Page 9 of Ruined Omega

But now they are climbing the stairs to the front door of her building. For a split second, I think she’s going to take him inside with her. A sharp pang stabs at my pounding heart. A surge of hot jealousy floods my veins. My muscles bulge and knot with an almost uncontrollable rage.

It takes every ounce of discipline to keep my body still.

They stop at the door. My jealousy mounts. They are talking in low voices. Even with my keen hearing, I can’t make out their words over the tattoo of my heart and the rush of enraged blood in my ears.

The man grabs Hines. He pulls her close. She struggles to pull away, but he forces himself on her, pressing his disgusting lips against hers.

Something inside me snaps.

Even I don’t have enough self-control for a situation like this. The weariness I was experiencing before disappears, replaced by a roaring flame of jealous rage. My feet begin moving of their own accord now, pulling me out of the concealment of my shadows and across the empty pavement. An ungovernable growl rolls deep in my chest.

The entire street appears red to my rage inflamed eyes.

It’s an illusion, but I want nothing more than to make it a reality.

I’m going to paint the street red with this bastard’s blood.

Hearing my threatening growl, the man breaks his kiss and turns toward me saucer-eyed with terror. His rubbery lips tremble as he gasps with fear.

“Let her go!” I bellow.

My words explode down the dark empty canyon of the street, bouncing back and forth between the walls of the buildings.

The man instantly releases her. He stumbles backward, mouth gibbering, eyes instantly filling with frightened tears. The scent of his fear fills the air, but that is quickly replaced by another powerful stench. My first thought is a broken sewer line, but I realize it’s coming from the ugly little bald man himself.

Source, he shit himself.

The little bastard actually shit himself.

I pause my charge, totally astonished. Never before have I seen such a shameful exhibition of pure cowardice. The man cowers, hands raised and palsied with fear. Tears run down his flabby cheeks.

“Please,” he blubbers. “Please don’t hurt me. Please I—“

“Leave. Now.”

I don’t have to repeat myself. The man rushes past me down the steps, stumbling and tripping over his own feet. He crashes to the damp pavement with a whinny of fear, scraping his palms and ripping the knees of his pants in the process. One of his designer leather shoes has fallen off, but he abandons it. He pulls himself up, panting and whimpering, and rushes to his SUV. A moment later, the chunky vehicle squeals away from the curb in a cloud of burnt rubber.

“Pathetic,” I snort.

“Stay back,” a tiny voice says behind me. “Stay away from me.”

As the jealous rage drains out of my addled brain, I realize now what I’ve done. Shit. I’ve exposed myself to the target. I was supposed to keep my identity hidden from her, but now my cover is blown.

Yes, it was my task to protect her, and yes, that bald prick was forcing himself on her. But I could have handled it differently. I shouldn’t have charged in growling like a fucking feral beast.

I turn to face her.

To tell her not to worry.

That I’m not here to hurt her.

But before I can get the words out, a sudden spray of fluid blasts my face, burning my eyes, nose, and mouth, and filling my senses with liquid fire.

CHAPTER 5: HINES

I keep the trigger on the pepper spray pressed down until I’ve emptied the entire canister into the man’s face. He grunts, clamps his eyes shut, and takes a step back onto the stairs.

The block is still dark and empty. The only light is the weak, flickering glow cast by the solitary streetlight. The only sound is a passenger train rumbling along the track high overhead. I’m on my own. There’s nobody around to help me. Nobody to protect me from this brutal man.