The Beauty of Coincidence | manxman | (Historical Fiction)

XXXVIII - A Rainbow May Shortly Follow

Victor could hardly see as he darted quickly around the bend of the alley. There was terror in his veins, a scream trapped in his throat, and all for the haunting figure of the shadow that'd appeared before him. His mind recognized the face as a mortal man, but his heart had shifted the features into something much more threatening, much more terrifying. He'd been afraid many times in his life, afraid of things most people would find themselves afraid of, but this absolute madness that'd flushed through his being the moment he met this man's eyes, it was like no other.

Victor hadn't been able to control himself.

It was as if his feet moved on their own in an attempt to steal him from the presence of this person who was so normal, yet so daunting. He had to get away, and the only place he felt would save him from this absolute nightmare was the arms of the man he'd woken up beside.

Certainly not taking into account that he wasn't permitted to enter this location, Victor hurried into the wide, slightly foggy alleyway behind the furniture shop, and there he found a door open just slightly at the back of it. Metal and a bit heavy when he pulled it open, Victor rushed inside as he swallowed gulps of air wanting to fill his lungs. This place was bathed in darkness, a bit cold, but the iciness rippling down his spine numbed his bones. Immediately off to his left, he spotted a steep stairwell that descended toward the glow of what he assumed was a lantern to bring life to this darkness. There were voices coming from below as well, but the only one that caught his manic attention was the familiar tune of Reynold's soft words. Victor couldn't quite tell what was being said, but he was deaf to it all regardless and hurried down the steps.

As the ache that'd reentered his hip worsened in all his flurry, he gritted his teeth in a constant wince, one hand gliding down the stone wall as he went down each step. His voice almost wouldn't leave his mouth when he went to call out, his throat dry as the name of his lover stilled at the tip of his tongue.

Eyes burning from the unstoppable breach of tears blurring his vision, Victor attempted with all he had to bring forth his voice, and finally the words flooded from his throat. "Reynold," his vocals quaked, "Where are you?"

"Victor?" Reynold's questioning tone surfaced from below, and when he stepped into view at the bottom of the stairs, he found himself closely and securely bombarded by an embrace that seemed to want to disappear into him. At first, he'd wanted to stop the young lord from coming down any further, as the basement and its contents were supposed to remain a secret, but Victor's voice, the sound of horror that wept from his being told Reynold immediately there was something terribly wrong about this situation. The only times he'd witnessed fear within his lover, were the moments Victor had right to be afraid, and it was clear something had startled the trembling lord — so badly he'd raced down here in a full blown panic.

Partly afraid for himself just seeing the man he loved this way, Reynold allowed his embrace to fold Victor into his arms and he held on with all his might... all his love in hopes of calming even just a portion of this concentrated foreboding.

He let the embrace last without a word for just a moment, sharing a look with Frank who'd gone down there to tell him of Victor's request, but they hadn't gotten far into the conversation before the young lord interrupted. "What is it, my love?" he spoke softly into the blond tresses against his lips.

At just the thought of speaking the name of the person who'd instilled him with this reminder of insignificance, Victor only turned his face into the center of Reynold's chest, fists closing into the back of the other man's shirt as he shook. He couldn't speak it, didn't want to, but Reynold's question answered itself when he looked up at an additional sound of footsteps descending the stairs of the basement.