Chapter 10

She never expected that everything would have ran smoothly. Well, it was still too soon to speak, but at least the most difficult and dangerous part of her plan had been accomplished: she was in the factory, in the inside, safe.

She'd imagined every possible scenario, from her sister refusing to help her, to the worst one: being discovered by a soldier. But Eva didn't put up any resistance, on the contrary, she'd swear to have noticed a flash of excitement in her eyes when she asked her to cover her escape. Maybe she'd finally realised how it feels to live an adventure, a true one, like the ones she'd been avoiding for her whole life. Even if she wasn't living it as a first-hand experience, she was part of it anyway, and before Viktoria went out, she grabbed her hands and smiled at her, apologizing for what she said before about Ben, without even knowing him, and wishing her a happy ending for her story.

She didn't tell her about her dream. She didn't want to bring it up in the whole situation, knowing how much Eva was sceptical every time she would mention it, but that was the actual reason why she couldn't wait until the following night to tell him: it really was too important to keep it in for that long. Besides, her father was recovering fast, and soon he would have dismissed her from her duty and he would have come back to bring Ben the food himself.

Viktoria knew that it would have been safer in that way: she was standing out too much, while her father was right on his workplace, there wasn't anything suspicious in his movements. But just the thought of not be able to see him for who knows how long, broke her heart. That's the reason why she had to take advantage of it and tell him everything, immediately.

She didn't cross anyone on her way, she took some minor roads and the darkness swallowed her. She felt an oppressive, claustrophobic feeling, although she was in the open, in a place she knew very well; but once her eyes got used, she was helped by the moonlight which was feebly illuminating her path.

She'd still got her heart in her throat, when she entered the factory; after she closed the door behind her, she had to stop for a while to catch breath, but she wasn't able to do it.

She couldn't waste not even a second of the time she had with Ben: with the excitement still running in her veins, she ran into her father's office.

She didn't even care about bringing a lamp when she went downstairs. Her movements were so quick and impatient that she almost stumbled on the steps.

"Viktoria..." she heard murmuring in the darkness. The man seemed more worried than surprised.

"I... I can't see..." she felt silly in babbling, but it was the only thing that passed through her mind when she felt as if someone had injected in her veins a powerful tranquilliser. It was the adrenaline suddenly abandoning her body, leaving her with no energy. It was when she got almost at the end of the stairs that the loss of strength made drop also her attention and stumble, but Ben was faster. He embraced her waist with his arm, letting her fall on him, then he put the other arm under her knees and took the girl's weight on himself.

"S-Sorry..." she babbled, trying to see his face in the darkness.

In the very moment she heard Ben's voice she'd been feeling like home. That was the reason why all the fear and the adrenaline had dropped drastically in that moment: after all they weren't from the anxiety of speaking with him, but just from wanting to be with him.

She didn't have time to wonder why he wasn't moving, or he didn't put her down. Actually, she didn't even have time to open her mouth again, because she found herself silenced by his lips.

He did it with no hesitation, confident but not cold at all. In fact, a violent warmth spread in Viktoria's body even before she realised what was happening.

And then, once she'd understood, it was as if that feeling was already in her mind and she was living it again. The movements came natural to her, spontaneous, too grown-up like, for who she was. She brought her arms caressing his nape, she returned that kiss almost taking control of it, while he was going on carefully.

Suddenly, Viktoria snapped, moving away from him and wincing. She could see his face, now that they were so close, and she read concern on it.

"You have to see something." she said, in a cracked voice.

Without asking any questions, he put her down and lit a lamp. When she looked at her, she saw her raising her hand: the index was painted in red. Instinctively, Ben rubbed his nape.

"Don't worry, it's just a..." he minimised, finding a little weird the fact that Viktoria interrupted a moment like that just for a drop of blood. But when he brought back his attention on her, he saw her moving her hair from her nape and turning her back to him.

She had a little dot, in the same identical position of his. And the most surprising thing was that her too was bleeding.

"... mole." he closed his sentence, astonished.

He got closer to her. She was still with her back turned, and when he managed to see her face, he realised she was moved. Something was burning in her chest. It was a feeling she recalled, but she couldn't remember when she lived it, or understand if it was a good or a bad feeling. She just knew that it was right for them to be there together. That kiss had unlocked something: she knew everything would've never be the same.

Ben tried to comfort her, stroking her head and holding her, but they absolutely had to talk. He was probably thinking it was just a coincidence, but Viktoria knew it wasn't like that: there were too many things, they couldn't just be random.

"Nothing happened." he reassured her, while he kept passing his hand through her hair.

Viktoria couldn't find the words. "It's not true that nothing happened!" she would had screamed, but that feeling didn't abandon her yet and she just wanted to enjoy those cuddles, to breathe his perfume, to snuggle in his deep voice. She'd deserved it, after all.

"Anne." he said, unexpectedly.

She winced, surprised, moving away again to look at his face, but without losing contact with his arms that were holding her. Ben was smiling.

"Anne." he repeated. "It's the name I say in my sleep." he confessed. "My wife thought I had a lover named Anne." he chuckled amused. But Viktoria wasn't exactly amused: she was staring at him open-mouthed and wild-eyed.

"Why don't..." she was about to ask.

"Because I didn't know how to explain that to you." he replied, without even listening to her whole question. "I should have told you everything I wrote in the letter and I didn't know how. Included the fact I speak French in my sleep... Which is maybe the most absurd thing among all."

After a moment of loss and disbelief, Viktoria too saw the funny part of the matter.

She started giggling. Then she laughed, trying to contain herself, pressing her hand on her mouth.

"I don't even know what I'm saying, I don't know anyone who speaks French to translate!" he reinforced the joke, making her laughing louder.

Despite the amusement of the moment, Ben tried to silence her, with a hiss before and with another kiss then, which the girl savour fully.

"They're not coincidence." she whispered.

Now she could talk lightly, the tension had been muffled.

"The mole, your dreams... My dreams."

"Your dreams?" he repeated. Viktoria nodded.

"Since when I was a child... I've been dreaming of being in a sumptuous palace's room, with a dress from another time, from another place." she left behind on purpose the fact that she was holding a baby in her arms, replacing that part with a short silence. "Always the same dreams, for years and years, since when I recall. And then, when I met you... I dreamt of a man who came to take me away. I was dragged in a prison. Then some men came to free me, and..."

She went back looking into his eyes and it appeared like he was devouring that story and that he couldn't wait to listen what she would have said next.

"And I met you." she ended. "Ben, I..."

"You were a Queen." he stated, in a disenchanted air. "You were a Queen in your dream, weren't you?"

Viktoria nodded again slightly. Ben grabbed her hand and kissed it. He pressed his lips sharply against the back of her hand for a few seconds.

He seemed satisfied to her. It looked like he finally had found an answer to his questions and apparently he had clearer ideas than her, who kept wondering if her dreams would have continued and how, what her grandmother knew about that and above all what meant those signs that the fate was showing on her way.

Maybe God had something to do with that? She wondered if she could have found answers right in faith, and why she didn't think about that before.

When Ben spoke again, however, gave her another thing to consider. Something that would've made her forget for a while that supernatural story.

"Now I get why I've loved you since the first moment I met you. You were already part of me."