Read Online Fire Nectar by Faleena Hopkins - Free Book Online

from his hands which were scarcely able to cling
to it - they no longer had the strength. The stench of liquor
upon him and how it had wafted into her nose. He was not a drinking man
most days.   But on those nights
– those in which he’d lost more than he could bravely admit to...
    “Just a touch of a bad run, you know. Don’t pay it any
mind…only thing to do is keep going until it turns,” he parroted himself from
the floor but his eyes told of shame and apology.
    Last night, like many of those before it, she reached
forward and helped him up, bearing the brunt of more
weight than her little frame should carry. Trudging together up the stairs
they’d get him slowly, safely, to his bedchambers. Once on a previous occasion,
she’d not been able to bear his weight and, on that night, had watched in
horror as he fell down the long staircase. It became a blessing in disguise
– as he’d broken his leg. One cannot gamble if one cannot leave the
house.
    And on those nights, unable to find solace in sleep,
she’d thumb through the jewelry box and decide which heirloom to sell. Never
was it an easy choice. At first she’d chosen to sell her grandmother’s
necklaces and ear bobs. Then her grandfather’s jewel encrusted snuffboxes and
pins. His sword went after. Finally, and with the heaviest of hearts, she sold
her mother’s jewelry, her only connection to a mother long passed. As each met
its new master, the sacrifice tore her to shreds and she’d pray, “Please dear
Lord, I have enough strength.   Please give him some of mine. Please help him turn away from the doors
when the cards call out his name. Help him come home.”
    A spark from the flames burst onto the rug at her feet,
shocking her back to the present.   She gave a little yell and stomped it out as quickly as it had arrived.
Was she still alone, she wondered? Quietly she walked to the door, opened it
and peered out into the hall, listening for movement.   Her ears met only silence.   Her father was very likely asleep. The
innkeeper preferred his private quarters after hours.   She listened a moment longer and when
she felt sure she was indeed alone, she quietly closed the door.
    Crossing to a large vase in the common room, she reached
up and brought it down onto a table. Carefully she pulled the dusty silk
flowers from within it and gingerly placing each on the table.   It was plain they hadn’t been cleaned or
touched in a year, maybe more, which suited her purpose exactly. She reached
deep into the vase’s mouth and produced from it her mother’s rubies, hidden
secretly within.   She held the
glorious necklace into the air and watched the flames fragmented through
it.   The jewels glowed brightly as
she turned, admiring their beauty.
    I could sell them, she thought, but this would be the
last. Lowering them, she placed them into her left palm, filling her small hand.
She didn’t want to sell them.   Could
she? No. She could not. Resolution filled her heart and she decided then and
there to stand up for what she needed. A loud sound in the distance caused her
to start, her eyes darting to the door in fear that it would open. No one must
know. Hurriedly she hid the necklace safely, placed back the flowers and the
vase as quickly and quietly as she could.   Breathing heavily, she snuck upstairs to bed.

 

 
    2012

 
 
    An hour later the bar was packed and their group had to
yell over the din to be heard.   Stewart told them about a diva client who wanted M&Ms in his trailer
for every film - but only the blue ones.   Someone always had to separate the M&Ms and put only the blue ones
into a sealed container so they wouldn’t stale.   As Billy tried to get him to give up the
name of the client, the lights went dark and the room got quiet. Dani still sat
at the bar, surrounded by her friends and Billy.
      “Okay,
kiddies,” he bellowed loudly. The regulars of the crowd joined in and yelled
with him, “Don’t try this at