Page 30 of Nocturne

Maybe finally, my borrowed time is up.

Nine

Ara

One minute, Leo is about to pull down my pants, and the next his weight disappears. The sudden loss of his grip drops me to my feet and a sharp pain shoots from my ankle and hip, and I cry out. My vision is still blurry as my glasses were knocked away when he slapped me.

Someone gently pushes my glasses on my face as the grogginess starts to fade. One side of the lens is broken, but I can still see.

As if the shadows conjured him, they part slowly to give way to a massive back. I don’t have to guess far to know who he is. I have only seen one man with a presence and stature like him. Leo’s head is in his massive paws as he pummels it to the wall with a force that seems to shake it.

A gentle but firm grip on my hand has me jumping away in fear. That causes me to slip and the pain in my ankle intensifies and I cry out.

Why does my throat burn?

I turn to see Eero and he is fast to hold me upright so that I don’t put pressure on my injured ankle, but I still cry. I don’t remember what he did to my ankle. How did I not notice it? Did he break it? Will I be able to walk?

“Don’t. Fucking. Touch. Her.”

I shudder at the voice that comes from Devlin, the rage turning it more gravelly and dangerous. Leo is still in his grip, blood oozing from his nose and the side of his head.

“I think he hurt her ankle and hip too?”

Eero looks at me in confirmation and I nod. In a second, Devlin appears at his side, his intense gaze roaming over me. A vein pulses on the side of his neck and a muscle ticks wildly in his jaw. His nostrils flare and his eyes are dark, almost turning black in rage. It ripples from him in waves and breaks his stoic face.

And for some reason, that breaks me. And I launch myself at him.

I think Eero tells him where I’m hurt, the words don’t register in the relief that finally sinks in. I cry into his shirt. His hands come over me after a second, holding me gently, but tight. I don’t fail to notice that he holds me in a way so that there is no pressure on my ankle. Why does it feel protective here? His hands cover me whole, hiding me from everyone and maybe they can hide me from my demons too.

I cry into his chest like I never did. I cry in fear, imagining what could have happened. I cry in pain which is becoming more evident with every passing minute as the adrenaline vanishes. I cry in relief, unable to find words to thank him for showing up. But most of all, I cry for the girl who had no one to save her from actual monsters. I cry in frustration, asking god why he couldn’t have sent a Devlin when I needed him the most.

Relief mixed with fear is a dangerous combination as I puke out everything. I talk and talk despite my throat hurting more than my hip. I have no idea what I thought that would achieve, but I recite everything that happened. Starting from the smellyrestroom to the point where I wished to be dead rather than go through what Leo wanted to do.

Devlin’s grip tightened at those words and I think I hear a small growl from him. He holds me until I dry out my tears. I don’t notice until several minutes that I’m clinging onto him like a koala. My nails are digging into his forearms, drawing blood and he doesn’t even make a peep about it.

“I’m so sorry,” a hoarse cry comes out, looking at his hand.

I try to remove myself from him so that I can check the damage I’ve done to my saviour. But Devlin’s grip doesn’t relent around me.

I crane my neck to look up at him, tears still cascading down my cheeks. His hand raises and the flinch it evokes is involuntary. He grits his teeth at the action and lets me see his hand. He moves slowly, so slow that if I want to, I can turn his touch away.

For some asinine reason, I don’t.

His calloused hand holds the injured cheek so gently as if he is afraid to mar it. Even the slightest touch stings, but I bite down the pain. I do not doubt that Leo must have left a mark there.

Devlin’s nostrils flare again. He thumbs my bottom lip where Leo bit and I can’t help the wince even at his soft touch. I don’t let him go even if his growl scares me.

His eyes roam all over, noting every single thing. I didn’t notice that he was holding my hand that went to grab his forearm. He brings it under his chin for closer inspection, looking at the black and blue bruises forming around my skin. I even see scrapes on my fingers and hands bleeding.

His eyes snap lower and something shifts in his eyes. Something very dangerous slithers into them, something so dark that turns him from a man to the devil in an instant. I follow his gaze and notice the opened button of my jeans and the waistband of my panty peeking.

A whimper leaves my mouth and I turn away from him. I am thankful that he hides me from Eero and Leo who are behind him while I button my jeans, a feeling of disgust settling inside me. I feel filthy. I feel gross. I want to peel away my skin, I want to scratch it raw until I stop feeling his hands on me.

He walks to stand in front of me and his hand gently tips my chin to make me look at his face. In here, surrounded by shadows, with a look that promises mayhem and with those dangerously alluring scars, he looks otherworldly. A ruler of hell.

“He will pay,” he promises, his voice settling over my frayed nerves like a blanket of calm.

He regards me with an unsettling intensity, a strange light in his eyes. He brushes something from my cheek and nods at someone.

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