Bloody and Wild

Silent Hero

Thorn pulled over to the side of the road after a couple of hours. It took Lauren a few minutes to remember how to move her legs to clamber off first. Once on the ground she winced when her feet touched the toasted tarmac. Melted tar stuck to the bloodied soles of her feet and she gritted her teeth to keep quiet. Thorn noticed the problem and quickly picked her up from under her arms and placed her to stand on his feet. His boots were sturdy leather with metal caps that didn't yield under her weight and Lauren doubted he could feel her standing on him at all.

Thorn looked down at her, his expression grim. His disfigured face looked even more warped this close up and Lauren noticed how tight the grilled skin was over his cheek, so tight the teeth seemed to bulge.

"You have nice eyes," Lauren commented in a dreamy voice causing Thorn to frown deeper. His left eye was sealed shut whilst, last he looked, his right eye was nothing special. Lauren however examined it. It was a very pale brown, almost the shade of honey with warm golden flecks. Suddenly she burst into tears. Thorn patted her awkwardly on the shoulder causing her to howl worse. "My arms hurt!" She complained bitterly. They both examined her arms and saw how the wind friction had rubbed the exposed flesh raw.

Awkwardly Thorn shrugged off his leather jacket, nearly unbalancing Lauren in the process and she had to cling on to him to avoid returning to the blistering tarmac. Carefully Lauren eased her sore arms into the sleeves of the jacket. She looked down the empty highway they were on. "Are we safe?" Thorn looked her up and down critically and Lauren caught a glimpse of his worry as he eyed the blood that was splattered on her face and neck. "It's not mine," she answered his unasked question. "Why don't you talk? I know you can."

Lauren was aware that she should be more scared. She'd never taken a life before and now she wasn't even sure how many were on her hands. She'd been shot at and she still couldn't believe that she was alive. She supposed that she must be in shock. Thorn set Lauren back onto the motorbike and then swung his leg over the seat.

"No." Thorn replied simply in a gruff tone. The bike roared beneath them and they raced once more down the twisting road, the sun burning their backs.

**

Lauren woke up with a jolt, arms flailing as she desperately tried to push away her attackers. Feet tangled on the bed sheets, she landed with a heavy thump onto the hotel floor. She lay still, listening hard but hearing only the pounding off her heart, she sighed in relief realising that she was awake now. It took several calming breaths before she could get weakly to her feet. Memories of the day before returned. At one point they had abandoned the bike and Thorn had stolen a car. She'd preferred that, as she battled against her heavy eyelids.

Still half asleep, Thorn had guided her into a shabby looking hotel, where he paid in cash for a room leaving behind no name. The desk lady had passed them a knowing look and referred to them as 'Mr and Mrs Smith'.  She guessed sometime after that she must have passed out.

Clicking the room light on, Lauren saw that she was completely alone. She sat down on the edge of the bed and played with her hands. She could still feel the cold, hard feel of the rifle in her grasp and the sense of power that spread through her veins as her finger pulled on the trigger. Lauren had never considered herself to be a weak person but she realised now that holding that gun, had been the first time she'd felt truly strong.

A breeze from outside ruffled her hair. She stared at the view outside and gnawed on her lip. Now would be a brilliant time to attempt an escape. She could return to her family and friends, her little flat and her job. It was like she could see her old life captured in the window frame.

Moving robotically she got up and padded over to the bathroom. The shower only dribbled out water to begin with but eventually kicked in with a scalding hot cascade. Stripped naked, Lauren stepped into the shower and let the water wash over her face. Closing her eyes she listened to the droplets breaking against her skin. It reminded her of the thunderous volume of the falls, which deafened out everything else. Her heart clenched suddenly, gripped by a sudden memory. She had first seen Lewis in his wolf form by the waterfall. Tears fell down her cheeks but were washed away and lost.