“Please, let me find another path. Show me another path.” She studied the roof opposite her apartment. Steeply sloped, it held two stacked Victorian chimney pots. She liked it. It was quaint, and it had been there for years, providing shelter from the Atlantic weather that blew in from the channel. Excepttonight, there was something different about it. There was a long branch, bunched at the end, stuck around one of the chimneys. It could just be made out through the shadows. And the stack of bricks that made up the base of the chimney didn’t look right, as if there were extra bricks there, extra bulk.
A flash of red. Fire. Then it was gone.
She gasped. “What the—?”
Tonight was getting too freaky. Was there a fox or something else on the roof looking at her? No. That was impossible. A huge bird with flame eyes? A phoenix?
Quickly, she drew the heavy blue curtains closed. Nisha had had more than enough for one day. The sooner it was over, the better.
Although that did mean it would be one day closer to her wedding day.
****
A watery blue sky rose over Cardiff the next morning, and the birds sang in celebration of dawn breaking. But Nisha didn’t share their joy. She’d barely slept, fearing every tiny noise and then dreaming of being chased down dark foggy alleyways.
But work demanded her presence, and she headed for the city center, to her job in a department store at the makeup counter. It was a pleasant job with low stress and nice colleagues, and she believed in the products she sold. She wasn’t heading to medical school like her brothers because what was the point—her parents had said—of dreaming of a career when her future was to get married and have children?
“Hey, Nisha,” Davina said in the staff cloakroom. “Get home okay last night?”
“No, it was awful.”
“What? Why?” Davina’s eyes widened. “Damn it, I knew you should have called a taxi.”
“Yes. I really should have gotten one.” She paused. “Threecreeps followed me, and then when I was almost home, they chased me, and…” She shuddered.
“Oh, God.” Davina gripped her elbows. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”
“No, no, I’m fine. This bloke turned up out of nowhere and sent them on their way.”
“What, like he fought them? Three of them?”
“No. Just his … just him being there was enough.” She paused and remembered the flash of red she’d seen on the roof opposite her apartment.
“What’s he done to his eyes?”
“They’re on bloody fire! Shit.”
“What do you mean?” Davina asked.
“I dunno.” Nisha shrugged. “It was like they were scared of him, of his eyes or something.”
“Maybe he’s a psycho escaped from the prison and they recognized him.”
“Could be, but…”
“What?”
“I just got the feeling he wasn’t going to hurt me, wouldn’t hurt me. Like he’d have fought them all to the death for me.”
“Crikey, and was he hot? This knight in shining armor of yours?”
“Actually.” Nisha smiled. “He really was.”
“You get his number?” Davina waggled her eyebrows.
“What’s the point?”
“Aw, babe.” Davina pulled her into a hug. “It’ll be okay, I’m sure of it. Whatever happens.”