Chapter 12: Chapter XI
Eva was left staring after her husband. His behavior was most peculiar and she did not know what to make of it. He had asked her to kiss him and he had been the one to leave, all the while looking a little bit shocked. Maybe he was as amazed as she was by the intensity of their feelings... Yes, that was it, she decided and smiled to herself. She had had it rough but looking at things now, after having a husband such as Christian she thought all had been worth it.
A week passed and while Eva interviewed the other women Christian investigated the place the "creature" had been seen, but the two of them avoided each other. Well not so much they avoided each other as Christian avoided Eva. She was waking up every morning with the thought of talking to her husband but by night's fall she could only get a few glimpses of him. His behavior made her question everything, but she decided that if she managed to solve the problem for him than maybe he would see her in another light.
Which is why, on Saturday, at three in the morning, she snuck out of the house in her riding habit and proceeded to study the places in which the creature had been sighted. She knew from some sources (the servants) that her husband had already done that but she hoped she may find something that had escaped Christian. She went to the little waterfall near the village, where, by almost all accounts, the creature had run to when spotted. She dismounted and secured the horse to a nearby tree, thinking it would be better to approach by foot. She moved slowly, meticulously, taking great care with the sound her steps made. She got in front of the waterfall and everything was clear. She sighed and slumped her shoulders. No luck. She had had some hopes but it seems no creature dwelled here...Even at night. She moved closer to the water basin and looked for a bit. She was ready to leave when something caught her eye near her foot. It was something black. She stooped to pick it up and she was rather shocked to notice it was a glove. A big, black glove. Did it belong to the creature? A small sound escaped her lips as she realized she had found something after all. She was so happy that she barely heard the sound of steps. She turned quickly and thought she saw a silhouette. Shaking of fear, she looked right and left, searching for a hiding place. Luckily, there were some bushes so she quickly hid there. The silhouette made its way near the water and stopped in the same spot she had been standing. She saw it looking around, scrutinizing the ground. He was looking for the glove! She put a hand to her mouth so that she would not give around way her hiding place. She saw the silhouette come closer, frantically searching for its lost object. He was dressed all in black, the villagers had been right, she noticed, but she could not see his face at all. He was lingering in that spot, almost as If that glove had been something of great Importance to it. Just as she thought he was never going to leave, he suddenly turned and walked towards her until he was standing next to the bush. She could see half his face now, the moon's rays allowing her to see what had tormented the villagers for all that time. It was indeed as it had been described to her. The creature was red, bloody red. His face was...inhumane. She was shaking uncontrollably, thinking that if he examined the bush closer he could spot her and....
Her earlier bravado was all gone, she was now chanting a little prayer to make it home safe.
"Dear God" she thought as the creature's hand extended towards the bush. She squeezed her eyes shut and wished herself anywhere but there. Just as his hand was about to part the little branches, a howl echoed.
The creature drew back immediately and walked towards the source of the noise.
"Who do I have here?" she heard a gruff voice. She squinted to see to whom the creature was talking but then she noticed that the other person, who had suddenly appeared, was the one doing the talking. The creature had a warrior like stance, ready to attack the person. She also noticed the difference in size between the two.
"What do you want?" She finally heard the creature speak, his small voice like a bark.
"What I want?" The other man taunted.
"I want to see you chained like the animal you are." the newcomer said and removed an extensible cane from his coat. He mercilessly hit the creature and he howled in pain. Eva gasped at the display of violence, knowing that now she was in more danger than ever.
The man had the creature kneeling before him in a cruel manner and was about to give a deadly blow when the creature opened his mouth and spoke.
"Do it" he said through gritted teeth."kill me, it would be mercy to do so" The anguished voice awoke something within her... She felt pity for the creature.
"Oh, you think I won't? " the other man laughed mockingly. "Well, of course I will not do it myself... I shall just let you here to bleed to death" he gave him a last blow and left. The creature collapsed.
Eva waited and waited but there was no sign of him...being a alive. She did not know what to do....leave him there? She remembered how he had a begged to die and she felt something stab at her heart. She would check and see if he was alright, after all he could not hurt her in his condition.
She crawled from behind the bush and went to his aid. He was lying on his back, his face twisted in agony. She gasped when she looked at his face. He was no creature! He was a boy of at most six or seven, and his face was not all red. It was only his right side. He...He must have been burned, and badly. She kneeled beside him and checked his pulse. His heart was still beating, that was good. Poor boy... tears already threatened to spill down her face as she took in the appearance of a boy who was almost certainly dying. A boy who had been called the worst things... She unbuttoned his coat and saw the damage that had been done to his body... She was desperately racking her brain for a solution when she saw that he had opened his eyes and was watching her. What shocked her the most was the shade of his eyes. Even in the darkness of the night, the similarity with her own was unmistakable.
"Are you here....to finish me off? He asked, his lips trembling.
"No sweetheart. I am going to help you." She said and she caressed his left cheek.
"Are you an angel?" He asked again with hope in his voice.
"No, honey, but I will help you."
He smiled faintly but at this small effort he started coughing blood.
"It's going to be alright." She whispered soothingly.
"How old are you?" She asked the boy, trying to keep him awake.
"Five...and a half."
"And your name?" She kept on probing while assessing his injuries.
"Gabriel"
She smiled at him.
"Like the archangel?" Gabriel nodded.
Eva tore at her skirts and used the material to bind his torso to keep him from bleeding to death. She considered her options and decided to get him home, whatever It took. He was much smaller than she had thought, looking at him now. Maybe her preconceived ideas and her fear had produced a much bigger picture of him. But he was only a boy...a helpless boy.
Determined to see him get well, Eva lifted him in her arms and managed to walk to her horse and place him on it.
Although the journey to the house was extremely hard, she managed to get him to safety before sunrise. Holding him in her arms, she avoided any servant that might have seen them and succeeded in getting him to her room. She placed him on the bed and proceeded to clean his wounds.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone