Maya’s Fire (Ch. 6)

After their conversation, Henry seemed relieved, even pleasant—which was entirely out of character for him. At first Renton was unnerved by it, but he figured that it was just proof that he had no suspicion about Renton’s feelings toward Maya. Henry dropped off Renton at home with the new batch and told him to start contacting the regular buyers. Rent hurried inside, eager to see Maya, and eager to get started with the new responsibility Henry had given him.

The first thing he noticed was Tony’s car in the driveway, and then he realized that Jeremy’s car was gone. Rent didn’t think that Jeremy would be stupid enough to leave Maya alone with Tony, but he wouldn’t put it past him, either. Inside, the house was relatively quiet—Renton searched through the living room and the kitchen, and then he heard soft noises from the bedroom. He dropped his backpack and sprinted toward the door. It was already open, and he was paralyzed in its entry with what he saw—Tony’s pimply ass violently thrust twice before his body collapsed onto Maya’s slender frame. Her head was turned toward him, her face covered in blood, and she was staring him in the eyes with… an almost serene look. Renton couldn’t move.

As soon as he heard Tony moan, “That’ll fucking teach you…” he regained control of his body and move toward the bed, grabbed Tony by his hair and threw him onto the ground. Renton knelt onto one knee and, with great skill but without restraint, he effectively beat the piece of shit within an inch of his life. It was beautiful really, the way Tony’s face contorted under the force of Rent’s fist.

When he finally stopped, exhausted and soaked in blood, of which not one speck was his own, he looked up at Maya. She had pulled the sheet over her body and was watching Renton with wide, curious eyes. “Are you real?” she whispered.

“Fucking A right,” he replied automatically, and only after he responded did he consider what an odd question it was.

“Good,” she said.

Renton stood and walked slowly over to her, as if she were a wild animal that he didn’t want to frighten away. “Are you hurt?” he asked, knowing that out of context his question would sound as ridiculous as hers had… she was bloody and raped… but he had seen her in this condition before.

She shook her head, touching her face gingerly. “It probably looks worse than it is.” She looked into his eyes and smiled. It made him feel uneasy—he could almost feel the intensity of the words she was about to speak. “You saved me.”

“What? When I came in, he was already done—”

“That’s not what I mean. I don’t know if I’ll even be able to explain it. He made me say things… and then he… but I pictured like it was you instead, and it made everything all right for a few moments.”

Renton knelt next to the bed and took her hands. “Maya, I need to know—”

“Is Henry here?” she interrupted, and his heart sank. He released her hands and stood.

“He should be back soon,” he replied, trying as hard as he could to sound cold.

Maya gazed at him with her large, somber eyes. “Rent, please don’t misunderstand me,” she whispered, barely audible over Tony’s jagged breaths. “We need to find the time to talk—if you feel the way I do…”

“Yes,” he murmured quickly.

“Then we need to do this the right way.”

As soon as the words left her lips, there was movement at the bedroom door. Both of their heads snapped towards the figure, but it was only Jeremy. He was clutching at the sides of his hair and moaning.

“What the fuck is going on?” he shouted. “Henry’s gonna fucking kill you, Rent! You can’t just do this to his brother!”

Rent had calmly switched personalities so subtly that it caught Maya off guard. His cold eyes were an extreme contrast compared to the warmth he’d been projecting toward her only seconds earlier.

“I came home and Tony was raping her,” Renton said flatly. “Should I have let him continue?”

Jeremy shook his head in disbelief. “This is so fucked up; this is so fucked up.”

Renton rolled his eyes and went over to the bed. Maya looked at him with reservation, but he reached out to and she slid out of the bed, keeping the sheet wrapped around herself. Rent put his arm around her and led her into the bathroom, where she sat on the ledge of the tub as he ran warm water from the faucet. He took a washcloth and delicately wiped the blood from her face. She noticed his gaze soften with each movement of his hand; even the way he wrung out the cloth was gentle. He watched the pinkish blood splash against the yellowed bathtub and disappear down the drain; she watched only him. When he wrung out the cloth for the final time, she couldn’t resist a small gesture, so she leaned forward and brushed her fingertips against his thigh. Even through the thickness of the denim, her touch was electrifying.

She pulled away seconds before Henry entered the room. Maya and Renton both looked up at him—she was the definition of serene and Rent’s eyes had darkened again, for Henry’s sake.