Bitten

Chapter 10

   It was like seeing for the first time. The honking of cars sounded that much louder and the autumn trees where a that much brighter red, their leaves already beginning to fall. The blue sky was tinged orange with the promise of sundown and a slight chill grazed my cheeks, making my hair tangle in cruel knots. People walked down the streets on cell phones, yet it was the best thing in the world right now. I glanced over at Damen, speechless.

   “It’s so much more beautiful than I remembered…” I utter, and his eyes softened.

   “I understand.” He said “Come on. We need to get going before sundown.”

   I nod, and he barely gives me time to give one last look as he grabs my arm and runs, not too fast, but fast enough that people won't suspect something was up. We crossed a zebra crossing while cars honk at us and shout crude words. I have an urge to flip the finger, but perhaps that would be inappropriate right now.

   Suddenly Damen came to a stop and I almost barrelled into him. “We’re here.”

   Here? I think, as I gaze at the seemingly abandoned factory. Dirty glass was scattered on the ground and the occasional creek could be heard, questioning it's safety. Surely, there could be no-one in a place that looked so…desolate.

   “But…there’s no-one here!”

   Damen scoffed as if it was the most stupid question in the world “That’s what they want you to think.”

   He started stepping over rubble at lighting speed, jumped and caught a metal bar before swinging in through the broken window. Smart-ass… I don’t think I can do that, so I just take the door.

   Damen was waiting for me by the door with his eyebrow cocked in a way that made me want to punch him in the face and kiss him at the same time “You take the boring way?”

   “Shut it, you know I’m not as—“

   A loud smash rang through the building, and me and Damen got into a crouch. If they were coming. We’d be ready…

   “Evangeline,” Damen whispered “Obviously don’t use magic. Attack with your arms only. Remember, they are faster, they are stronger, and they are—.”

   I barely caught the shadow that flitted across my vision, but Damen caught it. His red eyes darted across the room, fast and alert. The shadow flickered again, and came closer and closer. I bared my teeth in a growl, but my fear was festering inside.

   And then, it stopped. Almost as if…

   As if it was directly above us…

   “Crap…”

   And then I heard a thud, directly behind me. I was quick, and I flitted around to face the creature. It was in-fact, a girl.

   “Welcome to my humble…home.” She sneered, her porcelain doll appearance fooling no-one. Her lips were painted a bright red and her eyes a bloody scarlet. There was no gold ring in her eyes, just a pool of blood. Her red dress was designed in a brutal shape that showed off her lithe body, the end of the sleeves jagged yet beautiful.

   “Eleanor…What are you doing still in London? Don’t you know it’s not safe in the city? Didn’t you hear what happened to Gabriel?” Said Damen, voice steady but mocking.

   This seemed to hit a nerve. Eleanor cried violently “You would be foolish to mock me fearless warrior!”

   Damen wasn’t done “I heard you and Gabriel were…close?”