Prologue
She had only been there a while. Yet even as she ate her lunch, she could feel those black eyes boring into her back. Raven subtly turned around, slowly making eye contact with the table next to her, silently pleading for help with just her eyes, but they did not care. She was a lonely stranger to them, eating KFC while continuously giving them strange looks.
It was no use, the man was glaring at her with soundless daggers at her back.
The food court was quiet, it was nearly lunchtime yet everyone was still out in the shops.
As far as Raven could tell, that stalker had been following her ever since she left her house. She had no protection against him, if he chose to mug her then there would be no point struggling against him. He was built like an ox, billy buff on steroids. A hand to her throat and she’d be gone before you could say ‘daybreak’.
Packing up her lunch and taking the last sip of her drink, she stood up, chucking her trash in the bin and making her way as quickly as she could to her car, she could waste no time. Each second spent dawdling and hoping that man would leave her alone, was a second wasted on false belief. It was time to get out of there.
She strode forcefully through the shops. Through the unsuspecting people around her, nearly breaking out in a panicked run. She tried to slow her breathing, she tried to calm down, but the black-eyed man was catching up to her and she was sure he could probably hear her heart beating like drums on a silent winter night.
Walking steadily up the escalators onto the second floor, she turned a sharp corner to get the man off his tracks, but he was persistent. With every step she took, she could feel the daggered glare against her back getting hotter and hotter. Burning with a fire so great, even the Devil himself couldn’t handle the heat.
Raven pushed through the crowd, plowing her way through the people who stood in the way of freedom. Oh, how she wished her parents were there to save her, or a superhero to swoop in like a damsel in distress. Although, she had no parents, and she resented the idea of being labeled a damsel in distress, she could take care of herself, couldn’t she?
A firm hand grasped for her handbag, clasping the handles and pulling her back. She fell to the ground with a thud and listened as people gasped and stepped away. The buff man pulled a small knife from his belt and cornered Raven against the glass of the balcony. People screamed and rushed away from them, taking the escalators back to the main floor to safety. No one bothered to help her, the man was too big for anyone to take on, but Raven decided otherwise.
Taking her handbag, she swung it as hard as she could at the man’s face, knocking him straight in the jaw like an ungodly slap, causing his whole head to turn. In the second his neck was visible, she noticed two little star tattoos on the side of his neck, like a wannabe vampire bite. Ridiculous.
He was obviously pissed, because with just one lift of his arm, he pulled her up by the collar, and forced her over the side of the rail. The crowd beneath her gasped and shouted, kids started crying as their parents dialed the police. Raven clung to the rail for dear life, trying to pull herself over but her abdomen wasn’t strong enough. Tattoo Neck reached over the rail and held his hand out, but not to help her up, he was gesturing to her handbag. Raven shook her head, seething words from her mouth that her brain didn’t even tell her to say.
“Go to hell.”
The man slapped the rail in fury, he could neither help her up and get the bag, nor could he collect the handbag from where it hung on her arm. Checkmate. He ran off, disappearing down the aisle of shops. An entire day’s waste of stalking, pity. Raven thought. However, there was no time to dawdle on such thoughts, the rail was beginning to get slippery and her fingers were starting to lose their grip.
Just as she involuntarily let go, a strong hand caught her forearm, and as she looked up into the eyes of her savior, she noticed that he looked familiar, but couldn’t place where from. His black shoulder-length hair was slicked back but a few strands fell loose as he pulled her over the railing.
She stood, too shocked to even move, but even though her body refused to listen to her, she took the time to pay attention to every detail about the man. Tall, maybe 6". Brown eyes, thin lips, tan skin, a stubble mustache and very small triangular beard under his lip. He was even perhaps, in his late thirties.
He seemed to mimic her, unable to move in both fear and shock, but Raven’s consciousness returned and she quickly closed the distance between them, unable to bear the emotions of the incident any longer. He seemed to be tense at first, stunned that she’d even come remotely close to him, but he relaxed quickly and soon rocked her side to side, calming her down quickly as she focused on her own heartbeat.
“Thank you.” Raven whispered, unable to form words to the mysterious stranger that had just saved her life.
He pulled away after a while so that he could formally introduce himself, releasing the poor woman who had been attacked, from his embrace.
“What’s your name?” Raven blinked while processing his words, along with the sound of his voice that seemed deep and colourful but also held an authority to it.
“Raven.” She whispered back, still unsure of whether her voice was even there.
He dipped his head, and replied smoothly; “Vlad.”
