Death Wish . Amy Blankenship
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she was well aware there were a lot worse things than staying dead… being brutally killed over and over again being one of them.
She glanced back down at her shoulder knowing she had to get that spell and counteract the mark so that Vincent’s sacrifice wasn’t for nothing. She let the hot water of the shower wash the silent tears from her face as she renewed her determination.
Upstairs, Ren suddenly stopped pacing and looked straight down hearing the water pumping through the system. A devious smirk appeared on his face when he realized that he was standing directly above the bathroom downstairs where Lacey was. His gaze followed the sound over to the wall where the pipes that ran water through the whole place went down to the floor and into the bomb shelter.
She’d been in that shower long enough and he was ready to try again with the interrogation.
Walking over to the pipes, he placed his hand on the one he wanted and closed his eyes, concentrating on the temperature gauge of the water heater. His lips pulled into a satisfied smile as frost appeared under his fingers on the brass pipe. The scream that rang through the bomb shelter made everyone except Ren jump in surprise.
In the steamy shower, the water had gone from scalding hot to freezing cold in less than a second making Lacey flinch out from under the spraying water. In the process, she slipped on the slick bottom of the tub and stumbled out nearly taking the shower curtain with her.
“Lacey!” Gypsy called out worriedly.
Lacey untangled herself from the shower curtain and pushed it aside thankful it hadn’t been pulled down.
“I’m fine,” Lacey shouted glaring at the shower head. “You need a new water heater… the damn thing just went from hot to arctic cold in less than a second.”
Gypsy frowned on the other side of the door wondering what had made the water do that. She’d taken an hour long shower earlier and the hot water had been just fine.
“I’ll have Ren check it out,” Gypsy called back through the closed door. “He has a way of manipulating machines and making them work even after they’ve stopped operating.”
Lacey turned her head and stared wide eyed at the door hearing Gypsy’s explanation and immediately knew what had happened.
“This means war,” she hissed under her breath then not having a choice, she stepped back into the chilly spray to rinse the rest of the soap out of her hair.
Ren was upstairs sitting on the floor with his back against the wall and a grin on his face. Moments later he heard footsteps on the stairway and didn’t bother to hide his smile when he saw it was Nick.
“I knew it,” Nick exclaimed in a loud whisper. “But I have to admit… that was pretty good.”
Ren patted the cold pipe beside him, “I do have my moments.”
Nick ran a hand through his hair, “I’d be careful around her… Gypsy just told her that you have a way with machines.”
Ren’s grin widened, “Well, ain’t that a damn shame.”
“You’re having way too much fun,” Nick accused.
“Of course I am,” Ren agreed. “Now let’s go back down and see if I can figure out what’s wrong with Gypsy’s poor water heater.”
Nick snorted and shook his head as Ren wandered back down to the bunker. He was so enjoying the fact that all of Ren's attention seemed to be centered on Lacey now instead of Gypsy.
Ren walked into the living room just in time to hear the shower stop running. He glanced at Gypsy seeing that she was sitting on the sofa with a frown on her face.
“What’s wrong?” Ren asked with an innocent expression.
“My water heater has suddenly stopped working,” Gypsy explained and glanced at the bathroom door. ”Lacey said it turned ice cold like that,” she snapped her fingers.
“That must have sucked,” Ren said making Nick turn around to avoid Gypsy seeing the wide grin on his face.
Lacey was shivering by the time she got out of the shower and quickly dried herself off. Wrapping the towel around her, she walked to the mirror over the sink and realized that she did look and feel better now that she wasn’t hiding under a layer of dirt and clothing that was way too big.
Taking up Gypsy’s hairbrush, she began running it through her long dark hair. Turning around, she continued brushing out her hair while she opened the large trunk… smiling when she saw all the clothes she’d left behind. She fought the urge to reach in and throw everything in the air just so she could roll around on the floor in it. Her things… she had missed them.
Reaching in, she took out an electric purple colored dress and a pair of black sandals and set them on top of the chest along with a matching set of bra and panties. Turning back to the mirror, she finished brushing her hair and put the brush back on the sink. Her head tilted to the side contemplating the small collection of cosmetics Gypsy had and made quick work at applying some and blow drying her hair.
She glanced back up in the mirror only to gasp when she saw the same mark that was on her shoulder now scrawled across it along with a silky black image staring back at her instead of her own reflection. A true scream of terror left her lips when the inky darkness reached through the mirror toward her.
Lacey stumbled backwards and nearly tripped over the trunk in her rush to stay out of its reach. Her back hit the wall of the bathroom as the overly long arms continued to reach toward her and its creepy looking lips moved in a rhythm that she could tell was some kind of chant.
She jumped when the door to the bathroom suddenly flew inward and Ren was standing in the doorway with Gypsy directly behind him. Lacey looked wide eyed from them back to the mirror and wanted to scream again in frustration when she saw the 3D image of the demon had vanished and a thin layer of ice crystals was now covering the mirror.
Ren's breath froze in his chest as he noticed her transformation from dirty street boy to soft supple skin, clean silky hair and a body that made him wish he’d been the soap. He’d known she was beautiful but again he’d underestimated her. His vision instantly narrowed in on the towel that was partially open and exposing the side of Lacey that was facing him, stopping just short of her nipple and smooth mound.
He quickly forced himself to avert his eyes by following her gaze to the mirror and frowned seeing the layer of ice that had formed there. The mirror chose that exact moment to crack from the cold temperature, the sound echoing ominously in the sudden silence.
Lacey's eyes widened seeing the suspicious look on Ren’s face and quickly thought of a way to distract him from the mirror.
“What in the hell do you think you’re doing busting through the bathroom door while I’m in here you pervert?” she yelled at him as she righted herself and tried to fix her wayward towel.
“We thought you were in trouble,” Gypsy offered softly from behind him.
Lacey sighed dramatically, “Well, as you can see I’m just fine. Thought I saw something in the mirror is all. Now if you don’t mind,” she slammed the door in Ren’s face again. “Told you that you wouldn’t be able to keep from peeking,” She taunted him through the door.
“If you say so,” Ren shot back narrowing his gaze. “I’m not the one that screamed at my own reflection.”
“Ren,” Gypsy admonished him then snapped her lips shut when she noticed the hard determined look on his face.
Lacey opened her mouth to yell something back but found she’d drawn a complete blank. She’d declared a personal war on him but could never find anything worth saying that would outdo him.
“Damn he’s good,” she whispered then looked nervously back toward the mirror. No longer feeling safe, she quickly started dressing.
Ren smirked when he heard her compliment but it didn’t last long as his thoughts turned