"Charlie? What are you doing here?" John questioned, his brows furrowed as he slowly approached her.
The other brothers stayed behind, having a feeling she would answer John before either of them. Charlie ended up clenching her hands little by little as John inched closer and closer to her. A sudden, awkward chuckle left her lips, her hands tightened at maximum tightness, leading to feeling as though they were burning.
"Oh, John..."
She couldn't look away from his clear blue eyes even if she wanted to. Charlie felt she was planted to the ground as he was just inches away from her, but once she felt John's warm hand touch her wrist gently, it hurt. It hurt her to where she felt his hand was as hot as a burner, leading her to feel as though she was struck by fire. Once that feel reached her skin, she yanked her hand away swiftly.
"Stay away from me! All of you!" She screamed out, leading her to gasp.
Charlie felt she was a little rude by the sudden shout that by habit, she was about to apologize. Just by the thought of apology, her pride swallowed her tongue. Before she knew it, she bolted.
"Charlie! Wait!" John was about to run after her, but he felt his chest suddenly tighten after seeing her pained eyes.
The oldest brother, Jacob, ran after her instantly, suddenly tackling her.
"Let me--"
"Be quiet!" Jacob hissed, covering her mouth.
The young woman got outraged and frightened at the same time. She was about to bite his hand, but once she heard gunshots, she bit her tongue, following Jacob's orders.
"Let's go!" Before Charlie had any chance to protest, Jacob threw her over his shoulder and ran.
"Take her to a remote area in the woods!" Joseph tried to say quietly so others could not hear, but loud enough for Jacob to follow orders.
Jacob followed orders and tried to head to a remote area. With minutes passing by, he reached an area near a waterfall that seemed remote enough for them to finally stop.
"Put me down you stupid neanderthal!" Charlie pounded as hard as she could on his shoulder blade, hoping he'd finally set her down.
Jacob groaned quietly so Charlie couldn't hear she was succeeding. Once he stopped, he finally set her down. A deep sigh escaped, followed by a groan of annoyance.
"For Christ's sake... still as stubborn as before." He huffed out, giving her a deathly glare.
"You're one to talk!" She growled, straightening out her disheveled clothes, "Was it seriously necessary for you to throw me over your shoulder? I had enough stamina to run, you prick!"
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" He marched up to her, "You should be thankful I even took you away from that death trap! Who knows if you would've made it out of there alive! If you died there, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself! Fuck! I don't even know how I'd..." He paused, hiding his look of stress, "You know what? Fuck it..." He rumbled mildly, turning away from her, "I'm... I'm just glad to see you're safe..." He mumbled.
"What did you just say?" Charlie furrowed her brows, wondering if she heard him correctly.
"Forget it! Just... just stay here until the coast is clear." Jacob glanced behind himself, irritation still simmering inside.
Charlie stride towards him, annoyed by him walking away, "What the hell is going on here? Why did people shoot at you guys? What did you-- oh for Christ's sake... you're the reason why I was called back... aren't you?" The young woman questioned, stepping back.
"What? What nonsense are you babbling on about?" Jacob turned, looking at her with confusion.
"You guys are the reason I was called back? You guys are the ones that formed this... this idiotic cult my family was talking about?!" She snipped with a glare.
"What the hell are you going on about?" Jacob gave a look of bewilderment as he turned to face her.
"What the hell are you guys planning to gain from this? Why are you causing such chaos in my own hometown?! What's the purpose of this whole absurdity?!" She grasped her hands, her chest beginning to tighten, leading her to groan, "Why do you guys always have to ruin my life?!" Charlie looked up at him, tears escaping her eyes, exposing a look of agony and acrimony.
Jacob didn't know how to react to the look he just witnessed. He felt devastated just by the way she was gazing at him. The brute looking man grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck, looking at the ground, trying to lessen the sting he received after seeing such a look.
"Charlie..." He huffed out, raising his head, "Look... I..." Jacob didn't know what to say at this point.
The oldest brother stayed silent for several seconds. He didn't know what he needed to say, let alone wanted to say. Jacob felt he needed to apologize, but for what? What exactly would he even gain from it? He felt he'd hurt her even more. Which is the last thing he wanted to do. But he also felt he had to bring up the past neither of them wanted to reopen. Neither would ever want to open a wound they both thought would heal in time. Well, Charlie's wound healed, but Jacob's didn't.
Ever since the war, he's never been able to forget about anything. He regrets every mistake he can't take back. If given the chance to change everything, he'd take them all. He chuckled by the thought though.
What is the purpose of regret if the feel of pain is to learn from past experiences? He thought to himself as he shook his head, looking down, letting out a pathetic laugh, I need to fix this... but how? He acknowledged Charlie, trying to clear his mind to speak up, "Charlie... look..." He sighed, "About back then. I... I didn't mean--"
"Shut up..." Charlie whispered as she covered her ears, shutting her eyes firmly, "Shut up!" She looked up at him sharply as though throwing daggers at him, gripping her upper arms, looking terrified and bitter, "Why... why did you have to reappear in my life?" She covered her eyes that were spilling out tears, her voice crackling as though she was starting to suffocate.
The young woman peeked behind herself, wondering how deep it was at the bottom of the waterfall. She breathed heavily, trying to build up her courage. Charlie was about to each time Jacob inched closer to her, but jolted and halted when he yelled.
"Charlie! For God's sake listen to me!" He barked, gasping, not meaning to snip at her, "Christ... Charlie... I... I am so-- Charlie!"
Right when he was just half a foot away, she fell back purposefully. She put complete faith in surviving. Though deep in her mind, she didn't care which end result was going to be given to her. The young woman just wanted to not face her scarred past.
She opened her eyes once she splashed into the water. A faint smile appeared on her face, closing her eyes, lastly sensing reassurance. She didn't keep track of how long she was under water. Charlie felt there was no need to breathe after what she faced, but she was pulled out of the water.
She coughed once she was brought up to the surface, "Wh-What the hell?! Why--?!" Charlie jolted, a bit concerned, but relaxed it wasn't any of the brothers.
"Oh, thank God." The young man chuckled with a huff, looking relieved to see she was still breathing.
"Rook!" He was called out.
He looked behind himself, standing up.
"Who are you...?" Charlie asked, looking up at him.
"Junior Deputy." He gave a soft smile with a small laugh, "But you can call me Rook." He held out his hand to help her up, "And you?"
She was gawking him, not noticing she was looking like an idiot until she regained her senses, "My apologies..." Charlie laughed lightly, "My name's--"
"Charlie!" She was called out by one of the brothers.
"Not them again..." Rook groaned, "Follow me. You're safe now." He grabbed her hand impulsively, leading her away from one of the brothers.
Charlie's heart raced once she felt the warm hand of the man who saved her. A small smile ran across her face, leading her to squeeze his hand a little.
"Thank you..." She whispered, closing her eyes for a couple of seconds, finally feeling safe in her hometown.
Rook looked at her with a smile and a nod, leading Charlie to blush, "No problem at all, miss. No problem at all." He whispered in turn with a chuckle as they continued to run away from one of the Seed brothers.