***
THE PRESENT
Finding Mairelon was making a nearly nighttime visit to Renee D'Auber hadn't put Kim in better spirits, but the shock that she had actually followed Mairelon had finally settled in. What had she been thinking? What would Mairelon say if he found she'd gone out? It was becoming increasingly apparent that Mairelon would be back home hours before Kim could get there on these back roads by foot.
Kim continued her steady run, glad for the exercise, but becoming increasingly distressed as dusk had quickly faded into true night and storm clouds loomed. Increasingly, alarm bells were going off in her head as she thought she saw things in the shadows. Was that a man trailing after her, or only her imagination? Formerly, she wouldn't have worried much. But now she had so much more to lose. And she wasn't as street-smart as she'd once been; it had been over a year since she'd had to survive in this world. She kept running, her feet now prompted by a growing fear.
Kim cursed her luck under her breath as she felt the first of several large raindrops fall from the sky. It didn't pour down rain, but it was soon falling steadily. Kim shivered despite her jacket and gave up running for she was out of breath.
Jogging now and utterly miserable, Kim was startled by the sudden thought of Mairelon turning up to rescue her. 'Silly twit,' she reprimanded herself for hoping such a thing. But the surprising thing was how much she wished it to be true. The former Kim would never have entertained a fantasy about someone else coming to her aid. She'd been a loner, completely self-sufficient and trusting no one. How different she was now, completely dependent upon Mairelon in more ways than she'd thought possible. Why did that scare her so much?
Her pursuers, real or imagined, disappeared from her peripheral vision, and Kim slowed to a walk, now making a sloshing sound with every step since her shoes and clothes were drenched clean through. She cursed her stupidity in following Mairelon tonight. Surely he'd left and already gotten home by now. On the way to Renee's, she'd stolen a ride, clinging to the back of his carriage and unseen by the driver. By foot, she had another thirty minutes 'til she'd make it home.
***
THE PRESENT
Finding Mairelon was making a nearly nighttime visit to Renee D'Auber hadn't put Kim in better spirits, but the shock that she had actually followed Mairelon had finally settled in. What had she been thinking? What would Mairelon say if he found she'd gone out? It was becoming increasingly apparent that Mairelon would be back home hours before Kim could get there on these back roads by foot.
Kim continued her steady run, glad for the exercise, but becoming increasingly distressed as dusk had quickly faded into true night and storm clouds loomed. Increasingly, alarm bells were going off in her head as she thought she saw things in the shadows. Was that a man trailing after her, or only her imagination? Formerly, she wouldn't have worried much. But now she had so much more to lose. And she wasn't as street-smart as she'd once been; it had been over a year since she'd had to survive in this world. She kept running, her feet now prompted by a growing fear.
Kim cursed her luck under her breath as she felt the first of several large raindrops fall from the sky. It didn't pour down rain, but it was soon falling steadily. Kim shivered despite her jacket and gave up running for she was out of breath.
Jogging now and utterly miserable, Kim was startled by the sudden thought of Mairelon turning up to rescue her. 'Silly twit,' she reprimanded herself for hoping such a thing. But the surprising thing was how much she wished it to be true. The former Kim would never have entertained a fantasy about someone else coming to her aid. She'd been a loner, completely self-sufficient and trusting no one. How different she was now, completely dependent upon Mairelon in more ways than she'd thought possible. Why did that scare her so much?
Her pursuers, real or imagined, disappeared from her peripheral vision, and Kim slowed to a walk, now making a sloshing sound with every step since her shoes and clothes were drenched clean through. She cursed her stupidity in following Mairelon tonight. Surely he'd left and already gotten home by now. On the way to Renee's, she'd stolen a ride, clinging to the back of his carriage and unseen by the driver. By foot, she had another thirty minutes 'til she'd make it home.
***