278: IN THE STARK STREET LUKE’S POV Catherine turned around, and I also looked in the direction she had eyes on. The footsteps got close, and it was terrifying, like a horror movie or something. A man treaded closer, doing that in a slow manner. He wore a black garment–a hooded one. And I couldn’t see his face very well, but the way he walked was sort of terrifying–for different people, not me. My eyes narrowed down to his hand and the item he was holding. He had an axe, with blood dripping down his fingers right on that weapon. Like, seriously, what the hell was this? Who was this man, and why was he after this little girl? I looked at Catherine and whispered, “It’s okay; there’s no need to be afraid.” My words didn’t seem to assure her at all; she still had her gaze fixed on the man in the hooded garment, and I could see the fear in her eyes. She was trembling; I could tell her heart was beating rapidly, and her mind could be racing as hell. This was no ordinary sh*t. You could call this a horror movie, and trust me, I wouldn’t want to be a character in it. “This is so not great,” I whispered to myself, looking at the man as he got closer, his footsteps echoing in the blank street. I stood up, holding Catherine, not wanting her to be terrified. I totally understood. If I were in her shoes, I would actually. She was just a little kid, after all, and I think I was worse back then. Yeah, I clearly remembered the times I was totally afraid. It was worse than this, and the situation wasn’t even as terrifying as this. “Who are you?” I asked the man, but he didn’t reply. “Who are you?” I repeated my question. He seemed to hear me, but he acted like he didn’t. He treaded closer, but I could only see his eyes. He wore this nose mask, the same color as his garment. I could see the glare right there and the intense darkness in his expression. It wasn’t a nice one, and it almost had me terrified to the fullest. But goddamn, I wasn’t going to be in such a state! He halted his steps and stared at us as if we were both statues. His eyes went straight to Catherine; she held me tightly. He glanced back at me, and I did the same, gazing at him in wonder. And I was still wondering who he was and what he had with this little child. This man said nothing; he didn’t shake, he didn’t move, and he didn’t take his eyes off me PE IN THE STAN as well. I wondered what was going on in his mind. What the hell was I thinking? I hope he wasn’t planning to go into Thor mode and throw that axe at me. Just picture how things would be. “Aren’t you going to say anything?” I queried. He still didn’t utter a word, and this was quite strange. Was he a ghost? Nope, he couldn’t be a ghost. Or perhaps this was a dream? I looked down at Catherine. “Is this a dream?” She didn’t reply to me either; she was too scared to say a word at the time. Or maybe shel wasn’t saying anything because this was a dream. And since the man didn’t want to get involved in a conversation or anything, I took. Catherine closer to my car and opened it for her. She got in, and I again set my eyes on the man. I wanted to see if he was going to do or say something. Well, he didn’t. So I couldn’t waste any more time. I entered my car, put on my seatbelt, and drove off. I was still surprised that the terrifying figure decided not to do anything. Even when I felt like he wanted to execute an action so sinister, I could only thank God. We were still driving; we had gotten far from that location. I stole glances at Catherine; she was still in shock and terrified but stopped crying. I didn’t know if she was in the mood to say anything. But I really needed to know who that man was and why he was after her. She could have knowledge of that. Or maybe she didn’t? I couldn’t tell, actually. “So, care to explain what happened back there?” I asked her, breaking the silence. She didn’t respond, and I let out a deep sigh. “Your mother thought you were dead.” “I do not have a mother,” she said coldly. It was very clear in her tone. “You don’t have a mother?” I glanced at her. What do you mean by that? The two of you had an argument.” I didn’t hear from her, so I gave her a quick look before setting my eyes back on the road.” Are you going to be silent all day? Won’t you say anything?” “There is nothing left for me to say.” I stopped the car and turned to her. “Okay, now are you going to tell me what happened between you and your mother?” “I told you, I do not have a mother.” “Uhmm, yeah, you do.” TEIN THESTAUR TALL “No, I don’t. She might be yours, not mine,” Catherine told me, and I turned my face away, looking through the window. “Did she do something bad to you?” “I don’t want to talk about it.” “Why not? Tell me.” “It is not for you to know. She thought she killed me, right? So take it like that because I’m dead to her.” “Wow, that’s really cold,” I uttered. “If she did something really terrible to you that makes you want to never see her again, you can always tell me about it.” “Why should I tell you?” Catherine asked, still looking through the window. “Because I’ve been in your shoes before. Broken and hurt, shattered and damaged, and it was all because of her–the woman we called our mother. Trust me, I know what it feels like.” Catherine slowly turned to me. “You do?” “Yes, I do,” I answered softly, placing my hand on her shoulder. “I was broken, getting to know that my parents were dead. My father, whom I loved so much, was always taking me out a great pal and skipped so many business projects just to be with me. And then there was my mother, who always had fun with me and gave me so much of her time. These people had tons of things that needed to be done, but they left them all because of me. They spent time with me and made me feel like I was the only child in this world. They died, and that was really painful.” Catherine was giving me all of her attention while I continued, “That was what I thought- that the both of them were gone. But I had to find out that my mother was still alive. And I would have been very happy about that. But it had to go the opposite
