CHASE

Chapter 23

     Aurora, leaning against the jamb, followed the sunset through the balcony between sighs. She wasn't receptive to the conversation she'd overheard from the kitchen before dinner. Rumor had it that Orsmund was cleared of charges. Unfortunately, someone (with full knowledge of the names of the culprits, but who pretended not to know) had beaten him to the point of leaving him in critical condition. Which meant they wouldn't hear from him anytime soon. Anxious, she opted to take a nap.

     Anxiety bothered her. She got up and saw herself in the ornate mirror. She freed herself from the folds and her gaze followed the movement of the falling cloth that exposed her own nakedness. She felt the heat of the candle flame on the furniture. The door swung, strangely, forward. Nobody came up behind it. Until Aurora felt watched by a pair of orange eyes divided by a pupil in a vertical slit. The snake rose a few millimeters off the ground before crawling in an undulating path to her feet. The flat black scaled reptile surrounded by brown rings measured about 10 feet long and approximately 9 inches wide. The young woman froze. The animal wrapped itself around her leg and snaked up, exploring her body. The forked tongue tickled her navel and neck. The snake was now coiled around her shoulders and hips. The impact of the temperature difference was pleasant. A slight hiss brushed her ear. She closed her eyes and felt it slide down her back toward the bottom of her spine. She moaned in response to the cold contact propelled along her inner thigh.

     "Orsmund!"  She ground her teeth.

     Due to the jolt propelled by the contracted muscles, she woke up. She was lying on the bed with the white sheet on top. Enraptured by the fantasies of her dream, a tear escaped from the corner of her eye. Orsmund was deep in her tight thoughts. Her chest swelled with emotion as she looked out. There he was, perched watching her. Aurora denied that vision. She feared that she was giving herself over to madness. She blinked more than once. She couldn't erase that image. So, it was real, she thought. She got up, panting, and ran to the railing. That wide, sweet smile made her melt inside.

     "Orsmund?"  She spoke up to be sure.  "It's really you?"

     "In flesh and bone!"  He replied when she ventured to pull the door.  "Why are you crying?"

     "I dreamed of you..."  Her eyes got wet.

     As she looked at him, she couldn't believe how he could be a monster. Even though she had witnessed his cruelty nothing could compare to the tenderness she received at that moment. She began by accepting that she had fallen in love. However, she still wouldn't admit it out loud.

     "Will I be a mere object for you?"

     "Why the question?"  Orsmund turned out to be an honest concern.

     "I thought they had you..."

     "Oh! It would take a lot more for me to be at their mercy! Even they who barely know me!"

     "What intentions do you have for me? Why me?"

     "Your scent attracts me!"

     "Why don't you call me to your side? Why don't you attract me like my cousin?"

     "I have no intention of destroying you!"  He bent his head to the dirty night.

     "Why?"  The hands were sweaty.

     "You remind me..."

     "What?"

     "My home!"  They fixed their eyes on each other, not knowing the reason that had led them to that dialogue.

     Aurora felt desperate for an unknown future surrounded by danger. Orsmund was surprised because she made him feel like he was in the past, something approaching human.

    "Death pursues me." These were the words that invaded the girl's subconscious. Unable to communicate them, she put on her robe. Before the Viking came, she was convinced of her miserable destiny to be the slave of presumptuous men. Even if it wasn't the best option, she would give her life to Orsmund for too much danger.

     "What are you doing?"

     "I have nothing to lose!"

     Anticipating Aurora's movement as she prepared to leave, he leapt downstairs to stop her from this desire. He was a little frightened by the feeling of possession over her. Contrary to what he had predicted, this one was meant to go straight out of the room. From the door she gained balance and ran before slamming her eyelids shut. Caught off guard, he resisted the shock that had stabbed him at her daring courage. He caught her in midair, and she lay in his arms until she felt his icy breath on the skin of her neck. His lips touched hers hesitantly and tremblingly. Aurora reached out to kiss him.

     "No!"  A sound harsher than a deep male voice was transmitted.  "Last time... it went wrong."  He was referring to his late wife.

     "Not all times are the same. I'm not the same!"

     "I know you aren't! We've already risked too much!"  He set her down, gently, on the floor as if it were a porcelain doll.

     "Please take me with you!"

     "I came here for one purpose only! With the aim of taking, it to the end without any interruptions!"

     "So..."  She was crestfallen.

     "I won't let them hurt you!"  He held her chin.  "As soon as I complete my objectives, we'll both leave! But..."  He waited for her to be attentive to his words.  "If it falls to my side, I'll make sure you can escape this hell!"

     "We'll both leave!"  She assured him, entirely convinced.

     "I'll take you upstairs again."  He extended his arms to her.

     Aurora clung to him with her arms over his masculine shoulders. She let out a slight scream of satisfaction at the collision of air pressure and the force of gravity. Orsmund's low body temperature stirred her. It wasn't due to the discomfort of an abnormal revelation. Contrary to what could be assumed, the young woman felt herself falling with the delight of the contact. Recognizing her reaction, the Viking crawled across her bare skin from her neck to behind her ear with the tip of his nose. Touching her, purposefully, with his lips. To the same level that his beard tickled her. Then he closed his eyes briefly. For, at the inhalation, his eyes darkened, and as he had already watched his master's transformation, he struggled to control himself. Not to reveal his true nature to Aurora. Before going back inside, she blew him a kiss and they said goodbye.

     "Good night, Orsmund!"

     "Sleep well, Aurora!"

     He waited for her to lie down and chased the night as soon as she was snuggled into the soft pillows that accompanied her into a peaceful sleep.

     Before burying himself in the morning, he sought out some men to compel them. Their job would be to watch over and protect Aurora when he was away, especially in broad daylight. Men would serve him as shadows.