Bonus earlier than expected chapter! I had to take off today because I'm still sick, now with a upper respiratory infection. But that means I had a bit of time to write. :) I hope to get another up by the end of Sunday.

Chapter 27

Erik was already gone when she woke late the next morning, his side of the bed cold to the touch. She was a bit disoriented after waking up in yet another new room, the dark drapes and soft feeling of the sheets unfamiliar.

She pulled on her bra under the t-shirt she wore and headed downstairs. As she approached the kitchen, she heard the low voices of her two companions, murmuring as though afraid she might hear. They did stop as she grew nearer, and when she entered the kitchen, they were both gazing at her as though they were expecting her.

She pushed her heavy curls away from the back of her neck. "Good morning."

"Good morning," Nadir returned. "I'm pleased to see you slept in." He stood and poured her a cup of coffee. She was thankful to have something stronger than tea.

"What were you talking about?" she asked. She refused to apologize for her bluntness, too. She was a part of this now, and she hated any secrets they might try to hide from her.

The two of them exchanged a look, which she pretended not to notice.

Erik answered. He was fully dressed by in different clothes from what she had seen from him before. He wore a more modern-cut suit, fully black with a dark gray tie. No vest. While he still looked very formal, the new clothes suited him. "The men from whom we are hiding are showing little activity in the past week. For now, it seems as though we have escaped their notice as we left the country."

"That's good," she said, sipping the hot liquid. "Right?"

"Normally, yes," Nadir replied. "However, I believe they are being too quiet, if that makes sense. I'd rather see some activity than none at all. They may be putting forth effort to hide their movements."

"What can we do about it?"

"Nothing at all, at the moment." He stood and went to the sink to wash out his cup. "Try to relax if you can. We are perfectly safe here. I'm heading into town soon for supplies. Make me a list if you want anything."

"Will do."

He inclined his head to both of them and headed toward his room.

Erik turned the page of the newspaper he was reading. The text was in French from what she could see of the headlines, which didn't really surprise her. Saint-Ursanne was close to France, and the language was probably commonly spoken around here.

She peered out one of the kitchen windows as she drank her coffee. "I was really hoping to get outside today, maybe see the horses. It looks like rain though."

"The forecast says thunderstorms," Erik said, tapping the newspaper. "You will find the weather quite variable here, and the autumn colors are some of the most vibrant I have ever witnessed."

"We'll be staying here that long?" She hadn't considered their length of stay. The realization that she hadn't been asking any questions of the two men was slowly catching up to her.

He peered at her over his cup, his eyes searching but for what, she didn't know. "Through the end of the year, at least, and likely the better part of the next." His tone was light, but the words cut into her anyway.

"M-months?"

Why did that shock her? Did she really think they would eventually – quickly – go back to Erik's home underneath the Palais Garnier opera house? Maybe she had, but the truth was that she hadn't let herself really, truly think about what would happen after they arrived here.

"You didn't know," he said softly.

"No, I didn't." She struggled against the roaring that rose in her ears, the way her heart thudded against her ribs, and the sweat that made her swipe her palms against her pants. "I didn't ask any questions."

"When you accepted the ticket."

From Nadir, he meant. When she had agreed to come aboard the Queen Eleanor. Had she been so incredibly stupid? In her letters to her mother and Meg, she had told them she was going on a trip, that she was safe, that she loved them, that she would contact them as soon as she could.

She looked up, meeting Erik's calm stare. "When do I get to call my mother?"

Silence stretched between them. Her rising discomfort, edging into panic, did not ease. Finally, Erik set aside his cup and folded the newspaper, laying it on the table.

"Any contact, whether by phone or letter or email, exposes our location. We do not possess the ability to send any message securely enough. Not here."

She hated the way her voice cracked. "Then where?"

"It is not safe."

"Who cares if I send a letter, especially if I don't give anything away? I thought they didn't know my name!" She was too loud, on the edge of shouting.

Erik remained still, calm, his voice low and measured. If she had been more rational at that moment, she might have realized how clenched his hands were atop the table or seen the tick of a muscle in his jaw.

Outside, she heard the pitter-patter of a rain shower moving into the area.

"Not yet, Christine. I did my best to eliminate anyone in New York who had access to evidence of your presence near mine. While we stayed away from most surveillance cameras in any places not fully public, I took no chances. However, what if your mother decides to seek you out?"

"S-she wouldn't."

"So you say. We can't take any risks." Erik stood and washed out his cup before pausing in the doorway that led toward the back of the house. Christine knew exactly where he was heading – the music room.

"Erik!" She leapt to her feet, grabbing onto his sleeve. "Please!"

He turned his head to look down at her. From this angle, she could only see the hard lines of his mask. "You're not a prisoner, my dear," he said, steel in his voice. "I did not kidnap you, did not pressure you in any way to come here, have not commanded you to stay. At any moment, you may decide to leave and go back to your mother. That is the only gift I can give you."

He jerked his arm free of her grasp and swooped out of the kitchen before she could formulate any kind of reply.

Seconds later, she knew exactly what she would hear: Erik pounding out his emotions upon the piano with unrestrained fury in ways he hadn't been able to do since Paris.

She didn't way to hear the discordant notes. She fled out the side door that led outside from the kitchen. The rising heat and humidity of the day hit her anguished face. On the opposite side of the house, pressed against the white stucco, the rain pelting her bare feet, she could almost pretend she couldn't hear his song.

Nadir found her a little later, after she'd had a chance to calm down. She knew she looked a mess, the hem of her pajama pants stained with flecks of mud that also covered her feet. He told her to go wash up and meet him outside. They would travel to town together to fetch supplies.

She didn't want to listen to a lecture. No doubt Nadir had heard much of the conversation between her and Erik earlier. Luckily, the Iranian didn't seem much in the mood to give one. As he drove them both into town, he chattered about anything else, from the history of Saint-Ursanne to how much he had missed the tea cakes of a certain bakery to the horses inside the stable.

The talk of horses perked her up a little. She made him promise to introduce her after lunch.

They bought pastries from his favorite bakery and sandwiches from a small vendor. After so long on the ocean with limited scenery to look at, she was thrilled by the gorgeous landscape of this country, even in the steady rain. Snow-capped mountains rose in the distance, and she remembered what Erik had said about the colors of this place in the fall. He had been trying to give her something to look forward to, and she had panicked.

She couldn't shake off the shock that she couldn't contact anyone she had once known, especially her mother. What would happen after no one heard from her in a while? It had almost been a week and a half. What would happen after several more weeks? A month? Wouldn't her mom, who had always been overprotective, especially after Christine's cancer diagnosis, worry about her?

She had been so caught up in being with Erik, she hadn't thought about what that would mean.

Their trunk full with supplies, the two of them drove back to the house. She helped Nadir unload and put things away, and took up the several bags of items she had purchased for her and Erik, including a few pieces of clothing for her and more pajamas for him. Because if she was truly going to stay here, why should what he wore to bed change? Why should their relationship change?

She hated the way she had left things between them, but she couldn't bring herself to interrupt the pounding at the piano she could hear as soon as she got out of the van. She lay on her bed for a while until she heard Nadir knock softly on the door.

"Lunch?" he asked, and she nodded.

As she unpacked the sandwiches they had bought, Nadir headed off to see if Erik wanted lunch. He returned quickly, staying simply, "He declines." No surprise there.

They ate in companionable silence. Once finished, she prodded Nadir about the horses, and he gladly took her to see them for the first time. The rain hadn't let up, now coming in quick spurts, but the walk to the covered stable wasn't long.

"There is a hired stable hand who tends to the horses," Nadir told her. "But I do enjoy brushing them myself whenever I get a chance."

The horses were more than magnificent. Christine had never seen a real horse up close, and they seemed to tower over her. There were two – both males. Nadir went straightaway to the nearest horse whose deep brown coat glimmered in the humid air.

"His name is Magikos, Greek for 'magic,'" he said. He spoke softly to the horse in Persian, reaching out to stroke the wide nostrils. "I admit, it sounds like a silly name, but it reminds me of Reza. The boy loved to watch Erik's magician tricks."

She gave a small, sad smile at that, watching the man soothe the horse as though he was meeting an old friend he hadn't seen in a long time. He picked up a brush and showed her how to sweep across the large body.

"Magikos is a lovely, gentle gelding. If you wish to ride, he will follow your every command without issue." Nadir nodded his head at the other horse that stood further back in the stable. "Caesar, on the other hand, needs much more encouragement to let you atop his back."

"Caesar?" The name amused her. "Is he Erik's?"

"He is. His temperament matches his master, too. Caesar is a stallion who would rather bite your fingers than let you pet him. Never approach him unless Erik is with you. He listens to no one else."

The two of them took care of both horses. Once finished with Magikos, Nadir slowly moved toward Caesar, both palms raised. He spoke in soft Persian, and the stallion's ears pricked forward.

Nadir smiled. "Ah, you do recognize me." He didn't try to touch the horse, but he changed the water and fed him without much worry of the beast trying to hurt him.

Caesar was bigger than Magikos, with broad, powerful shoulders, long legs, and a sweeping mane of black hair. He was a sleek inky black from head to hoof, and his coal black eyes watched her every move. She would have to have Erik introduce her.

Erik.

This far from the house, she couldn't hear the piano, but she doubted Erik had stopped. After the horses were taken care of, she went back to stroking Magikos's head, smiling a bit when the horse butted at her hands if she stopped.

She felt Nadir's eyes on her, but she steadfastly ignored him. However, he wasn't about to let her keep on ignoring him like she wished. He finally cut through the silence.

"I heard your argument this morning."

"I figured," she said. "I was loud enough."

He spoke slowly as though carefully choosing his words. "I would have given you the same answer if you had asked me. I suppose this is something we should have discussed before you joined our trip."

"Your trip." She laughed a derisive laugh. "I wouldn't call this a trip, Nadir. I'm moving in with you both for the indefinite future. I guess… I guess I never thought about how long term this would be."

He sighed wearily. "You need to go talk to him."

"I did talk to him!"

"No, you reacted." He strode over to her and took her by the shoulders. "Go talk to him, Christine."

"You should hear how furious he is at me." She gestured in the direction of the house.

"He is furious with himself. He hurt you, and now you want to talk to your mother. We both understand what he is no doubt thinking right now."

Nadir's blunt words stung, but he was right. Erik's foul mood wasn't her fault, wasn't even directed at her, but if she wanted to continue down the path of being with him, she had no choice but to face him. She couldn't wait any longer.

"Go to him, Christine."

She nodded, took a deep breath, and headed back inside at a shuffling pace.