by Amy Richie
“Why did you go out in your underwear anyway?” he asked suddenly.
“My what?”
“Those clothes.”
“What about them?”
“Those are not meant to be seen by anyone else, and you just walk around like its nothing.” He walked over to stand in front of me.
I shook my head in confusion. “I just…I don’t…” These clothes weren’t right?
“These are things you wear under your dress. And actually these are not women’s underwear.”
“How do you know?” I looked down at my clothes. “Did you put them on me?”
“What?” He flinched back. “Of course not.”
“I have no memories of these clothes Nickolas,” I said softly. “I don’t know what to say. I am sorry if I embarrassed you.”
“I wasn’t worried about me, Eva.” he nodded towards one of the chairs. “You sit there. I’ll get you a blanket and then start a fire.”
“A fire. Where?”
“In the fireplace.”
I was appalled to see that he was pointing to the hole of ashes. “Don’t you think that would be kind of stupid?”
“Stupid? Why?”
“To start a fire inside your house.” His face was still blank. “Nickolas, your whole house is made of wood. I just don’t think it would be a good idea to start a fire inside of it.”
He laughed sweetly, making me smile despite myself. “You are so funny, Eva,” he said fondly.
I smiled back at him and forced a laugh. I wasn’t trying to be funny.
Chapter Ten
The fire crackled pleasantly in the fireplace. Nickolas lay sprawled on the floor in front of the warm flames. I still sat in one of the wooden chairs, wrapped securely in a blanket. It was pulled close to the fire too.
“Are you still amazed that I have a fire in my house?” Nickolas asked with a grin.
“No. I just couldn’t understand why you would want a fire in your house. Now, I think I understand. It’s kind of nice.” I smiled down at him.
“Yeah, it is kind of nice,” he mimicked, then laughed.
I shook my head but didn’t look at him, afraid I would laugh too. I took another sip of the black liquid he had given me. I tried not to wrinkle my nose. “What is this called again?”
“Do you not like it?”
“Mmm,” I shrugged, “it’s ok.”
“Here, I’ll drink that and I’ll get you some…milk.” He reached for the grey mug.
I felt my nose wrinkle again. “You like this stuff?”
“It’s coffee and,” he took the mug, “yeah, I’ve been known to drink a cup or two.” He laughed again.
At least he was enjoying my temporary memory lapse. “Do you have any apple juice?” I asked brightly. Apple juice sounded good. He looked at me strangely, curiously. “What?”
“Eva, apples don’t grow here. The villagers here probably don’t even know what apple cider is.” He continued to stare.
“But you do.”
“I’m not from around here.”
“Where are you from?”
“The south.”
“That’s a bit broad.”
He flashed his teeth. “Milk?”
“Yeah.”
He jumped up and bounded off to get my glass of milk. I leaned back in my chair and pinched the bridge of my nose. No apples here? I guess I already knew I wasn’t from around here, but it was so frustrating not knowing.
I suddenly heard a voice in my head, “He’s changed his mind Eva. He is his friend.”
I sat upright. “Oh.” I gasped when I looked up and Nickolas was standing in front of me with a glass of milk, just staring.
“Your milk.” He handed me the glass without his easy smile.
“Thanks.” I took a large gulp to avoid his questions.
He sank down to his place on the floor. “So,” he looked up at me with a half-smile.
“So.” I didn’t want him to start asking me questions. I quickly asked the first thing that came to my mind. “Do you have any family?”
“Most people have some sort of family,” he answered easily, “even you.”
“But I can’t remember mine right now. Do you remember yours?” I raised my eyebrows in an attempt to look interested.
He chuckled. “Yes, I do remember my family.”
“And?” I urged him on.
He sighed and settled more comfortably. “I have a sister Elizabeth, and five brothers.”
“And your parents?”
“Died a long time ago.”
“You have only one sister. Are you close to her?”
“Most of the time. We have our moments of disagreement.” I noticed the slight tightening of his mouth.
“And five brothers?” I quickly moved on. “Are you close with them?”
“Yes.”
When it was apparent that he wasn’t going to elaborate, I spoke again. “What was it like growing up with six brothers? Your poor sister.” I took another drink of milk, a smaller one.
“We didn’t actually grow up together. Elizabeth and I did. But the others, we joined and formed a family later.”
“After your parents died?”
“Yes. It was after they died.”
Why was he being so elusive? It seemed as if I wasn’t the only one with secrets. “So where are they now? Why aren’t you together?”
“Well, we are all adult men. We have different ways of life, different interests.” I wondered if he realized he raised his eyebrows when he said interests. “But we travel together at regular intervals.”
“Will they come here?”
“No, they won’t come here.” His eyes grew dark for a moment.
I took a breath to ask another question but he cut me off with a question of his own. “So Eva, what were you going to ask me earlier?” His voice had such a soothing quality to it. It was low and smooth. I couldn’t even pretend to know what he was talking about.
“I was just going to ask about your brothers,” I breathed.
He smiled at me, making me blush and turn away. “I don’t mean right now. I mean earlier, when you came out in your underwear to ask me a question.”
I pretended to glare at him, he just chuckled. “I was just going to ask if you knew my family.”
“Your family?”
“Yeah. I remembered something.” He sat up straighter. “Not a lot,” I was quick to add.
“What did you remember?”
“I was running through the trees. I was being chased by something. There were scratches on my face and arms.”
His forehead crinkled in thought. “I don’t understand why that would prompt you to ask about your family.”
“I must have lived somewhere. Where was I running from? I thought since you live here, you must know something about me or my family.”
“You’re not from around here,” he said without hesitation.
“How do you know?”
“I know.”
“I have to be from somewhere.”
“Agreed.” He didn’t smile at all. “The closest house to this one is more than ten miles out and an elderly man and his wife live there. They have no children.” He was still looking directly at me so I couldn’t say much. “After that you run into the colony and the villages.”
“I might be from one of the villages.” My voice broke a little but he understood.
“Possible. But any village is at least half a day’s ride from here. What were you doing so far from home? Especially considering the wolves.”
“Maybe I didn’t know about the wolves,” I offered.
“Possible,” he said again but this time with a small smile. “But if you mention Hilgar to anyone outside of this area they would immediately think of the wolves.”
“What is Hilgar?”
“That is the name of this area.”
“Oh.” So, if others knew about the wolves, I would have.”
“Yes. That’s something
I can’t place. I can’t imagine why you were in the forests of Hilgar all alone.”
“So you don’t know my family?” I asked stubbornly.
His teeth flashed for a moment. “No, I don’t know your family, but to be fair, I’m not from Hilgar myself. I just recently relocated here to help with the wolf infestation.”
It disturbed me how nonchalantly he talked about werewolves. And it didn’t escape my notice that I knew what a werewolf was. I remembered very little, but I knew what a werewolf was. But I wasn’t completely convinced that they were real.
“Tell me what you remember,” he urged gently. He must have seen the consternation on my face.
“I remember there was a woman. She told me a story about werewolves and…” I hesitated, unsure why, “vampires.”
“Vampires?” That shocked him.
“Yeah,” I nodded. “Have you ever heard of a vampire?”
“Yes.” He gave me a strange look.
“She didn’t think they were real.”
“Vampires? Or werewolves?”
“Both, I think.”
“Was she your mother?”
I tried hard, without much success, to recall the memory completely. “I must have been only three or four,” I said out loud, “and she was sitting on the edge of the bed. I can’t remember if she was my mother or not. But she said some people like to live in a fantasy world.” I saw the woman’s face curl in distaste. “I can’t remember much, but she didn’t think they were real.”
“Well she was wrong.”
We sat in silence for a while longer. He made me eat some bread and cheese and drink more milk. I tried to tell him I wasn’t hungry, but he insisted, and it was hard for me to deny him anything.
After a long time, Nickolas got up off the floor and told me he was going out for a little bit. “I’ll be back soon,” he assured me, “you should sleep. It’s pretty late.”
I couldn’t hide my yawn. I had been yawning for a while. “Ok,” I agreed.
He saw me to the bed and tucked the blanket securely around me. I half expected him to read me a bedtime story. “You’ll be alright here?”
“Yep,” I nodded.
“Well just call if you need me.” He winked and touched the tip of my nose. “Sleep tight Miss. Eva.”
My heart sped up in response. I smiled. I really hoped he wouldn’t ever know how badly my heart reacted to him.
***
I recognized the angel immediately. She was still wearing the white dress, and she was waiting for me. “Eva,” she called. Her radiant smile was intoxicating. “You’ve kept me waiting,” she scolded good naturedly. “Come on, we have much to talk about.” She waved me to her with one delicate hand.
I eagerly rushed forward to meet her. She took my hand in hers. I nearly glowed with awe and happiness. “Hi,” I whispered, afraid to shatter the dream.
Her laughter was a glittering sound, echoing through the whole forest. “I’ve missed you, Eva,” she purred, drawing me close. She led me to a small patch of grass and we sat down.
“Are you here to tell me about the wolves?”
“The wolves? No. the wolves are not important.”
I was confused. “But wasn’t I attacked by the wolves?”
“No, you were not attacked by wolves. We were betrayed.” A fierce anger clouded her flawless features but only for a brief moment.
“Betrayed? By who?”
“By David.” The name brought a strange sensation to my stomach.
Suddenly a roar sounded in the forest. It was so loud that I had to cover my ears. I jumped up, knowing what was coming. “Come on! We have to run!” I desperately pulled on the angel’s hand.
She seemed shocked, disgusted, and most of all disappointed by my reaction. I immediately felt ashamed. She was up before I realized it and she spoke urgent words close to my face. “Eva, we don’t have much time here.” She seemed so upset, it agonized me not knowing what she wanted from me. The growling monster was getting closer. “Just try harder, Eva,” she pleaded. “I know you’ll remember why you are here. You’ll remember your mission and you won’t fail me.”
“I don’t want to fail you,” I sobbed. It confused and disoriented me when the forest started to fade away. I realized though that she didn’t want me to see what was coming next.
I clutched my stomach and cried uncontrollably. I still saw everything. The giant black shape shot out of the forest. It’s razor sharp teeth found contact with her delicate skin. Her dress stained bright red. I sank to my knees and covered my face.
I was still crying when I woke up. “No!” I cried. My breath came out in great gulps. I buried my face in the pillow. Why didn’t I help her? How could I have not helped her?
It was a long time before the sobs stopped. Even then, I just stared up at the dark ceiling. I didn’t want to go back to sleep. But I wished I could sleep as soon as I heard Nickolas return.
I heard the door open and the wind rushed inside, sending a chill up my spine. I snuggled deeper under the blanket. I didn’t want him to think I had been up waiting for him. I heard the sound of his boots hit the floor as he took them off. Then there was complete silence. Trying to hear where he was and what he was doing, I sat up a little in the bed.
“You’re still awake?” Nickolas was just a few feet from my bed. I screamed. At first he was shocked by the sound but then he laughed. “Sorry if I scared you.” His voice was light. I wondered if maybe he’d had too much to drink. I knew that made people laugh more than necessary.
“That’s ok.” The darkness made me feel as if I should whisper even though in reality the only two people in the house were here and awake.
“Couldn’t you sleep?”
“I did for a little while.”
“But?”
“I had a bad dream.”
“About the wolf.”
“Yeah.” If that’s what he wanted to call it.
He yawned loudly. “I’m beat. I’m going to go to sleep. Is there anything you need first?”
“I’m fine.”
He went to the dresser and pulled out a shirt. “Goodnight then,” he said as he backed towards the door.
“Goodnight. Hey Nickolas?”
“Yeah.” He stopped walking.
“Thank you.” I sniffed quietly. “You know, for everything.”
He smiled softly, without showing his teeth. “I’ll see you in the morning Eva. Sleep well.” He left the room then and I didn’t hear anything else from him.
***
In my dream the forest was the same. I was already expecting the angel to come and talk to me, so I sat down on the ground. I brought my legs under me. She wouldn’t make me wait long. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. When I opened them again, she was sitting across from me.
I wasn’t scared though, I knew she would come. The scariness would come later.
“Have you remembered anything yet?”
“No.”
“You need to try Eva.” She brought her hand up to brush my head with her fingertips.
The forest suddenly disappeared. I was in a room and the angel stood beside me. “This is where you live,” she explained in her magical voice.
I looked around me. The room was small with no windows. It had a bed and a small stand beside it. The only other furniture was a large white chair, which was the only thing of comfort in the room. On the bed was a small girl. She wasn’t sleeping, just lying there. “Is that me?”
“Yes.”
“Why am I just lying there?”
She didn’t answer right away. “We didn’t want to crowd your mind with things other than your lessons,” she finally said.
Suddenly the door burst open. Someone stood in the doorway but the light behind them was too bright to see their face. “Hey sleepy head,” a man’s voice called out.
Then, just as suddenly, we were sitting back in the forest. I looked up but the angel wasn’t looking at me. Her attention was drawn to somethin
g lurking in the trees. The wolf. He always came too.
Just as I knew he would, the black shape lunged free of the trees and attacked the angel. She growled and hissed back but, as always, the wolf-creature soon had the upper hand. The angel’s face had a huge tear in it. Jagged pieces of flesh hung from her perfect beauty.
I screamed in horror. For a breath of a second the creature stopped demolishing the angel to look at me. I was shocked in to silence when I realized he had human features. It wasn’t a wolf at all, he was a man.
I bolted upright in bed. I managed to not scream by clamping my hand over my mouth. I kept it there until I was done hyperventilating. I was glad that Nickolas had not woken up, he needed his sleep.
Two dreams in one night, I was afraid to go back to sleep. What did they mean? My subconscious must be trying to remember, but were the things I was seeing real? They didn’t seem real once I was awake, but how could my mind have come up with all those things? Surely I had heard them from somewhere.
Chapter Eleven
The next morning I was awakened by the sun. The rays came through the window and pried at my closed eyes. I groaned and stretched out on the bed. Time to get up, I thought groggily. There had to be something I was supposed to be doing.
The clanking coming from the other room made me open my eyes wider. How could Nickolas possibly be up before me? He had stayed out so late last night. I wondered yet again what he was out doing.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed and put my bare feet on the rough wooden floor. It was warm where the sun touched it. I wiggled my toes in the dancing dust. I pushed myself off the bed and made my way to the dresser where Nickolas already had the bowl of water for me. I smiled, touched by his thoughtfulness.
“Hey, breakfast will be ready in ten minutes,” he called.
“Ok, I’ll be right out.”
“I can bring it in to you.”
I didn’t answer him. I slipped my hands into the warm water and splashed some on my face. It felt nice but what I really needed was a bath and fresh clothes. “Some girl clothes,” I muttered with a pinched face. I cupped my hands and filled them with some of the water. I bent my head low and slurped the water noisily. I would have to ask Nickolas for a cup.
