Chapter # 6

"Hello, what seems to be the issue?"

There is a strange man outside my house, he attacked me in the alley last night, and now he is lurking by my front door." Saori peered through the little slit in the curtain.

"Alright, Mam, our officers are on their way to your location and I would recommend that you stay inside." suddenly everything turned dark, "Mam, are you there?"

"Yes, I'm here, but the electricity seems to be gone," Zubie answered, walking up to her room, "hello?" she looked at her phone, "no service? This is strange." she heard a scratching noise outside the front door that was barricaded.

With silent footsteps, she walked towards the door, the feline meowed from the doorway, "don't worry it could be the police---" Zubie was thrown into a wall with the force of the explosion. A silent scream tore from her throat at the intense pain in her shoulder.

A shadow stepped inside, walking over the burning bits of the door and couch. Her eyes were blurry, tears gathering in them from the pain. The figure stopped right in front of her, a hand pulled her head up to face the individual.

"Found you." the cold grey irises of the man pierced into her.

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"Zubie, I heard an explosion, what is going---" the man straightened his back, tilting his head to gaze at the old man standing in the doorway or what used to be a doorway.

"Mr.Baker..." the old man looked horrified at her state, "leave..."

"Do what she says old man or you'll end up dead." the man pulled her to her feet as she struggled in his hold, "oh and don't interrupt."

"Let her go, young man!" the old man pulled out a kitchen knife, "or I will end you right here!"

The man rubbed his temples, "look, old man, I don't want to do anything with you." the man threw an injured Zubie on the floor, "but if you want an early ticket to hell, go ahead."

Zubie's heart was racing miles in second, a fear gripping her insides, she uttered with what vitality she has left, "Mr---Mr. Baker, don't..."

The old man ignored her pleading and with a raised knife he ran towards the man. Zubie watched the collision with horrified eyes, "what a waste of my time," the old man fell on the floor, dead, "anyway, so I was saying---" his eyes fell on the empty spot, "where did she go!"

Zubie limped out of the back door, stumbling on her way,

'I was here for a woman named Isabelle? Turns out she is already under six-foot under the ground. Did she possibly give you anything of value before she died?' his words played in her brain like a loop.

What did that man want from Isabelle? Her property? The pharmacy she owned? All kinds of possibilities ran through her mind, "hey, you okay?!" the face similar to the man who attacked her came into her vision but his eyes were so different, although similar in shade and color, they were holding concern for her well-being.

"Just had an encounter with your deranged brother," he gave her support so she wouldn't fall on her face, "he is following me..."

"I see," the man was thinking, "take the left turn from here, I heard a cop car coming this way, they'll protect you."

"What about you?" the words left her mouth before she can think it over, "wouldn't he hurt you as well?"

"No, already dead, remember?" he gave her a toothy grin, trying to assure her, "he can not hurt me anymore."

'Any more?' Zubie turned on her heels, following the path he has told her, she will get answers later. The only thing that matters right now is her survival.

"How are you, brother?"

The cop's car stopped in front of her, "Mam, what happened---" she passed out, "Call an ambulance now!"

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Zubie opened her eyes to the beeping of the monitors, she looked at the plain white ceiling of the hospital, "how are you feeling?"

Her eyes landed on the man sitting by her bedside, "we gotta stop meeting like this..."

The man chuckled and scratched his hair, "I agree."

"What happened after I passed out?"

"I talked to my brother,"

"And? Why is he hunting me down? What did I do?"

"It's not you, it's the person you are associated with."

"Isabelle?"

"Yes her," he sighed, his eyes darting to the window, "believe me or not, but she was a very powerful person, at least that's what I know. She had something my brother so desperately wants."

"What is it?"

"I don't know either. If I knew I would've stopped him long ago, in my life."

"That's strange, you say you are dead but I can see you and touch you as well?" she asked, she was confused and equally scared of what has happened.

"Well---" the door opened, and a nurse walked in.

"Oh, you are awake, do you feel any pain?"

"No, I don't feel any pain." the nurse walked up to her side completely disregarding the white-haired man's presence.

The nurse examined the bandages over her body. While Zubie's eyes were gazing at the man, who just gave her a little smile, 'why can't she...'

Before she realized the nurse was already gone, "how did she not notice you?" she held a hand up, stopping him, "you know what, I don't wanna know."

He nodded and said, "You need to know about my brother, he might attack again. You need to take any valuable things from here and move. That's all I can do for you and hope that he'll leave you alone."

"But there must be a way to stop him, right?"

"There was. Isabelle, she was the only one who can stop him. But she is dead." He spoke, "and it appears you have no skills that might help you."

"What skills?"

"Witchcraft and sorcery."

Her brows frowned in confusion, "sorcery..."

"Yes, Silvas is strong, and even stronger after..." he said, rubbing his hands, "we can only hope for him to cease this madness, only if I was still alive."

"I see, for the rest of my life I'll be on run from a crazy dude and hope he gives up or finds another poor soul to prey on?"

He looked guilty, hesitating he said, "I wish to help, I do but I can't, if only the Isabelle lady was still around." he stood up, walking to the door, "by the way, I'm Aurelius."

"Zubie."

He smiled, "it's nice to meet you,"