Elena Lincoln was looking out the helicopter, thinking about the call she received 24 hours ago. It was Christian's butler, saying that she was needed in Tinos. As a sigh escaped her plump red lips, she couldn't imagine how her long time friend had the strength to live his life. Tragedy after tragedy Christian had to experience and still, he was able to get up in the morning and live another day.
When Christian's son died three years ago, he was inconsolable. Calinico immediately had called Elena and without hesitation, she was in Tinos within five days. She wanted to be there earlier, but all the flights were delayed because of very bad weather. When she arrived at the villa, Christian had left a trail of destruction! He had rearranged his bedroom and the living room completely. Elena had found him in the library on his knees with a picture of Demetrios in his hand, as gut wrenching sobs escaped his pale lips. That day Christian was a totally different man; Elena almost didn't recognize him. Christian had dark bags under his eyes and he rambled on and on about the family curse.
From Calinico, Elena had heard that Christian hadn't eaten and showered for a couple of days, he hadn't gone to work either. And they hadn't held the funeral for his son, cause Christian had REFUSED to bury his little boy. It took Elena the whole night to get through to him. And finally she was able to get Christian to take a shower and eat something. Two days later, Christian buried his baby boy. His face, a picture of calmness. Outsiders would think that Christian had a cold heart, but Elena and Christian's employees knew better.
During that period, Elena had stayed a week in Tinos. She stayed till she was convinced that Christian, was going to be OK. With a heavy heart, she went back home though. Because Elena didn't want to leave her best friend alone in a huge empty villa, the villa where his son had died. A place where Demetrios didn't walk and ran through the halls anymore. Elena really didn't want to leave, but she had to go back home to her job and life.
The whole time that she was at Christian's, Elena had kept her emotions in check. But the second she arrived home, Elena let her tears flow freely. Demetrios was such a good little boy. He was an amazing kid.
"Why? Why, God?" she softly said, as a loud sob escaped her lips.
Why did something like this had to happen? Elena never liked Leila, but from that day she despised the woman with all her heart...
And now, Elena was back in Tinos. The reason was yet again a tragedy that has struck Christian. But this time it was Christian whose life was in danger. As Elena thought about the worst case scenario, freezing chills went up and down her spine. No! She should not think like that! She had to stay positive! Christian will get through this. That, Elena was sure of! He was a very strong person, physically and mentally. Christian will most definitely get through this ordeal. He will get better.
As Elena stepped out of the helicopter, she inhaled the fresh air of Tinos. She felt at home...
The moment Elena arrived at the villa, Calinico immediately welcomed her inside. They went to the library and as Elena took a seat in a chair, Calinico poured them two drinks, one for himself.
After Elena accepted her drink, Calinico sat right next to her."I'm so glad you're here, Miss Elena." Calinico said, while drinking his scotch. He then continued, while nervously sipping at the strong drink. "Sorry that you have to see me like this, but I always drink when I'm worried."
"It's OK, Calinico. Tell me what happened, from the start please." Elena said, while watching the butler, her hand clenching the glass.
At that, the older man told Elena the whole story.
After it all sank in, Elena said."So, uuhm… it's all true? The curse and everything? Also that Agathe has finally returned? And Christian believes this?"
The older man shook his head."Deep down, Mr. Christian does believe in it, but uhmm, he doesn't want miss Ana involved in any of it." he said, the tone of his voice sad.
"Now I'm curious. I have got to see her! Does she kind of look like Agathe?" Elena asked.
The butler shook his head and replied."Nope, Ana looks exactly like Agathe. And she's very nice too, I like her a lot. "
At that, Elena thought very hard."Calinico, when Christian carried her here to the villa, was he in his 'you know what' form?" she carefully asked, her voice a mere whisper.
The older man nodded, while sipping his drink constantly.
Elena's mouth slightly fell open, at that."Wow! I've known Christian a very long time, but never have I seen him in his 'other' form." she replied, while staring at a point in the room.
At that, Calinico said."I have seen him and Yorgos many times in their 'other' form, but let me tell you… I will never get used to it."
"Scary, huh?" Elena asked, her eyes darting towards the painting of Agathe.
The butler shook his head at that." No, to describe it, I wouldn't use the word scary. Scary is still mild compared to what you feel, when you see Christian in his other form. Terrifying would be the correct term, Miss Elena." He replied, and swallowed hard.
"Did Mr. Steele see Christian in his ..." Elena asked, but didn't finish the question.
"No, when Ana's father saw Mr. Christian, he had already changed back into his normal form." Calinico answered.
"Phew! That's a relieve, because I really wouldn't know how we could explain it to the man, if he had seen Christian like that." Elena replied.
"I know what you mean, Miss." The butler replied.
"So, what did uhmm... what kind of damage did Christian do on Yorgos?" Elena asked.
"He is in intensive care; it must have been one gruesome fight." The older man replied, as the hairs on the back of his neck stood up.
Elena drank her glass till it was empty."So, they fought because of Ana? Yorgos wanted to try to break the curse by using her? But Christian didn't approve of that?" she asked.
The older man nodded at that." Do you know Galya? She was a very good friend of Christian's grandmother." Calinico asked.
"Yes, I think I've met her once or twice. Is she the one who always tries to convince Christian that the family curse was real?" Elena asked.
"Yes, she's the one. Well, apparently she saw Ana that afternoon and talked to her. And that evening, when Galya walked back home, she saw that Yorgos was following miss Ana. Ana tried to get away from Yorgos, but he was too fast for her. Galya noticed that Christian had seen that Yorgos had pushed miss Ana against the tree. Well, from that moment, all hell broke loose. Galya was terrified and hid behind some bushes, but she was able to see the whole fight!" Calinico explained.
At that, Elena stared at one spot and asked."Did uhmm… did Ana see the fight too? Did she see them both in their 'other' form?"
Calinico shook his head."No, we don't think so. She was already unconscious." he replied.
"Calinico, so please listen carefully now. When Ana asks about what happened, we are going to make up a story, OK? She has been through too much now. I think it's very bad for her, if she knew the truth. And I think Christian would approve of this." Elena said, while Calinico nodded in agreement.
"Yes, you are right Miss Elena. For now, we have to focus on Ana's recovery. Christian wouldn't want us to burden her with the truth. We have to keep it from Miss Ana." the older man said.
"OK, that's settled then." Elena replied, and squeezed Calinico's hand lightly.
"Miss Elena, I have to say this though. When Mr. Christian carried Ana… when he brought her here at the villa… you should've seen the look on his face. Even in his 'not human' form, you could see that he cared so much for the young woman and was worried about her. I always thought that the moment he turned, that he wasn't capable of having and feeling any human emotions. I guess I was dead wrong." The butler said, as tears pooled in his brown eyes.
At that, Elena wasn't able to say anything back; she was speechless.
"Miss Elena, you should've seen the desperation in his eyes, the pain and the hurt. Christian was beyond terrified for Ana's life. Though he too was very badly injured, Mr. Christian only thought of her injuries, not his own." The older man softly said.
At that, Elena sighed deeply and asked."So, when can we uhmm… when can we see Christian?"
As those words reached Calinico's ears, his eyes fluttered shut, while a silent tear rolled down his cheek.
XXX XX XXX
Ana still had her eyes closed, but from afar she heard people talking. Her whole body ached tremendously. It felt like heavy bricks were placed all over her body. She wasn't able to move any part of her body without feeling excruciating pain. As she attempted to open her eyes, Ana did her very best to make out who was speaking. She registered two voices: one belonged to her father and the second one she couldn't quite place. Ana had a splitting head ache and wondered why it was so difficult to open her eyes.
OK, the last thing Ana remembered was that icky man following her, he grabbed her, she then hit her head on the tree and then it went dark before her eyes. But… but before Ana lost consciousness, she heard a sound. God! Just thinking about that, made her skin crawl. It was a sound like of wolves or bears or… she couldn't quite place that particular sound. It sounded like wolves? Two wolves fighting, maybe? Ana wasn't sure.
As her eyes finally fluttered open, Ana saw her father standing near the window.
"Da… dad." She croaked.
Her father immediately hurried to her bed side and held her hand, while tears pooled in his eyes.
"Ana, my baby. How do you feel, honey?" he asked worriedly.
She groaned softly."Well, I uhmm… I have one split… splitting head ache." She managed to say.
Her father took her in his arms and said."Well, you are here now and safe. What happened, hon? Did you get lost?"
She sighed deeply and whispered."Yes. At night it's really scary out there."
"You are safe here with us, sweetie." Her father said, his voice trembling heavily.
Then Ana thought of Christian. "By the way, where is our host? Where's Christian?" she asked.
At that moment, the other person spoke."He's in bed like you. Christian was attacked that same night."
The woman said that Christian was in bed, but she had left out a very important part.
Ana furrowed her brows, and observed the woman in front of her. She was beautiful, and had a kind voice.
"Sorry, let me introduce myself. I'm Elena Lincoln. Christian's long time friend. We met each other in school and from then on he never was able to get rid of me." the woman said jokingly.
At that, Ana was trying to chuckle, but it hurt too much. So she just smiled and shook Elena's soft hand. Her handshake was firm and her smile was really nice. Ana had a feeling that she was going to like this Elena person.
"Nice to meet you, Elena." She said.
"Likewise, Miss Ana." Elena replied.
"Oh, please call me Ana." She responded.
"OK, Ana it is." she answered.
At that, Ana smiled widely, but then it sank in what Elena had told her about Christian. Oh God. Was Christian hurt? No! "So, how is Christian now? How bad are his injuries? He was attacked? Oh my God! What had attacked him?" Ana asked, her voice shaky.
Ana was really worried about him. She didn't know what came over her, but suddenly her stomach was tied into knots. God! He wasn't hurt badly, was he? A strange feeling came over Ana at that moment. She just had to see him. Now... Right now!
"Where is Christian? I have to see him!" she said, as she attempted to to get on her feet.
Both her father and Elena stopped her."Whoah, Ana. Please, you are not well enough to get up yet. Sit down,please?" Elena advised.
"Listen to her, honey. Don't try to get up yet. You must've hit your head very hard. Do you remember how that happened?" her father asked.
Ana remembered every detail, but she wasn't sure if she wanted them to know about the stranger and the sounds she heard.
She shook her head."No, I uhmm… I'm not really sure how it happened. Maybe I slipped?" she said instead.
Her father and Elena seem to believe Ana, making her let out a breath of relieve.
"How long have I been in bed? And who found me?" Ana asked.
Elena answered the question. "Well, you have been out of consciousness for three days now. Christian, he found you. He went looking for you, when your dad and he realized that you must've gotten lost in the woods. Christian saw you lying near a tree. And just as he was about to get you, he was attacked by a wild animal." she explained without blinking once.
At that, Ana frowned."Wild animal? Don't you mean wild animals? Because I swear that I remember hearing more than one animal." She stated.
"Well, Christian told Calinico that there was one wild animal." Elena replied.
"OK, I take his word for it. Besides, I hit my head so…" Ana said.
Ana was a hundred % sure that she heard more than one wild animal, but she didn't want to get into it now.
"And then what happened? Christian was attacked and then?" Ana asked.
"Then somehow he was able to scare off the beast. I think he grabbed a wooden bar. Then he took you into his arms and carried you back to the villa." Elena explained.
'Oh, God. Christian was wounded and still was able to carry me here!' Ana thought, as a tear escaped her eye.
Christian put his life on the line for her. Realizing what he had done for her, made Ana's throat close up. She began to sob loudly, so her father took her into his arms.
"It's OK, honey. You're safe now." Mr. Steele whispered, as he soothed Ana.
But Ana wasn't crying because she still was afraid. Ana was crying, because she realized that Christian had saved her. Yet again. Maybe if he hadn't shown up in time, that icky stranger would've hurt her, or those wild animals would've killed her. Christian was like her personal protector. That she came to Tinos, was it really a coincidence? Or was it like Galya had said; was it destiny?
After Ana had calmed down a bit, she pulled herself from her father's embrace."It's my fault that Christian was attacked. If I hadn't gone for a walk, he didn't have to… to come for me." she said, her voice trembling.
"No, Ana. It's not your fault, OK? Please don't think that. It's a forest, there are animals living in it. It was late and at night, they usually come out. They probably were just defending themselves, maybe are more afraid of us than we are of them. You were not at fault here, OK?" Elena firmly said.
Elena didn't want Ana to feel guilty at all. And it really wasn't the young woman's fault.
"But how is he now? How bad are his wounds?" Ana asked.
Elena sighed deeply at that, and looked at Ana, then her eyes darted to Ana's father, and they darted back towards Ana again. Mr. Steele tried so hard to keep his composure. Cause he had to be strong for his daughter. Christian had promised him that he was going to bring his baby girl safely back. And Christian did. He did keep his promise. But, but it came with a price…
Ana saw hesitation in Elena's eyes and at that moment, she knew that it was bad. Really bad.
"He uhmm… he is hurt badly and uhmm… at the moment he is in intensive care, but the doctors aren't sure if he will make it through the night." Elena managed to say, as tears pooled in her pretty eyes.
The second Ana heard that, the room started to spin uncontrollably. Her eyes immediately welled up, her tears started flowing down her cheeks. At that very moment, Ana imagined how Christian carried her to the villa, while he himself was wounded very badly. Ana imagined him carrying her with his last strength down the long path. Ana imagined how he must have struggled, carrying her in his arms, while he bled almost to death. She imagined how painful his wounds must've been and yet Christian made sure that he brought her safely back home at the villa. Ana imagined how the wild animal clawed at his flesh and…
At one point, it became too much for Ana's heart to take. Again it went dark before her very eyes, but not before she said.
"No! Christian must not die!"
Note: Thank you all so much for the reviews and support :)
So... that was intense. :( :(
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Thank you in advance you all, and till next chapter.
J
