Chương 36: Slow to retaliate
Not wanting to linger by the abandoned village and risk running into more demons.
Charm hastily made her way back to the cave by the time she was almost there she was out of breath from her exertions.
Nowadays Charm felt the need to take pride in her accomplishments no matter how small in nature.
She was still riding off the euphoria from killing that demon.
Charm acknowledged that she may have been slow to retaliate but had she not confronted that demon on her own she would never have recognized her own strength.
The night had not been a total waste, she had found an abandoned village that maybe with some convincing she could get the girls to leave the cave and settle there instead.
Charm felt like they could secure a better life living in the deserted village rather than hiding out in the musty cave.
She couldn't wait for daybreak to share the information and location of the abandoned village with the other girls.
As usual, there would be some naysayers but it should be easier to override them with compelling arguments.
Such as better standard of living, access to a freshwater source since there was probably a river nearby the village since she could hear the sound of running water.
A return to a sense of normalcy was what some of the girls craved.
Maybe something was wrong with Charm for thinking anything of this was normal.
Charm had pinched herself many times throughout the day and still hadn't woken from this nightmare.
She had even glimpsed signs of a farm, there was still enough time for them to grow certain crops and reap the harvest before winter came.
All it would take was some elbow grease and they could erect a perimeter fence and set more traps for their security.
In her mind the positives far outweighed any negativity the girls may throw her direction.
Naturally, being able to beat a powerful demon single handedly made her giddy with happiness.
It put Charm in such a good mood that she wasn't even aware that she was being followed.
Out of nowhere, a silky smooth voice called out from the shadows, "Surely, you didn't think you would get away with murder?"
Alarmed Charm cried out "Who's there?... Show yourself!"
She did a complete 360, whirled around to look for the owner of that snarky comment that sent a shiver down her spine.
Charm was ready to yell and get upset at the creep that had been stalking her but what she saw next stopped her dead in her tracks.
It was him.
A wave of familiarity as old as the dawn of civilization swept over her.
Her face got heated as long forgotten images swirled to the forefront of her mind.
Images of being saved by this stranger while on the way to a party to hang out with her best friend Janet and company.
Graphic violence as she watched him fight off five unknown assailants, blood everywhere and rising panic.
He had looked ghostly handsome under the cover of darkness.
That surprising feeling of gratitude, thankful that he saved her life on that lonely road.
She remembered in vivid detail all that occurred that fateful night when their lives intertwined.
The way his eyes scanned her body from head to toe made it clear that he remembered as well.
"Who are you?"
He came out of the shadows and grabbed her by the hand interrupting her interrogation.
She ran her other hand down the length of his arm and it made the stranger look at her.
His golden eyes had now gone dark with anger.
"As much as I would love to take a trip down memory lane and exchange pleasantries," he said as he pulled on her wrist, "we don't have time for that, let's go."
His voice was too calm, it did not match the intensity and the frustration in his eyes.
Much less the tension that pulsated from his body.
She gripped his arm.
"I'm not going anywhere without an explanation," she demanded stubbornly.
While sinking her heels into the ground and balking at any attempts for him to pull her further into the unknown.
"We don't have time for this, I'm here to save you."
"Save me?" chuckled Charm, she was still riding high off the euphoria from killing that demon earlier.
She met his eyes with her own, trying to read past the upset, the anger and to try to grasp at some inkling of the thoughts going through his mind.
"I can save myself," then she yawned, "there's your answer, it's past my bedtime. I'm going home to sleep."
Since when had she started thinking of the cave with the girls as her home.
Her family home was in a small town outside of London and she couldn't return even if she wanted to.
"Now," he asked in a surprised tone.
She moved back from him.
He looked at her at first like she was crazy one minute and the next like a peculiar bug he would like to squash.
These strange looks in his golden eyes that passed so swiftly aroused her curiosity.
To her surprise he let go of her wrist and backed off.
"Genesis is the name," he introduced himself chillingly, "call on me when you need my help."
She blinked at him.
His voice rang clear with a certainty that the inevitable was soon to come.
Even through his outrage at her cold dismissal of him, he still managed to smile at her.
Then he vanished into the shadows from whence he came.
She rubbed her eyes in disbelief, unwilling to believe that his existence was due to her imagination.
As she continued to trudged her way through the undergrowth, feeling more sure of herself than when she initially left the cave.
Certain that by her own strength, her own hands, she would keep herself and the other girls safe.
It didn't matter that she had the best intentions, Charm was far from perfect.
She had made mistakes and been wrong in the past but never as wrong as she was about to be.
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