Page 7 of Born Savage

As her eyes fell to the bottle, I sensed acknowledgement by a flicker in her eyes. With her arm shaking, she reached for the bottle. I shrank back a few inches to allow her space while counting down the minutes in my mind.

I expected her to gulp the liquid, which was why the shock of her actions was so powerful.

She offered the pup the water stream first. As soon as the dog began to drink, I noticed a tiny curve of her upper lip, the slight moment of joy stilling. Very little affected me any longer.

Through the years, I’d watched those I dared care about surrender to one darkness or another. I’d borne witness to the aftermath of slaughters so heinous even today images lingered in the darkest recesses of my mind. And I’d been forced on three occasions to end the lives of those I’d thought I could trust.

Yet this sweet, innocent moment activated something I’d locked away since I was a child.

An entirely different level of anger and despair that vibrated against my skin, awakening a darkness that seemed uncontrollable. Suddenly, I was burning up, sweat beading across my forehead. I’d worry about a deadly illness except I’d experienced the physical abnormalities once before.

When my father had almost been killed. I’d gone off the deep end, or so I’d been told, unconsolable as I sought revenge. I barely remembered the experience, but it taught me to be careful with my emotions.

When the child gently placed the bottle into my fingers, I noticed she hadn’t consumed every last drop. Who didn’t when they had the chance? At least we’d have some in the case of an emergency. I shoved it into my bag while my mind spun with thoughts of how to handle her appearance. I also wondered if there was a bounty on her head. Maybe that’s why the Borgata were roaming the streets. No, she had to come with me.

I pulled the only food allotted to me for the day, offering the thick granola bar as well. The girl’s only thank you was a single blink, but that was enough to nearly break my heart. When had she ever experienced kindness? Likely never. To her, the food was meant to be revered.

While the two enjoyed some nourishment, I scanned the area once again, ending with staring up at the sky. I’d run out of time, twilight already settling in. Now there were only minutes left to spare, not nearly enough time to make it to the safest exit. If there were any hopes of survival, it was to hide in the old subway cars located beneath the earth.

“I need you to listen to me. You must place your trust in me. If you don’t, you will not survive the night. My appearance has drawn the attention of the Dwellers. Do you understand me?”

Very slowly, she nodded, allowing me to breathe a sigh of relief.

“I will keep you safe, but you need to remain close and do as I say. The puppy will be fine on his own.”

I’d seen bonded pairs before, even with the horrible Nemean Lions, once majestic creatures who’d succumbed to DNA poisoning, now merely disfigured beasts. The moment she pulled the puppy close once again, I knew instinctively she would remain here with him even if it meant facing death.

“Come on. The dog can come with us, but we must hurry.” I offered my hand, nodding when she didn’t move for several seconds. Thankfully, she grasped my fingers and in doing so, I felt an intense heat coming from within the child.

While I couldn’t quite comprehend why touching her felt so different, I was aware she could be experiencing a fever. An even more dangerous situation to find myself in. Too late now. The child was maybe four or five, but being skin and bones, long stringy hair plastered to her filthy face, it was impossible to know for certain.

I placed my finger across my lips as my last instruction, accepting her single nod once again. While she was obviously not inclined to make any noise, the puppy could ruin us within seconds. We had several blocks to navigate to the entrance to the subway. I’d used the cars twice before when I’d been stupid enough to lose my sense of time.

At least the still intact cars offered some sense of refuge.

We’d made it two blocks without incident by remaining in dead center of the road, doing so allowing me to continually scan the dark entrances. We had just enough light to make it, but only if there were no issues.

The pup’s growl seconds later was the first indication we were being followed. The second were the prickles dancing across my skin. As soon as I stopped moving, the child’s breath hitched and she crowded close, hoping if not praying for protection.

In the moments that followed, I retrieved my sword, realizing the girl was mesmerized. There was no sign of Dwellers, no typical sounds such as the scraping of limbs against pavement, brick, and stone indicating their location.

But there was no doubt we were being watched.

Stalked.

Puppy growls filled the dense space and suddenly, the creature jumped from the child’s arms. Horror struck the girl before an understanding of how much danger we were in, especially given the dog had lost control, barking at the intruders.

“Stay here,” I told her, as if anywhere out in the middle of the City of Lights was safe. “Dog. No. Stop,” I hissed, moving toward him and away from the girl. I swung the sword from side to side, hoping the sight would drive blinding fear into whoever was following us.

The dog ignored me, barking more incessantly. He was certain to be the death of us. Even as I moved closer to grab him by the scruff of the neck, the girl flew past me.

“Puppy, no.” Her tiny voice was raspy, strangled from lack of nourishment, but at least I knew she spoke. She managed to calm the animal, gathering him into her arms once again. However, as soon as she did, creatures came from nowhere, their actions surprisingly agile. Was it possible the Borgata were experimenting on them as I’d heard in the village?

Not that it mattered. All that did was to kill as many as necessary. The creatures lunged from all sides, snarling and charging. I swung the sword from one side to the other, the razor-sharp blade slicing through chunks of skin, removing arms and legs. I spun in a circle, eliminating another three or four without hesitation.

The stench was ungodly, the Dwellers’ rotten flesh once exposed keeping bile in my throat. Shadows swirled violently as demons attempted to win the battle, forms undulating while closing in.

Fear threatened to rush just below the surface, but I refused to back down, sweeping the blade back and forth.