Darkest Before Dawn (A Guardian's Diary Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

been abused. One of the men kept up a steady stream of verbal abuse at the woman, confirming my suspicion that these two assholes were responsible for her current condition.
    Hmm, bow or gun? Bow; it was silent. I needed the element of surprise. Besides, ammo was hard to come by and I could make more arrows. I pulled out the crossbow, which had been attached to my backpack for easy access on a pull cord. I flicked my finger over the button to silently auto-cock the string, and nocked the arrow onto the guide as I peered through the white skeletal mask. I needed to get the guys out of the car and away from the woman. I smiled as one exited the car to enter a darkened store, which was empty; I knew because I had cleaned it out last month.
    I slipped into the darkness through the back door, and waited in position, watching through the crossbow scope, for him to shine his light in my direction before I released my arrow. There was stunned shock on his face as he took in my black Misfits hoodie, which matched the skull mask I wore.
    “What the fuck?” he asked, and stepped forward. I released the arrow and watched as he hit the ground without another sound other than the thud as he hit the tiled floor.
    I knew what I looked like; a freak. The hoodie was thick, and looked bulky from the lightweight Kevlar vest I wore beneath it. I wore black cargo pants which matched the black combat boots that protected my feet. I had a pack attached to my back, since sometimes it was impossible to make it back to the shelter and hiding out was required.
    I searched the dead body, and found one handgun which I shoved into one of the many pockets of my pants. I secured the crossbow back on the cord, and pulled the heavy corpse back into the shelved storage room to hide it. I retrieved the arrow from his larynx. “Should have been a nicer guy,” I whispered to the corpse. “Lesson? Don’t be a dickhead, you’ll live longer.”
    I liked keeping the odds in my favor, and one was always a good number. I heard footsteps, so I pressed my back to a shelf as I snatched my crossbow from the pull cord, and grabbed a fresh arrow rather than use the one I had pulled from his buddy so the blood wouldn’t muck up my aim. I inhaled slowly, and controlled my heart rate as the man called out for his friend. He continued walking into the dark as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
    I guess it was easy to think like that when you preyed on the less fortunate or weaker beings. Once again I auto-cocked the string and slid my arrow in, as I used the scope to aim between the shelves.  He was smaller than the first guy, but his eyes were hard and his hands were fisting with irritation.
    “You better get your ass out here; don’t think I won’t leave you and keep the girl to myself! Was tired of sharing her with you anyway!” he shouted as I pulled the trigger. I enjoyed the sickening crunch of muscle and tissue as it ripped apart his heart.
    I stood up and walked to where he was bleeding out. “And I’m sure she was sick of being shared with the both of you, too,” I snapped and ripped the arrow out of his chest. I’m not into forgiveness or rehabilitation. I have enough on my plate without worrying about those who hurt others.
    I walked out to the car, and the moment the woman saw me, she screamed. I rolled my eyes. Overly dramatic much? I walked to the car, shimmying off my pack, and opened the door. I shoved my pack onto the passenger side and slid into the driver’s seat, thanking the powers that be; those idiots had left the keys in the ignition. I could drive this heap and ditch it when I came back for my bike. The woman had been handcuffed to the door of the backseat and was now in full hysterics, probably thinking she’d ended up in the hands of yet another monster, but I didn’t have time to waste right now. If I had to pick between my motorcycle and her…Let’s just say I’d pick the bike. It helped me to protect and feed those in the