Touching Fire (Touch Saga) by Airicka Phoenix Read Free Book Online Page A

face.
    He gave me a small grin. “Ever your mother’s daughter I see.”
    I dropped my gaze and fished for my sneakers under the bed. “I’m very good at running,” I admitted with no real humor in my voice.
    Isaiah moved forward and grabbed his duffle. He slung the strap over his shoulder before reaching over and taking mine while I cleaned the gash on my foot and wrapped it with the small emergency kit I’d taken to carrying around in my bag. I donned my comfy, normal shoes.
    “Are we going through the bathroom wall?” I asked, tilting my head ever so slightly to the right to peer into bathroom and see if the doorway we’d magically conjured in the far wall was still there. It wasn’t.
    “No,” Ashton said. “Every n ew location needs a new gateway, although, if you wish to return to the alley, I suppose you could use the same portal.”
    “Portal? Like Star Wars ?”
    “ Star Trek ,” Isaiah whispered just barely under his breath.
    I rolled my eyes. “Same thing!”
    We’d had that argument so many times, it no longer even registered. I could never tell the two apart and truthfully, it was just too complicated for me to want to.
    Ashton chuckled. “ It’s a bit more complex than that, but I promise to tell you more once we’re safely home.”
    That word again. No matter how it was said, it continued to rain shivers down my spine in a strange surge of dread and anticipation. It was daunting how excited I was to see this home business for myself. It felt like I was going to meet a celebrity or a mythical creature. I knew homes existed, but I never dreamed of meeting one! Yeah, it was pathetic.
    “The guard,” Archer muttered, pulling away from the window to turn to Ashton. “We need that gateway … now!”
    My mouth opened, the question poised on the end, but Archer moved then, digging into his coat pocket and tossing Ashton the magical portal making quill—my name for it. Ashton caught it in midair with a single flick of his wrist. But rather than extend the rod and stab it into the wall, he turned the palm on his free hand over and cut a long, clean cut from heel to finger. Blood bubbled and pooled. He smacked his hand against the wall before I could say a word about the dangers of infection.
    “Luxuria!” he said and yanked his hand back.
    I expected to see a smeared, bloody handprint marring the faded wallpaper. Instead, there was a mark, the same one that had appeared on the door we’d used to get to the motel. I wasn’t sure what it was supposed to represent nor was I given the chance to ask when it gave a pulse and blazed crimson. Splinters of light shot across the wall in a perfect rectangle, the exact shape and size of a large door.
    The wall and its dull wallpaper shimmered out of sight and were replaced by a door in tarnished gold. Intricate symbols were carved into the polished metal. A small, rectangular window was cut into the top and was frosted over from the other side. The handle, an elaborate contraption with gears and cogs was bolted lengthwise into the frame and woven to resemble flames. At the base was a spinning wheel in bright silver. Seven cylinders were mounted where the hinges should have been.
    “Step back,” Ashton said to me, putting out an arm and maneuvering me where he wanted me.
    I did and watched as he stepped closer. His hands closed around the wheel and gears groaned as it was twisted clockwise. The cylinders along the side gave seven individual pops and the door came away from the iron frame with an audible hiss. Steam billowed from the seam. It wafted across the ceiling and along the floor around our feet.
    I took another cautious step back.
    It opened into a dimly lit tunnel that smelled strongly of sulfur, burning fabric, gasoline and rotting meat. My gag reflexes hitched once before I caught myself.
    Ashton cast one glance in Archer’s direction before ducking his head and stepping through the opening. I followed with Isaiah behind me and Archer taking