Rendering Flames

As I just crossed into the woods, I was sidelined into a tree. My head bounced off it as I tumbled to the ground.I struggled against the body that had thrown me into the tree. I took a swing at anything that I could but my face was being shoved into the ground, I couldn’t see a thing. It wasn’t until a hand was by my mouth that I took a bite at it. Their weight shifted just enough for me to wiggle free and get to my feet. I searched for my gun, grabbing it from the dirt and shifting around to face them.

“You got me.” I looked at Richie, not a flicker of surprise coming to me.

“I knew you were dirty,” I snapped, feeling some blood tickling my forehead.

“So are you.” Richie looked me up and down, “have a nice swim this morning?”

I felt like I was going to vomit. I was right but I didn’t want to think that Richie was the one watching me because I knew how true that could be. My grip on my gun tightened as he stepped a little closer to me. I backed away with each of his advances.

“A pretty thing like you is hard to resist when you’re on the move for so long. Almost couldn’t control myself from joining you.”

“Shut up.” I raised my gun a little higher, more threatening and ready.

“You won’t shoot me.” Richie’s bet on me made me smile.

“I’m bat-shit crazy, aren’t I? Who knows what I’ll do.” I didn’t think as I aimed the gun at one of his knees and pulled the trigger.

The sound of the gun firing had my ears ringing but seeing Richie rolling around on the ground in pain had me reeling in contentment. I didn’t regret it at all. Hell, I wouldn’t regret shooting him in the head either. But I felt confident and wanted to see him squirm like he made me during all this trip and for what he did.

“You bitch!” He cried out in pain as I stepped on his shot knee for a second before I sat on his chest, having a knife to his throat and my gun to his head.

“Why did you do it? Who is in that cabin, Richie?” He laughed a little, sputtering in pain as I pressed the knife harder against his skin.

“Like I’m going to tell you! Go fuck yourself.” He spat in my face and wiped his saliva off onto my shoulder.

“Tell me!” I dragged my knife along his jawline and up his cheek roughly.

“My source, okay?! Do you know how much Orson is worth? How much I’m worth? You have no idea how much we pissed the law off. They’re sniffing for our blood and I’m willing to give them some. So I made a deal. I get Orson dead or alive, I’m off free with no jail time. No bounty for the bastard but it’s better than rotting in a jail cell.”

“Maybe I can just send you to rot in hell instead,” I threatened as I cut into his neck a little.

Richie smiled widely, his blood staining his teeth, “not if I take you with me.”

I felt my skin split in agony as a knife was dug in between my ribs, twisting slowly. I could only breathe the pain in, no sound could come my lips as I froze. He dug in as he yanked it out and before I could react, plunged it into my again. I came to my senses, remembering who had who pinned down with a gun. I fired it and shot his head to bits, his hand falling from the knife that still planted itself in me. I rolled off him, writhing in pain as I looked up at the trees above me and letting my eyes close for just a second.

“Dahlia! Oh, god.” I jumped awake at the voice, trying to make out the haziness around me.

“I have--,” I stopped, feeling the knife move in my abdomen with my sharp breaths, “I have a gun.”

“Yeah, I know.” I took notice that it was Orson’s voice I was hearing and looked for him.

He knelt over me in concern, looking at lost as to what to do. “What the hell happened?”

“Richie sold you out. It was a set up to kill you.” I felt myself break down a little, “I’m glad it didn’t work.”

“We need to get you out of here.” I watched him turn to someone and I couldn’t try and move away with apprehension even if I wanted to.

“Who is that?” I looked behind him, surprised to see three strangers. “Or they?”

“Some faces I’m real happy to see again. I’ll tell you all about it once we get you somewhere safe.” Orson was almost as battered looking as I was and my concern for him wouldn’t even touch the fact that I had a knife in me. My objections to straining himself would be fruitless.

“Are you okay though? Please tell me you aren’t as bad as I am.” I made an effort to smile but the pain grew like a burning beast in me.

“Feel like shit but I can try and feel it later. This is Peter, Quinn, and Luke.” They looked at me like they didn’t know whether to give a friendly smile or a look of sorrow.

“I don’t know how I’m going to be able to move, Orson. This thing can’t move around. Do we have anymore bandages still or was that lost?” Peter came over and knelt down on the other side of me.

“I should have something.” He pulled out multiple rolls of gauze but placed two of them on either side of the knife before starting the process to wrap and secure them in place. There was only so much that could be done.

Orson slowly lifted up and I couldn’t help but let myself to beg him to stop. I’d rather just lay in pain or have it yanked from me. Every movement from it felt like a hot brush with pins and needles, a hot flame licking my insides. Even with his careful steps, I couldn’t handle the pain. It didn’t take long before I started to feel lightheaded.

“How far until we get there?” Orson’s concern broke me from my unconscious state that I hadn’t been aware that I had even entered.

“Just a few more miles. She’s lost a lot of blood.” My eyes locked on to Luke who stopped Orson to pack some more gauze around the knife.

It was easy to close my eyes again but every time I did, Orson or one of the guys woke me up. And soon the next time that I was woken, I was in a house and at least triple the people were around me. I was being handed off and I could only weakly object before I was put in a bed and the gauze was taken from me.

“Dahlia, stay with us.” I looked over and saw Peter about to inject me with something.

“Please, make it stop,” I cried to him.

My hand was grabbed and I saw Orson on the other side of me. “This will hurt.”

“What will hurt?” Almost without warning, the knife was pulled from my abdomen and I bellowed in pain, moving to resist anyone touching me.

“Keep her still!” Peter’s voice was stern and even, “Dahlia, just hang on.”

“Fuck you,” I looked down and saw blood flowing from the wound and I saw how pale I looked. “Someone put pressure on it, please!”

I knew that it would hurt and I wanted to kick and scream but I mostly didn’t want to die. So I kept my mouth shut and tried my damnedest to keep still as Peter and others I didn’t know tried to control my bleeding. It was a blessing when I felt my eyes slip close and they didn’t open for what seemed like a long time.