Ok so, I experimented a little with this chapter by switching between points of views a lot so tell me if it is too confusing.

Chapter 8

Monroe had followed Joan into the woods and had watched as she collapsed onto the ground near a tree. He was curious as to what she would do and had been surprised to see a tear fall from her eye. He swallowed hard, she rarely cried. He watched her for a little while, giving her a chance to calm down before approaching.

"Hey its just me." He said putting his hands up when she spun around and held the gun on him. He lifted his eyebrows in shock when she didn't lower the gun. Was she really considering shooting him?

"You want to put that down?" He asked starting to regret his decision to follow her. Finally she lowered it but didn't put it away. Did she think he would attack her? Or was she still thinking about shooting him? He wasn't sure so he said the only thing he could think of.

"You can put that away, I'm not going to hurt you." He immediately clamped his jaw shut. She stared at him in disbelief before giving a bitter laugh.

"That suppose to be funny Monroe?" She said her eyes flashing.

"No I..I.." He stuttered, "I don't know what you want me to say." He said truthfully. She looked back at him steadily. "If you want me to say sorry I will. I'm sorry about what I did and about what happened between us."

"You've said that before." She said turning away from him.

"Yeah well I mean it this time." He says taking a few steps closer to her. She cut her eyes to watch him but doesn't say anything. He looked so sincere. In fact the more she looked at him, the more her mind started to wonder to happier times. Stop! She commanded herself. Think of all the bad times, of all the pain he caused you. She let him walk closer until he was within arms reach before turning to face him. A memory popped into her head of a night much like this one, where she had been mad at him and like that night she had begun to think of other things. Like the way the moonlight filtering through the trees hit his skin or the puppy dog look he was giving her. She felt herself starting to melt. Damn him and damn that look. She looked him in the eyes as he advanced a few more steps. Her breath caught in her throat as she backed up only to feel a tree behind her. Great. Her mind was going a million miles an hour as she tried to think of a way out of this. She didn't trust herself right now and she sure as hell didn't trust him!

Monroe looked at the woman in front of him, she had relaxed some with the tree to her back. It was almost as if backing into the tree had made the decision for her. He remembered her teasing him earlier that day. She would never admit it but she wanted him as much as he wanted her. He chuckled to himself, it was just like old times. Memories came to his mind in flashes. She always made the first move; he just had to be patient. His hand found the gun, still in her hand. He slowly worked her fingers free of it and tossed it to the side. He wanted that gun far out of her reach before he attempted anything. He leaned in closer, so close that he was inches from her mouth. He could hear her breathing was ragged.

Joan clenched her hands into fists to make them stop trembling. Having him so close was really getting to her. Her mind once again wondered to that night like this one so long ago. That night had been many things. She had learned that she loved him and the charming control he had on her that would keep her beside him so loyally for years. She almost smiled as she remembered the naïve question she had asked him. She wondered if he remembered his answer. Her lips parted to ask the question. She noted the way his eyes seemed to dance and she had to fight not to laugh.

He wet his lips, triumph flowing through him in anticipation of the kiss and what it would lead to.

"Do you think that if the blackout had not happened we would have found each other?" She asked. Surprise made him pull back. He gave a light laugh; that was not what he was expecting. He raked a hand frusteratedly through his hair. He knew what she wanted to hear, the irony of this night and one long ago was not lost on him.

"If we hadn't then I would not have known such happiness as I know now when I'm with you." He said with a smile. She smiled back at him as they both thought back to that night. His breath caught as he remembered her kissing his neck, driving him crazy with soft caresses full of passion.

She watched his eyes fill with lust. It made her remember his lips crashing against hers, sending tingles through her whole body. His hands moving over her body making her want him more. She let out a shaky breath and before she could think of any more reasons about why she shouldn't, she closed the distance between them.

Monroe was so deep in thought thinking about the memory that her lips on his caught him by surprise. Her hands that had been on his face slid through his hair, pulling him into the kiss; he leaned into it. One arm wrapped around her back pulling her closer to him and the other found the tree as he pushed her back against it, deepening the kiss.

Joan slid one hand down his chest and to the hem of his shirt, letting her hand slip under it to the warm skin underneath. He moaned against her mouth and shifted, making a shiver run up her spine. She felt the muscles in his back ripple under her hand. She opened her eyes to see his closed as he pulled her even closer to him. Her mind was in a fog, but she could have sworn she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. She blinked a few times trying to clear her head. She saw it again and broke away from the kiss. Her eyes widened and a cold dread gripped her as she saw a figure holding a crossbow with an arrow notched and aimed at the back of the man in front of her.

"Bass!" She gasped.

He felt her stiffen against him before she said anything and his eyes flew open. She pushed him hard to the right side of the tree, causing him to lose his balance and fall. She dived to the other side as an arrow struck the tree where they had been. Instinct made him struggle to his feet immediately. He rushed the guy with the crossbow while he was trying to reload. He planted a fist in the guys face, knocking him out cold. He heard Joan cry out and turned to see three men around her, one with his hand knotted in her hair. Her hands gripped the one in her hair and she looked at him, a grimace of pain on her face. Their eyes locked and he felt his blood boil. Testosterone mixed with adrenaline and rage was a bad combo for him.

"Let her go now and you can walk away." He lied. The guy hurting her wasn't walking away. They all snickered.

"Kill him." Said the guy holding Joan. As the two other goons rushed him, he saw her struggling with the man. He switched his attention to the two assailants, who had now drawn swords. He twisted and turned avoiding the sharp blades. The younger of the two made the mistake of getting too close and Monroe was behind him, grabbing the attacker's knife from its sheath and stabbing him with it. He danced away as the other guy made wild slashes at him. This guy was better than the other but still not very experienced. Monroe waited and sure enough the other guy made a mistake and allowing him to get the sword on the ground. It ended quickly after that. The guy was no match for someone of Monroe's experience. After he ran the blade through him, he turned in time to see the lead brute throw Joan behind him and unsheathe his blade. He charged Monroe, catching him off guard with the speed at which he could move. Their blades clashed and they were locked in battle. He wasn't an amateur but still wasn't on the same level as Monroe. Monroe took his time; slicing little pieces off here and there, taking him down slow. Every time he thought about ending it, the image of Joan in pain looking at him made him keep going. The man was on his knees now, he breathing ragged. Monroe gave a short laugh as he circled him, slicing his arm and back.

Joan put a hand to her hair where the brute had had a hold of her. Ouch! She thought, shaking her head to clear it. Her eyes landed on the man on his knees, blooded with several flesh wounds. She gasped as she watched Monroe circle the man like a predator would prey. She shuddered at the look in his eyes; General Monroe was back. She felt fury build in her and without even thinking about it she walked to the sword of the dead guy near her, picking it up. She strided over to the wounded guy and plunged it into him. Monroe looked at her with a mix of disbelief and rage.

"What did you do that for?!" He demanded. God he looked like a kid that had just had his favorite toy taken away, she thought.

"There was no point in torturing him." She said biting back the rage she felt.

"Of course there was! He hurt you!" He yelled back. Gunshots cut off her reply. She gasped as she looked towards the houses.

"Oh no." She breathed, but before she could move Monroe had a hold of her arm. "Let go!" She snarled at him.

"Wait you will get yourself killed you just go charging in there!"

"I don't care! I would give my life for them!" She yelled back, glaring at him, "Something you wouldn't know about." She wrenched her arm out of his grip and took off.

"Joan wait!" Monroe called after her. She couldn't hear him, all she could think of was the people she called family, the people she protected, were in trouble. If she was too late she knew she could never forgive herself. She swallowed the fear that that thought brought up and ran faster. She burst from the trees and right into a war zone.