My Lost Hero (Angels of War Series #1) REWRITING 2024

Chapter Fifteen

A world of emotions were filtering across his face. Confusion. Tiredness. Anger. Fear. Reality. It all swirled around in the green depths before reality came to him, and I saw was the pain. Oh shit, he very visibly thought.

Everyone around us crowded in at once, two guys pulling Joshua back hard enough to send a ravaged growl from his lips. The injury. He spasmed as his teeth sank deep into his bottom lip, agony written in the harsh lines surrounding his closed eyes.

I tried to find it within myself to be compassionate, but I just couldn't do it.

"Are you all right, Miss?"

In a strange change of events, the safety I first felt around Joshua turned into something sour.

"Do you need first aid?" Another voice mixes in to the hysteria, but all I could think about was getting the hell away from there.

"I think she's in shock."

Using all the strength I had, I stumbled my way over to the rubbish bin, having to right my position. When hands tried to steady me, I pushed them away, catching sight of Joshua trying his hardest to get up from the floor when a security guard had him down there.

"Wait. Please, I'm sorry." He all but said, eyes as wide as ever.

I shook my head, turning to walk away.

"Tabby, wait!" Joshua called for me to stop, but I carried on walking.

Our little scene had caused quite the commotion, with people standing around for what felt like miles. I pushed politely at first, asking them to move for me, but when they didn't budge, I shoved, needing to get away from the madness.

"What the hell has happened?" Megan's worried voice said to me when I crashed through the flat door twenty minutes later. "Josh called me up in an absolute state."

I crossed my shaking arms over my stomach, not being able to find a comfortable position. My eyes were dancing with tears when Megan took a step closer to me. "There was no stopping him. He was going to beat a guy and then I thought he was going to beat me."

Her usually flushed cheeks paled as her stance became unsteady. "What do you mean?"

"It was my fault. I was trying to stop him from doing something stupid and grabbed the back of his shirt. Then he turned to me with these scary eyes," I replied, feeling as if I had a ball of cotton wool stuffed down my throat.

Megan blinked several times before putting both of her hands on her head to grip her ponytail in her hands. "Why would he be beating someone up? Tabitha, army training is about survival. If an attack came from behind then, he would have no choice but to fight back."

"I know," I whispered.

It didn't mean that I wasn't shaken up.

"Oh, honey. Come here. Are you okay?" she said, walking up to me to pull me in for a long hug. "You're shaking."

"I'm okay," I breathed out. "Just shook up."

"This is the final straw. It has to be! He needs help," she hissed, holding onto me tighter.

Was I being selfish?

This was her brother. One she had to watch stumble around life in a shell she didn't recognise. I held her even tighter. "I know."

She patted the tops of my shoulders as she pulled back. "Let me get you a drink of water. Sit down, honey."

While Megan wandered over to the kitchen to get me a glass of water, I took it upon myself to get comfortable on my bed. All the energy had left me, and all I wanted to do was curl up and rest my eyes.