There lying almost motionless was Maximin, as he breathed heavily while lying on his back and gazing at the morning sun. He was restless couldn’t find the energy to keep on the journey.
” Keep going I will catch up.” He said in a weak sotto voce, filled with exhaustion. It was her time to make a run for her life. Yet even she knew she didn’t have a heart so cold to let go of a stranger her heart had quite fallen for.
” You have lost so much blood. Just look at my hard work.” She uttered emotionally after rushing and kneeling by side. The botched natured of his wound didn’t go down well with her. She had gone through so much to stitch it up only for him to gallop around, causing the gash to widen and some stitches to break.
” Amelia. Keep moving!”…
” Shut up! I can’t leave you behind.” She yelled out in an emotional plea. Her eyes were teary from empathy. She was scared that saving his life was a wrong decision yet she knew she had to give it a try. ” You said Gallagher would be here any moment from now. We need to get as far away as possible but look at you. You don’t even have the strength to stand.” She cried out her palms tucked softly over his curly black hair which was moist. Too moist to be sweat she thought and gazed clearly at it.
” If Gallagher wants me then he is sent by Maximus and Maximus can never want me dead. At least not just yet.” He groaned softly, as he breathed. She still had her eyes on the glossy maroon color in his hair.
” How do you have so much blood in your hair. Are you injured?” She enquired as she slit the wavy hair apart with the side of her palms.
” I’m fine. Amelia listen to me. You need to keep going. Run as fast as you can. I don’t know if it’s enough to save your life but I do know it’s the only chance you got of survival.”
” Why is there so much blood in your hair.” She asked again being baffled as not to find as much as a scratch on his scalp. Verily the blood smelt beastly and it came from his body or did it not?’ she asked herself and quickly took her right palm off the base of his head and applied both of her palms on her neck, then face and scalp. She was also was moist with blood and she didn’t even notice till this moment. Shocked with how much of his blood she had over her hair and scalp, she moved some distance away from him, and gazed at the black oversized top she was wearing. It was drenched and a closer look was paramount for her to establish the fact that they were all a single liquid_ his blood.
” Have you been bleeding on purpose just to smudge me in blood?” She asked, gradually raising her gaze from her esteem and gazing at him.
” Your smell would attract all such of predators to you. No beast would approach you when you smell like me. Gallagher would pick up your smell ten times faster than he would pick up mine. Now run and never take a bath till you’re out of the woods.” He said in one last bid to wade her off. His explanation only broke her guard the more. Alas, he cared and wasn’t the monster she thought he was.
” I won’t leave you here. Gallagher would kill you.” She said and began to approach him all over again.
” It’s not Gallagher you should be scared of. It’s me. My beast might get the better of me and I will end up hurting you. Run!” He enunciated in rage and there was a beastly tenor in his words. Once bitten and twice shy didn’t need to be retold, not after how he had chased her earlier in the day. It was a miracle that she evaded him. The fact that he had not intentionally tried to kill her, validated her bravery. She was ready to die by his claws if it was her price for being brave.
” Then what are you waiting for?” She muttered in soft teary voice. ” Kill me. Do it quick.” She added gazing furiously at the weak giant on ground. The amount of loyalty in her act was mind-blowing to Maximin and he wondered to what he owed such sacrifice to a stranger whose life he had brought nothing but woe upon.
” I have no where to run to. No one to save me. You brought this pogrom on me. You would have to end it this moment.” She said and charged at him.
” Kill me !” She screamed out in a summoned show of bravery as she brought her knees to crash by his ribcage while her palms want to work on his laceration. She was no doubt confused on what to do about his injury but was willed by a strong compulsion to do so. ” I have things planned out. I’m a beast not a human like you. At the depths of my weaknesses. My instincts would come up big for me and I will find a way out. No one will come big for you. I’m not strong enough at this moment to save you. You have gone through the shades of hell all because of me.” He said, took a couple of seemingly difficult breaths and began to speak again. ” If I let any harm come to you, then it’s just a shame on me. You will have to trust me on this one. I have a plan where the both of us make it out of the woods alive but it starts by you obeying me for this once.” He added and took his pitiful gaze off her teary eyes.
“Okay.” She said allowing herself to believe that she was getting tricked into running solo for her life while she left a poor man to die.
” Now go!” He said urging her to leave one more time. She was motionless as only the tears on her cheek was full of locomotion. She couldn’t find the coordination of signals in her brain to move as much as a thumb away from him. It was a feeling of deep infatuation that she couldn’t even explain. Maximin was convinced that she was not leaving his side and his orders didn’t seem to change her mind. Still, if she took the risk to stay by his side till he was better, his instincts to survive may get the best of him and charge him to feast on her. He knew well he couldn’t control the beast in him if it got the better side of his mind. He needed another way out but first he had to test for the strength therein in his willpower. He arduously tried to sit on his back and made an effort but his spent muscles couldn’t afford him any movement. If Gallagher found them, then Amelia was going to die, he thought and it overwhelmed him.
” You won’t leave my side. Fine. You will go and an errand for me. ” He said with the last three words sounding more like growl’s than actual words. She was silent asking herself if her actions were so much of love or rather so much of a fear to fare the dangerous woods alone.
” Amelia! Are you with me?” He asked and grabbed her wrist in a painful clutch that not only brought her back to reality but also caused her to wince in pain.
” What errand?” She asked but didn’t take her hands off his painful grip. ” I know this woods a little well. Some minutes walk from here just after behind that mountain in the far meadow is a settlement of humans. They are almost primitive but among them are scholars and healers who do the work of their gods. Ask them to help you. Don’t tell them more than necessary.” He said and paused to catch his breath while narrowing his lids to offset the raging sun.
” Okay. Are you sure about this. Would they help us?” She inquired, while she hurriedly got up on her feet. ” Yes I am. They are humans. They have sympathy just like you. They should help us.” He said with an air of uncertainty even though he wasn’t sure about it.
” Okay. Okay I’ll …” She sulked, looked around the radius and rushed away. Maximin was rather at awe with ease in which he had dispensed her to safety. He needed to lay still and hope for a healing from within. Just then there was a hurried footfall and it was precipitated by a clutching sensation over his ankle.
” Stay still. I’m dragging you to safety. Just under that tree over there. It’s fallen leaves would give you some protection from all this exposure.” Said a voice.
” Amelia! You aren’t gone yet? ” My god I weigh a thousand kilograms. You can’t drag me. No animal can come close to me. They know what I am.” He said and found it almost laughable that she felt she could drag him across the path.
” And what exactly are you that the beast won’t devour. You took a hit to the head and now think your blood would keep us safe from harm. You might be a Catholic but just know you aren’t Jesus. The Pine forest is laden with wolves and Hyenas that Will Make a snack of you at the slightest opportunity. I need to cover you up with some dried leave which is more on that side of the tree. ” She said, and pointed at a giant red wood.
” For a start. The pine forest is now miles away. I will be fine. Just get to the humans at the foot of the mountain. I swear you would have been back with help all this while you have spent arguing and trying to drag me.” He said and sniffed into the air causing her to really pause and wonder the sort of human he was.
” You are primitive than the people behind the rocks.” She said after letting go of his ankle and began to hurry towards the rocks.
” Keep saying humans like they are some species different from you. I hate rich kids.” she mumbled in a whisper as she hurried away.
She didn’t know what he was and it was clear to him as it was shocking.