Faithless Memories

What Had Been Hidden

Chapter 40

Genesis caught sight of the front door as he walked to the kitchen. He fleetingly thought about the unnecessary damage but brushed the thought aside. There was no way he would not react to her screams. He moved to at least close it as best as he could before he headed to the kitchen.

He had been in her kitchen enough times that it did not take him long to locate what he needed. It was only a matter of minutes before he had a steaming cup in hand. When he walked back into the living room, he saw Kristobel sitting on the couch with her knees drawn up and her arms gripping them tightly. In that position, he finally noticed that she was only wearing a t-shirt. Normally, he would have been mesmerized at the sight of her shapely legs, but that was not what made him freeze. His voice was barely above a whisper when he spoke. "Kristobel, what happened!"

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Kris had been huddled on the couch in misery. Her nightmares had finally started to lessen, but the last month had been horrible. With everyone being gone all the time, it was hard for her not to worry, and her worry inevitably led to nightmares. The only difference was that now there were more faces that took the place of her own. The torture and pain were always the same.

She had barely spared a thought that it had been Genesis that had found her. She was still trying to shake off the pain and fear. It wasn't until she heard his worried whisper that the full weight of the situation hit her. She jumped up with widened eyes as she realized he could see as well as she could during the day. She grabbed a pillow and tried to hide her legs, but she knew it was a lost cause as she saw his eyes take in the scars that covered her. There were so many that they crisscrossed across her pale skin. She tried to fight the urge, but she was still so shattered from her dreams that she couldn't keep her tears from falling.

Her voice shook despite her best efforts. "Just go!"

He looked confused for a moment, but he moved to slowly put the cup down on the coffee table before he took a step closer to her. She scrambled away from him and looked around to see if she could get around him. Her frantic gaze was drawn back when he spoke again. "Why do you want me to leave? What is going on?"

Kris couldn't suppress a sob as she pointed to the door. "Just get it over with! You know now, so leave!"

Understanding finally lit in his eyes, and his gaze softened. He ignored her scramble to hide from him and had her in his arms within seconds. She fought his grip, but he could tell she wasn't really trying to get away. He scooped her up once more and sat with her on the couch. Once they were seated, he cupped her chin and turned her tearstained face up to meet his gaze.

"Kristobel, I have no plans to go anywhere." She sobbed again at his reassurances, but he wiped the tears away and kissed her forehead. He pulled her in closer before he spoke again. "Dearest, you have to remember that I am a Soldier. Even with enhanced healing, scars are commonplace. They are a sign that you are a fighter."

She finally stilled in his arms and looked up with a confused expression. "You... you don't find them repulsive?"

Genesis had to curb the urge to curse. It was evident that something horrible had happened. A large part of him wanted to throttle whoever it was that made her feel she had to hide part of herself so completely. His voice was soft when he finally spoke. "Kristobel, you are a beautiful woman, inside and out." He paused and brought up her arm and ran a finger over a scar that lined her forearm before he lightly brushed his lips against it. "These only prove to me that you are even stronger than I first believed."