Chapter 1. Dreams a Real
A year has passed and Emilia still can't forget the dreams. She is lost, not knowing where the line is between the worlds, her world has become a merry-go-round, with forgotten faces. Only outlines remain, there are no clear faces, only the feelings they have left her. These people made her feel bitterness, sadness, fear. But they also introduced her to kindness, joy, happiness and most importantly love, she was loved. There is nothing more precious than those feelings, but there are memories left behind that make her feel empty in her chest. Maybe in time Emilia will be able to move beyond their loss, but right now the wound is too fresh. All she can do now is let her tears flow unwillingly down her cheeks, sighing heavily.
Hope will never fade, Emilia believes, the day will come and she will be able to be with them, able to touch their already cold and hard skin again. They will be amused by her jitteriness, by their sudden appearances. Will be able to feel Carlisle and Esme's parental love. Will be able to laugh again to the pain of Emmett's adventures, to feel her big sister Rosalie's tutelage and love again. To dive back into Alice's world and cry from exhaustion, to say she is in a shopping spree and is a shopaholic. To learn new things with Jasper, to feel reassured. And Edward, him... Their mutual silence, where they could both plunge into melancholy. Sing with him, play musical instruments. To lecture him about not blaming himself for anything and to help him understand when he is lost in his guilt. Emilia is eternally grateful to the Denali clan for their kindness and help.
Emilia misses them, the pain in her chest tearing her soul into tiny shards as if into dust. But she has promised that she will get up and walk on, it takes time, but how long? How long will it take her to get up and walk? She doesn't know, she doesn't have the eternity the vampires were condemned to. As we fall asleep, we don't know what to expect. We don't know when we will have a good dream where we don't need to run from someone, don't feel pain. Sometimes we have dreams that can make our head spin, seriously, sometimes we see things like being drugged and not knowing how to get out of it. There are those dreams that leave you shivering when you wake up. You can't get it out of your head, you don't know what to expect the next day. If you dream something similar, you're afraid to go to sleep. Fear is an incredible weapon, manipulating it to do whatever you want. So now, dreams are a big risk for Emilia. She doesn't know when she might plunge back into that abyss of the unknown.
After telling her friend about the dreams, the girl realised that she should keep her mouth shut. She simply felt that her imagination was too wild and her obsession with books was beyond the realm of reason. Well, she couldn't be blamed, it was her choice that she made. Emilia knew she couldn't impose her opinion on others, everyone had their own. And so she found herself alone, trying to make sense of it all. To be more clear, she has such a long dream that at times she seems to live her life as in the real world. Which is quite strange, but waking up and looking at the calendar, the months in the dream were only a night in the real world. All that was left to do was to come to terms with them and try to survive in them. Why survive? Every trauma she had suffered in her dreams would reappear in the real world, but already in the form of faded scars. It was then that she realised that they were not just dreams and that she had to stay alive at all costs.
Finishing school was not difficult, Emilia was used to being first, it was an obligation imposed by her parents. To be first, always and everywhere. In part, they could understand, because being the daughter of such successful parents, it was a sin to have such a worthless daughter. But she's grateful to them; knowledge is a big priority in life and how you manage it can elevate you to the very heights. But Emilia's life is timetabled, studying at the best university in Moscow, working in her father's law firm, marrying her partner's son. It's not a life - it's a conclusion. She wants to breathe a free chest from all the obligations imposed. It could be seen as a conclusion, except that the conditions allow her to have all the comforts. She doesn't need all that, she wants to be free. To live the life she wants.
She used to find solace in her dreams, hoping to dive back into the world of her favourite novel. Even if it meant she might get hurt. But Emilia was free with both humans and vampires, who treated her as an equal. Without telling her what to do, how to behave, they accepted her as a member of their family. What was incredible was the hope in her soul for the happiness she could build for herself. Could gain power over her life, and so it happened. Towards the end of tenth grade, Emilia was able to find work on the Internet, creating websites, which turned out to be quite lucrative. If she was going to change her life, she shouldn't waste precious time, which she already had little of. There was only one thing in the plan, to escape to a place where she could not be harmed and brought back. There were several options. The first was the United Kingdom, but it was too close and there were more opportunities to find the girl, her mother's relatives lived in that country. Second Germany, but it was also closed because of relatives on her father's side. America, didn't work out because of a visa they couldn't grant her, and the last option was Canada, St. John's, a remote and quiet town.
Sitting in Sheremetyevo airport, waiting for her flight and watching the planes take to the skies. The girl does not give up hope that one day, not now, not any time soon, but someday, her parents will realise that she cannot be imprisoned in their golden cage with a perfectly painted life. A farewell letter was probably not the best thing she could have left them, but it was the only thing Emilia could have done. If she told them, it was all to their face, they wouldn't let her out of the house, they'd just lock her in her room, not letting her leave without their permission. She could see how her father would be angry and her mother, her duplicity, had always been alarming and prevented the girl from getting close to her. With her mother it was always necessary to keep a distance, which was quite frustrating. Esme, on the other hand, was different. She was the best for her, the one Emilia could say mother to, even if they weren't blood related. Her love allowed her soul to blossom, Esme was someone the girl could never forget and it was such a pity she couldn't see them anymore.
It had been a year since the last dream in which she had been able to see all the Cullens, to meet Renesmee, to meet the witnesses who had responded to their help. Each of them possessed something that allowed her to get to know them better and accept them as her significant other. She misses them, so much so that at times her heart is painfully clenched and it is hard to breathe. But she realises that the day will come and perhaps one day she will be able to dream again where they are all happy. She wonders what Marcus' fate has been like since her letter to him. Without realising it herself, she realised she was crying when she heard the announcement that the flight had been boarded. Wiping away her tears of sadness, Emilia took her backpack and headed for the gate - the boarding gate. The flight was going to be a tough one, and a few transfers would wear her out so badly that her body would ache in terror. Moscow - Frankfurt - Montreal - St. John's, I had to book a hotel for a few days in order to solve all the issues with a clear head.
Eighteen hours later, once at St. John's airport, she could not believe that she had travelled all this way. On the way from Montreal, though, Emilia thought she was going to die in a plane crash. The plane was shaking terribly because of the turbulence, but it turned out to be a dream, the woman beside her woke the girl up, saying that it looked like Emilie was having a bad dream. It was strange, but she didn't stress about it, as she often had nightmares and it wouldn't surprise her.
Emilia couldn't believe that she found herself in a complete stranger's country to be free. The thrill in her soul, made her smile. Picking up her two heavy suitcases from the conveyor belt, one had to be overpaid for as it didn't fit the weight limit. Unfortunately, one suitcase didn't fit her life, she had to use the other. And then, with a bit of a struggle, she managed to pack more or less the essentials, the rest could be bought more. Wiggling in her thoughts, her clumsiness had taken its toll after all. If she hadn't known it was a man, Emilia thought she'd hit a wall. But no, when she looked up, there was a tall man, over two meters tall, beside whom she could be compared to a bug.
-I'm sorry, I should have been more careful. - She apologized, trying to keep her voice low so as not to appear intimidated, but the man really was intimidating in his impressiveness.
-That's right, be more careful next time. Don't get into trouble, bug. - said the man with the dark, neatly cropped hair, a cheerful smirk on his lips. Emilia stared into the man's eyes without blinking, trying to comprehend the fact that he was now insulting her and openly taunting her. She took a deep breath and exhaled, and thought that she shouldn't be rude to strangers, especially those who were physically superior. Still, there was no denying that his appearance was quite attractive, tall, neat, broad facial features, pale skin. And his eyes, his eyes had a strange colour, perhaps they were lenses, but the iris was unusual, golden on the outside and red towards the centre. How is that possible? Perhaps they were lenses, for such a thing is impossible in nature, but the man seemed very familiar. He was dressed in all black, except for a tweed coat, the colour of wet asphalt. One could see the chic, black suit, which to the naked eye was bespoke. But the unusual, gold clip on tie, caught her attention the most, the coat of arms of the Volturi. Could it be a Twilight fan? A very strange one. Considering that he looked maybe twenty-five or thirty years old and his appearance could speak for itself.
-Excuse me? - The girl said, cocking an eyebrow in displeasure. At the same time she was confused by the fact that this attractive man, let's not deny it, mocked her and her short stature.
-I forgive you. - picking up his suitcase as if it were a feather, the man headed for the exit, leaving Emilia staring in shock in his wake. You could hear the laughter in his tone, as if he was amused by the situation. He approached a man about his own age, but he was slightly shorter than the brunette and the colour of his hair resembled wheat, maybe a little darker. His companion kept staring at her for a few seconds, as if he was studying her and memorizing her. But then they headed for the exit, discussing something, reading his lips, the girl understood only a few words - "her smell is familiar". But most of all, she was confused by the man's eyes, they were the same as those of the brunette. Could it be that they shared the same love of lenses?
Suddenly it dawned on the girl why they seemed so familiar. Felix and Demetrius! The two men resembled them, if she thought logically it was impossible, but what was happening to her allowed her to believe what she saw. Emilia tried to be calm, it could have been the cosplayers, but she couldn't deny that as she crashed into Felix he was like a wall and reeked of cold. Trying to breathe more evenly, she needed to relax, perhaps her brain was tired and coming up with all sorts of wonders. Only this way, she could calm her thoughts. The girl diligently suppressed the urge to follow them, knowing that it wasn't the best idea and she didn't want any trouble. But her curiosity, burned with impatience to confirm her hunches. Having subdued herself, she headed for the exit of this small airport, which had only two runways.
It didn't take long to find a taxi, the driver turned out to be a cordial, upper-middle-aged man. Throughout the ride he asked various questions and drew the girl's attention to everything they passed on the way to the hotel. Emilia chose a hotel with a view of the ocean, as the house she wanted was overlooking the forest. There was a girl at the front desk with a strained smile that made her want to vomit. And what else could she expect, it was her job and Emilia was not going to comment on it. Quickly picking up her keys, she went to her room on the tenth floor, which had a beautiful view of the coast. But the only thing she needed now was sleep, and she could admire the view when she woke up. Throwing off her clothes, she lay down under the warm blanket, sinking into a restful sleep.
The next day the girl woke up by two o'clock in the afternoon, as the heavy flight and overnight flight was making itself felt, her body was aching as if she could be sick. Forcing herself out of her warm bed, she headed straight for the shower to freshen up and clean herself up. Soon, wrapped in a fluffy dressing gown, she ordered dinner in the room, as her stomach mumbled its indignation. She didn't have to wait long, just twenty minutes later, she was already sitting in front of the window sipping her orange juice, wondering what to do today. Emilie needed to see the house she was going to rent during her studies, and she also wanted to take a walk along the coast in the evening. She managed to call the owner of the house, arranging to meet her at five o'clock in the evening.
Afterwards she started to get ready, realising that her appearance had to say something. She looked at herself in the mirror wondering if she had chosen the right thing. Her choice was a grey, lightweight, large-necked knit jumper, light-coloured jeans, the dark blue coat she'd flown in, black boots with a solid platform heel, and a small envelope bag to match the colour of the shoes. Her long platinum hair, was gathered in a neat, high ponytail, even in a ponytail it reached her waist. A few months ago, at the beginning of summer, she had wanted a change, and to avoid cutting her hair, her choice had fallen to dyeing it. She had previously had her natural, charcoal black hair, but platinum turned out to be to her face, her pale skin matched the colour perfectly. She didn't put on full make-up, just black mascara to accentuate her large, bright green eyes and sheer lip gloss that perfectly highlighted her plump, strawberry coloured lips.
Walking out of the hotel, she saw several taxi cars waiting for passengers. Emilia went straight to the cars, getting into one of them, she asked them to take her to the specified place. The ride was quiet, for which she was very grateful. The views were quite different from what she had seen at night. She could finally make out the houses, some of them seemed like toys as their colours resembled a construction set. The girl liked what she saw. As she drove past a large old building, she recognised the university she was going to study at. She needed to go to the university, in the next two days, to get a receipt for the semester fees and the original documents so she could start classes.
The driver stopped in front of a small white house. Emilie liked it immediately, it looked cosy in the picture. The girl was already glad that her expectations had been met, now she had to see how things were going inside the house. After paying for the ride and getting out of the car, she saw a woman in her fifties with a friendly smile on her face on the porch. Emilia smiled back at her, stepped closer and extended her hand for a handshake.
-Hello, nice to meet you. - Emilia said hello in a friendly tone.
-Hello dear, come on in and I'll show you around. - the woman was kind, her name was Sally, she lived with her husband in another house across the street, twice the size of this one. This house belonged to their daughter, but since she had moved out so it wouldn't be empty, they decided to rent it out. Well, it was a sensible decision. The house was painted white and had two floors, with only the kitchen and living room on the ground floor, and a bathroom with a utility room where the dryer and washing machine were located. The living room was large, with a fireplace and all the necessary furniture, though it was obvious that it was not new, but Emilia was fine with that. The walls were ivory, which she was glad of, she did not like bright colours. The kitchen was also that colour, with everything she needed. There were two bedrooms on the first floor and a bathroom. One bedroom was larger than the other, she already knew how she would use it all, one room would be converted into a studio where she could paint and study and the other would be used for sleeping and resting.
Sally and Emilia agreed to call later about the girl's opinion, whether she agreed to the price and conditions. Her husband Bill, volunteered to drive Emilie closer to the hotel, as he had things to do. He was a man of the same age as his wife, broad-shouldered in a checked shirt and also wearing a baseball cap with his favourite team. All along the trip he wondered what a girl like Emilia could have forgotten in such a small town. At the same time, he managed to invite her to a fishing trip, he and his wife liked to go out fishing on weekends. She thanked him for the invitation and promised to think about it. After saying goodbye to Bill, she walked along the coast and looked around.
People seemed welcoming at first glance, not walking around with frowning faces as she was used to. The water was calm and the air very different, she seemed to be able to breathe in peace. Such a thing was impossible to allow in Moscow, where the air was so impregnated with various impurities of gases because of the cars. All the while Emilia had the feeling that she was being watched, turning around abruptly she noticed two men not far from her whom she had met at the airport. But with a blink they disappeared from her sight. It was very strange, she began to look around not understanding why she was imagining them or if they were actually watching her.
-Calm down, breathe in and out. It was just an imagination. - Emilia muttered, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly. Later, the girl decided to get a takeaway coffee at a nearby cafe to warm up a bit and think about what she should do.
She could afford the house because she had saved enough money and her job gave her a steady income. But there was a problem, it was the car. If she was going to live closer to the forest, she would need to rent a car, which was a costly affair and she needed to think about it urgently. Of course she could find a used car, which was the only way out, as the price for renting a house was very attractive, she was not going to put it down. Emilia decided to let Sally know her decision tomorrow, as it was getting late. Also the girl was going to ask them where she could look for inexpensive cars.
While she sat on a bench in a small park that she had accidentally wandered into, it was already getting dark. Emilia put the diary away in her bag and moved towards the hotel. She wasn't going to have an adventure on her first day; she was determined to get out. But a group of five guys blocked the way; she could smell the disgusting smell of alcohol from them. Emilia ignored them and turned back, trying to turn around and walk away in the other direction, but two guys stood in front of her.
-Hey babe, in a hurry somewhere? - Asked one of the drunk guys with a dirty smirk on his face.
The girl's heart was pounding with fear and even though she did not show it, she was scared. She slipped her hand into her pocket to fumble for the pepper spray she always carried with her. Her father constantly reminded her to keep one in her pocket, and she obeyed his instructions. She needed it first and foremost, and she was very glad she hadn't forgotten it today.
-Yes, get out of the way. - said the girl in a steady voice, continuing to watch the other boys so that they would not come any closer to her.
-So serious. - One of them scoffed. - Maybe we can cheer you up?
-Thank you, I don't need any, good night. - She walked quickly around them, but one of them grabbed her by the elbow.
-Not so fast, we haven't met yet. - He gripped her elbow tighter.
-You let go of me, or I'll break your arm. - She hissed through gritted teeth. She wasn't asking the guy a question, she was confronting him.
The girl couldn't stand scum like that, and her past experience with Rosalie spoke volumes. It had been one of the worst displacement dreams she'd wanted to forget and not remember. Emilia would not allow such a thing to be pulled on her. Abruptly pulling out the pepper spray, she sprayed it in the guy's face, so much so that he let her go with a scream and swearing, but the other two began to approach her quickly. Wasting no time, she similarly pepper sprayed them and jogged away from the park before the other two decided to follow her. Adrenaline was raging in her blood, she could hear her heart pounding in her ears.
-Damn!" the girl cursed to herself in a select Russian mighty tongue as two men suddenly appeared in front of her, whom she didn't pepper spray her in the face. She asked herself to keep her composure and cool head in order to deal with them. But you could see her hand with the pepper spray was trembling slightly with nerves. She was really scared and had no idea how she was holding on. She needed to run, but she no longer knew where, as she had turned the wrong way and was in some public garden between houses.
-Gotcha! - The man exclaimed, approaching her. - Now let's talk about your reckless act.
-Be obedient and we shall all be well. - The other man said with a chuckle, as he moved towards her, but from the other side they surrounded her. Without expecting it, Emilia screamed so that her own ears began to hurt. One of the men covered his ears at her scream, but the other swooped down on her, covering her mouth. The girl began to jerk and successfully sprayed him in the eye with a spray can.
-Bitch! - he shouted, falling to his knees, managing to knock the spray can out of her hands. He shouted and cursed at her, trying to clean his eyes with his hands, but only making it worse by smearing the infernal mixture. The second man swooped down on her, giving her a hard slap that made her fall to the ground, she could feel the metallic taste of blood in her mouth.
-Just squeak, you bitch! - he threatened her and was angry, he had a folding knife in his hands, Emilia rose quickly to her feet, deciding to run without wasting time. But she could not run far as she felt a sharp pain run down her shoulder blade. He managed to stab her, the girl cried out in pain slowing down. He took advantage of the moment, forcing her to the ground.
She backed away from him, but there were tears of fear in her eyes, she knew she could not get away from him now, her back was against the wall. And she could feel the blood soaking her clothes and blood running down her arm forming a purple puddle underneath. He squatted down in front of her, his knife pointed at her throat.
-Where is your courage? Another squeak, the only one worse off will be you. - He taunted her. He slapped her again sharply, and with such force that her head spun to the side hitting the wall. Her eyes were blurry from such a blow that she had to blink several times. The freak grabbed her by the hair so that he lifted her head to look at her face. - And a few minutes ago you threatened to break my arm, can you try and do that now?
He threw her head back so that he slammed her head against the wall again. Without ceremony he cut open her jumper and could see her breasts, covered only by her underwear.
-How appetising, today luck is on my side! - he laughed, running his hand over the girl's breasts and gripping her chest painfully. Emilia cried out praying that he wouldn't touch her, that it would soon stop. But as soon as she tried to move, he put a knife to her throat. He jerkily began to remove her coat and cut jumper. The girl's hand was covered in blood, she could not even feel the pain of the deep cut left on her shoulder blade. With the knife he ripped the button off her jeans, and then, the girl began desperately lashing out, knowing that the bastard would not back down and do what he intended. She couldn't let it be done to her and started screaming, better to die than to endure this to herself.
-Shut up bitch! I warned you! - he slapped her cheek again with such force that the girl's eyes went black for a second. - It was your own fault. I told you not to move.
The girl could see the guys she had pepper-sprayed approaching them, and she knew it was going to get a lot worse now. They were angry, swearing at her with abusive words and threatening her. But suddenly Emilia heard loud growls, as if they were wild animals, the girl was shaking like an aspen leaf from the loss of blood and what was happening to her. It was better to die from the clutches of unknown predators than to be raped by a group of these bastards. Tears rolled down the girl's cheeks that she could not control, expecting the worst.
Emilia covered her face with her hands shaking with fear as she heard the screams of these bastards, she didn't want to see what was happening to them. She just wanted to disappear, to forget everything that had happened to her. Not even a day had passed since the day she arrived, and she found herself in such a horrible situation. She felt a gentle, icy touch on her palm, as if someone was trying to take their hands away from her face.
-It's all right, don't be afraid. - suddenly the girl heard a low, male voice, so deep, like velvet. - Emilia, come on... it's okay, it's over.
The girl was shaking with fear, still crying, but still she put her palms down. She looked at the man in front of her in shock. Her eyes widened in shock, she didn't understand what was even going on anymore, only she was attacked, almost raped. And she bloody well sees the eldest king of the vampire world in front of her - Marcus! You could only tell one thing from his face: he was concerned about her condition, as she couldn't say a word, continuing to stare at him in shock. Emilia looked up and saw two men, Demetrius and Felix, they had already dumped the bodies in the dumpster where the fire was raging. They also approached the girl with frowning and worried faces. Demetrius held the girl's bag in his hands, she didn't understand how he could even find it. To the girl, there was nothing more horrible than what had almost happened to Emilia. She watched Felix's movements as he took off his black coat. He did it at a human pace so as not to frighten the girl.
-Do you mind if I slip this coat over your shoulders, Bolly? - Felix asked cautiously, he was not going to approach her if she did not allow it, as he knew that he could scare her. But Emilia nodded slightly, the vampire could see the movement and gently slipped his coat over her shoulders. At the expense of size, Emilia could have drowned in the fabric.
-She is hurt. - suddenly she heard Demetrius speak, his voice sweet and deep. He still continued to look at the girl with concern.
-Emilia, it's going to be all right. - Marcus said, gently lifting the girl in his arms, but the girl whimpered in his arms, feeling the pain in her wound. She continued to cry, but this time clinging to the familiar and so familiar person she missed. The girl could not utter a single word, continuing to cry silently in the arms of the grown man. Emilia could feel the movement, as if she were on a speeding train, but the movements were smooth.
Emilia knew that Marcus was moving at the speed of a vampire, but she didn't know where and she didn't care, all that mattered was that she knew she was safe beside him. Marcus would never hurt the girl, he had shown his affection for her many times before. She was so disgusted with herself, the physical pain was drowned out by the pain of her soul. Her consciousness was as if in a fog, her head throbbing with pain. She was helplessly in Marcus' arms, tears streaming down her cheeks that she could not stop. Consciousness was as if in a fog, she had no idea what was going on around her, she was staring into the void, shutting herself in her mind. Frightened sighs were heard, someone was saying her name but she did not respond. The girl's consciousness slipped away from her when she felt a sharp prick in her arm. And afterwards there was a rescuing silence and peace.
P.S. Hello dear readers. I edited this part a bit. I am sorry for the inconvenience.
