The Garden of What Once Was

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

While Scarlett sent multiple punches toward Ember,  all Ember could do was defensively place her arms in front of her. There was no hope of salvation for Ember, not when a merciless Scarlett was in front of her and the hard trunk of a tree was snug against her back. She could only hope that she would be able get out of this without a bloody nose. But, with the way things were going, that didn't seem likely. Her muddled mind frantically tried to rake through the ways she could win this fight. Winning with brute force alone was out of the question. The only thing left for Ember to do was to patiently wait for the correct timing for an escape. Although that may mean taking a few more punches to her body, she was willing to endure it for the slim chance of victory. Eventually, Scarlett's punches slowed, then they stopped entirely as her reddened hands fell to her sides. Before Scarlett had the chance to raise her hands again, Ember shot herself upward, slamming the entirety of her body weight into Scarlett. The force of her body sent Scarlett stumbling down the tiny incline that led into a koi pond. A loud shriek followed by a splash sounded. Ember let out a laugh of mockery, completely enjoying the sight of Scarlett sitting in the koi pond with her mascara running and her hair clinging to her cheeks and neck. Her laughter died out as her eyes caught onto a scene behind the pond. A familiar redhead was standing a bit too close to another familiar blue head of hair. Immediately, she started briskly walking over to them, worried that yet another fight was ensuing

"Hey, hey! Goddamit, get back here, you bitch! Don't think you can just walk away from me!" Scarlett screamed after her, falling over in the pond again when she tried to chase after Ember.

Scarlett's screams continued to become quieter with each step that Ember took toward Cohen and Casper. In place of those ear-piercing shrieks was someone else's voice. This voice that filled Ember's ears was usually soft and comforting, but now it was full of a venom that made her skin prickle. When she finally laid her eyes upon the owner of this voice, she stopped dead in her tracks, staring wide-eyed at Cohen. Still not noticing Ember, Cohen invaded Casper's personal space. At first, it looked as though he might punch Casper when his hand suddenly rose upward, but then it softly fell onto Casper's shoulder. This supposedly friendly gesture caused Casper to stiffen up like a slab of wood.

"I'm not trying to be mean, don't get me wrong," Cohen lied with a smile that severely contradicted his words. "But we both know you will only end up hurting Ember if you keep hanging around her. I mean, let's be real here, Casper. You're a murderer. That alone is enough of a reason for you to stay far, far away from her."

The purple eyes that were once trained on the ground looked upward to see the annoying smirk on Cohen's face. An insatiable burn ignited in Casper's throat. He wanted to let all his anger out, but he didn't have the strength to, especially not when the painful memory of Amelia was still floating around in his mind.

"That's not true. I wouldn't ever hurt h–..."

"Denying the truth as usual. Some things never change, huh?" Cohen taunted him scornfully.

His taunts went unanswered as Casper ducked his head, struggling not to let himself agree with Cohen. Though Casper knew he would never ever hurt Ember, he couldn't help but doubt himself. What if, by some chance, he did hurt her? What if she became the next Amelia? How would he ever be able to live with himself? With all these questions piling up, he grew less confident in himself. Maybe it was best for him to turn the other way and let Cohen take care of Ember. No...that's not true. This doubt was nothing but another form of fear, the fear of the unknown. He didn't know if he would ever become a threat to another person again nor did he know if that person would be Ember. Either way, the life of another person hadn't been taken by his hands since Amelia. So, as far as he knew, he wasn't a danger to anybody, not then and hopefully not ever again.