Chapter Sixteen: Spot

When they arrived home after the lavish dinner party, Oskar had sped off to bed before Regan could gather her courage to even make an attempt to physically tempt him. So they just slept, Regan lulled by his soft, deep breathing. When she woke up the next morning, Oskar was nowhere to be found. She climbed down from their loft bed, finding the silence unnerving. Beside a plate of tater tots and scrambled eggs, she found a carefully written note. Oskar's cell phone wasn't getting reception because of the weather and his internet was too slow to have a Skype conversation with his foreman, so he was going into town to use a land line. He promised to be back before dark and urged her not to use the stove while he was gone. Regan rolled her eyes, tossing the note down and sitting down to eat. She didn't like eating by herself, having gotten used to having another person there. She finished quickly and washed her dishes, taking a long shower and using up all of the hot water.

Regan spent her day just reading, the silence cut by the howling wind outside. She kept fidgeting, knowing that she was going to try and sleep with Oskar tonight.

How was she going to do it?

Should she just be naked when he walked into the cabin?

Would that be stupid or exciting for him?

As Regan fought with herself in her mind, the clock chimed four and Oskar came stomping in from the snowy blur. He shook the snow from his arms and shoulders, shivering as he shut and locked the door behind him.

"You look cozy," he commented as he shrugged off his jacket and removed his hat, revealing his hair was sweaty and misshapen. Regan smiled slightly, shutting her book.

"Were you able to make your phone call?" Oskar nodded, pushing off his wet, heavy boots in favor for a pair of extremely soft slippers.

"Yes, I got a lot done. Sorry that I left you alone all day, are you hungry?" Regan shook her head, her heart pounding against her chest, so loud in fact that she swore that he could hear it from across the cabin. It made her mouth go dry and her hands tremble.

How was she supposed to do this?

"Michelle says hello and insisted that we come over again soon." Oskar said, walking to their small kitchen and opening the cabinets and looking for something quick to fix. Regan silently set down her book and padded to Oskar's tall form, hugging him and pressing against his back. Oskar stilled, his hands coming to rest on top of hers. "Are you all right?" He asked quietly. Regan nodded against him as she gently bit her lower lip.

"I just missed you," she muttered, gently shutting her eyes. Regan allowed him to turn in her arms so that he could properly hug her.

"I missed you too," Oskar said as his cool hand slowly rubbed her back. She hadn't bothered to wear a bra, which he could clearly feel through her thin shirt. She tried not to be embarrassed, but she suddenly felt under-dressed compared to Oskar's sweater clad form. "Are you sure that you're not hungry?"

"Not for food." Regan instantly flushed as soon as the words left her mouth.

Where had she learned to talk like that?

Thankfully, Oskar knew exactly what she meant as he ran a still chilled hand through her hair, making Regan shiver.

"Go climb in bed; I'll be there in a moment." He told her gently as he kissed the top of her head. She nodded, pulling away from his embrace and slowly climbing the ladder to their loft bed.

As she settled under the covers, Oskar slowly walked around the cabin, turning off lights and locking it up tightly. Even in the pale darkness, Regan could see that he had stripped off his clothing as he climbed in to join her. He pulled off her shirt and held her close, his fingers tracing across her bare stomach.

"It's going to hurt," he told her quietly, his lips pressed against her ear. Regan nodded, her heart beating swiftly. "I'll go slow and try not to hurt you."

"Thank you," she whispered before he firmly kissed her. Regan felt that familiar heat return to her body as he continued to kiss her and let his hands roam across her skin. Her mind was hazy when he stripped her completely and climbed on top of her. He cradled her body, fingers brushing against her most sensitive spot with a skill that only came from experience. She whimpered, closing her eyes and letting him part her legs. Regan gasped when she felt the tip press against her entrance, the head starting to stretch her out as he pushed inside. Her brow furrowed when he hit her body's last form of resistance. Oskar glanced at her quickly, as if asking for permission, before thrusting all the way inside. The sudden pain made her flinch and made tears spring to her eyes, but she knew that it was much better than any other pain that she had felt.

"Regan…are you all right?." Oskar asked when he was fully situated inside of her. She nodded, slowly wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him close. His movements were slow, but quickly escalated when he heard her let out small gasps and a muffled moan. Regan was shivering slightly, her mind still cloudy. He kept whispering things into her ear, telling her that he cared and that he would not let anybody hurt her, but she wasn't really listening. All she could think about was her last encounter with Lucius. He had been on top of her like this; he had wanted to be the first, but Regan had stopped that from happening. The body on top of her now was not Lucius, it was Oskar...and despite the fact that they were physically connected, Regan felt almost nothing. It struck her at that moment that she didn't love Oskar and never would; he was a friend, but a close one that happened to be risking his life for her.

Oskar finished with a loud grunt, burying his face in the crook of her neck. He kept kissing her, but eventually rolled off of her and pulled her against his chest to sleep. Regan did not fall asleep as quickly as he did; she laid there, staring up at the close ceiling and mentally laughing at how she had managed to take away something so precious to Lucius.

Astoria was nervous.

After sending Regan away and spending weeks alone with her son, Lucius and Draco had returned from Sweden. Draco had informed her that things had gone well, but also commented that his father had been acting strangely. He was unusually aggressive at the meetings and ended up striking fear into the Swedish Ministry. He didn't come to dinner that night, having clearly discovered that Regan was gone. Strangely enough, he didn't raise hell. He remained secluded and left Astoria and Draco alone…and very nervous.

The next morning, as Draco and Astoria were enjoying a quiet breakfast, Lucius quietly walked in and sat down across from his son and daughter-in-law. He poured himself a cup of tea, slowly drinking it without saying a word. He waited until he was totally finished before he even uttered a single syllable.

"So, I see that Regan has left."

"She resigned." Astoria quickly said. He shouldn't be surprised; he should have seen this coming.

"And I see that your cousin is gone as well." Astoria nodded, seeing Draco tense out of the corner of her eye.

"He had business to attend to."

"And tell me, do you find me to be a foolish man, Astoria?" He suddenly asked, his voice taking a hard edge.

"No, I find you to be very smart." Astoria said evenly, trying to remain calm.

"Then do not treat me as such," he muttered angrily. "Did you really think that you could pull the same trick on me twice?" Astoria narrowed her eyes.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." She replied slowly. Lucius slammed down his fist, his eyes close to mocking fire.

"I let you two do what you wanted for social reasons, but Regan was for me! You had no right to interfere with my relationship with her!"

"What relationship?" Astoria blurted out. "She couldn't stand you and was willing to do anything to get away from you."

"Control your wife, Draco." Lucius said with a cool smirk, but Draco didn't move an inch. No matter how powerful his father was, he couldn't have everything that he wanted.

"She's gone, just let her go." Astoria said with a clenched jaw.

"I don't appreciate your tone and I don't quite like that you think that you can tell me what to do." Astoria bit the insides of her cheeks o try and keep herself from exploding with anger. "I will give Regan her time to think that she's escaped, but in the new year I will go and fetch her…and I am sorry, but your cousin will have to die for his unfortunate participation in this little scheme of yours."

By this time, Astoria was shaking from rage.

"Just leave them alone," she quietly pleaded, earning a small chuckle from Lucius.

"You're lucky that I don't kill you, but Draco seems to be fond of you and Scorpio needs a mother, even if it is you." He slowly stood, straightening out his cloak. "Now, let's all try to have a pleasant holiday and then I'll bring Regan back."

With a curt nod, he disappeared down the hall and Astoria didn't know whether to cry or to scream.

"Don't," Draco suddenly said, his voice cold.

"What?" Astoria asked with a bitter tone.

"Don't try to contact them and don't try to warn them."

"But we have to!" She exclaimed in a low whisper. Draco quickly shook his head with cool eyes.

"If he knew exactly where they were, he would have gloated about it." He insisted. "He knows that they're in France, but he doesn't know where. If you send them a letter, you'll lead him right to them." He was right, she knew that he was right, but Astoria didn't want to accept it.

"But we have to do something."

"What can we do? They knew the risk that they were taking." Her expression softened when he saw how upset she was. "I know that you want to save Oskar, but there's no guarantee that they'll be caught. They might not even be in France anymore." Astoria slowly nodded, the tears finally falling down her cheeks. Draco gently hugged her, slowly rubbing her back. He admired his wife for trying to save the young woman like he had saved her, but there was greater risk involved in this situation. Lucius would never dare to kill Draco, but Oskar had virtually no importance to Lucius. Oskar's death would mean nothing to him; it didn't matter how many people died as long as Lucius got what he wanted.

"I just didn't want her to be stuck here for the rest of her life," she said, mourning the fate of both herself and Regan.

"You did all that you could," Draco assured her. "Now, their fate rests in their hands…and we just have to trust them." Draco's eyes darted towards the door as if to make sure that they were completely alone. "Besides…it's only a matter of time before Weasley comes." Astoria's eyes darkened, her hands clenching into fists.

"You shouldn't be saying anything about him, not now." Draco nodded, smirking slightly.

"We just have to wait…and keep him updated on everything we find out."