Free Deviant Knights by Alexandra O'Hurley

Louboutins and a dirty, two-day-old, wrinkled dress.   She’d tied her hair into a loose twist when she’d used the tiny train
restroom, and washed up with the bag of toiletries the men had provided
her.   But she still felt filthy,
exhausted, and disheveled.   What a way to
make an impression on the French.
    Standing between both men, she was
sandwiched.   Gabriel stood before her and
Michel behind, as they walked out of the car and down a long corridor to an
entrance.   She stepped into the near
dusk, barely able to see anything behind Gabriel’s wide shoulders.   Ushered into the station, rapid French was
spoken by both men as they procured the tickets needed to proceed.   She felt like she was on another planet.   Nothing seemed familiar as she looked around.
    She’d never been outside the
United States
.   She’d never been to more than the states it
took her to drive through to get to
New York
from
Ohio
.   Looking around, she wanted to soak it all in,
see as much as she could.   A little boy
of about three stood directly across from her, his hand in his mother’s as she
stood talking on her cell phone.   He had
a small bear under his arm and quite frankly looked like any other young tyke
she would see anywhere.   It made her more
comfortable to see the child.   It stamped
a sense of normalcy on the events taking place.
    Waving softly to the boy, she smiled at
him.   His bright, blond tousled hair was
sweet, his large blue eyes so baby-like.   He ducked his head into his mother’s thigh, hiding his face from
her.   One eye peeked out, still watching
her.   She smiled again and he slowly
faced her once more.   He slowly began to
smile back at her.
    And then the smile began to warp.
    His mouth spread wider than a normal mouth
should.   It grew black at the edges and
his eyes shined black as well.   The eyes
spread wider and grew larger as his face grew pinker.   Biting back a scream, she grasped Gabriel’s
hand tightly.   Fear surged through her as
the child… the whatever it was…waved his cloven hoof at
her.
    Gabriel turned to look at her, but her gaze was
transfixed on the child.   If the thing
attempted to move, she was ready and prepared to flee, even in heels.
    “What is it, querida ?”
    “The boy…”
    “What about the boy?   He is cute, no?”   Michel interjected as he pushed the tickets
into the breast pocket of his jacket and then waved at the demon-child-thing.
    “He is absolutely anything but cute.   He looks like a demon.   Can’t you see it?”
    Gabriel looked again.   “I only see a boy.”
    “He’s evil and we need to get out of this
place.   Now.”   She gazed at both men to emphasize her point
before turning back to the creature.
      They were
on another train before she knew it.
    ****
    Michel eyed Kadence warily as they settled into the car.   “What exactly did you see in there?”
    Kadence relayed what she’d seen, her lips quivering slightly as she
spoke.   Her whole body trembled as if she
were freezing.   She had the jacket
wrapped around her and Michel’s sports coat over her lap and she still huddled
as if in shock.   It was perfectly clear
that she truly believed what she had just encountered.   Was this the residual effects of whatever she’d
taken into her body?   Could she now see
evil in whatever form it was?   Or was it
something else, completely sinister?
    “What do you think it means?”   Her lavender eyes were insistent.   She wanted answers, fear rolling off her in
waves.
    “There’s no reason to speculate, ma cheri .   When we reach our destination, I hope to find
answers.   Until then, rest.   Night is upon us.”
    He nodded to Gabriel, whose turn it was to rest
some.   Gabriel nestled back into the
seat, pulling Kadence into his arms, casting her a quick look before closing his eyes.   After an hour or so of listlessness, the
lulling of the train over the tracks seemed to relax her and she began