The Best Bride

13. APARTMENT

Éclair's apartment had two bedrooms, one living room and a kitchen, all richly furnished with expensive looking furniture. The floors were covered with hardwood and the windows with fall curtains - I pondered if those curtains could completely block the sunlight from entering the room or not.  

"Make yourself at home, Nutbrun," said Éclair, setting down his hovercraft key on the low legged table in the drawing room. "Come, I'll show you your room."  

He walked to the left and pushed open a door, revealing a room that looked far better and cleaner than the hotel room I'd stayed. It had a king sized bed in the middle, leather couches on the right and the heavily curtained wall to floor window on the left.  

"There is TV and attached bathroom too," said he as if he knew I was counting the things in the room; he must have followed my gaze around the room and pointed out the things that he thought I hadn't noticed. "I'll leave you to your room now. You hungry?" 

"No."  

"I'll see you tomorrow, then. Goodnight, Nutbrun."  

"Goodnight, Éclair."  

Éclair left, pulling the door close behind me.  

I let out the breath that I realized I'd been holding back since entering the apartment. I hadn't done so or felt nervous while riding the hovercraft with him. Probably the realization of being among the things that he had laid his hands upon must have done something to my breathing system here.  

The escaping from the car had wasted all my energy. Exhausted, I lay on the cozy bed staring up at the white ceiling, and then the sleep caught me. 

*** 

I woke up to the knocking on the door. Turning on the bedside lamp, I went to open the door. 

"'Morning," said Éclair, holding the breakfast tray. "Did I wake you up?" 

"No," I lied. "What is the time now?" 

"Must be five in the morning," said he. "Here, I've brought you breakfast." Aw, that was really sweet of him.  

"I'd have come to the kitchen. Please don't spoil me." 

He chuckled. "I'm not spoiling you. I'm just being nice."  

I took the tray from his hand. "Are you going somewhere?" I asked, seeing him in grey shoes, half pant - god, his legs, they look too sturdy - and white t-shirt. 

"Yes," said he. "I'm going for jogging." I remembered the first time when we'd met. "By the time I return, the sun will have come up. I want you to shut the curtains and keep your room dark as much as possible. I'll double curtain the windows after I return. Nothing will happen to you. I'll make sure of that." He was being more than nice; he was being protective.  

"Thank you, Éclair," I said.  

He smiled, turned around and walked away.  

I closed the door, and ate the breakfast sitting on the couch. After that I went back to the bed, switched off the lamp and slept again.  

Éclair woke me up once again by knocking at the door. He had returned from jogging. I went to open the door for him. 

He came in the room carrying the curtains in both his hands. "Stay under the blanket for some minutes, okay. I'm going to set up these curtains over the old ones."  

"Yeah, okay."  

I hid myself under the blanket, and when I pulled back the blanket off my face at Éclair's saying, I saw nothing but the dark; he had turned off the lamp to check if the double curtains could block completely from entering the room or not. They could.  

Satisfied with his work, he turned on the light again.  

"I hope this helps," said he. He glanced down at his wrist and added, "It's time for me to leave for work. Do you need anything?" 

"No, thank you."  

"Well, then, I'll see you this evening." He waved his hand and left.  

Ten or fifteen minutes later, I heard his footfalls moving toward the main door, and then everything became silent.  

The room felt warm as the sun shone brighter outside. Although the curtains did the very good job by shielding off the light, I couldn't stay away from the itching sensation on my skin. I thought I was being allergic to the heat from the sun. It seemed only the cold water would make me feel better.  

And that was why I spent that whole afternoon in the bathtub, playing with water and singing the fairy songs. 

***  

On the third day while I was still submerged in the bathtub water I heard the movement in the drawing room. I thought Éclair had come back from the work early, but also Éclair would have knocked on my door announcing his arrival. I waited for him to knock, but he wouldn't.  

I got out the bathtub, put on the brown dress that I'd been wearing since the car escape and walked into the dark bedroom.  

I turned to the door. "Éclair? Is that you?"  

No reply.  

I called him again, this time raising the volume of my voice.  

Still no reply. Just the sound of feet motioning across the floor.  

And then I felt it; the smell - the rotting, foul smell. Red-Faced-Demon.  

I was backing away when this demon kicked the door wide open. I cried as the sunlight entered through the open door and my skin began steaming; the demon had parted the curtains in the drawing room letting the sunlight in through the window.  

Whimpering in pain, I ran back to the bathroom where the sunlight hadn't reached, and typed a hasty message with trembling fingers to Éclair; I don't know how, Red-Faced-Demon has come for me in your apartment. 

The smell grew stronger, and I sensed the demon now coming toward the locked bathroom where I was cowering in the empty bathtub too scared to make sound.  

The demon banged at the door, but then knowing it was locked from inside he stopped doing so. Pinching my nose I kept eyes on the door. 

A minute passed without any incident.  

Then I heard the grunt behind me. Turning away from the door, I saw them in the shadows - the gleaming red eyes. Red-Faced-Demon had materialized in the lightless bathroom.  

Despite my bubbling fear in my chest, I managed to speak. "What...what do you want?"  

The demon didn't answer.  

The next thing I felt was his long rough palm wrapping around my wrist in steel grip. 

Click! 

My vision got blurred and I felt like as if I had been pulled into the middle of the whirlpool.  

Ten seconds later, I felt the demon letting go my wrist.  

I fell down onto the cold hard floor. Wherever I was now, it was pitch black here.  

I lifted my head when I heard the clanging sound of metal door. The foul smell died away, making me realize that the demon had finally left me alone; and that he had just locked the door of the prison with me inside.