Darkness Rising

CHAPTER [ 8 ] GIRL POWER

Loud knocking had Lenore jolting up in bed with a sharp gasp, hair falling into her face. It took a moment for her mind to recall where she was and how she had come to be there. Lenore stumbled out of Kaiser's bed, the blanket and sheets twisted and tangled around her legs. It was obvious she'd spent most of the night tossing and turning. That also explained why, despite a night of rest, she was somehow more exhausted.

The knocking turned into a heavy pounding as Lenore left the bedroom. She was surprised to find the apartment empty, no sign of Kaiser. After their conversation, she hadn't seen him again–only found one of his t-shirts neatly folded outside of the bathroom door. It was impossible to know when he left or where he had gone.

Irritation bubbled in her stomach. He could have left a note or woken her up; anything else but leave her clueless. But she suspected expecting anything like that from him was pointless. Lenore didn't think it was her family on the other side of the door. She doubted they were interested in taking on Kaiser but being alone and defenseless didn't inspire confidence. 

"Rise and shine, princess!" Camila called over her pounding. "Your fairy godmother has arrived!"

A momentary wave of relief rushed over her, only to be offset by the realization that Camila was a fiend. Still, Lenore didn't think she would do anything to her – if only because of the threat Kaiser presented. 

She shuffled to the door, unlocking the deadbolt. At least Kaiser had considered her safety to some degree. Lenore was greeted by the sight of smiling Camila enshrined by several, large shopping bags.

Before Lenore could utter a greeting, Camila was scooping up the bags and pushing her way into the apartment. She was a flurry of bright colors and bustling energy. This wasn't how Lenore imagined a fiend behaving – it was too human. They were supposed to be ugly beasts that only cared about their hunting and feeding.

"Boss man told me to bring you some clothes. I wasn't sure what you liked — so, I just bought a bunch of things I'd loved to see you in." She spun around, eyes shimmering with pride.

"Thanks," Lenore replied, confusion written on her face.

"Well, come on. Try them on!" Camila shoved the bags at her. "We only have a little time to waste now because I had too much fun shopping."

This whole interaction was hard to keep up with. It didn't seem to bother Camila that she was a Gillard – that until a day ago they were enemies. She was treating her as though they were friends; that they had always been. Again, this was something Lenore never experienced herself.

Friendship was much like her family relationships. There was always a wall between Lenore and the world. She had craved the experiences she'd watched others have but was somehow incapable of crossing that barrier. Nothing was ever as important as the responsibility of being a Gillard and her duty to Arkaydian. 

In the end, they had stolen everything from her–everything. The rage swelled inside her chest and it seemed harder to suppress it. Thankfully, the bond decided to vibrate to life at that moment, breaking through the sudden haze of rage.

"Go! Go! Go!" Camila gave her a hearty shove towards the direction of the bedroom, completely ignorant to anything but her own desire to play dress up. 

Lenore spent the next twenty five minutes trying on the plethora of outfits that Camila had bought for her. It was more exhausting than preparing for her midterms. She would have happily worn her blood stained clothes from the previous day if she had known this would happen.

She found herself grateful that the time crunch made Camila's choices limited. In the end, it was a pair of dark denim jeans and a black, low cut halter top that prevailed. Lenore was a bit more exposed than she was used to, but she wasn't tempted to upset a fiend–especially when she didn't have any form of defense.