Age of Demons

Chapter 29 - Emery

Emery didn't stop running until she could barely make out the safe house in the distance. She walked along the shore, kicking at shells and rocks. The lake was quiet, only murmuring with each little wave, the tide far back.

Her hands still shook, even after her racing thoughts had numbed a bit.

The voices of her peers rising and screaming "Monster!" at her still rang around her head. The tears had dried a while back, and they crusted on her cheeks.

She planned on going back in the dead of night to steal some of the food storage and other equipment, but she kept walking away. If she stopped, she wouldn't be able to get up.

Emery glanced down at her hands. They looked normal to her: brown and small, slightly callused. But something had changed. She'd killed a spirit—or whatever she had done, sent it away? Burned it? She had no clue still, all that had been on her mind was to save her brother.

A brother who probably detested her now.

She slowed her steps and faced the lake. A half moon looked down on the waters, throwing spools of silver across its surface. She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes, recalling the power surge she'd felt after disintegrating the spirit.

She'd never felt something like that before. It was as if her senses had heightened exponentially, and she could feel every little vibration in the air, and for that split second, she hadn't felt so small anymore.

But it's wrong. She opened her eyes, wetness already pooling past her lids. I can never do that again.

She didn't know how long she stood there, staring at the moon, repeating over and over that she could never do it again, when the soft sound of sifting sand reached her ears.

Emery straightened her back, loosening her shoulders, but didn't look to see who it was.

It's probably one of them, come to try and kill me. They called me a monster. She found she didn't have the strength to face them.

The shuffling got louder, and whoever was trying to sneak up on her accidentally kicked at rock, and the noise of crackling shells pierced the air.

The hairs on her arms stood on end, her breaths coming out faster. The suspense made her turn around, despite her tired and sore limbs and the negative thoughts that continued to lap around in her head.

Em sucked in a sharp breath, and she stilled, little cold shocks rolling down her arms.

Felix stood a couple paces away. His dark hair was a mess like normal, but darkness clung to the bottom of his eyes. A backpack looped around his right shoulder. He held a small knife in his other hand, pointed down to the sand.

The first thought that entered was, Is he here to kill me? Has it really come to that?

The thought vanished like the spirit she'd disintegrated when Felix took a step forward and croaked, "Em."

Emery ran to her brother, colliding into his chest and wrapping her arms tight around his waist. She buried her face in his shirt and let the rest of the tears spill. She wondered if she'd ever be able to cry again, she'd shed so many tears that night.

She heard a thud, and when she felt Felix's warm hand press into her back, she realized he must have dropped the knife in the sand.

After what seemed like forever, Em sniffed and mustered up the courage to whisper, "I thought you hated me."