The Girl With The Crimson Eyes

67: Not Yet Gone

Zeo

Zeo sat with Amy on a wooden bench in the courtyard. A familiar place they walked together so many times. The kids ignored him as they ran past them, splashing puddles on the cracked floor and shouting at each other. However, his presence seemed to disturb the caregivers, who shot nervous glances in his direction and gossiped.

Amy tugged his sleeve insistently as she bombarded him with questions, her high-pitched voice filling his ears. Zeo did his best to answer honestly and told her about the mansion and how Remnya and himself had gone on separate ways, which disappointed his little friend. Regarding his journey, Zeo told her he had joined the military.

"The military?" Amy asked in surprise, with her mouth full of food, and bread crumbs landed on his lap. "That means you learned how to fight!"

"I guess you could say that." Zeo smiled.

"What do you do there?"

Zeo thought for a moment, struggling to find the right words. As much as he wanted to keep her happy, he didn't want to give her false hopes. "My job there is to protect people, but I came all the way here because I wanted to protect someone very special to me." He narrowed his eyes. "You."

"Me?" Amy giggled. "Protect me from what?"

"Bad people." Zeo caressed her face and leaned closer. "There are bad people out there, but I won't let them harm you."

Her pupil dilated. "Who are those bad people?"

"Let's just call them . . . Demons."

She chuckled. "Like the demons in that book you read me?"

Zeo recalled a fantasy book about the war between Demons and Elves. "Yeah, there are demons out there."

"But why would the demons want to harm me?" Amy pointed at her tiny horns. "I am a demon too."

"No, you're not." Zeo scowled. "Who told you that?"

"Everyone." She shrugged. "After you left, Orena told me I was a half-demon like Rem, and then the boys and girls started calling me that too."

"Those assholes," Zeo muttered between his teeth.

"Hey!" Amy pouted. "Don't say bad words!"

"Sorry." Zeo put his hands on her shoulders, staring tenderly into her innocent eyes. "Listen to me, Amy. You're not a demon. You're a half Nephilim." As soon as those words left his mouth, he questioned their veracity. Every adult with Nephilim blood he had met had been a ruthless beast to him, and he couldn't help but wonder if Remnya and Amy would turn out like that at some point too.

No. Zeo shook his head. They're different.

"Oh, but I know that." Amy giggled, bringing him back to reality.

"Wait, what did you say?"

"I read some of the books you left." She grabbed his ears and pulled them softly. "You're an Anglish, and Rem is a Nephilim!"

Zeo blinked with confusion. "So you already knew."

Amy nodded effusively. "I also know my horns will keep growing. Mirtha told me."

"Mirtha?"

"The director, Mirtha! She's really nice. A lot nicer than the previous directors, so I am happy she replaced them."

"What else did she tell you?"

"She told me about The Hunters too."

A cold shiver ran down Zeo's back.