The Fallen Queen of Eden Ch. 01

"Does this have anything to do with why you're on edge?" he asked. Lilith stared at a plastic skeleton hanging on the wall that shook periodically in an attempt to seem frightening. As if the ride makers knew anything about being scared. The truth was, she had only learned how it felt to be afraid in the last few months and it was more real than anything a set of plastic bones could achieve.

"Yes," she answered.

"Are . . . are you sure you're okay?" he continued. She raised her shoulders, shrugging with a sigh. How could she answer what she didn't know?

"I'm not sure, I'm not sure of anything anymore. I just know I need to get away from here."

"Where are you trying to go?"

"It doesn't matter. Anywhere. I've been all over the world a dozen times over." she laughed slightly. "I've even been to Hell. All that's important is that I get out of this town."

The ride vehicle rumbled out of the haunted house and stopped behind all the other cars. Then the safety bar was raised so the passengers could get off. Lilith looked around but didn't see anyone familiar in the crowd. No words were spoken as she walked down the stairs, her eyes looking over every part of the ride circuit suspiciously. She couldn't even trust the shadows. At the bottom, Eli presented her to his friends then finished his introductions with a smug 'told you she was real'.

At Eli's insistence, she followed the group back down the Midway passing The Scrambler, The Gyrotower, The Kamikaze and more. The sound of the loud ride music combined with screams of laughter filled her ears. There were so many people all around having a great time, yet Lilith felt she just had to get out of the fair. She had none of her supernatural strength or ability to protect herself and was sure she was being watched from everywhere. She just couldn't shake her paranoia and fear. The only thing that managed to break through her suspicious thoughts was the realization that she had been asked a question.

"I-I'm sorry . . . what did you say?"

"There's still an hour to kill before the concert starts so we were trying to decide what ride to go on," one of Eli's friends explained. "Which ones do you like?"

"I like . . ." Lilith's looked around at the rides, their bright flashing lights reflecting in her emerald eyes. For a moment she thought she saw that face lurking near the Ferris wheel and realized she couldn't do this anymore. "Um, here." She handed her tickets over to one of the guys. "I-I have to go. Ride whatever you like, it's on me."

Lilith imagined that Eli was probably relieved at her departure and glad to have dodged a bullet. She was wrong though. As he watched her walk away, he was keenly aware that this woman was truly afraid and seemed to have nowhere to turn. He reminded himself that this strange girl's problems didn't concern him and it would be better if he ignored the situation and let her disappear from his life as quickly as she had appeared. Most people would do that and it wasn't as if she had asked him for any assistance. Unfortunately, he couldn't silence the voice inside that kept telling him that he needed to help her, even if it was only so she could have a safe place to sleep for the night. Unable to ignore his conscience any longer, he reached into his pocket and took out his concert ticket and held it out to his buddies. Immediately the complaints and grumbling started.

"You're ghosting us for some weird chick you don't even know?"

"She needs help . . ." he tried to explain, but his friend's sense of compassion was not equal to his own.

"Don't get involved," each of his friends warned "You don't know anything about her or her situation and the last thing you need is a bunch of unnecessary drama. You stick your neck out for her and you're going to end up having it shot off." There was a lot of truth in what they said and he knew it. Eli looked down at the ticket in his hand than in the direction Lilith had gone.

"Well if I know you guys, you'll have no trouble scalping it," he responded, shoving the concert ticket into one of their hands then taking off in the same direction he had seen her go.

At first, he thought he had waited too long and she was gone, but then he caught sight of her as she exited the fairgrounds. Eli followed her down the sidewalk calling out her name a couple of times, but with the crowds, traffic and loud music it was no surprise she couldn't hear him. She disappeared into the parking lot of the zoo that was next door to the fair and Eli hurried his steps to catch up to her. He barely made it a hundred feet into the lot when in the blink of an eye something wrapped around his ankles and caused him to fall on the ground. Before he could look to see what it was, Lilith pounced on him like a cat on its prey, ready to attack.

"Why are you following me?" she demanded, then saw for the first time just who it was. "Er, Eli . . . I thought . . . I thought you were someone else."

"So I see," he responded, catching his breath. Immediately she began to unbind his ankles, apologizing as she did. He looked to see what it was and was surprised to find her strange belt wrapped around him.

"You tripped me with your belt?"

"It's not a belt, although I wear it that way. It's called a rope dart and I can do a lot more damage to you with it then you might expect." Given how quickly she had taken him down, he didn't doubt her word.

While he was relieved to know she had some means of protecting herself, he suspected that she still had nowhere to go. Eli got up and dusted off the dirt from the seat of his pants as Lilith once more wrapped the rope dart around her waist.

"I have no idea what's going on with you, but you look like you could use a safe place to sleep tonight."

"You shouldn't get involved in this, trust me."

"It's just one night and I have a spare room." He stretched out his hand to her and for a moment she was afraid to take it. She had never relied on anyone but herself, but that was before she had lost everything. She couldn't imagine why this man wanted to help her and she was so unsure of whom to trust. "Come on, it will be okay."

Finally, she took his hand and he led her around to the other side of the carnival grounds where a high school stood. Eli parked at a small building that had long been annexed to the school along with its parking lot. Looking around, Lilith wondered which of the cars was his, only to see him stop in front of a pretty black Yamaha FJR. She was impressed. She asked him questions regarding cylinders and fuel capacity which he answered as he unlocked his helmet. It was then that he realized he wasn't carrying the spare beanie helmet that he kept for when his last girlfriend rode with him. He always let her wear his full-face helmet while he wore the beanie, but this morning he had taken it out of one of the side bags when he was cleaning his bike.

"Okay, here's the thing, I know that the law says that you have to have a helmet, but I only have this one on me right now. It's not that I mind you wearing it but I am the driver and if I die then we both die," he explained a bit sheepishly. He then reached into his small glovebox and got out a neoprene half face mask and cloth stocking cap. "Maybe we can fake it," he smiled, handing them to her. "At least it will keep you from swallowing bugs."

"This will be fine," Lilith smiled and pulled the stocking cap down over her head.

Once they had suited up Eli took off down the street with her holding tight to him around the waist. She wondered if she was doing the right thing. What would he say if he knew who she was . . . what she was? Lilith Eden was not what she appeared to be. She was something far older and normally she was far more powerful. Were it not for one accidental moment then she still would be and her problem would be solved, but what was done, was done. She would figure out something tomorrow, but for now, she would just sit back and enjoy the ride.