Chapter 15: These Are The Zombies?
"You can't see me, can you?" the man in front of me continued.
Shaking my head, I clutched Teddy even closer to my chest. "Are you going to hurt me?" I asked, my voice taking on an innocent quality to it. "Daddy said that I wasn't supposed to talk to strangers. That strangers will want to take me away and hurt me. Do you want to hurt me?"
I didn't have to fake my surprise at his touch as he ran his fingers through my hair, petting me like I was a dog or something he found on the side of the road.
Then again, I guess he did find me on the side of the road, so I couldn't blame him for that.
"No, Kitten," the man assured me. His fingers brushed gently over the staples on my cheek before trailing down my arm until he threaded his fingers through my own. Ever so gently, like I was something precious, he helped me to my feet before picking me up in his arms.
Shifting so I was literally sitting on his forearm, I clung to him as best as I could without dropping Teddy. He felt like a brick wall. A tall brick wall at that as he strolled forward. Clearly, my weight was nothing to him.
"It looks like you have been hurt enough," he continued. "But you don't have to worry anymore, okay? I'll protect you."
I wanted to bark back a snort, but even I could hear the truth of his conviction in his voice. He really thought that he would protect me.
If I had a dollar for every time, someone said that to me.... I'd have three dollars.