The Hunter's Angel

Shatter Me

After Hunter had his men sweep the perimeter of his building, we headed up to his place, silence ringing in the air as we entered the dimly lit penthouse. 

I watched as Hunter shut the door behind him, turning the lock and deadbolting the door. 

It was what he always did, but something about it felt so much heavier this time, so much darker. As if we had finally felt the weight of the danger outside. 

Turning back around to face me, Hunter drew a tense hand across his mouth, sighing softly as he gazed at me. 

Gazed at the mark against my cheek, which was likely becoming more purple than red, and the redness around my wrists and ankles. And there was no hiding the guilt painting his face, or the pain pooling in his eyes as he shook his head with defeat.

"Hunter," I whispered, my voice catching slightly. "It's oka-" 

Before I could finish, he rushed forward, pulling me in tightly against him as he shuddered a breath. Slowly, I wrapped my arms around him, fighting to keep the tears at bay. Tears for him, and tears for myself. 

Hunter held me for a while, not uttering a word as he ran his hand through my hair. And I held onto him just as tight, wishing I never had to let go. 

The tenseness slowly left Hunter's body, and he pulled back, pressing a soft kiss against my lips. 

"You're probably hungry," he murmured, not meeting my gaze. "I'll fix you a bite to eat." 

Slightly frazzled by the shift in mood, I nodded slowly, though I didn't think I could muster up the strength to eat anything right about now. 

"I have a change of clothes in my dresser upstairs," he added, running a hand down my arm. "You can borrow something if you wanna change." 

A change of clothes actually sounded great—I had been itching to get out of this sundress from the moment that creep had laid eyes on me. 

"Okay," I replied softly, "do you want any help with the food?" 

Hunter shook his head, stroking my back gently before he headed off to the kitchen. "Don't worry about it, love," he spoke over his shoulder. "Go get changed."

I studied him for a moment, watching as he pulled out some pots and pans and got to work in the kitchen. Chewing the corner of my lip, I spared him one last glance before turning on my heel and heading up to his bedroom. 

Something was off, but I just couldn't put my finger on it. It was in the energy, in the air, in the look in his eyes. It was everywhere. 

Trepidation traced through me as I slipped out of my dress, pulling on one of Hunter's shirts that fell to my knees, and a pair of his boxers underneath. 

I washed up in the bathroom, avoiding looking at the bruise painting my cheek and the marks on my body. The hollowness in my eyes, though, was hard to ignore. 

The usual brightness in my green eyes had dulled slightly, reflecting the toll the night had taken on me. 

A heavy sigh escaped my lips as I dried up, refusing to spare another glance in the mirror before I shut off the lights and headed back to the bedroom. 

It had taken a while for the physical toll of the night to hit me, but the waves of exhaustion and pain slowly started to take over. My head began to feel way too heavy for my body. 

My eyes fell to Hunter's bed, slightly illuminated by the moon, and I decided it wouldn't hurt to lay down for a moment. Just a moment. 

The second my head hit the pillow, I felt as though I had sunk into the bed, my body suddenly far too weak to support me any longer.