Ashes - (Sequel to Dark Flame)

Ch. 1

I walked around the streets of London, which were now close to empty. There were a few people, most of them tourists that didn't know any better. The hole-in-the wall shops that I have come to know and love, have almost all shut down. I passed by their empty windows; they were dark and lonely, as were the streets. I felt a knot in the pit of my stomach. It had been a while since I allowed myself to walk on the streets..alone. 

I began to hear a woman screaming for help. I turned around to see a woman, her face covered in blood, being pulled by her hair down an alley. I walked towards where she was taken, and I saw a man, he was in an all black outfit; leather jacker, ripped jeans, and black boots.

"Help me, please!" The woman yelled again as the man began to rip off her clothes. 

"Let her go." I said to the man. 

"Don't tell me what to do." He pulled out a knife. "Now, if you take one more step towards me, I'll kill her." He threatened. "Understand?" The woman let out a soft wimper into his hand. I stared at him and reached into my back pocket. I felt the medal against my hand, and laced my fingers around it.

"Do you?" He asked again, this time more aggressively.

"Not quite." I said, pulling out my pistol. 

"Ha! As if that thing is actually loaded." He said, letting go of the woman. She slumped down to her knees and began to cry. She had a gash across her temple, probably from where she hit the pavement, or tried to fight back. 

"Oh, it is." I said back at him. " I wouldn't lie to you."

"Shoot me then." He laughed. I pulled the trigger and shot him right in the middle of his forehead. He fell to the ground, blood gushing from his temple. The woman was screaming in terror. 

"Shh..shhh.." I said trying to calm her down. "It's okay..come with me. I will take you to the hospital, alright?" I asked, looking into her tear filled eyes. She slowly nodded her head and follwed me to my car. I looked around to make sure that no other gang members were around, and drove as quickly as I could to the hospital.

"W-who w-was t-that?" she asked in a shaky voice. 

"He's a member of a gang." I answered her.

"G-g-gang?" she looked up.

"Yeah, are you new here?"

"Just moved here from America.." She cried, I didn't realize it until now, but she definitely had an American accent. "Are you from America too?"

"Yeah, I am. Look, I advise you to move back. The gang problems are terrible here."

"Then why don't you move back too?" she asked.

It hit me. Now that Leo was born, why didn't I move back? I had seriously thought about it last week, when Leo turned two months old. I said it was because I didn't want to leave Mary behind...but I knew that wasn't the case. I knew the real reason. Despite everything that I have ever thought before or said before; I still knew that deep-down in my heart, I love Liam. 

"London is bad. I have some experience with the gangs, and I thought that I should stick around and try to help solve things, you know, fix them."

"You can't fix a whole city by yourself.." 

"I can try." I said, pulling up to the hospital. I got out and walked her inside. 

"Juliet, another saved victim?" A nurse asked when she walked up to us. 

"Yeah." I answered her.

"Where is the body, or did you actually let someone go for once?" she joked. I told her the exact name and location of the body. I handed her his wallet, and no, I didn't take anything out of it. I turned to walk out before the woman stopped me.