A Light in the Dark

Chapter 8 - Darkness

A Light in the Dark: Chapter 8 - Darkness

A stinging pain on my upper left arm pulls me back to reality. I still had my eyes closed.

What was that? What a crazy dream I had--me getting ‘rescued’ and the bad man being captured? My mind must have finally gone crazy. There’s no way that would happen. . .

Something being tightened around my upper left arm makes me gasp and pop my eyes open.

I’m being touched and held? Why is that? The bad man would never hold me gently...like the arms holding me are. 

I am faced with darkness when suddenly green fills my vision. My eyes widen and I gasp again.

The eyes furrow and searches my eyes worriedly, looking for any signs of pain. “What’s wrong?” a mouth connected to the face with the green eyes said.

“I--I--”

“I’m sorry, did I hurt you?”

I keep staring at him, and then moments later I poke him.

His eyes now furrow in confusion. “What are you doing?”

I realized that I just touched him without permission. My eyes widen in sudden fear. “S-sorry! I didn’t mean--”

A hand covers my mouth and I am so shocked I don’t know what to think. My body shuts down and I just stare into emeralds that fill my vision. My body tenses up and relaxes, then tenses and relaxes, not knowing which to stay in.

Those emeralds turn softer, and I hear a voice say, “It’s okay. What’s on your mind?”

I’m so confused. “I--this--you--where--what?” is all I can utter out, not knowing what to say and how to start.

Raymond chuckles. “Sapphire…” he murmurs. “I’m sure you can remember what happened.” His face leans in closer, his emerald eyes turning even softer than ever. I’m sure right now my eyes are just tipping over their sockets, and just a slight movement of my head would tilt them over and they would fall out.

Everything that happened wasn’t a dream…

Seeing my eyes widen even further in realization made his eyes sparkle with amusement. “I see you remember now,” he says, and turns his gaze back to my left arm.

A tugging and squeezing made me snap my gaze to my left arm. Raymond was tying fabric around it. Why?

Seeing my confusion, he explains, “I’m just making it as a makeshift bandage. Whenever you bleed, you’re supposed to put medicine on it--which I already did--and tie it with something to stop it from bleeding and hurting you.”

I stared at the ‘bandage’ for a long moment. Then I answered a stuttering reply, “B-but…he never…” I can’t bring myself to say a whole sentence.

His eyes turn darker, realizing what I was talking about. “That’s because he was an evil man. He was so bad, he wasn’t treating his own daughter correctly, like the father he was supposed to be.” He grabs my shoulders, shaking me slightly. “Listen, Sapphire. That man, is not your father. Not if he treats you like this,” he traced my bruises and scars. I expected pain, but he traced them so lightly I couldn’t feel any. I just felt a little tingle from his finger. He turns his gaze back to my wide eyes. “If anyone treats you like that ever again, then come tell me. I will help you. I won’t let you be unhappy anymore.” His eyes were staring intensely at my own blue eyes.

His eyes then soften. “Understand me?”

I nod slowly, my eyes still wide. Yes, I understand…but why would he help me?