Den was so surprised to see such behavior from Stella. She almost looked like a vampire right now, with that growl in the back of her throat and that defensive crouch.
But the next instant he caught the smell of whatever threat McCartney had already perceived. The one she was running from. A vampire, Den was completely sure of that. But the weird part was that the smell, or stench, according to Den, seemed oddly familiar.
Den's lips curled back over his teeth and a snarl escaped his lips, and he turned around and took a defensive position, pushing McCartney behind his back.
The next instant, the pursuer came into view and Sharp let out such a venomous hiss that he stopped in his tracks. Even Stella was surprised as she looked at his back, surprised.
"Christopher . . . . " Sharp spat out, his lips still curled over his teeth. "Christopher?" Did Sharp know this vampire, Stella wondered. The next moment, she got her answer as the man supposedly name Christopher let out a smile full of venom and hissed, "Darius. Don't tell me you've fallen so low as to protect a human."
Darius? Stella barely had time to wonder before Christopher spoke again, "Oh right! You've been doing this for quite a while now."
Stella felt the anguish coming from Sharp's mind and saw the quick succession of images of Helen for a split second before rage took over his mind.
Thanks to her mind reading and superior speed, Stella grabbed at Sharp's arm and pulled before he had the time to put his violent thoughts in action.
Sensing the pull, Den hesitated for a split second. And that was all the time Stella required. She focused all her attention on Christopher and screamed in her mind, "STOP!" and that did the trick.
Christopher dropped unconscious on the ground. But Stella had no control over her powers, and though she was focusing on Christopher, Sharp was also affected as he stumbled and landed on his knees.
"Sharp! Are you okay?!?" Stella shrieked as Den stood up with a hand on his forehead.
"Was this you?" he asked, pointing towards Christopher. "Why didn't you do this before?" he asked with a chuckle when Stella nodded.
"I wasn't sure it would work. What if it didn't." she replied with a shrug and Sharp nodded.
He seemed to have recovered by this time as he shook his head and blinked a few times before groaning.
The next instant, Stella realised why. Sharp had come to find her without covering himself up. Though he was wearing full pants, a jacket and shoes, his hands and head was bare. "You're gonna have very bad sunburns!" Stella exclaimed as she quickly dragged him into the shade.
"You think?" Sharp replied with an eye roll.
"Oh god! I'm so sorry!! I had no idea something like this would happen!" Stella blurted an apology as soon as Sharp was out of the sun.
She stared at him for a few seconds, worried about how Sharp was going to react. Stella let out a breath she did not know she was holding when Sharp let out a tired smile and said, "I suppose it's my fault. Seeing how big of a trouble magnet you are, I shouldn't have let you out of my sight."