “That’s tricky. I mean I could, but if it makes him uncomfortable, then I could lose him as a client and a friend. I may just hang back and be a creeper.”

  I laughed and then hissed again. He started to outline what had to be the birdcage. The pain was all centralized in one spot.

  “Do you have a van? You can’t be a bonafide creeper without one and a sign for free puppies or candy.”

  “You crack me up, but no. I think I’ll just wait him out.”

  He started to needle something all in one spot. I squeezed my eyes shut. The pain was exquisite, I would have moaned if it wouldn’t be insanely awkward. Before I knew it, a small noise left me, and he stopped.

  “Are you okay?”

  I nodded. “Oh yeah. I am.”

  He bit his lip and placed the needle back to my skin.

  I hit the side of the chair. “Oh my God, yes.”

  He laughed and kept going. “So. You like the pain, me too.”

  I took a slow breath as he finished up the bird and sat up straight to check out his handy work.

  “I—yeah, I do.” There was no reason to lie about it. I just sounded like someone was ravaging me from behind, and I knew it. It was somewhat embarrassing.

  He rolled back and set his gun down. He took his latex gloves off and stood up. Staring at me in the mirror.

  “I have to say that this is some of the best work that I’ve done. I always loved this sketch, and it suits you.”

  I stood up and walked to the mirror. I turned to face him as he handed me a small mirror. I adjusted it to see the tattoo now forever etched into my skin. My eyes became glossy.

  He leaned, his eyes dark and full of worry. “Oh, man, do you hate it?”

  I shook my head. “No, I love it, thank you so much.”

  I rushed him and wrapped my arms around him. His heart beat was slow and steady in his chest. His muscles tightened, and he hugged me back, careful to avoid the new tattoo.

  “Let’s get you covered up, okay?”

  I leaned back and grinned. “I’m sorry that I’m so emotional. I just have a lot on my mind, and this really helped me focus.”

  “They usually do, they’re addictive, like some other things.”

  He was right. I could see myself back here, getting another tattoo just as easily as I could see myself eating another meal. The pain called out to me.

  “Thanks, Erik. I appreciate it, really, I do.”

  “You’ll love my pricing even more—this one’s on the house.”

  “What? No, let me pay you.”

  He shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. I stared at the multiple tattoos that laced his skin. Each one pristine and fitting him to a tee. A large sugar skull in black, red, and white, a plane, straight out of World War II, cursive lettering spelling out the words no regrets. Every bit of it told his story. I loved it.

  “Do me a favor and just come back to me when you want more. Let me tell your story on your skin.”

  “Okay, deal.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  GOODIES DOWN UNDER

  __________________________

  Avery held the bag of ice to her crotch while she lay on the couch. I walked in with a bowl of chicken noodle soup and crackers on a white tray. It was my turn to take care of her.

  I heard her moan and watched her place her arm over her eyes. I tried to hide my smile when I set her tray down on the coffee table, but it was hard. How do you baby someone who intentionally pierced their goodies down under?

  “What the F was I thinking, Abi?” she muttered behind her arm. I bit my lip and gently sat down on the couch next to her stretched out body. I watched her grab the ice with her hand, hissing just from the little bit of movement I had caused when I sat down. I touched her leg, she removed her arm from her eyes and shook her head.

  “I wasn’t even drunk, there is no funny story to be had here.”

  I laughed under my breath. She eyed me. I didn’t amuse her. “Abi, it isn’t funny, and you got a huge tattoo on your back shoulder, and nothing, not one complaint from you!”

  I picked up the bowl of soup and dipped the spoon into it. I knew Avery very well, and nothing would make this better, but some good old fashion babying.

  “Come on, open up,” I said quietly. I pushed the spoon toward her lips. She kept them closed until I tapped them with the edge of the spoon. She rolled her eyes and opened her mouth, closing her lips on the spoon. I pulled it back and nodded to her.

  “Oh my God, that’s delish,” she muttered, taking the bowl and spoon from me.

  “I know, my mom makes it.”

  She looked down at the ice on her crotch. “Does she know about this tragedy?”

  “Not yet, but she�
��s still all about the vagina, she even has books on it now.”

  “Really?” Avery said as she caught some broth on her chin. I was glad that I could distract her. I got up and walked to the large bookcase that was built into the entire wall and ran the length of it. I grabbed her favorite book and returned to Avery. I held it up so that she could read it.

  Her eyes widened. “Shut the front door, gimme.” She set the bowl down on the tray and did the grabby hands. I handed it to her, and she stared at the cover.

  “This is amazing,” she muttered. I nodded to her. “She is all about this. She swears that it’s changed her whole outlook on life.”

  Avery opened it up and laughed. She read some of the chapter titles.

  “Going down and you, the C-spot, my life and the thrill kill clit.” She lowered it. “I’m dying, this is awesome.”

  “I haven’t even looked at it, other than the cover.”

  “Well girl, I’m diving right in. It will help me bond with little Miss bling bling down there. She’s pissed at me.”

  I rubbed my arm. “Well, you did have someone stab it and shove a hoop through it.”

  She touched the ice on her crotch. “Don’t remind me.”

  “I could say that I told you so—”

  She pursed her lips.

  “Or not,” I added with a laugh.

  “I’m reading.”

  I nodded to her. “I’m going to go out for a while, do you want anything from the store?”

  “Ice cream and more ice, of course.”

  I winked at her. “Cool, I’ll be back later, I have my phone, text if you need me.”

  “Where’s your mom?”

  I paused and spun back around to look at her. “She’s at her exercise class. She goes early each morning. I’m sure she’ll be back soon. I need to talk to her anyway.”

  “Oh yeah, what’s up?”

  I bit my lip and waved my hand. “Oh, it’s not anything crazy. Just about my room, I’m thinking about painting it,” I lied so quickly that it bothered me. The paint was not on my mind, her weird reaction to the mansion was.

  She waved the book at me. “Okay, well I don’t think that she would care, she seems pretty laid back.”