Contracted To The Devil's Bodyguard: Ava Lane

Lesson Two

CONTRACTED TO THE DEVIL'S BODYGUARD

EPISODE 6: LESSON TWO

`364:22:11`

Basement. Cold. No timer on the wall this time.

Vexa drew 3 circles in salt. Inside each one: a different weapon.

Vexa: "Rule 1. The Mark burns what touches it."

She grabbed a steel knife. Touched Ava’s sigil.

"Ssssss" It hissed.

The blade melted.

Ava flinched.

Ava: "I didn’t do that."

Vexa: "You did. You were scared. The Mark listens to fear first."

Ryder was leaning against the wall. Pale. Still weak from the binding.

Ryder: "Rule 2. You control it, or it controls you. And if it controls you, Kestrel wins."

He pushed off the wall and walked into the center circle. No weapon.

Ryder: "Hit me."

Ava: "What?"

Ryder: "Hit me. Make the Mark burn me."

`364:22:09`

Ava raised her hand. The sigil glowed red.

She hesitated.

Ava: "I don’t want to hurt you."

Ryder: "Then you’ll die." Tense atmosphere... "Now."

She swung.

The sigil flared and stopped 1 inch from his chest.

Black smoke curled from his shirt but his skin was fine.

Ryder caught her wrist. Gold eyes locked on hers.

Ryder: "Good. You chose to stop."

Quiet. "That’s control."

Vexa tossed Ava a vial of black liquid.

Vexa: "Lesson two. House Kestrel doesn’t just burn days. They steal memories from the contract."

She poured it into a bowl. The surface rippled.

Inside: Ava as a kid. 8 years old. Standing in front of a burning house.

Ava gasped.

Ava: "That’s... that’s my mom’s house."

Vexa: "Kestrel was there 15 years ago. They started the contract then. Not now."

She looked at Ryder.

Vexa: "Your father signed it to save you."

The room went silent.

Ryder didn’t look away from the bowl. Jaw tight.

Ryder: "He traded my life for 365 days of hers. Thought it would be enough time to find a cure."

Ava stared at him.

Ava: "You knew?"

Ryder: "I found out last year."

`364:22:04`

Ava’s hands started shaking. The sigil pulsed.

The water in the bowl boiled.

Vexa: "Breathe, Vessel. Anger makes it unstable."

Ava's hands shaked even more.. The sigil was starting to flare and burn hot.

Alarms. Red light.

Vexa: "They’re here. Early."

On screen: 2 Kestrel soldiers at the gate. Clocks on their wrists. Counting down.

`71:59:50`

Ryder stepped in front of Ava instantly.

Ryder: "Stay behind me."

Ava: "No."

She walked past him. Into the circle.

Held up her hand. The sigil burned bright.

Ava: "They want to burn my days? Let’s see how they like burning."

She slammed her palm down.

Black fire shot from the sigil. Hit the gate.

The soldier’s countdown clock cracked.

`71:59:49`.... `71:58:49`

One hour. Gone from them.

The soldier screamed.

Ryder stared. Then he actually smirked.

Ryder: "Well. Lesson two passed."

Vexa: "And now they know you can fight back."

Outside, 10 more cars pulled up.

`364:22:00`

Vexa: "Siege starts in 71 hours. And we just poked the bear."

Ava looked at her hand. The sigil was still glowing.

Ava: "Good."

TO BE CONTINUED...

AUTHOR: Could Ava fight back? Would she be able to control the power of the sigil? Would Kestrel's hunt succeed?!

FIND OUT NEXT ON EPISODE 7!