Before Time Runs Out

Chapter 15

"My mother was the one who had introduced me to books as a child. Even when I could not even walk yet, and she would sit a read to me every night."

"She seems like a kind woman who cares about her children." Ethel sighed; her expression tinged with sadness.

"She was. After she passed away my father was not, really my father anymore to say the least." Matthias stopped walking, unlocked, and opened the doors to the library, then led her inside. She quickly strayed off from him, moving to look at the books on the shelves, even taking one off the shelf to look at it. 

"That one is Wuthering Heights. Written in 1847." Matthias was in the background, moving papers around on his desk. He found the letter from Carmelita that he knew had originally been for Ethel, as Carmelita never sprayed her perfume on letters to him.

"My mother read Romeo and Juliet to me once. It was not my favorite book. I was never a fan of romance books as a child or even as a teenager. I enjoyed historical ones and fantasy fiction." She flipped through a few pages, noting how good of a condition they were in. A question sparked up in her mind, and she slowly put the book back onto the shelf, pulling off another one and studying it.

"Why was it that you demanded on the invitation that I come?" She heard Matthias stop moving the papers around, seeming to freeze at the question. "I've never had someone demand that I come to a party before. A simple invitation would have worked for me, I'm good at convincing Carmelita when it comes to going out places." Matthias had come up behind her quietly, and she put the book back on the shelf and turned around. He had a letter in his hand, the familiar red wax stamp on it unbroken as he held it out to her.

"I believe that this was originally for you." Ethel took the letter from him, turning it over in her hands. It was the letter that had gotten mixed up and had ended in Ethel finding out Carmelita was different from her in many ways.

"So, are you and Carmelita planning on making it official?" Ethel looked up at him, a small smile playing on her lips.

"At some point yes, probably when we figure out how to solve her curse." Matthias had expected a slightly different answer but that worked for him.

"Even though your human and she isn't?" Matthias lowered his voice as he said this, waiting for Ethel's answer. Ethel furrowed her brows in confusion.

"Is there something wrong with that?"

"Well, if you do solve her curse issue, she'll outlive you by quite a bit. That explains to you why she still looks the same as she did when she was twenty."

"That doesn't bother me," Ethel paused, exhaling before she continued. "If she's loved me in my lifetime then that's enough for me."

"Has she told you that she loves you?" Ethel was quick to answer that, knowing exactly where this conversation was going.

"She doesn't have to. I've never said it to her, and she's never said it to me, we both show our love for each other in a unique way other than words." Matthias had gone over to a small drink table, pouring himself a glass of white wine, taking a small sip before coming back to her.

"I would offer you some wine, but I already know you don't drink." Ethel glanced towards the door, realizing that Carmelita would be a bundle of worry by now that she had not returned yet.

"We should probably get back soon. Carmelita is probably going to flip her top with me having been gone for so long." Ethel made her way to the door, going to open it, but the handle wouldn't budge. She felt that familiar unease bubble up inside of her, and quickly turned around to see Matthias right behind her. She went to pull a pin from her hair, but he grasped her wrist tightly, keeping her in place.