Violet Baudelaire sat in the window seat of her fourth story apartment in the city where she had been born. Despite all the horrors that had taken place here, she couldn't leave this place. Though she had had her share of bad memories in this city, this was the place where she had spent the happier days of her life. And there was Erik. Though she was just 18, she truly felt that he was the man she would spend the rest of her life with. When Violet had found herself alone with an enormous fortune that she didn't know how to handle, Erik had offered her help and security. He was 20 years old, and worked as a bellhop in a local hotel. When he found her crying on a bench on his way home from work, he couldn't help but reach out to her. He asked her what was wrong, and she spilled her whole life story to him, and voiced her worries over her brother and sister who had been separated and sent to live with separate guardians.

For the first time in her life, Violet was completely alone. At 18, she was too old to be cared for, but too young to care for herself. The years between now and her parents death had been taken from her, and left her no opportunity to gain the knowledge that would prepare her for adulthood. Although she was more mature than most 18-year-olds, she had absolutely no idea how to handle money, how to balance a checkbook, or how to secure a place to live. Erik had helped her with all that, and he promised to protect her from the cruel world she was unprepared for. They became fast friends, and he visited her almost everyday.

Tonight he was coming over for dinner, and she was sitting by the window waiting for him as she often did. Violet spent a lot of time sitting here and staring out the window because she didn't really have much else to do. She still had her love for inventing things, but after the trauma of the past few years she found she had little ambition to invent. Every so often, she would be struck with a burst of happiness, often triggered by a happy memory of the past, and she would be inspired and invent all sorts of interesting gadgets for her apartment, but today she was unmotivated. She was feeling more depressed than usual, but she wasn't sure why. She felt like something was very wrong. Why was Erik taking so long? Violet stared out the window for him. She could usually spot him by his crown of yellow hair, and the cheerful way he walked. Finally, she saw him walking toward her apartment, but his cheerful step was gone and she noticed he was carrying a newspaper under his arm.

When she heard the familiar knock on her door and opened it, she found a solemn look in his usually laughing blue eyes.

"What's the matter Erik?"

"Violet I think we should sit down." She followed him to the kitchen table and took a seat beside him.

"Have you seen the paper today?"

"No."

"Well I think you should." He said, laying the paper down on the table. Violet's eyes shot straight to the headline and she felt a familiar knot tighten up in her stomach as she read the words,

MURDEROUS COUNT ESCAPES FROM PRISON

Violet's entire body went numb. So many emotions were flooding her that she didn't know what to feel. Anger, fear, sorrow…

"Oh-god Erik, and just when I was beginning to feel safe again."

"Violet, you are safe. I won't let anyone hurt you." Erik hugged her and she felt a silent tear roll down her cheek.

"He doesn't know you're here. Besides what would he want with you? Your 18 now, the fortune is yours. His chance is over."

"You don't understand Erik. When Count Olaf gets his heart set on something, he won't stop until he has it. He won't rest until he has my fortune."

"There there Violet. Everything will be alright." Violet shook her head in his embrace, knowing that everything certainly would not. Erik's optimism was one of the things that attracted Violet to him, but she knew that all the positive thinking in the world wouldn't keep her safe from the greedy count.

This nightmare would never end.

I hope you enjoyed it. People have said before that I write chapters too "rushed". Do you think this one was rushed and if so what should I do to work on that? Thanks! Reviews would be greatly appreciated. I live for reviews