Oh, I love a good intrigue. That's why I write. So, keep reading, my good people! I own none of the characters except David, Luke, and Serenity, as of yet. Happy reading! Here's Chapter Fourteen.

Confrontation

Erik's thoughts swam in turmoil as he stormed through the maze of corridors he had not set foot in for over sixteen years. A daughter! Two daughters! And Christine had left so suddenly. She had not even thought to tell him goodbye. Now, he had returned to find her already here, with a child he had fathered suddenly jutting into his life. And what a child! Every bit as beautiful as her mother, but with a dark, mysterious beauty that penetrated through her skin. Long, curling black hair cascading to her waist, a tall, slim figure, and those eyes. Such eyes, brightest gold, flecked with darker copper in the center. Portals to her soul, windows which she left unashamedly open for anyone to look and see her true self. She was so intelligent, so passionate, and so perceptive. Erik had only spent five minutes with the girl, but already he knew all this, and he felt a kinship with her. He could scarcely believe she was his. These thoughts, deep and filled with pain, curiosity, and something he had not yet fathomed swirled in his mind as his long strides devoured the darkness.

Erik found his love in the same room she had used so many years before; the one with the trapdoor mirror. Her head snapped up as she heard it slide open, her eyes filling with tears and disbelief as she watched her lover, lost so many years ago, walk silently back into her life.

"Erik," she sighed. She stood up and walked to him, passion, love, and joy mingling in her gaze. He glared at her coldly.

"Christine," he said almost cruelly, scorn edging his voice. She drew back, startled.

"Erik, what? I -"

"How could you not tell me?" he demanded.

"What? When I left you? There was no time, everything happened so fast..."

"My daughters, Christine! Two daughters were born to me, to us, children who should have inherited my name! Now one is lost, and I will never know her, never see her laugh or cry, never hear her voice!"

"Who told you?" she whispered sadly.

"It does not matter. Christine, even the daughter who lives is a complete stranger to me. She is my flesh and blood! I had a right to know of their existence!"

"I did not know I was pregnant, obviously, until after I had fled. I never thought I would return here, until Megan died. I thought it would be best if neither you nor the children knew of each other's identity. It seemed it would be easier for all of us if you did not know, since you would never have been able to see them."

"God, Christine, had I known, had I even the slightest idea where you went, I would have come to you! I searched for months for you! No one had seen or heard from you. It was as though you had truly vanished!"

"You... would have come to me? After my second betrayal?"

He sighed deeply. "Did I not once tell you I would love you forever? I do not take such vows lightly."

"Oh, Erik," she whispered, and began to weep. The loneliness, the longing of the last sixteen years finally broke through, and the sadness of what she had lost overwhelmed the woman. She sat down again on the bench, and covered her face with her hands.

Erik watched her quietly, taking her in her mature beauty. She was much the same as she had been so long ago; slim figure, delicate hands, long brown curls, brown eyes flecked with copper. Her face, though, had turned from youthful innocence to the wizened look of a woman who had seen the hardships of the world. Finally he permitted himself to glance at her lips, the taste of them lingering long past a decade. He desperately wanted to claim them even now.

After a few minutes of silence, he sighed again and sat down next to her, pulling her into his embrace. He kissed her forehead, and leaned his own head on hers. She pulled away slightly to look at him, as he bent slowly to kiss the tears on her cheek. She put her fingers on his unmasked cheek, and sighed softly as he captured her mouth. They kissed tenderly, gently, the love lost over sixteen years finding its way back into their hearts. The pair sat together for hours, talking quietly about their lives; except one dark secret, the reason Christine had fled, which crouched at the corner of her mind and gave her no peace.