Page 30 of Guarded By Death

"I just want to get some ice cream and walk around." I shrug even though his eyes are on the road.

"You and your ice cream." He laughs and I playfully swat his arm. "Where is it?"

"This place in the middle of downtown, they have a cold slab and they mix in all the ingredients you want," I smile, but I can't ignore the million questions that float around in my head. Mom already gave him a gentle third-degree tonight, so I'll wait until later to ask him.

"I'll put it on my GPS," I offer, typing in the address and letting the voice from the navigation drown out my racing mind.

After a quick thirty minutes has passed in silence, Pierce’s deep baritone breaks it. "What are you thinking about?" he asks, and I flush. I don't want to bring up anything too serious so I keep it light, well as light as I can be considering our situation.

I shift in my seat a little. "While you were gone, did you wonder about me?" I ask quietly, trying to redirect my mind to my earlier concerns.

He places his hand over mine in my lap. "I missed you fiercely, Scar, I couldn't stop thinking about you." I adore his honesty; the way he tells me how he feels about me without holding back.

"I was paranoid the entire time, worried about you and worried about someone coming to attack me," I admit.

I look to him and note his expression is pained, haunted really. "I saw you, I checked in so many times while I was away. I knew you were safe." He admits and it makes me sit up straight. I'm irritated, and when I angle my body away from him, he sighs.

"Why didn't you talk to me? Or at least let me know you were okay?" I snap.

He whips the car into a parking spot, and I turn my face away from him in defiance.

"Look at me," he softly demands. My gaze travels to his jade eyes. They’re full of something that I can't put my finger on. The car is dark, so he flips the warm interior light on. He holds a finger between us. "First, you don't need to sit and worry about me while I'm away, okay?" His tone is serious and full of grit. I nod to hide the fact that his cold demeanor makes me shiver.

"Second," he continues as he places his hand on mine, "I knew if I saw you, even for a second... I knew you were safe and that's all that matters,” he states, ending the conversation, but I'm not having it.

"But I didn't know," I state flatly, but he cuts me off by exiting the car and coming to my side. He opens the door, but I refuse to budge. It's not fair he gets to see me to check and make sure I'm okay, but he can't even say hello to me.

He kneels down next to the car as I glare back at him. "Look, I was worried sick. Absolutely sick about you." I stammer and his hard expression softens. He pulls me out of the car in a swift motion and wraps me in a tight hug. I begin to wonder if he's about to bring us somewhere else, but I peek through his arm and see we are, in fact, parked near the ice cream place.

"I'm sorry. Nothing will happen to you Scar. I know it did before, but I promise I won't let anyone touch you again." He makes a promise that neither of us can know for sure he can keep.

I shake my head. "I'm not worried about just me," I state.

He leans into my hair as he lets out a small chuckle. "Nothing will happen to me either, I promise you." I don't want to fight with him anymore, so I lean up and give him a sweet kiss. He pulls me farther back to examine my face before he lets out a soothing laugh.

"Why didn't we go to the one you work at?" he asks quizzically as he grabs my hand, leading us down the sidewalk.

"I spend three days a week there." I shrug not wanting to admit that after thinking about my dad during dinner, that I don't think I can handle sitting near all the memories.

"And the real reason you didn't want to go to the boardwalk is?" Damnit, of course. He knows I'm lying.

"I just... talking about my dad tonight. Pop’s shop is where we used to go as a family. I know I work there, and it's stupid that I sometimes can't even walk inside the place." My voice is laced with embarrassment.

"It's not stupid, Scar. I get it, I do." His tone is reassuring. "I would love to hear about him one day though," he adds and the fact that he doesn't press on it more, knowing I'm upset, makes me like him even more.

After going inside, we grab two cones and it warms me remembering the night we first met, such a short time ago.

As we walk down the dark streets, I note that Pierce is on high alert. His large hand wraps around my waist protectively as we stroll past the large buildings. "I love the city at night. The lights and sounds of life bustling around even when the rest of the world is asleep." I try to lighten the mood. He gives me a distracted nod, keeping my body close.

We walk around for a while, mostly in silence as Pierce darts his eyes around every dark street and corner we pass. The closer we get to my car, the faster his feet pound on the pavement making me struggle to match his long strides. I pull him down a shortcut between two large brick buildings, it's narrow and dark. A shiver creeps up my spine, but I know I am safe with him here.

A light rain falls overhead, and a few twitching streetlights project a shiny reflection on the wet stones as I look down to pay attention to my footing. Pierce’s large hand squeezes my side and an abrupt pain in my ribs nearly makes me cry when we come to a hasty stop.

"Ouch Pierce, you're holding me too-" I cut myself off when my eyes pan to a haunted expression placed on Pierce's face, staring straight ahead. I follow his gaze to see a man staring back at us, his head tilted and his eyes possessed.

He's slightly crouched down as he stares at me. His body trembles as he bares his teeth, he looks rabid. Quickly and without warning, the demon disguised as a man dashes for us. His bald head gleaming under the fluttering lights.

Pierce places his hand on my stomach and when he tries to gently push me away, he ends up throwing me back with more force than he intended. Causing my body to slam on the wet ground. His emerald eyes look over me with concern, staying on me for a beat too long as the bald man rushes towards him, "I'm fine!" I scream into the night, begging for him to turn around.

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