The Amour series (Book 1): The Embers of Amour

by LaRue, Coushatta

  Her bright blue eyes were glassy, and her lips were trembling. Thump, thump, thump, then more followed by that. Abby realized quickly what she was hearing when she heard the sound of something sliding on the floor. It was a heartbeat, not just one, but two heartbeats, and they were not hers or Evan’s. She dropped the bottle of water, and it crashed to the floor. It was probably not the smartest idea because of the loud sound it made, but she felt as if she had no control over her actions.

  “What?” Evan gasped looking at her with wide eyes.

  He looked annoyed. She hurried towards him panting and trying to ignore the fact that her vision was blurring. She grabbed his arm, shaking. He grabbed her shoulder confused and frightened. Before she could say anything, she heard the third heartbeat and saw a shadow appear behind Evan. She screamed as it leaped forward. Evan pushed her backwards, and she landed on the floor. He swung his arm mindlessly and smacked whoever it was leaping at him with his bag. The shadow let out a painful howl and landed on the ground.

  Abby felt glass under her hands as she landed. The fall knocked the air out of her. She watched Evan smash his bag down onto the attacker, and the person screamed loudly. Abby covered her ears and bit down on her bottom lip. She wanted to do something, but she was so scared, and she felt so helpless. She felt ashamed.

  Another shadow moved down the aisle quickly past Abby. She shouted at Evan, and Evan turned quickly. It was too late. The shadow of a large man smashed something across Evan’s face. Evan fell into the aisle motionless. Abby leaned forward, her head bobbing back and forth. She wanted to do something, but she was so frightened. She noticed the light in the store was slowly fading, and she glanced backwards. A man in a Priest outfit stood above her.

  “Stealing is a sin.” The man hissed at her as he pointed. His gray eyes filled with judgment and hate.

  She screeched as she felt some of her hair being pulled out. She heard someone laughing, and another talking in a low voice with a strong accent. She could hear the undead moaning somewhere outside, and suddenly the world went black.

  “I just think it was not a good idea for us to move in together. NO. I know it wasn’t.” Aaron growled as he pulled a shirt over his head. He looked down at her on his bed with some strange pride in his eyes as if he had won some award for saying it. Abby’s gut twisted, and she started to cry. She was so confused. They had been doing so well until this week. He had become so distant and cold. Everything was coming apart right in front of her.

  “I don’t understand. Don’t you still love me?” She asked shaking. Her voice was coming out raspy. He gave her a look and did not answer. He just sighed in annoyance.

  “If you don’t think I do, then why are you here?” He hissed as he glared with daggers in his eyes. She shook her head and cried, “No I do. I just feel like you don’t want me anymore. Don’t you?”

  She begged as she grabbed the necklace around her neck remembering the beautiful day he had given it to her. She could barely keep herself from passing out as he paced around the room looking for his work pants.

  “I don’t know! Okay? Can we talk about this later?” He shot at her with malice. She was tired of him always pushing problems to the side instead of facing them. He was a coward, but so was she. She rubbed her raw eyes and said, “I don’t understand what happened. What is going on?”

  He stopped and rubbed his face and groaned again. He was pissed off, and she regretted ever telling him about the abandonment feelings she was having. He looked down at her with disgust and said, “We just don’t fit, Abby. We are very different people.”

  He was trying to be kind, but every word was like a knife to her heart. She felt angry at herself and lost. They had a lot of things in common. She did not know of many things they did not agree on. She did not understand what he was saying.

  “What are you talking about?” She snarled with tears rolling down her face, “We have everything in common,” she added. He found some pants and put them on as he kept glancing up to stare at her with bitterness in his eyes.

  “No we don’t. We’re so different.” He replied childishly.

  “How? How are we so different? Last time I checked you were saying I was all you ever hoped for.” She wept. He looked at her angrily and walked towards the bedroom door to put his shoes on. She knew he would run away from this. That he would not answer her, or he would just give a bullshit excuse. He always did, and it made Abby feel stupid that she let this happen all the time.

  “Like if we had kids… I would let them date at any age, and you would want them to wait till they were sixteen.” He said stumbling over his words. Abby narrowed her eyes at him as her body tensed. He pulled his right shoe on then added, “And like how you buy all this food when we are fine on peanut butter. We don’t fit!” He almost shouted.

  Abby stared in disbelief. What kind of excuses were those? They made no sense and sure as hell weren’t deal breakers. She felt sick and wanted to just disappear. He seemed so far away, and she felt that there was nothing she could do to show him he was wrong. Yet she kept trying even though he always threw it back into her face. She felt like a fool, but she loved him and believed in him.

  “You just want something that is not real. Perfect relationships aren’t real, Aaron! I’ll never be perfect, and you will never find a girl who will agree with you a hundred percent. Someone you will NEVER fight with. That is not real.” She told him scornfully. He gave her the worst look possible. He stared at her as if she had just told him he was the most stupid person in the world. He looked down and grabbed his keys on the side table by the door.

  “I don’t want to talk about this. Okay? I just am tired of it. We can talk later.” He snarled.

  She felt hot tears roll down her face, “Please don’t go. I love you. We do fit.”

  He paused by the door for what felt like forever. She could see him breathing heavily. He slowly turned back with glassy eyes but still with that bitterness in his eyes. He walked over to her and looked down at her. He pulled her in for a hug and kissed her. He held her for a while then whispered in her ear, “I love you. It’ll be okay.”

  He stood up and smiled that beautiful smile at her. It hurt the worst.

  He walked to the door and looked back at her as if all the anger he had for her went away. He gazed at her for a while, smiling kindly. He looked so innocent. She felt her heart sinking in her chest as he said, “I love you very much.”

  “I love you.” She replied softly. He shut the door, and she was left there alone. Feeling so lost. She breathed heavily and started to sob. This happened so often, and it was tearing her apart. She felt as if she were losing her sanity. How could she keep letting this happen? Why did she not stand up for herself when he tore her down? Why did she not defend herself when he turned everything around on her? Why did she let him say such sweet things after ripping her apart?

  She stared down at her hands and touched the necklace at her neck. She was so tired and did not know how much longer she could take it. Though she feared she was not strong enough to walk away from it. She lay down and thought of his words and the way he looked at her. He had such disgust and hatred in those eyes that had once loved her so.

  She felt as if she were trapped in love with someone who did not even see her anymore, and she was too weak to admit it. She wanted to escape it and stop feeling as if she were dying every day, but she was too scared to stand up and fight for herself. She was scared to admit she had made a mistake. That he was not going to be what she had hoped. That he was a coward till the end. That she was the only one who could save herself.

  Chapter seventeen

  Abby woke to the smell of something sweet in the air. She could feel her hands tied in front of her and that she was leaning against something hard and round like bars. She blinked and closed her eyes when a bright light blinded her. She heard people talking around her, and her head spun. She opened her eyes again, vision blurring, then everything became still. She was staring up at a
large statue of Jesus on a cross. She stared at it strangely for a long time before lowering her eyes. To her shock, she saw piles of random things in front of her. She was staring at a pile of electronics from large flat screen tvs to laptops and tablets.

  Another large pile of new clothes with the tags still on them sat next to it, and then by that was a pile of stuffed animals. She moved her eyes over many piles of random things from piles of cash to jewelry to food. She saw behind the food next to a piano a small pile of medical supplies. Near her to her right was a pile of whatnots; Christmas ornaments, journals, books, small statues, and snow globes. A large silver snow globe with a peacock in it sat very close to her. She eyed the peacock closely and grimaced.

  She heard someone cough, and she looked around. There were four strangers in front of her. The man in the Priest outfit was standing over a cauldron with a fire under it talking to a thin woman with stringy black hair and caramel colored skin. She had a deep Spanish accent. She was mixing something in the cauldron. She then sat down next to it on a stool and started to cut vegetables on a small table. Abby could smell the carrots and bell pepper, and it made her mouth water.

  The large man that had hit Evan was standing next to an orange table with chairs. There were different kinds of wines and drinks on the table. There were a few unlit candles on the table. The man was eating something from a black bowl while talking to a short man with dark skin. They seemed happy and well fed. Abby glanced at the mess around her. They did not have good housekeeping skills, and it made her feel ill. There was rotting food lying around and dirty paper towels.

  She tried to move but her body ached. She looked behind her to see what she was leaning on. It was a railing, and she looked downward realizing they were on the second floor of a church. She felt her stomach drop and her heart race as she stared down. The pews of the church were covered in trash and random items. The floor was almost invisible. The door at the end of the long row of pews was blocked off and the windows were boarded up. It did not take long for Abby to realize it was the trash can for these people. She saw human waste, and then her heart skipped a beat.

  Below among the pews and trash were bones of humans. And not just bones but bodies. She focused on them, and she began to shake. All of the rotting bodies had been skinned, while chunks of meat and fat had been taken from the bodies. Abby felt puke rise and she threw up to her side. She coughed as she choked on it. The voices around her stopped. She looked up as the tall man that hit Evan started towards her with a nasty grin.

  “Well looks like the whore is awake,” He laughed as he walked towards her. Abby watched him closely and felt the world spin around her. She closed her eyes and opened them when she heard someone moan. She knew who it was and searched for him. Evan was lying on his side, moaning in pain next to the woman and the Priest. His hair was matted with dried blood, but his face had been cleaned. His right eye was swollen shut, and the other looked around emptily. The Priest turned towards Abby, his cross necklace swinging as he did. He grimaced in disgust.

  “She is too damn skinny, Johnny,” The man with the dark skin barked as he sat down at the table drinking from a wine bottle. “Toss her,” he added as he nudged his head towards the railing.

  Abby’s throat tightened, and she felt her bowels turn. Johnny looked down at her with brown eyes and an ugly smile. His head was shaven and he had a scar across his neck. Abby could tell that at some point in life Johnny had been a handsome man but now he looked horrifying. He put his hands on his side then leaned downward and kneeled. He touched Abby’s skinny leg and laughed when she squirmed.

  He reached for her head, and then touched her hair. He then softly touched her cheek and then pressed down hard on her stomach. She groaned and looked away. Johnny laughed and stood up saying, “Yeah, Matt, but we can fatten her up.”

  “Fuck it, Johnny. We aren’t wasting any food on that dumb bitch. She looks sick anyway!” The woman snapped from the caldron. She pushed her stringy hair behind her large ears and tossed carrots into her stew. The Priest was walking around the woman with a long stick that had a jagged end to it. Abby knew he had to be the leader. She looked at his cross around his neck in disgust.

  “Toss her, Johnny. She is a waste.” The Priest ordered with a bored tone. The Priest looked back at the woman and watched her as she added some bell pepper to the stew. She stood up and walked away from the boiling water and towards some ice chest and opened one reaching for something. The Priest looked over at the man called Matt and nudged his head towards Evan. The man rolled his eyes.

  “Do it yourself.” Matt snickered. The Priest looked at him with a disapproving stare and back at Johnny. Johnny nodded his head. Abby’s heart began to race as she looked down at Evan. Johnny was rubbing his hands together, looking towards the other three. He licked his large lips and Abby sat up straight. They were going to eat Evan. She looked back at the pile of food behind them.

  “You sick fucks. You have enough food!” She shouted. Her voice echoed in the church. They all looked at her with shock then turned back towards their doings. Johnny leaned forward towards her. Evan started to wake when Matt reached for him. Evan punched Matt. Matt kicked Evan in the side and Evan groaned loudly. The Priest grabbed something from the woman and handed it to Matt. It was a large butcher’s knife. Abby shook her head, crying.

  “The sinners must be cleansed.” The Priest said to no one in particular. Matt was smacking his lips as he kicked Evan again. The woman was humming to herself, and Johnny was reaching for Abby. When Matt reached for Evan’s face, Evan kicked Matt hard in the stomach and rolled away. Johnny stood up and looked backwards, watching. The woman glanced up, laughing in amusement. Evan got to his knees. His hands were not tied. Matt was on his knees in front of him. Evan smashed his head into Matt’s, and he fell to the ground.

  “You’re not a man of God. You’re a monster!” Evan spat at the Priest. The Priest snarled at him and brought his stick up and slammed it across Evan’s face. Evan let out a horrible scream and landed hard on the floor. Matt stood up with a bloody nose and went to stab Evan in the head with the knife when the Priest stopped him.

  “No. Do not kill him yet. We need the meat fresh.” His voice was full of malice. He gazed at Abby, his gray eyes showing disapproval, and then back at the woman. Matt turned Evan sideways, and Abby’s body dropped backwards at the sight. The right side of his face was cut badly. The cut ran from the top of his right brow towards his cheek and nose and down to his chin. It was deep and bleeding badly. Matt was tearing off Evan’s shirt. Everything started to slow down in Abby’s head.

  Johnny was reaching for her as she rocked back and forth. She felt sweat slowly dripping from her forehead as she watched a fly buzz over the woman’s head to rest on a spoon. She heard the Priest mumbling to himself. Her veins were running hot, and it hurt. She moaned in pain and looked down at her arms. Her veins looked black and enlarged. Pain filled her body, and her head spun. Her throat tightened, even though her body was relaxed. She opened her eyes, and they were dilated.

  Abby felt so angry and full of hate. She was sick of being the victim, sick of being pushed around, sick of people judging her and telling her she was something she was not. She could not take it anymore. She was tired of people taking advantage of her. She just wanted everything to stop. Johnny pulled her up onto her feet. He shook her and laughed. He said something she could not hear and backed her up into the railing.

  He placed both arms onto her shoulders and leaned towards her face to say something, but he did not have time to say anything. Everything in Abby’s sane mind snapped, and she saw red. She lunged forward opening her mouth, biting into Johnny neck, and ripping a chunk of meat out. He could not scream. He just stared at her with large eyes before he fell down putting his hands to his throat. Abby spat skin and meat from her mouth and tasted the sweet copper taste of blood. She was breathing heavily and felt nothing at all.

  She felt a vibration in her ears, and she looked up a
t the woman who was cooking. She was screaming with a spoon in her hand. The Priest was looking at Abby with such horror. He turned pale and had to use his stick to support himself, so he wouldn’t fall. Matt had started to cut into Evan’s side, but he stopped and stood up to look at Abby and at Johnny dead on the floor.

  “You bitch!” The woman screeched.

  She ran towards Abby with arms stretched out. Abby just stood there; and when the woman ran into her, they both fell onto the floor. Abby groaned in pain and screamed as the woman ripped out a chunk of her hair. Abby roared at her in pain and grabbed the snow globe next to her and slammed it into the woman’s face. Glass, blood, and water splashed everywhere. The buzzing in Abby’s ear blocked out the screams coming from the woman.

  Abby pulled the broken snow globe back and hit her again, and again, and again. Until blood and bones exploded onto Abby’s face. Abby shoved the woman over and looked at her. The woman’s face was so torn apart that she did not looked human anymore. She twitched and her arms flopped around. She was still alive, and she was suffering. Abby felt very good about that.

  Someone grabbed her hair again, and Abby was pulled up to her feet. She felt a stabbing pain in her side, and she howled. A large arm wrapped around her body and squeezed her. She bit down into the man’s arm. He screamed in pain and took the knife out of Abby’s side to stab her again. Abby’s blood was racing through her body like a waterfall. Her body felt like it was flooding with fire. She threw back her head before Matt could stab her again and felt his nose break on the back of her head. He let her go, and she collapsed forward. Matt was waddling towards the railing, crying as he covered his nose with his hand.