Emerged In Darkness

Chapter 4

Saran Delaney liked to think of herself as a patient person. Patience of a saint as Mason used to tell her. But now as she paced the length of the bridge, she found that she had none left.

She wasn't angry but she was very frustrated. It was understandable why he wouldn't talk about it but at the same time, this was something that could help them leave this place quicker. She'd already made up her mind that she'd talk to him about it.

The sound of a woman screaming from inside halted her thoughts. She waited as the heavy footsteps walked away from the door. When she could no longer hear the footsteps, she entered the house once more. Everything looked relatively the same except the nest of spiders crawling over the door itself.

"Ethan? Ethan, are you there?" Saran called from a safe distance away. She didn't want to take a risk with the spiders. Besides, she never did like the eight-legged creatures.

"Yeah, I'm here. Are you okay?" He called back.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just be careful."

"Alright, stay where you are," Ethan answered before she heard him walk away.

He sounded slightly upset. She wondered what about. Had something happened when he traveled the length of the house? Well, it didn't matter. He'd be here in a minute anyway and then they could talk.

As the minutes ticked by, she paced and chewed on her lip. Had something happened to him? Had that woman gotten to him?

The sound of a door opening made her stop and look up. She watched as Ethan turned around the corner where she'd been earlier. The room with the hole.

Ethan walked around the corner looking a little worse for wear but he was fine at least. The only thing new about him was the homemade flamethrower in his hands.

"Hey, I-" She started before Ethan interrupted her. "Not here. Outside," He said, pulling her towards the door and outside once more. He pulled her halfway across the bridge before he stopped and turned to her.

"Alright, now talk."

"Ethan, why didn't you tell me that Mia was your wife?"

Ethan looked at her bewildered.

"What..? How-"

She took the folder from her backpack where she had stored it after reading everything in the file. Carefully, Saran handed it back to him.

"You dropped it when you bent over to look at the flamethrower schematics. I just... I wasn't trying to pry. You weren't telling me everything, I knew, and I thought it might have been something bad. I'm sorry."

Finally, Ethan looked at her. Anger flashed in his eyes.

"What was in that file was none of your business."

"I know and I'm sorry but I was curious and if it could help us-"

"It doesn't matter what you thought. Don't go through my stuff. You mind your business and I'll mind mine. Got it?"

When she only looked at him in shock, he spoke again.

"Got it?" He growled out.

Quickly, Saran nodded and watched him walk off.

She felt hurt. Yes, she knew she was in the wrong. Looking at somebody else's things when they weren't there was wrong. It was taking advantage of someone else's trust. She understood why he was so angry with her, but it still hurt. Ethan was the first person she'd see in a long while and without realizing it, she enjoyed his company. Yes, he was a stranger. But having him close to her was better than no one at all. Especially in a place like this.