One Last Lie

Chapter 4

I looked around the spacious living room. She had two large leather tan couches, and one rectangular marble table in the center of the room. Her floors were carpeted deep red with extravagant designs with colors of black and gold, giving off an exotic feel.

The stone walls were decorated with paintings and small rugs with similar designs to the carpet, and one large clock that looked ancient, with it's yellowish tint and no glass covering. I shuddered, and realized the large window beside me, made of paper thin glass, failed to block out the cold air, even the golden drapes were slightly blowing from the breezes outside. I rubbed my arms, freezing as hell. 

When I heard the kitchen door being opened, I quickly sat down on the sofa. She walked out pushing the golden drapes that hung in front of her kitchen door out of the way. She held a wooden tray with a few plates on it. My mouth watered at the sight of food, and my stomach growled as soon as I caught the scent. "Sorry that took a while. I hope you've made yourself at home," she said.

"Oh, no, don't worry about it. And yes, I do like the design of your home," I said. I looked at the small circular marble table next to the couch. Many small pictures with dark wooden framing covered the table. I looked at each photo. In most of the pictures Yara stood next to a tall man with dark hair, thick eyebrows and a heavy mustache. I looked closer at the sailor uniform he wore in a few pictures.

"Who's he?" I said gesturing to the pictures.

"That's my father," she said slightly morosely. 

"Where is he?" I asked. She looked away from me. Oh, maybe I shouldn't have asked. But then she turned back to me.

"He passed away at sea," she said quietly.

"I'm sorry about that," I replied. Neither one of us said anything for a minute or two, but then she gestured at the tray.

"Aren't you hungry?" She asked.

"Oh, yeah, I am," I replied somewhat embarrassed. She handed me noodle soup and a plate with brown rice, chicken and a couple of rolls on the side. I began to eat, and immediately my entire body warmed as soon as I began. Everything was delicious, each recipe was full of flavor and the chicken was perfectly tender. I hadn't eaten in a while so I nearly inhaled my whole plate in a matter of moments.

Once I was done, I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. "Wow, thanks, that was amazing," I said. She looked at me with complete shock.

"You're welcome," she said as her eyes trailed to the box of tissues. Embarrassed, I quickly reached for a couple. "You said you wanted to go to Groztough right?"

"Yeah, I did."

"When are you supposed to get there?" 

"We should be there by today," She nodded.

"Now how long do you plan to stay? Since he's not there" I paused for a minute.

"I don't know. I don't think I should go until Ron gets here, he'll get so pissed off at me," I added with a laugh. 

"Oh, Ron's the guy you're meeting here?"

"Yup," I responded stifling a laugh. 

"What's so funny?" She asked with a smile.

"Nothing." I quickly said. 

"If his train doesn't pull in by tonight, just go find a good hotel. There's plenty of good ones around here." Yeah, but for one night they cost a damn fortune! "If you want me to look with you, I can," she offered.

"Thanks, that's real nice, but don't bother yourself. I'll go find one, and probably just get situated. See you tomorrow? Maybe?" 

"I'll be here," she said nodding.

                                                         *****

Where in the world is he? I moved towards the house he jumped on top of, and wondered if I should keep in that direction. It might lead me closer to the train station. So, if Viktor was caught, what are the consequences of sneaking on a train? Or what if there was more to it than my brain would let me think? He couldn't get caught, could he? All his talk of my irresponsibility convinced me believe he was fine.

I walked cautiously around Norgien hoping I wouldn't run into any of the train guards. What if I get caught? Maybe I should go back to Yara's house. But I knew I couldn't do that. I needed to find Viktor and get out before we were found out.

We needed to get to Groztough without causing another uproar. But what am I so worried about? Viktor is smart, and if I managed to escape and hide, Viktor could, too. The more I told myself this, the more I was sure Viktor was worried sick about me. But still, the thought in the back of my mind faintly echoed, if only we just knew how we would come back together, this really wouldn't have been a problem.

As I walked around, I heard what I didn't want to hear, people talking about the whole "two guys that snuck on a train" thing. Why am I even surprised? I would be talking if I was one of them, I listened to the two men talk just to see if I'd hear anything interesting.

"That was probably the biggest news Norgien's ever gonna have. That's how boring this place is." Who could disagree with that?

"Yeah, I know. But seriously, who would sneak on a train to get to Norgien?" Even they think so too.

"Where did those guys go anyway?" 

"I dunno, I didn't even see 'em.," the bigger man replied shrugging. 

"I only saw a picture of one of 'em," I froze. My eyes widened, and my heart began beating wildly. Who? Who? Which one? If it's me, I'm dead...could it really be-

"Yeah, me too, it was some bald guy," I let out a small sigh of relief. Wait, if a picture of only Viktor was released, and not one of me...that must mean...Viktor was caught.

"Do you know what's gonna happen to him?"

"No clue. I mean, what're they gonna do? Probably make him pay or something. Maybe they'll ask him why he snuck on board before they put down a punishment. Well, then there's the other guy."

"What's gonna happen to the other guy?"

"Maybe punishment's gonna be worse if he doesn't just go turn himself in. Oh, yeah, plus there was when they attacked all the guards to get in. So, you know," he drawled.

"What!? These guys are nothing but trouble! They better be put in jail or somethin'! Who are they anyway!?" This is really bad. There's no way Viktor got captured. There's just no way they took him and didn't send him back to Basik. They know who he is. He's in trouble, and they're gonna kill him. But not before they find out where I am...

I couldn't stay and listen to what else they had to say. I backed away from the two men and dashed back to the woods with only one thought echoing through my head. They're coming for me.

                                                            ****

After what felt like an eternity of trudging through the woods, I wasn't even sure where I was anymore. I stopped walking, and dropped my body like dead weight on the dirt. I looked wildly around. So how the hell do I get back to town? I thought, but then I spot something a few feet ahead. What the hell is that? I stood up and began moving in the object's direction. 

As I moved closer, I was able to make a few things out. Slanted top, made of old looking wood and a base made of the same wood. A house! There's a house here! I picked up speed and raced to the house. I stood in front of it and inspected it. Well, this place looks so run down. Must've been empty for a long time. 

The cottage was so beaten up, that the windows had been broken right off, and the door  hung so limp I was afraid to push it in fear it would fall right off its hinges. The walls looked so weak, that if you punched it once, it seemed like the base would give away and the whole thing would come crashing down. Definitely vacant, I thought as a stepped on to the porch that creaked loudly under my weight. 

I paused for a second half expecting to fall down because it would break. When it didn't, I pushed open the door that squeaked as loudly as the porch, and walked inside.