A Silent Hope

Chapter One

Mackenzie

I finished my last set of shoulder presses and placed the two 20 pounds of dumbbells back on the rack. I stretched my arms as I looked around the other people working out at the gym. I'd been here for two hours and went nonstop with my workouts.

Feeling my body's exhaustion, I grabbed my bag and headed for the changing rooms. I noticed the rooms were unisex and both males and females were entering and exiting. There were four small stalls, each with a shower and space to change. Once in an empty stall, I took off my clothes.

I quickly showered, avoiding getting my hair wet. I would have to go to the hairdresser soon to have my twists redone. Stepping out of the shower, I dried and fished for my clothes. Paul and I were headed to the bar tonight, something about him needing to get black out drunk.

I felt my boxers slap to my skin after I pulled it on, my black jeans followed. I took out my white t-shirt and threw it on after my sports bra, rolling the ends of the shirt sleeves three times. I smiled a bit at the way it fitted snugly to my arms. I didn't work out to gain a bunch of muscles, my body still held its femininity but I was also pretty ripped.

My outfit made sure the tattoo in my left upper arm showed. The sparrow reminded me of my past and how far I'd come. I took my hair down and put a coat of chapstick on my pinkish lips. I stared at my reflection, Caribbean blue eyes staring back.

I often wondered what people saw when they looked at me. In my uniform I was a firefighter. To my parents, I was simply their daughter they loved and were proud of. My siblings liked me as any other siblings would. Some days we didn't like each other at all.

Paul was the only one welcoming in my past month in this town. Most people weren't too keen on befriending the new girl and some looked at me as though I was from another planet. The guys at the station were civilized enough, but they tend to think of a woman as beneath them. Erica was the only other woman, but she stuck to herself.

I grabbed my stuff after putting on my boots and headed out with my helmet under my arm. Walking towards the front door, I saw a woman drop her water bottle and it rolled in my direction. I bent and picked it up, giving it back to her with a smile.

"Thank you." She gave a blinding smile.

"No problem, miss." I smirked and continued on my way, waving at the receptionist.

The sun had already set when I got outside. Putting my bag on my back, I drove to the local bar. I spotted Paul's car right away and parked next to him. I knew he never locked his doors so I opened the back door and put my helmet and bag in there. The guy always said the town was too 'good' for anything bad to happen. I did live only a few minutes from here, but I had no interest in running up three flights of stairs.

The loud music greeted me first, the smell of alcohol next. The bar was already full at 7pm, the few tables full and the dance floor occupied. My eyes flittted across the crowd, managing to see over some heads. It was a simple bar. Tables, chairs, dimmed lights and music. A few waitresses were serving and a couple of bartenders were behind the counter.

"Jace! Over here, buddy!" A familiar voice yelled over the noise.

My eyes found him in seconds, a small  group of people with him. Paul was outgoing, he could befriend anyone he wanted and looks like that was what he did. I walked over to the group with a smile.

"You got started without me." I teased.

His face dropped slightly. "Sorry. I found friends for us though." He perked up again. "Guys, this is my best friend in the whole wide world. Mackenzie Jace. Jace, this is Larry, Brian, Vivian and Blue."