Chapter 3

Expressions whispered by the eyes can echo louder than the loudest voice.

                                          -Unknown.

|K I R I L L|

The woman who stood in front of me is the definition of stupid. Dressed in a black shimmering dress with thin straps that ended on her knees, she stood with cocky recklessness.

Her face is small, like a traingle, with a sharp pointed nose and a pair of big doe gray eyes, her dyed hairs kissing her face with each slight breeze that passes between us.

I glance around her to see if she is actually alone and turned out I am right. She is walking alone in this verdant thicket wanting to be killed.

Raising a mocking brow at her, which I suddenly realised she can not see because of the mask that hides not only my identity but also my face, I said, "You seem to have a knack for finding trouble in the most unexpected places."

She squinted her eyes together at me, looking annoyed and frustrated with mt statements directed towards her which are nothing but true. She ground her teeth together as if stopping herself from snapping, amusing me.

Interesting.

"You do not know shit about me." She responded back, her annoyance and frustration evident in her voice.

"I am not planning to," I say, disinterest, loud and clear in my tone.

Her nose flared in annoyance but she kept herself calm of we ignore the tic in her jaw and the way she is clenching her fists. I do not know if it is stupid of her to stand in front of a masked stranger who she knows nothing about or brave to not cower away and face the danger.

"Now, if you would step aside, I have important things to do." She countered with a smug look as if coming up with a sentence like that is supposed to be a new accomplishment.

"Like getting lost in an ancient woodland?" I countered back a winning yet mocking small smile pulling on my lips, but I managed to keep my face stoic, void of any emotions.

She stopped, her lips pressed together in a thin line, probably because I said the truth or because she is annoyed that I said the truth out loud. Maybe she is one of those who enjoys living in their own delusional world.

"Enough about me," she answered back, gaining a more confident posture as the annoyance and frustration that shone in her gray cloudy eyes vanished replaced by a new certainty. Crossing her arms on her chest, she looked me in the eyes and questioned, or should I say had the audacity to question me, "What are you doing here, masked man?"

The way her eyes stays focused on mine tells me that she certainly is not afraid anymore. If anything, she is acting a little too bold for her own good. And, masked man is really basic, I honestly expected her to be a little more creative.

"Let's just say I have got my reasons for using this mask, that hides everything." I answered her, trying to let her know about how stupid her question sounds specially when I am standing packed like a bundle of secrets in front of her.

And, secrets are not meant to be shared.

"Not everything." She said, almost immediately, making me frown in confusion. "Your eyes," She pointed at my eyes with her index finger before adding in a soft yet somehow authoritative voice, "They are visible."

She is not wrong. They are. But the emptiness and hollowness in them is close enough to not exposing any body part to the world. She can stare in my eyes for a whole fucking eternity and still would not find anything. Neither the scars I hide, nor the secrets I keep.

"It does not matter." I said, dismissing her, ready to finish this matter for once and for all. I have a man in this dark forest to chase and, yet, here I am chit chatting with a woman like her, who is so foolishly brave.

"It does." She shot back, her figure still, calm, composed and confident. She looks like she jas the situation under her control now, like she is aware of her every move she is going to make next and even mime for that matter. "After all, the eyes paint portraits of emotions that words can not capture." She mused, don't know if it is supposed to be mocking or a mere sentence, an innocent one. But for some reasons it felt personal. Like she meant it in more ways than she conveyed.

"I am done here." I announced, ready to leave the place and get back to the work, to do the thing I always find the thrill in. But, I do not know how she managed to keep me occupied with her for so long.

Her lips widened in what seemed like a grin, a victorious one at that, I could also say that she was mentally praising herself for this conversation, because it is easy to read on her face what goes on in that little head of hers.

"Listen here, little lamb," I say snapping my fingers in front of her to attract her attention, even though it never left my face during the whole conversation. "This place is dangerous. Way more menacing than you can imagine-" she interrupted me, to my annoyance.

"Why? Does people mysteriously disappear here?" She questioned, a mocking edge to her tone. She is taking it all as a joke. Her naive- ness pulled out a smile out of me,an evil one. Little lamb is surely dumb.

"No," I say and wait for her expression to change, and they did, she scoffed taking my words delicately while they are needed to be taken with more seriousness than of a child. "It is a way more worse." My voice turned deep and dark, I am sure she can sense the threat in my words if she ia good at sensing dangerous situations, which I am seriously doubting.

I abandoned the support of the tree behind me and took a long stride towards her and she visibly stiffened, the fear from before returning back. "I would give you one advise now," I say, my eyes fixed on hers.

"When I say run, you would do that and never look back. You are going to forget whatever the fuck you saw and heard." I commanded and she did not needed to nod to answer me, I could see the fear in her eyes that had make her keep her mouth shut.

Despite the little rebel inside her, for some reasons I think she is smarter than letting her rebel side ruin her life. There is a few meter distance between us, but I take one step back putting some more as if it is the requirement here.

Stuffing my hands inside the pocket of my pants, I heaved out a long breath, ready to watch her run away and disappear from my sight, ready to see her running like a lamb with it's tail on fire. I meet her cloudy grey eyes for one last time since I would not see them again as I finally said out that one word, "Run."

And, she did.

Without even looking back once as she disappeared from my sight in a matter of few seconds, forever.

But deep down I had a feeling that,

It is only the beginning...