Spirit of Shadows

| Chapter Twenty |

The cool nip of autumn air bit into Em's skin as she blinked her eyes open. When her vision cleared and her head stopped throbbing, she attempted to sit up, trying to analyze her surroundings. Her wrists were sore and upon looking down at them, she gasped. They were bruised black and blue with imprints of the man's fingers.

Em's breathing quickened as it all came back to her. What that man had done. She glanced down again and tears began to form on her lower lashes. He had left painfully sore reminders for her, all over her body, in the form of stinging bruises.

She couldn't look at herself anymore without crying and with a determined push, she managed to rise on wobbly legs.

Em glanced around, blinking the salty tears from her eyes. She seemed to have been in some small park in the corner of the village–alone. Trees were scattered all around her, followed by pruned bushes and groomed flowers.

She began to panic. Maybe Kachina hadn't gotten her out? Maybe that part had all been some sort of twisted hallucination...

But when Em felt the familiar sting of cool autumn air across her chest, her eyes widened and she looked down. Her hot pink corset was ripped in half down the middle, the sides frayed and dirtied. She gasped and immediately wrapped her arms around her chest, shielding her exposed body from the wind. She bit her lip and dared another glance down.

Her fishnet tights were ripped in odd places and her corset ribbons were undone and snapped.

"Gods..." She whispered, her fingers shaking. Her voice as hoarse from screaming over the commotion of Betty's.

Just as Em was imagining the map of Mistshore in her head, trying to mentally locate where Kachina's house was, she heard a familiar shout.

She squinted her eyes, worried for a moment that the man had come back to finish what he started. Until, she saw a familiar mop of blonde hair. It was incredibly disheveled and Em was amazed that he still looked undeniably attractive. It was unfair, really. For him to look so handsome and for Em to look so...dirty as he ran toward her.

Matthias' yells were getting closer now and Em watched as he made eye contact with her. His blue eyes sparked with an unreadable emotion and he hesitated for half a second before running right toward Em, his arms open.

In a matter of seconds, he engulfed her into a tight hug. His head buried into the side of her neck and arms wrapped protectively around her back. Although she tried to help it, she winced, the bruises along her arms throbbed as he hugged her.

Matthias noticed her tense and he stilled, pulling away. His eyes widened as he glanced over her arms immediately, the purple bruises sticking out like a sore thumb.

"W-What–" he began, choking on the words, "happened?"

Em tried to speak up but her throat was sore from all the yelling she had done to try and kick the man off of her. She shuddered and Matthias noticed, cursing softly under his breath. He hurriedly untied his cloak and wrapped it around her shoulders, tying it loosely in place.

Em felt another pang of gratitude for him as his hands automatically buttoned it up to her neck so none of her exposed skin would show. When he was finished, he just took a step back, his eyes darkened with anger as he took her in.

"Em, what happened?" He asked again.

"Hurts..." Was all she managed to croak out, her voice was weak and frail and Matthias watched her with wide eyes.