Episode 36

She stood there frozen in the ally, her fingers growing cold and tingling, her eyes searching the darkness about her. A sensation suddenly shot up her spine. Before even seeing them, she could sense that she was not alone. Lingering in the shadows about her were several armed men watching and waiting.

'What are they waiting for?'

She no sooner had this thought before another man appeared before her, his body fully covered in cloth, not even allowing his face to be shown. Even so, she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something familiar about him.

"Hello, Scarlet," he greeted, his tone sounding casual. And though she couldn't see it, she could sense the unsettling smile his face held. "We've been waiting for you. Welcome home."

Scarlet instinctively stepped back from him, her jade eyes clouded with wariness.

"Awe, come now. Don't be like that," he said as he took a step towards her, his hand stretching out casually.

His advance only prompted her to take another step back. Everything about this man was making her nerves scream. And if there was one thing she'd learned in her life up to this point, it was to trust her instincts.

Seeing her continued wariness, the man paused, dropping his hand back to his side. She could see something akin to madness flash through his eyes.

"Won't you come with me?" His voice had a new menacing edge to it.

Scarlet's head was shaking an answer before she even managed to speak. "I don't think I will."

The man gave a heaving sigh as though disappointed. "Very well," he then said calmly before issuing a signal.

Scarlet wasn't sure what that signal was supposed to have accomplished, but there was nothing but a long silence that followed it. Staring at him, she could sense that he, too, was confused, but she figured it was for an entirely different reason than hers.

He issued the signal once more, but nothing happened. Anger began rolling off him. Clearly, what was supposed to happen didn't.

'This is my chance. I have to get away from this guy now.'

But before she could put any meaningful distance between her and the man, he reached out, seizing her arm in a vice-like grip. Within seconds, her whole body went crimson as though in response to the danger it sensed.

"You're coming with me, even if I have to drag you back myself," he growled.

Scarlet let out a low scream as she went on the offensive in an attempt to free herself from this man's unnaturally strong grip. However, no matter how she fought, she could not free herself.

Suddenly, she saw someone flash into her view, followed by a deafening sound that exploded through the air. She felt her whole body flung to the ground harshly before she was instantly pulled to her feet. A strong familiar hand grasped hers, pulling her into a full run.

It had all happened so quickly that it took her a moment to realize why the hand gripping hers felt familiar.

'Helfeirch?'

A loud guttural scream that could only be described as rage in vocal form tore through the air behind them as they raced away.

Having gotten her bearings, Scarlet began giving directions of where to go, and they soon ended up in a passageway hidden under the main level of Lygredd Grand.

Being safely tucked out of sight, the two paused to catch their breath. Still panting, Scarlet looked up at Helfeirch. She didn't know where he'd disappeared to, but she was certainly glad he'd reappeared when he did.

Pulling his goggles up, his pale eyes met hers in the darkness. "Sorry I had to leave you alone for a few minutes," he said as though he had read her thoughts.

Helfeirch had never been one to let himself become anyone's prey. That was one of the main reasons he still stood among the living. He had sensed the men creeping towards them in the shadows. He suspected that Scarlet was their target and he had not been wrong. This had allowed him to slip away unnoticed.

Slinking through the darkness, stalking his prey with the deadly silence of a great cat. His attack was as swift and deadly as an adder's. Only to vanish as though he were a ghost. He had decided long ago; he would be no man's prey, and if that meant he had to become the hunter, so be it.

The men who had closed in on Scarlet had been no match for him, for they never even saw him coming. One by one, they silently fell victim to his blades, leaving only the man who stood before Scarlet.

He'd had no reservations about leaving Scarlet on her own while he eliminated the pests, for he had every faith that her newly transformed body would instinctively protect itself. But as he watched the man with Scarlet and, more importantly, the way Scarlet's body responded to his presence, he knew something wasn't right. His gut told him this man was not normal, that simple blades would not be enough.

Upon seeing the man take hold of her, Helfeirch felt his insides twist. A moment later, he emerged from the darkness with a gun from one of the men he'd killed. The barrel inches from the man's head as he pulled the trigger. The blow had resulted in a deafening sound that rang through the whole area.

Scarlet's eyes had not broken from Helfeirch's. "That man… he survived."

Helfeirch nodded. "He did." His voice was grim in the dark passage.

Scarlet's eyes lowered as she distantly focused on one of her hands. "It would seem I'm not the only person who's bulletproof," she muttered. Her vision suddenly became obscured as she felt herself pulled into a strong embrace. She was soon holding him in return. "You were the reason his signal amounted to nothing, aren't you?" she then asked.

"I just went on a small hunt." His voice was back to its normal calmness.

She gently pulled away, shaking her head before looking up at him with a small smile. "Well, thank you."

His hand raised to cradle one side of her face as he stared down at her. The scales covering her body had already returned to a pearl sheen, which made it seem like she was glowing.

There was a time not so long ago when he doubted he'd ever feel this sort of affection toward another woman after his mate had died. But he'd quickly felt himself drawn to this woman. She had this mixture of fighting spirit and vulnerability.

'I am no man's prey, but rather, I am a hunter of men. However, I have fallen prey to you.'