Authors' Note: Thank you guys so much for the awesome response to the prologue. I'm glad you are interested and I really love reading the feedback, so please continue to do so. Here is the first chapter, I honestly really enjoyed writing in Rebekah's point of view. Hopefully I did her justice and her tone was represented well. Please let me know your thoughts. Enjoy :)
Chapter I: Vengeance Is Coming
(Rebekah's Point Of View)
I looked at Nicklaus from afar, his malicious stare burned right through me as he sat beside the crackling camp fire. Sixteen years later and I could still feel the sting, the deep feeling of disappointment, the harsh feeling of resentment he felt towards me. I couldn't blame him though, now could I? I let him down at a time when everything relied on me, when the only thing he ever cared about rested solely in the sanctuary of my hands.
I failed him.
"Rebekah, must you isolate yourself so far from us?" Elijah approached, asking with the deepest of sympathy, "distance does not repair tarnished threads"
"Yes, well neither does keeping company in a place you're clearly unwelcomed in Elijah" I retorted, not necessarily directing my frustration towards him, "He absolutely hates me, why should I stay where I'm unwanted?"
Elijah breathed adamantly as he took a seat beside me on the tainted tree stump, "Hate is a strong word Rebekah, perhaps irate would be more suitable?" I grimaced at his suggestion; clearly Elijah must've noticed how unrepairable Nicklaus's feelings were. There wasn't anything too strong about my choice of words; he hated me. It was clear as day. "You've found her, that's all that matters now. You're correcting a mistake you made. A mistake that was not entirely your fault Rebekah, it was an accident. Nicklaus knows this"
I appreciated my noble brothers' words of optimism; but none of it mattered. Even with my searching all these years for Hope, and my recent discovery of her location; it still didn't erase the fact that I'd lost her to begin with. That I allowed someone, a man, to let my guard down; to make me so vulnerable. It was my selfish desires that led to that horrible night… that led to my defining moment as a failure.
...[Flashback - December 2014]...
Micco was his name. He was tall, tanned skin; dark eyes that captivated me whole. He was one of the first people I met when Hope and I arrived to Port Townsend, Washington.
It was a small town, very calm and quiet, consisting of about nine thousand people total. I chose such a place because it felt quite secluded from the outside world… it felt safe. In a town most have never heard of, I figured Hope would no longer be in danger. We could get a small house by woods, and she could grow up with at least a tiny bit of normalcy in her life, considering her very eventful life thus far.
She was 11 months old when we finally finished settling into our little cabin by the woods. I was rather proud of my decorating skills at the time; modernizing up the place and making it very comfortable and family-like. I had never given much thought to raising a child before, unable to reproduce and all that; however, Hope had quickly, in the very short time she and I spent together, had become my one and only priority. I didn't have to be her mum to understand the love I had for my darling niece.
Hopes' first birthday was in just a couple of days, and I wanted to make the anniversary of her birth special. We didn't know very many people in town, so I wasn't going to throw any kind of parties; but nonetheless, an enjoyable cake, along with an overload of colorful balloons would do the trick.
We made our way into town the day before. It was cold as ever and the wind was howling. That was only downside of Port Townsend; the weather was rather dreary most of the time. As we approached a small bakery and I carefully tried to maneuver the baby stroller through the door, Micco approached us on his way out, and held the door open for me, releasing my struggles.
"Thank you" I said briefly. He was a handsome man, and I tried my best not to blush as I walked past.
"You're very welcome" he said with a nice bright smile, "She is adorable by the way," he knelt down in front of the stroller to say hello to Hope. Normally I would have been weary of anyone so close to her; but something about him came off very friendly and welcoming. He stood back up and extended his hand towards me, "I'm Micco. Are you new to the area?" I placed my hand in his for a short second; but released it rather quickly when he tensed a little. "I'm sorry, your skin… it's just so soft. I'm a masseuse, I notice those sorts of things", he laughed and I didn't feel so worried any longer.
"Well I'm Rebekah, and yes, we are relatively new to town" I said with a pleasant smile, still trying not to socialize too much as I began scoping the glass cases filled with all different flavored cakes.
"Ah. Well I can hear from your accent that you originate from Europe. That's nice, I like it. We don't see too many newcomers in this town, especially anyone with a heritage outside of Washington State, let alone a different country. It's a nice change", I smiled, but did not respond and simply went about my business. He stood there for a few seconds, watching us. I could tell that he'd like to chat a bit longer, but I was so hesitant to get too close with anyone, for Hopes' sake that I did not reciprocate. However, Micco proceeded, "The raspberry vanilla is amazing by the way, if I had to suggest any flavor to try, it would be that one", he pointed to the delicious looking cake on display.
I glanced over at him, he now had completely abandoned his desire to exit the bakery all together; obviously very interested in making friends with me. Hesitantly I cleared my through and once again gave a pleasant grin, "Well, raspberry vanilla it is then. If you proclaim it is so delicious, than I mustn't pass it up." A small snicker left his mouth, and I had to admit; I was a tad bit smitten by him at that point.
"Well I promise you, you won't regret it" he assured, and then stared down at Hope once more in the stroller, "I'd love to hang out sometime with you Rebekah, and I can show you around town, you and your daughter"
My mind went blank for a split second and I almost found myself replying that she was not mine; but thankfully I caught myself, "Really, thank you for the offer; but, I'm a little busy at the moment. Lots of unpacking and getting settled, you know?"
Micco nodded, sure not to pressure the question any longer, "No, I completely understand. Maybe we'll run into each other another day in the near future, when things have eased up for you and you're not so busy anymore"
I smiled, "Maybe".
"Well, I better get going. It was nice to meet you Rebekah" he then kneeled down to Hope again, grabbing a hold of her hand gently, "and it was nice to meet you as well." I didn't think anything of his friendliness; actually I found it rather nice to have an adult conversation with anyone really. The prior eleven months had been nothing but baby talk and the occasional phone calls from Elijah, Nicklaus, and Hayley. It was an understatement to say I was feeling a bit, lonely.
"It was nice to meet you as well Micco" I simply replied as he returned to a standing position. He gave one last nod before exiting the shop, turning to look back one last time before closing the door behind him.
I would be lying if I said I wasn't secretly hoping I'd run into him again. He was extremely attractive and seemed like a genuine person. Key word… seemed. One should never underestimate someone simply by what they perceive them to be, I learned that the hard way.
About a week or so later, I'd run in to Micco again; this time at the nearest supermarket. We made quick conversation again; but, as I did in the bakery, I tried my best to carry along. However, after that, I seemed to be running into him almost every other day. While walking in town, while retrieving my mail from the nearest post office, even while visiting the local car sales place to trade in my beloved two-seater for a more 'mother-like' vehicle. It was like everywhere I'd gone, I'd seen him. I perceived it as some kind of sign from the universe that perhaps I should give this guy a chance; however, words cannot simply explain just how wrong I was in thinking so.
I finally gave in, and after half a dozen run-ins, I allowed him to join both Hope and I for a nice day at the local children's museum. He met us there at opening time, and we had a rather nice afternoon; Hope explored the many baby mazes and exhibits, and Micco and I chatted the entire time. We talked about our plans for the future; he spoke about his childhood growing up in some reservation just west of town. He was very welcoming to me, and after feeling isolated for so long, I guess you could say I was entertaining the attention I was receiving.
Before leaving, he asked if Hope and I would like to join him for dinner the following night at a nice restaurant not far from our house. I agreed, without hesitation and basically spent the entire night thinking about it afterwards. Yes, I was naïve and rather oblivious to the suspicion of his wanting to get to know us so intensely; but I was so sick of being alone, being an outsider once again and hiding from everyone, that I fell deep into his love lust trap. I had run my entire life, trying to stay hidden from my father for so long that I just simply hated having to do it all over again. I loved Hope dearly; but the constant fear of being detected was a dreadful thing to live by.
The next evening, Hope and I met Micco at the restaurant. 'Blue Sunday' was the name, and it was an amazingly beautiful French restaurant with a view of the cliffs right outside the large windows. At first I feared that Hope would not cooperate sitting for so long in such a nice place, being that she was only a year old; however, Micco made me feel extremely comfortable and assured me that it would not be a problem if we needed to leave early for any reason.
Surprisingly, Hope did exceptionally well and we stayed for the entire duration of our meal, as well as desert. Again, we enjoyed conversation about all different things, and he went out of his way to make me feel adored by his many flattering comments regarding my outfit and hair. The attention and my increasing interest in his personality led to my inviting him back to our home for coffee. I wouldn't have normally done so, after all, I was trying to keep our home hidden from everyone, against us or not. However, I was really enjoying Micco's company, and decided to completely go against my own rule.
One arriving back home, Micco waited patiently for me to set Hope down for bed in her room. Once she was fast asleep, I joined him in the living area. We talked for about another hour over coffee, before he kissed me.
At first I wasn't sure whether or not to continue; but it just felt so right. I really found myself taking a liking to him. Our kiss grew stronger, and as the passion pressed onward I felt his hand slip underneath my dress, softly grazing the skin of my bare thigh.
I should have stopped him, I should have made him leave; but something inside me fought against my better conscience. There was no turning back, the heat of our bodies multiplied and before I knew it we were in my bedroom and completely unclothed.
Things turned intimate rapidly, and we enjoyed, or I thought we enjoyed a very emotional connection as our bodies became one for quite some time. It was one of the best I'd ever had honestly, and not long after we both drifted to sleep, naked in each other's arms. Once again, I should have never allowed Micco to stay, I should have never allowed any of it to happen and I will regret it for the rest of my eternity.
Hours later, as the sun was just beginning to graze over the horizon, I opened my eyes and without hesitation I stretched my arm behind, looking for the soft skin of the man I'd had such a wonderful night with. But to my dismay, I felt nothing but the cold sheets beneath my hand.
Instantly I sat up, looking around the room in confusion. Where had he gone? His clothes were no longer on the floor, and there wasn't any trace of his sent left in the room. Instantly I felt used. Another deceiving man who obtained the one thing he wanted and leaving me to feel like some worthless prostitute who gave it up too easily.
I stretched myself out of bed and grabbed a long T-shirt from the dresser drawer, still mentally scolding myself for being so easy.
As I exited my bedroom, I glanced over at Hope's bedroom door. It was closed, just as I left it. I made my way towards the kitchen area and then the living room area, double checking just in case he was still around; but he was gone. It was official. What we had was nothing more than a pitiful one night stand.
I was just about to go into the bathroom to take a shower and try to wash the shame off of my body, when I suddenly felt a wave of nervousness overcome me. Why didn't I smell Hopes' scent? Since I'd woken up, I hadn't sensed her at all. Feeling a little concerned, I quietly creaked open her bedroom door and made my way towards the crib.
Nothing could have prepared me for the helplessness I felt the minute I seen an empty crib with nothing in it besides her soft purple blanket. My heart honestly felt as if it stopped beating in my chest and every bit of anxiety rose to the point that I could no longer breathe.
I was panicking and I didn't know the first thing to do. I had no clue how to respond. Nothing but fear, failure, and nervousness filled my mind. I clenched on to the bars of the crib as I felt myself hyperventilating.
"Hope!" I shouted, as if she'd answer me or magically reappear in her crib like nothing happened.
My knees were shaking and I tried to pull myself forward as fast as I could, racing to my cell phone in the other room. I felt my breathing starting to shallow as my fingers desperately slid across the screen searching for Elijah's name.
The phone rang. It rang and rang, and it felt like hours before he finally answered.
"Hello Sister" Elijah's voice flooded my ears.
"El- Elijah" I breathed heavily.
Instantly his tone of voice changed, "Rebekah? What's the matter? What's going on?"
"Elijah, she's gone…" I felt myself beginning to collapse on the floor, "Hope, I can't find her. She's gone!"
The conversation continued, most likely with Elijah panicking and asking a hundred questions; but I simply don't remember the rest of the conversation. Everything in the room was spinning, and my heart was racing so fast that I my body felt completely numb.
How could I have been so stupid? How did I not see this was all a trap? She was gone, and it was all because of me! I absolutely hated myself. I despised every part of my being.
It was by far the lowest point of my life.
...[Flashback over]...
"Rebekah?" Elijah's voice brought my thoughts back to current times, "Rebekah did you hear me?"
I shook my head no, the pain of that dreadful day still burning so intensely in my heart, "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you"
"I said that you mustn't hold on to your guilt any longer. That man took advantage of you; he took advantage of your kindness to get what he wanted. When we find out where in Alaska Hope actually is, we will find Micco as well, and he will know the same pain we have all felt these last sixteen years, even if I have to make sure of it myself."
I looked at Elijah with an agreeing nod. If there was anyone that was going to seek revenge on Micco, it was me. "Oh, trust me brother. I've already thought of the ways I plan to make him suffer for the rest of his dreadful life. He's going to wish he'd never stepped foot in that bakery sixteen years ago"
Elijah knew I was determined, and I was not going to give up until I did just as I said. Vengeance was coming for Micco, and it was so close I could taste it...
Don't forget to review! Good or bad, I appreciate it either way.