《Devil's Angel》


 Chapter 1

    The summer storm that was forming before, ultimately began to howl. The mighty wind, along with the compelling rain, pushed the windows wide open and caused thunderous noise. I woke up with the ¡®fight or flight¡¯ feeling, but instantly realized what actually wakened me up.


    As I was closing the windows, my mom aggressively entered fearing the worst scenario. I rushed to hug her awkwardly and assure her that I was okay. When she completely stopped with the questioning, without saying anything further she left the room.


    It was 4 am in the morning. I went back to bed trying to warm myself up. If it wasn¡¯t for the terrible weather, I¡¯d probably still wake up at the same time.


    I can¡¯t sleep normally these past few days.


    Initially, my parents have been acting distanced with me and then unexpectedly informed me that I¡¯m adopted. Thinking about it now, they were probably collecting the strength and courage to tell me. Hearing it shocked me of course, but in the end, it didn¡¯t bother me. After all, they loved me and took care of me. I indeed had a good childhood.


    Aside of all, even though it didn¡¯t affect me that much, I surely didn¡¯t expect them to continue to act weird and make everything so awkward.


    I gently rolled on the other side of the uncomfortable bed, trying to reach the drawer. As I opened it and went through some old photographs I had with them. It felt extremely odd to look at those pictures. It genuinely felt like I didn¡¯t know them all of sudden. Like I was living with the familiar strangers. I stared at them for a few anxious minutes, desperately trying to shake off that imposter feeling.


    I wish for everything to go back to normal.


    After some time, I felt exhausted. My eyes were gradually closing and the last thing I remember is letting a tear out before finally falling asleep again.


    ¡°Wake up honey...Someone...came here to see you.¡± The gentle, but shaking voice, woke me up. After blinking sleepily a few times, my eyes automatically moved in the direction of a clock.


    ¡°Mom, what¡¯s going on, it¡¯s 6 am?¡± Her head was tilted down, and her eyes were swirling around the room, like as if she was afraid to face me.


    ¡°I know, honey, but... It¡¯s urgent. Please get up and get yourself ready. I will be downstairs.¡± She made her way to the exit, but quickly stopped herself at the doorway. She stood there for some time before opening her mouth as she was about to say something, but quickly turned away. She took a deep breath and began to tear up.


    ¡°Just so you know, honey¡­¡± She placed her hand onto her chest. ¡°I always consider you as my own and I loved you so, so very much. Although, back then we were just foolish, young and greedy¡­I hope that one day you will be able to forgive us.¡±If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    She finished her confession kind of a speech with her voice cracking and with the tears already streaming down her cheeks...


    What is happening?


    As I was left in confusion, it took me a while to answer back, so I nodded and thanked her with the following words of appreciation. The small cracked smile appeared on her face before she left the room.


    I sighed impatiently as I felt exhausted from all the emotional drama they are recklessly causing to this family. I do love them, but they are slowly destroying the relationship between us. I glanced at my window and saw that the dreadful storm was gone. Hearing the birds sing gave me some strength and hope for this dull day. I decided to wear the dress that I wore yesterday and at least give this day a try.


    As I came downstairs, I instantly noticed a guy that was in the living room. He had a dark hair and was obviously tallest in the room. I stopped mid stairs because of the unusual chills that went through my body when his eyes locked with mine. I had been standing there for some time, before I made myself to go closer to him while he was waiting for me to shake his hand. As I was about to introduce myself, he interrupted me.


    ¡°I already know who you are, Eleanor.¡± He said confidently, giving an accent to my name. I looked at my mom suspiciously, then back at him and gently, but also urgently ripped my hand out of his grip.


    ¡°Umm, nice to meet you¡­?¡±


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry darling. We will have plenty of time to get to know each other. ¡±He smirked at me, then grabbed his jacket and got very important looking paper out and placed it on the table in front of my parents.


    Mom gave me a very concerned look at that moment with her puffy eyes still watering, but my dad surprisingly didn¡¯t even dare to look.


    ¡°Guys, what¡¯s going on?¡± I asked in panic.


    I glanced at the door and saw plenty of boxes being well packed. I felt sudden sharp cut in my chest, a shock of fear. It was as the time froze for a second, letting me think of all impossible possibilities out there. I asked again, but this time louder...


    ¡°Mom! Can you please tell me what is going on?!¡±


    When she was about to sign the paper, she stopped and came to me, dropping on her knees and grabbing my dress while crying on top of her lungs. As the scene wasn¡¯t easy to handle, I began to tear up myself.


    ¡°Will anybody explain to me what¡¯s going on here...?¡± I wept through my words as those tears turned into a desperate cry.


    ¡°Please...¡± I looked down at my mom.


    ¡°Mom...¡± The guy cleared his throat, while handing my mom a pen and commandingly pointing towards the paper. As I was about to comfort my mom, I froze in place as her face changed from a hideous crying to a numb, lifeless expression. She signed the paper and then a shocking, unimaginable flame arose from the bottom of the page, covering the whole thing in a burning hot glow before it all just disappeared into thin air, leaving nothing but a few specs of dust.


    ¡°Now, Eleanor or should I call you, Lilith, you darling, belong to me.¡±


    Lilith?


    He was staring directly into my eyes like he was digging through my soul and just smirked¡­

 Chapter 2

    I turned towards my parents, clinging to that one last stand of broken hope I had left that all of this was just a sick joke, but when I saw them, the gasping hope shot straight out of my lungs. I covered my mouth instantly from the sudden disbelief and shock, almost as if I was trying to catch it, but it was long gone. ¡°What have you done to them?!¡±


    They looked 50 years older. Their skin became greyish and wrinkled. They looked like someone dug them straight out of their coffins.


    ¡°I did nothing. They did that to themselves.¡± The man giggled. As much as I was in shock, my parents were in bigger. Mom barely could open her mouth from all the skin sagging from her face. They seemed as if they were melting. ¡°What did you do to us!?¡± Her blue eyes got wider. ¡°What the actual fuck did you two leftovers expected?! You are about 200 years old!¡± He said with a smirking smile of a rotten satisfaction.


    200 years old? What is he saying?


    ¡°But you didn¡¯t warn us! How could we know?!¡± My dad finally spoken, but this time I remained quiet. The whole situation was so overwhelming, I could barely even keep myself straight on the ground. ¡°You know what they say, never make a deal with the devil.¡± He said while lighting a cigarette and eventually throwing it on the table.


    The Devil?


    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± He grabbed my arm, pulling me aggressively with him. Behind us, following each step, was a bursting explosion of flames, rapidly expanding and eating away everything it could. The whole house was burning in flames, disappearing away with my parents inside. I stood there with my eyes wide open, left in shock, staring at the flames.


    ¡°My¡­my parents?... MY PARENTS!!! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!¡±


    I screamed on top of my lungs while hysterically crying, as the realization hit me. I could barely even breathe because of all the warmth and tar black smoke that replaced the blue sky. ¡°Oh, for fuck¡¯s sake, stop screaming, they will hear you. Hurry now and get on the bike.¡± He demanded. ¡°NO! What?! What the fuck you mean on the bike?! With you?! I don¡¯t want to be near you. You-you psychopath!¡± He looked down, growling to himself before coming to me at very fast speed, grabbing my throat and squeezing it hard, but lose enough for me to breathe. His eyes turned completely black as he locked them up with mine. ¡°You will come with me or I¡¯ll fucking kill you right here right now, like I just did with your parents!¡± I was terrified by his threats, but I figured he wouldn¡¯t hurt me. ¡°How come you didn¡¯t do it already? If you wanted me dead, you¡¯d leave me there with them!¡± As I finished the sentence, he looked up at a strange bright light forming in the sky and chuckled. ¡°Smart brat. You know what darling, as much as I want to stay and tell you how intelligent you are, we have to hurry. Unless you¡¯d like to stay here and get yourself killed.¡±


    Huh, by who...?


    His eyes switched back to normal as he ducked down and grabbed my waist. He picked me up and placed me over his shoulder, carrying me as I was nothing.¡°Let me go!¡° He kept silent until he placed me onto his bike and hopped on himself. ¡°Hold onto me so you don¡¯t fall.¡± I made a disgust face and jumped off of the bike. I began running as my life depends on it, which it probably does. I tried running towards my friend¡¯s house, imagining that she will save me somehow, while constantly looking behind me as I was hoping I wouldn¡¯t see him. When I turned my head back, I slammed into something hard and fell.


    Huh? How did he come here so fast?!


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    ¡°Where do you think you are going, darling?! ¡° He said while his sharp teeth were peaking from his mouth as the silent growl echoed in the background.


    ¡°You can¡¯t make me go with you. You don¡¯t own me!! I¡¯m not an object!¡°


    I cried out as I was getting up from the road.


    ¡°In fact, I do own you, and for that you can thank your beloved parents.¡° He grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him, making me bump into his chest. As I tried to push myself away from him, he held my arm as tightly as possible, hurting me in the process.


    ¡°You are hurting me, you psycho! Let... Go of me!¡° I screamed hysterically as I tried to free myself from his grip.


    ¡°Shut your damn mouth, they are here. Get behind this truck. Hurry! ¡° He pushed me towards the old red truck and squatted next to me, holding me against it with his arm.


    What is happening? What do I do now? Do I run away? If I try he will definitely catch me.


    Zoning out in the middle of a stressing situation made me rip the part of my hangnail. I immediately grabbed my finger with my other hand as I was aching in unpleasant pain.


    ¡°Well great. ¡° I said to myself. A moment later the piercing stare came my way and made my whole body shiver.


    ¡°The smell is way too strong. They¡¯ll find us here. Fuck! ¡° He took off his jacket and covered me with it.¡± I pushed it away as I didn¡¯t want anything of his to touch me.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure if I smell that bad, but I don¡¯t need any gestures from you, thanks. ¡°I said arrogantly.


    ¡°Put that back on! It¡¯s not me being nice, it¡¯s to cover your damn smell. Plus making that wound made it even worse. ¡°


    My smell? Do I smell that bad??


    ¡°Listen, I don¡¯t know what games you¡¯re playing, but I¡¯m not putting this on!¡± He glanced at me with a death stare, grabbing onto his jacket and forcefully covering me with it. His body weight was stopping me from taking it off, so I tried to push him with my legs.


    ¡°Hey stop it!! I¡¯ll scream and they will hear us! ¡° I threatened.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be dumb, doll. They will torture you worse then I am. Now calm down and trust me. ¡°


    Does he really want me to trust him after what he did?!


    ¡°Why should I trust-¡° He interrupted me.


    ¡°Be quite they are leaving. Just a few more minutes, darling. ¡° His voice was gentle this time. As if he really feared those creatures. After some time of silence he took his jacket and gave me a hand to get up.


    ¡°I can get up myself. ¡° I said.


    ¡°Suit yourself. ¡° He sighs in relief. As I was brushing away the dust from my dress he spoke in serious, but calm voice.


    ¡°Those creatures are actually an Angels.¡±


    Angels?


    ¡°They can¡¯t do anything to me because I¡¯m too powerful for them, although they can take you away from me. ¡° He shrugged.


    ¡°So you are saying that I could have been saved by those Angels if you weren¡¯t hiding me behind this damn truck?! I could have been saved and maybe have my parents back?! But you chose my future because they would take me away from you?!¡° I began crying as I felt that I lost the only opportunity of having my parents and life back to normal.


    ¡°If you really think that, then you must be a fool, they are much worse then you think. This isn¡¯t a fairytale, girl. ¡° He said with a serious look.


    ¡°And why should I trust you?! ¡°


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to, but I¡¯m all that you got in this world right now, aren¡¯t I?¡°


    As he finished his last sentence I felt like my heart stopped for a second.


    If I run towards my friends house, would they let me in, could they protect me from him? Would he kill them too? Do I really have nowhere to go except him?


    ¡°Come on, we have to go. You can¡¯t live here anymore. There¡¯s a safer place where we¡¯re heading. ¡°


    Can you even call any place safe when he¡¯s around...

 Chapter 3

    I waited for him at the gate of the front yard as he was starting the engine. I waited, even thought I could have had easily run away while he was distracted with the bike.


    Where would I go?


    I kept asking myself the same question over and over again as the time between us was getting away. I hopped on his bike and almost fell as I consciously refused to hold onto him. Unwillingly I grabbed onto his waist tightly and looked over my shoulder at my house, or what¡¯s left of it¡­


    All the memories I made there now seem so fake, just as my whole life. Who am I then¡­?


    I thought as I buried my head in his back. After, how it felt an hour of driving through woods we arrived in front of a surprisingly pleasant looking house. I got off of the bike and as I was looking at the house I felt how the rage and any misery were coming back on the surface.


    ¡°Who are you and what do you want from me? Why did you have to ruin everything? I loved my life. I miss my-¡° He cuts me off with his hand over my mouth and his finger over his lips, while looking at the house and shushing me.


    ¡°Keep quite a bit, darling. I sense the intruder.¡± He slowly enters the house telling me to stay behind him. Out of fear of what¡¯s inside that made him alerted, I listened. When we entered the house, it reeked of death and flesh. I hid behind the wall near staircase, while he went straight towards the smell. Once I glanced over, I saw the true horror. Beside the smell, the whole house was covered in dark red splatters of blood.


    ¡°How many times do I have to remind you that you aren¡¯t allowed to bring your food here and eat it as you are some kind of animal?¡± He said annoyingly to someone.


    ¡°Behave, we have a guest.¡± He pointed at me as he spoke and out of fear I hid behind the wall, being too afraid to peek any further.


    ¡°Eleanor, you may come out now. This is Ava.¡±


    I hesitated at first, peeking slightly a bit, deciding if I dare to come out. Although, as I glanced nervously at him I instantly caught his sinister eyes piercing through me and I felt like I had no other choice.


    As I came out I saw a beautiful, slim and very attractive woman with reddish clean skin, standing in the living room. I didn¡¯t step any farther out of shock that this creature lives on this world. She had small wings coming out on the sides of her lower back , all while her tail was wiggling and dancing in the air. Hey shiny golden eyes glanced at me and licked off some of the dripping blood from her lips as her face spiked with interest. She flew low and slowly made her way to me. I closed my eyes and flinched as I expected her to grab my throat as the guy did before, but instead she caressed my cheek with her hand, all while leaving ugly traces of blood on my face.


    ¡°What did you bring us?¡± She spoke with feminine, but deep gentle voice. I heard burning sounds as soon as she touched me and in confusion of what it was I opened my eyes. A sudden short, but strong wind blew in the air as she backed off. Her face changed from curious to surprised and angry. Her fangs were showing now along with her eyes all pitch black as she stared at me.


    ¡°Calm down Ava.¡± The guy said.


    ¡°You brought a damn Angel here! Do you know what they¡¯ll do to us if-¡° He cuts her off.


    ¡°Calm down. They won¡¯t search for us. Besides, feel free to go closer and smell her.¡±


    Smell me? What''s wrong with my smell?


    She hesitated at first, but came to me after. Her face was close to my neck, I could feel her warm breath bouncing off of my skin.


    ¡°She smells like you¡­¡± He remained quiet as he was lighting up a cigarette.


    Like him? What are they talking about? I need answers!


    I gathered up enough strength to let out a few words and ask what on earth is even happening¡­


    ¡°Can someone PLEASE explain to me what''s going on? I just lost my family and home¡­ I¡¯ve got nothing and you are not even trying to give me any answers!¡± He placed his cigarette on the ashtray, showing me with his other hand to come and sit on the dirty white sofa. I was so desperate for answers that I didn¡¯t hesitated to come closer to them. When I stood behind the couch I was supposed to sit on, the strong smell of blood filled my nostrils. I looked down where the smell was coming from and saw a headless body laying in a weird position. I covered my nose and gave him a shocking expression.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    What the hell?!


    His expression showed annoyance as he took a deep breath.


    ¡°Ava, clean after yourself.¡± He demanded. Ava rolled her eyes as if she wasn¡¯t afraid of him a bit. Her wings, tail and horns somehow disappeared into her body, giving her a look of a normal looking young woman. She went into the kitchen and grabbed the huge black bag for trash. She proceeds to spread it, before giving me the other side to hold as she stores the body parts into the bag. Everything appeared clean except the blood splatters all over the couch.


    ¡°What about this?¡± He was getting impatient. Ava grabbed the blanket and covered the couch with it without even trying. She sat down and light the cigarette up. The guy sighs in annoyance, giving her the look. She rolls her eyes once again made her way on the other side of the couch, freeing the space for him to sit.


    ¡°Go ahead and sit on that armchair.¡± I sat down, placing my hands between my knees, preparing myself for the conversation that is about to happen. He placed his elbows on his knees trying to get closer to me and started talking.


    ¡°So first I didn¡¯t properly introduced myself. I¡¯m Oliver. You can call me however you please. Perhaps Olie once we get to know each other better.¡± He winked.


    As if.


    ¡°Oh shut up. You aren¡¯t impressing anyone here.¡± Ava said.


    He gave her the same look he¡¯d give me when he wasn¡¯t satisfied with tings. Although, Ava wasn¡¯t afraid of Oliver as I was. She stud up and went upstairs, turning her back on him, having no care in the world if he¡¯d attack her or not.


    ¡°Be gentle with that girl. I can sense that she is special.¡± She said before heading upstairs.


    The room was filed with his gaze that was every second pointed at me. The fact that we were alone at this moment gave me chills, but I was ready to know the truth. He laid back placing his arms on the backseat of the couch.


    ¡°Now that we won¡¯t get interrupted, you may continue with your questioning.¡±


    I swallowed up before speaking.


    ¡°What happened with my parents, I mean with all stuff that happened?¡± I tried to stay as calm as possible even though I was boiling inside from all mixed feelings.


    ¡°Okay, well,¡­ twenty-one years ago, your, so called, parents, met me. Made a deal with me and regretted when I came to collect what belongs to me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t belong to you¡­Why did they sell me like that? I thought they loved me¡­¡± I said with my voice cracking on the thought that I was nothing to them.


    ¡°They never asked for you. Angels forced the baby to some random Cambion couple, your parents in this case. They were young and dumb, they thought that being human was better then being Cambion.¡± I made a confused face.


    ¡°What is Cambion?¡± Before answering he proceeds to light up another cigarette.


    ¡°Your parents are as I mentioned before ¡®left overs¡¯, which means they are succubuse''s, like Ava, the girl you just met and incubuses so called babies. They are left in the areas where the humans are the main residents so they can live normal life, far from demons who usually like to kill them for fun. So the name Cambions means half human half demon.¡±


    Does that mean that my parents weren¡¯t human¡­?


    ¡°So, demons pair with humans and Cambions are the result of their acts?¡± I asked as I just remembered the headless guy on the couch.


    ¡°Correct.¡± He smiled and took a hit.


    ¡°What about me, who am I? What about my house??¡± His eyes were pointed at the circles made of smoke. His cigarette was almost burnt, but he continued to smoke as if the hot sensation at the ends didn¡¯t bother him.


    ¡°I had to burn the evidence. When Cambions do something that Angels don¡¯t like it¡¯s consider to be a ¡®Sin¡¯. Angels then appear to punish the sinner. So basically, I just helped them out and covered my trace, that¡¯s all¡­¡± The stories and the reality I knew, it seemed like it just vanished in a blink of an eye. I was left in shock and almost speechless.


    ¡°W-what about me? Am I like them? Am I unhuman? Who am I then? ¡° He put out his cigarette and made a long creepy looking smile.


    ¡°That part of you, I will also burn.¡±

 Chapter 4

    I looked away as I felt chills go through my body, making me shiver in his presence. I bit my lower lip, making it bleed from of all the previous anxious chewing. I felt how that last drop of courage left my body, making its way down my chin. I was too afraid to continue with the questions, so I remained quiet. He was lighting up yet another cigarette while I was lost in thoughts of my life that vanished in a blink of an eye. I began to tear up a bit, but it led to an ugly cry. Everything that has happened in such a short period of time came at me all at once. I ended up screaming as loud as possible trying to get it all out. A second later I felt a strong wind pushing me back a bit, making me stop crying. Ava was a few inches in front of me trying, as it seems, to hurt me, but Oliver stopped her by grabbing her hair mid way.


    ¡°Ava, down!¡± My eyes widen up when I looked at Ava. Her eyes were pitch black and appeared to be full of anger. She was growling at me, exposing her sharp teeth like an animal.


    What is happening?!


    After some time, she calmed down. When Oliver assured that she was safe to let go, he released her hair and helped her to get up.


    ¡°I-I have to apologize. I have no idea what had gotten into me. I was packing myself to leave this place and then I heard that noise. It was just digging through my brain, through my whole body. I transformed without my will. The anger and the pain I felt at that moment, I can¡¯t even describe it . All I know is that I just wanted to end that noise.¡± She sat down in disbelief. I couldn¡¯t find words myself, so I kept quiet and when I turned my head towards Oliver I caught a moment of him making his other appearance disappear.


    ¡°Uhh, it¡¯s all good?¡± I stuttered as I tried to break the awkward silence. Oliver tapped onto her shoulder and assured her that it was all okay. She stood up and went upstairs.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad that I was there when it all happened. Because you would be dead by now.¡± He sighs and laughs it off. I sat back in my chair, trying to at least relax a bit as my heart was pounding like crazy. After some time Ava left the house saying nothing. Trying to relax was a sick joke as I was completely left alone with this monster.


    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.¡°Well...¡± He finally spoke.


    ¡°That was one hell of a moment, wasn¡¯t it? It was very strange. Have you felt it, though?¡±


    Felt what?


    I shook my head. He grabbed his chin and nodded few times as if he knew the answer to what just happened.


    ¡°Interesting. Well now¡­¡± He clapped loudly. ¡°Shall I make us some breakfast? Are you hungry?¡± He asked as he was heading towards the kitchen. I shook my head again, still remaining quiet. He glanced at me with a confused face, as if nothing happened.


    ¡°Listen, darling, sooner or later this will be pretty much your whole life. You can¡¯t remain frozen if you want to survive in this world.¡± I clenched my fist as I felt rage coming back to me. I never imagined that the words ¡°my life¡± would become such a trigger for all my emotions.


    ¡°The life I have right now, is because of you! I refuse to have this kind of life, ever! I don¡¯t want to eat or to even be near you. You ruined my life! I want to go back home to my parents, to my friends¡­Please, let me go!¡± I begged. I begged and hoped that even though his heart was pure evil, that somehow he will find that one ray of humanity inside and release me. He grabbed a pot and giggled.


    ¡°Eleanor, dear, the fact that you aren¡¯t a human to begin with, would¡¯ve changed your life anyways.¡±


    Huh?


    ¡°Your life is meant to be mine. Since the day you have been born, I have known you have been mine. Of course I won¡¯t let you go. I deserve to have you. I earned you. So relax and make yourself feel at home.¡± I felt like crying again. Hearing him say all those things without any shame stabbed me right through my heart. The fact that I might never be able to escape, terrified me. I stopped myself from crying as the previous incident scared me. I kept the pain in and was slowly losing hope.


    ¡°It should be easy for you to get used to everything¡­¡± He said as the strong sharp sound of a knife echoed the room.


    ¡°Besides, you are like me after all..¡± He said as he proceeded to cut the vegetables.


    Nonsense...


    I thought to myself before I unwillingly, but slowly drifted to sleep¡­

 Chapter 5

    After a while I was woken up by a gentle touch. Before I opened my eyes I had the slightest delusion of hope that it might be my parents, but deep down I could sense that it was him. Nice, warm and delicious smell roamed the air as I was getting up.


    I didn¡¯t plan on falling asleep, especially next to a murder scene, but apparently I was too exhausted to stay awake.


    I made my way to the table and he was already there holding a chair for me. At that moment he proceeded to sit on the other side, far away from me. The table was full of food, as if it was prepared for the whole family rather than just for the two of us.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure what you enjoy the most, so I made a bit of everything I¡¯ve learned to cook so far. I hope you¡¯ll like it.¡± He smiled. I kept quiet as I rather felt disgust than hunger.


    ¡°You may eat now, I didn¡¯t do anything to the food.¡± He smirked.


    Now I believe that he actually did something to the food¡­Do I have to eat? Maybe I don¡¯t even have a choice¡­


    I took a deep breath and swallowed up before deciding what to eat. There was, as it seemed, a chicken soup, that was probably cold by now. A very large bowl of mashed potatoes and some unrecognizable meat with vegetables on the side. Everything else was appetizers.


    After what I saw on that couch, I don¡¯t think I¡¯d be able to eat any kind of meat.


    When I glanced at him, my whole body froze in place as I caught him staring at me for who knows how long.


    ¡°Are you enjoying your food, Eleanor?¡± He asked with a serious expression.


    As his stare made me lose any will to even try the food, I put the bowl of mashed potatoes down with my hands shaking in the process, trying not to break anything as I felt unexplainable fear traveling through my body.


    ¡°I-I do. It¡¯s¡­really good.¡± I lied.


    For how long has he stared at me?


    As he made his way to grab the toothpick, I flinched as I was expecting anything to happen any second. I caught him smirking as he placed the toothpick at the corner of his mouth. He laid back in his chair and placed his dirty shoes on the table, purposely pushing the plates and utensils off of it.


    ¡°Well, I think IT IS time for me to tell you something about myself. ¡° He said as he was twirling the toothpick between his fingers. ¡°For example, I hate when someone even dares to try to lie to me.¡± He sighs as he gets up.


    ¡°And that¡¯s exactly what you did.¡± He continued to speak as I instinctively


    looked at the knife closest to me on the table.


    It¡¯s not that sharp, but I¡¯ll probably be able to protect myself.


    ¡°I mean, I¡¯m not mad. I¡¯m just very hurt, Eleanor. You barely even touched anything! And I was trying my BEST to impress you with my cooking skills!¡±


    For a split second he turned around, looking away from me. I took my chance and grabbed the knife, fearing for my life not to get caught.


    ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry.¡± I said quietly as I tried to sound truthful. Without noticing his movements, I twitched when I felt his hand near my head and almost screamed out when his fingers started twirling and playing with the strands of my hair. He moved it behind my ear and got his lips as close as possible to my neck all way up to my ear.


    ¡°Drop it.¡± He whispered in stern voice. Adrenalin took control of my hand and without thinking I found myself on my way to stab him. Luckily he grabbed my arm mid way before I could reach him.


    How did he read my moves before I could even plan them?!


    As I tried to free myself, I felt how his other hand was pushing me down, making me hit the floor in such speed. Instinctively, I closed my eyes from the ache, but when I opened them, he looked completely different.


    His appearance matched with one I saw when Ava was here. His grayish skin was flawless. Empty and plain. His devilish horns were gracefully showing and appeared to be different than Ava¡¯s. They were long and dark. Although, they didn¡¯t go behind his head, but rather to the sides, getting closer to each other at the ends. His eyes were already the familiar endless void of pitch darkness that I¡¯ve seen before. All I could see in that clear reflection was my terrified face.


    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.What scared me the most was his mouth that extended all the way to the middle of his cheek, exposing that newly torn stretched skin and jaw. At some point I thought how he ironically and constantly looked as he was smiling¡­


    ¡°I don¡¯t think that you are aware with whom you are dealing with, darling.¡± A huge grin was formed as he spoke. He licked his sharp teeth with a long, weirdly thin bloody red tongue and got his face even closer to mine. Out of discomfort I moved my head on the side, trying my best not to make another eye contact with him.


    Suddenly, I felt a warm breath falling onto my cheek, followed by a few drops of his saliva.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong Eleanor, not so reckless now, huh?¡± He took the knife out of my hand and threw it on the other side of the kitchen. He slowly shifted back to his human form and casually, as if nothing happened, offered me a hand to get up.


    With the remaining silence I refused the ironic help and got up myself.


    He clicked with his tongue and made his way upstairs.


    Huh? Where is he going? Is this my chance to escape? Will he hear me if I move from this spot?


    I had the questions roaming through my head as I was planning to escape, but quickly figured that those questions won¡¯t be answered and that I was just wasting probably the only chance I had to run away from here. From him.


    I swallowed up and grabbed another knife on my way while trying to make as little noise as possible.


    Already familiar with the sneakiness of his, I peaked through the front window, assuring that nobody was outside. When I convinced myself that it was time to get out I slowly and carefully opened the door. As I exited I didn¡¯t look behind as I feared that I¡¯d might see him. I ran as fast as possible through the woods, not caring for the twigs that were scratching my skin and ripping my dress. After a while the grass turned into a concrete and as soon as I stepped on it, I heard the engine in the distance.


    A car? He probably won¡¯t catch me if I¡¯m in a car!


    I went on the middle of the road, waving aggressively, begging and hoping for the cat to stop. Luckily, it stopped in front of me and I ran to the window. There was a quite dead-ish looking elderly man sitting at the steering wheel. He rolled down the window just enough for me to speak.


    ¡°Hello sir, thank you so much for stopping, I really appreciate it. Can you please drive me to the town? I¡¯m begging you. I¡¯m lost, I was kidnapped, please!¡± I said as I was desperately trying to form a straight sane sentence through all the rampant shaking. He didn¡¯t even say anything or gave me any reaction, but rather just unlocked the doors and waved me to enter. When I entered the car, the strong smell of cigarettes roamed the air. I tried to buckle up myself, but the buckles didn¡¯t seem to be working.


    In any other circumstances I wouldn¡¯t even dare to enter in stranger¡¯s car like this. But do I even have a choice right now¡­?


    As I moved myself near the window, the guy broke the silence.


    ¡°So miss, how old are you?¡± He asked confidently. ¡°I-I¡¯m 21.¡±


    Should I have had lied about my age?


    His silence after that question made me uncomfortable, so I glanced at the rearview mirror at the front and saw him now staring back at me and smirking. When our eyes met, he quickly turned away, focusing back on the road. Scared and skeptical, I held tightly to the door handle just in case if he tries something.


    This is my only way out from that house. I have no other choice at this moment.


    After some time of driving, tiredness caught up with me. I refused to sleep as I was in quite shady situation.


    I can¡¯t sleep now! Wake up!


    I tried to keep myself awake by constantly blinking and pinching my arm. It worked for a some time, but the silence and the peaceful green exterior made my eyes slowly shut. The last thing I saw was his eyes in the mirror as I drifted away.

 Chapter 6

    The nightmare I had wasn¡¯t even close to the nightmare I woke up to. My thigh was unpleasantly caressed by the old man¡¯s cold hand. Without even processing anything I pushed him in terror and tried to get out of the car, but it was locked. Looking around for an escape, I figured that we were not moving and that we were somewhere in the woods.


    ¡°Calm down you bitch! Let¡¯s have some fun. Nobody needs to know.¡± The old man desirously demanded.


    ¡°LET ME OUT YOU PERVERT!¡± I continued trying to open the door when suddenly remembered that I had the knife with me. He reached for my thigh once again, making slow movements under my dress. I kept looking around for my knife and found it laying down on the car¡¯s floor. Urgently, I reached for it and pointed it towards the old pervert. He backed up, having his hands in the air, fearing for his life.


    ¡°Do not touch me again! I suggest you, for your own safety, to drive me to the nearest town and to not make any sound!¡± I played tough while shaking from all the adrenaline consuming my body.


    ¡°Okay, pretty lady, calm down. I was just joking.¡± He turned back towards his steering wheel and started the engine. I didn¡¯t let my guard down. I had the knife on the open enough for him to see it and close enough to use it if needed.


    The street lights and colorful bar lightings blinded me as we arrived somewhere at the town. He stopped the car on the side of the road, placing his palm in front of me as if he was expecting something.


    ¡°I refused to go any further without getting paid.¡± I rolled my eyes and clicked my tongue as I was left in disbelief of what has had humanity turned into. He unlocked the door as I refused to pay him anything and got out of the car.


    ¡°See you around pretty lady.¡± He winked. I made a disgusted face and slammed the door. Left alone on the unknown street, on the rain made me think of my parents.


    Would it be any different if I wasn¡¯t given to them?


    The shivers from the rain gave me strength to make the first step and enter the bar. I swallowed up and grabbed the door knob, but realized that having a knife in the bar would just make more trouble for me. I blindly decided to drop it somewhere in the pile of trash that¡¯s near the entrance so I could find it later. My entrance caused the attached bells on the door to echo through the bar and the people closed to the doors silenced up. Few of them were giving me glances and suspicious stares, following every movement I made towards the sit. Once I turned my back to them, they continued with their chatter as if nothing happened.


    ¡°May I please see your ID?¡± The guy behind the bar asked while cleaning one of those big mugs. ¡°Umm, I don¡¯t have it on me right now, but I just turned 21.¡± I awkwardly giggled as I was trying to hide the trauma I just went through. He lifted his eyebrow and looked at me in suspicion.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to drink alcohol anyways. I¡¯d like just a glass of water.¡± He chuckled at my innocent appearance and turned the tap on.


    ¡°Here you go young lady.¡± As I took the glass from him, my finger slightly brushed onto his hand, making him flinch and drop the glass down on the counter, spilling it everywhere.


    ¡°Oh I am so, so sorry. I probably didn¡¯t grab it well. I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m not feeling myself today.¡± He brushed it off with his hand while leaning over the counter, signing me to get closer. I instantly got chills running through my body, remembering HIM whispering in my ear and in fear I backed off from the counter. ¡°Hey, listen, I mean no harm, I just want to ask you something.¡± After hesitating at first, I made my way closer to his face, having a slight of hope that he might be the good guy.


    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.If he wanted to hurt me, he would by now, right? After all he doesn¡¯t  seem to be something like Oliver, he looks normal.


    ¡°Are you, I don¡¯t know, an Angel perhaps?¡± I froze. At that moment my whole reality got crushed again.


    ¡°I-I don¡¯t know? Why do you ask?¡± With a smirk on his face, he goes back to cleaning.


    Why isn¡¯t he saying anything? Does he know Oliver? Is he working for him? Is he going to hurt me like Oliver did? Should I run?


    ¡°Don¡¯t panic.¡± His eyes roamed around the bar. ¡°Listen, I don¡¯t know who you are, or if you are aware of this, but your touch burnt my skin. It¡¯s something only Angels are capable of. You shouldn¡¯t even be here, you are surrounded with demons. If not me then some of them will most probably try to rip your head off if your smell gets to them.¡±


    Again with the smell¡­


    He gave me a serious expression and covered his nose with the cloth he used for the glass. ¡°You should get going! Soon they will sense your true appearance and will start chasing you.¡± My eyes winded as I glanced at the rest of the bar. There were too many of them to count and for the fact I knew they won¡¯t let me live as Oliver did.


    ¡°Can you just, please, explain to me, before I leave? What is the thing about the smell? I hear it too many times, but I don¡¯t understand it. Do I really smell that bad?¡± He gave me a confused, yet understandable expression and proceeded to explain.


    ¡°Of course I can, but after that just run, okay! ¡­ Okay, well, when Angels are feeling like they are in danger their odor is way stronger then usual. Right now yours is spreading like a wildfire. You are really dangerously exposing yourself¡­.Just, Go!¡±


    An Angel...


    I thought as I ran outside and frantically kneeled down to search for my blunt knife. After aggressive digging through trash and dirt, I still couldn¡¯t find it.


    ¡°What is that smell?! Did you let a damn Angel here?!¡± As the door bell rang, I hid myself between the trash thinking it would cover up the scent. By dropping the whole weight onto the trash I felt something sharp dig into my skin. I urgently covered my mouth to stop myself for screaming in ache and sat in silence hoping that he won¡¯t find me.


    ¡°Sir calm down, everything is fine. I¡¯d never let an Angel come inside.¡± The huge guy glared at the barista for some time before clicking with his tongue and going back inside. After assuring it was safe enough, I got up and saw the knife stuck deep into my left thigh. I tried to walk somewhere as far as possible from the bar, but the pain was getting more and more unbearable as the adrenaline was wearing off.


    Behind the bar was a thin, but seemingly long alleyway leading south away from it. It was dark and smelled awful. The further I got, the more I felt at ease and away from danger. The pain from the wound became stronger and each step sent a pulsating tremble of pain through my leg, making it harder for me to walk.


    Not too far in front of me I heard a crackling of some metal cans on the ground. Alarming enough it gave me a rush of adrenalin, so I pulled the knife out of my thigh and prepared for whatever was coming my way, not caring for the burning sensation and blood that was streaming down my leg.


    At the end of the street, in the pitch darkness, appeared some glowing yellow eyes. Out of fear I just stopped and waited for it to reveal itself on the only street light that was placed in this alley. The sudden rising pace of the approach has startled me, making me gasp. As I prepared for the worst, a black cat ran past me, brushing onto my leg.


    Just a cat¡­


    I sighed. The sadistic, comedic relief of the situation made me giggle as I was just purely glad it was nothing more that a cat. When I looked back up again, in hope that nothing else could surprise me anymore, I saw a pair of red looking dots staring at me.