Chapter Text
Each of their footsteps echoed through the dank alleyway as David and his caretaker fled. Her grip on his upper arm was painful, but he didn’t protest. His father had taken a small portion of the coven the other way to distract the soldiers, and David and Grace had gotten separated from the rest somehow. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears and feel the blood rushing to his face. They rounded one more corner and were faced with a brick wall. He knew it was too high for him to jump. A gunshot sounded, and David's left shoulder erupted in scorching heat. Grace yanked him into a pile of cardboard boxes. She whirled to face their attackers and hissed, baring her fangs. Her usually brown eyes flashed a vibrant, unnatural blue.
The next moments were a blur for David. His vision swam, and his shoulder felt as if it were paper in a fireplace. He didn't know how many soldiers there were besides Too Many. His caretaker launched herself onto the first soldier, and she had him on the ground before the rest could squeeze out any of the bullets. But they did manage before she could even turn to attack the next one. They all managed to get in a couple of rounds, each wound emitting a harsh white light. David tried to call out to her, tried to fight back against her killers, tried to do anything, but the flames in his own body were spreading. He was quickly losing consciousness as the only mother he ever knew burned to a crisp in front of his unfocused eyes.
The last thing he felt was hands lifting him, being cradled almost tenderly and carried away from her.