Page 83 of Barbi and the Villain

He grunts.

“Will they want to hurt us? But you’re strong, right?” I say as I lightly pat his arm. “You will not let them harm my babies,” I mention as I glance at PomPom and BonBon looking around in confusion.

“You do not know how to listen to commands, do you?” he mutters dryly.

The thick foliage parts to reveal a group of men, all carrying heavy bags on their backs. Their expressions are haggard, their skin sallow and marred by lines. The clothes on their bodies are dirty and worn, holes poking through the material.

When they see us, they stop in shock.

“Mika, look! More people!” the one in the front exclaims as he points to us.

Nykander stares them down. He extends his arm protectively around us.

“Who are you?” Nykander grinds his teeth. He resembles a feral dog protecting his master, and my heart flutters in my chest—unwittingly, of course. I am still angry that out of all the men in the universe, my body decided to react to this one.

The men take a step back, fear clouding their features as they look from Nykander to me. They scramble away, ready to run in the other direction before they catch sight of our food, and hunger fills their gazes.

“I don’t think they’re the enemy,” I whisper to Nykander.

He doesn’t listen to me as he commands his dark cloud to envelop us. His expression turns murderous as he gets ready for attack.

“Who are you and who sent you?” he demands in that scary voice of his. Black tendrils slither from him, making their way toward the men.

“Oh…we…” one of the men, the leader, stammers, fear echoing in his voice.

“We mean no harm. We are merely passing through,” another one says as he comes forward. He’s older, his hair mostly grayed. “We have heard of a village that is free of the plague and we are searching for it.”

“See, they’re not bad guys,” I whisper again.

Nykander doesn’t move.

The men stumble over their words in an attempt to explain that they’ve barely escaped alive from the plague, but Nykander isn’t convinced. The dark cloud around him grows in size, and if this continues, I fear he might turn these men into dust before they’ve even had a chance to defend themselves.

His dark tendrils are almost upon the men. They step back, huddling together in fear.

No, this won’t work. Nykander may be the Dark One and all that, but even he shouldn’t stoop so low as to harm some innocent passersby. It seems he needs saving from himself. Otherwise, his dark soul will become even more blemished—not that I worry about his soul. He can go to the deepest pits of hell for all I care, but that would mean I need to follow right behind because we’re tied together now and I don’t do well with extreme heat. My babies would hate that too since they like a temperate climate. No, hell isn’t an option.

“You must be hungry,” I quip loudly. I let PomPom and BonBon down, and I grab Nykander’s arm. “Stop it, Nykander! You will not hurt them,” I tell him and surprisingly, the dark mist immediately recedes.

“We have spare food if you would like some,” I offer with a kind smile.

Nykander stares at me in disbelief. His nostrils flare as his body tenses.

I ignore him as I give the men a reassuring smile.

Heading to our tent, I take out the rest of our food and hand it out to the strangers, making small talk and inquiring about their families. Nykander stands there, still as a stone, staring at our interactions. His shadows might have disappeared, but his murderous intent did not. If looks could kill, I would already be in my grave.

Moments pass and he finally snaps from his brooding. He comes closer, his lips curled in a snarl. If I expected him to suddenly turn into a great host, I am sadly mistaken. As the men are wolfing down our leftovers, he yanks my arm and pulls me by his side.

“My female is very generous. You will do well not to abuse that generosity,” he growls, his voice a dangerous warning.

A chorus of thank yous erupts in the air, and Nykander leans in to whisper in my ear.

“What do you think you are doing, Barbi?”

“They’re starving.” I point to the group as they’re ravenously eating everything I laid out for them. “We have enough food. Besides, you can catch more game later.”

“And you think a group of ten males cannot catch game for themselves?” He raises a brow. “The forest is teeming with creatures.”

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