Shadow of my Heart

I can only utter one word. "Crap."

Katrina glares at me. "Why the hell are you leaving?! You have a great family and awesome friends."

I stare at her with wide, scared eyes, asking her to understand. Soon enough, her face dawns with understanding. "We'll move away, all of us. I don't want you running away from him on your own. He could find you, and then what? No one's there to protect you. Why don't you just tell Mom and Dad?"

I swallow thickly and say, "You don't understand. You just . . . don't understand. If this was happening to you, you would know exactly why i couldn't tell them myself. I don't want to drag you all into this mess. This is something that i would rather deal with on my own. And well, i just happened to take someone down with me."

"The Kyle dude?"

"Yeah. He got involved. On accident. And now i need to leave with him, because i need to keep him with me for the same reason that i need to keep you here. It's not safe for you. I can't have anyone die because of me." I grab her small hand.

Her eyes are brimming with tears. "But you can't go. Call the police. We'll keep you safe from him. Please."

I'm crying now, too. "I have to. Go back home. You need to stay here, safe." I kiss her forehead. "I love you."

She sobs once and gives me a tight hug. She turns away and sprints back home.

I sob and sit back on the step, my head in my hands. I rake back my dark hair and pull out several strands. It's a while before a shadow looms over me again. "Go back home, Kat. I'm waiting for someone else."

The figure helps me up and envelops me in a tight embrace. I pull back, startled. "Kyle?"

"Thank god, you got away." He hugs me tighter.

"Kyle, we need to leave. It's not safe to be here, with him. I've packed. Do you need to take anything with you?"

He pulls back from me. "Leaving? Can't we just call the cops?"

"You don't understand. We can't. We have to leave. I can't let you be killed because of me. So just . . . pack up."

He stare at me, swallows, stares some more. "Okay. I'll just be a minute."

I sit on the steps and wait for him to emerge. I constantly check my watch. 30 seconds . . . 1 minute . . . 2 minutes. I stand, irritated and worried. Instead of knocking, i just open the door.

Kyle turns to me, surprise on his face. He is crying. He quickly shoves something into his pocket and shoulders his gym bag. I nod fiercely toward him and usher him out the door.

"So," he says, still wiping away tears, "where are we going?"

"I have no idea."

So we set out, planning only to find ourselves far away from Damian . . . TBC