Into The Fire

Paige

I froze and stared up into the face of a massive, bald Egyptian man I’d just run into. A thick scar cut through his left eye, and the eye itself was hazy white. He grabbed my shoulders like I needed to be caught, like any momentum I had hadn’t died when I smashed into his rock-hard body. My forehead ached a little from the impact, the least of the injuries I’d gotten in the last few months.

He nodded. “Miss. I am seeing you, thinking you need help.”

His fingers pressed into me, tight enough that even through two layers of cloth I could feel his strength. A threat. I glanced down at his waist to see the sheath of a massive hunting knife poking out of his loose, black pants. I swallowed.

“I’m actually okay,” I said. “Just playing a game with a friend.”

“Ah, you want friend.” He smiled, revealing a pair of golden incisors. “I want friend also. I am Mahmoud. You can trust Mahmoud.”

“I actually want my friend. The one I came with.” I looked around like Tommaso would appear when I sai