The Beau & the Beast

8 - The car ride

"You must have a real death wish kiddo."  Clocksworth sighed deeply as he sat next to me in the backseat of the moving car.

   "I'm not going to let him scare me anymore." I answered cockily, making him raise a brow and studied me for a long time.

    "I've known him for 267 years and I'm still scared of him, Bel. And do you know why? Because I'm not a fucking idiot!"

   "I know what I'm doing." I muttered.

   "Good, because I have no fucking idea!" He sighed heavily and tilted his head back against the headrest, with his eyes closed, and fuck, I couldn't tear my eyes off him.
His beard had grown fairly long now, his dark locks falling down his face and the black shirt looked so damn good on him.

   I glanced down at his arms resting on his thighs, the sleeves were folded up to his elbows and couldn't help myself, I reached out and gently stroked my index finger across his left wrist. Surprised I realised there was not a single scar or the smallest sign of a wound on him.

   "Blood."  He explained softly and I looked up at him questioningly. "Anthony's blood made me who I am and it can heal me too."

   I laughed with a bitter tone, "so first he tortures you and then you get to drink his blood, making you all better so that he can continue?"

   "He stopped."

   "Why?"

   "He needs my help."

   "A babysitter for me?"

   Clock grinned "it's not all about you princess."

   I rolled my eyes and whined, "that's the worst nickname so far."

   "You whine worse than the door to the torture chamber."

   I sighed dramatically and he laughed until I slammed my fist to his shoulder. "Tell me what he told you!"

   Clock shrugged, "The usual, he's the prince and I'm a nobody whom he can replace at any time."  He laughed again and gave me a flirtatious wink, "and that I should show respect and be polite."

   "Good luck with that." I chuckled.

   "Hey! Fifty-eight percent of all this is your fault," he accused but the playful smile was still on his lips.

   I shrugged and smiled slyly. "But both you and I know he's wrong, he needs you."

   "I know, and he knows it too. But everything is a game Bel, a big fucking game for power. And now someone has started a war against us."

   We sat quietly for a while and looked out the windows at the world passing by. A human world that kept living without knowing what monsters that moved among them.

   "I thought he was going to break your neck on the breakfast table."  He finally whispered.

   "I was hoping for it."

   He shook his head and suddenly I felt him take my hand, we said nothing and he continued to stare out the window.

   The car swerved towards an industrial area and Clock pulled out a small machine gun which he began to load with silver bullets. "You still want to die?" He glanced at me as he asked the question.

   "No."

   "Good." He said and gave me a gun and a bunch of magazines. "Can you shoot?"

   "Yes."

   He nodded briefly, "you cover me."

   "Okay," I stuffed the silver-filled magazines inside my belt and weighed the gun in my hand.  The adrenaline pumped inside me and a smile spread across my lips, this was what I had wanted to do from the beginning.