Into the woods I P U B L I S H E D

„I’m lost without you. This life is hell on this earth.”

- Elizabeth

Elizabeth

It has been seven days since I had last seen Henry. Seven long days and nights without sleep and hunger – thirst for water or food.Seven days without seeing him, feeling his touch.

Every day seemed to be worse than the previous day. I tried not to think about him but in the end, my mind would always win.

Everything that surrounded me always made me think about him and all of the things we did. I hoped that the University would help me not to think about him but I was wrong, It was much worse.

I couldn’t think clearly and every time when someone would have asked me something, I wouldn’t answer, I would be in my own happy world. Even the support group didn’t help me much.

Nicklaus tried to cheer me up during the first four days but in the end, I would still be the same lifeless Elizabeth. He tried everything just like Ashley and Kathryn. They were the only ones who really knew what was really happening to me.

But the last three days I had spent with Nicklaus made me feel better. He really knows how to cheer me up and because of him, I started eating and being normal again.

„Does Miss. Zemerlöw want another magnificent pancake?” He asked with a French accent. He had a white apron wrapped around his hips that made him look like a real chef. For the last hour, he made so many, but so delicious pancakes. I still wondered how I managed to ate so many of them.

„Oui, chef Nigtclaw,” I shivered as I said his last name. It reminded me that he was a Nigtclaw just like Henry, his brother.

„You should talk to him,” Turning back to the oven, he flipped the pancake in the air. I took a bit of the pancake, slowly chewing it piece by piece.

„There is nothing that I want to talk to him,” I leaned on the chair. „Besides, he has my phone. How I’m supposed to talk to him without my phone?”

He took his apron off, took the remaining pancakes and sat on the table, giving me his phone. „Here. Call him then.”

I stared at him. „You know that I was joking. He was probably relieved that he got rid of me.”

„Trust me Elizabeth, he is anything but fine. He is in worse condition than you. Our species take love differently,” He started eating his pancakes.

„Species?” I laughed. „I didn’t know that your family is a unicorn.” He chocked and started laughing with me. He shook his head while his eyes were full of joy when he looked at me but that didn’t last long because in the next second he turned back to his pancakes.

„We are far away from unicorns Elizabeth,” He paused for a second, his gaze focused on the pancake in front of him. „I wanted to ask you something.”

I turned my attention to him. „Sure,” I felt scared because I didn’t know if his questions were going to be good or not.

„How did you find that secret passage in the library?” I took a deep breath. I knew that there was a matter of time when he would ask me about that.

Biting my lip, I tried to think about a way how to answer him. There was so much to talk about and yet, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to tell him all about it.

„I got a call back in the library. A man told me that your family portrait is keeping secrets. At first, I thought that he was messing with me and that there is nothing to worry about...”

„But your curiosity won. So you checked it and opened the door,” He cut me off before I could finish it.

I nodded. „Yes. When I entered the tunnel, the door closed and I couldn’t get out. So I walked and walked until I reached two paths. I took the left one that turned out to be the path to your mansion.” Getting up, he took a glass and Louis’s whiskey, sitting back next to me. He poured some whiskey and without taking another second, he drank it all.

„That door should have opened from the inside,” He whispered, taking another glass of whiskey. „Hell, no one couldn’t know about that path beside my family.”

„Why did your family build the tunnels? And where does the second one go?”

„It’s a long story that I will tell you next time,” He placed a kiss on my forehead and smiled down at me. His eyes were telling me that he wanted something more than just friendship, something like love or even desire.

But like me, he knew that my heart already belonged to his brother. Getting up, I walked with him to the door where we stood silently, not knowing what to do – say.

„See you next week,” He opened the door. „I almost forgot. Here is your new phone,” He took out a new phone from his pocket and placed it on my hand.

„Nicklaus, you didn’t have to,” I whispered. „Thank you. Wait a second so I get you the money for the phone.”

He stopped me as I was about to reach the stairs. „Don’t. It’s a gift. I have to go now. Good night, Elizabeth.” At that moment I realized he was nothing like any of his brothers or his friends, and that made me question myself why was he friends with them.

“Nicklaus,” I called his name.

“Yes?” He turned around as he was about to walk down the porch.

“Why are you friends with Monica? You know she is horrible.”

He smiled at me. “Monica is not as she seems, Elizabeth. The way she acts around people, it’s her family’s fault. It’s the genes that she has in her veins.”

“But still, that doesn’t explain why she hates me,” I looked at him confused.

“She doesn’t hate you. She is...” He shook his head. “Broken.”

I stared at him for a moment, not knowing what to say back.

“I have to go now. See you soon,” He said.

I watched him entering his car and leaving the yard. The moment I closed my door, I get a message on my new phone.

Don’t let anyone touch this phone, okay? – Nicklaus

I laughed when I saw ‘Yours truly’ on my screen. He really knew how to make a girl laugh.

I won’t.

He answered immediately.

Promise?

Promise.

Walking into the kitchen, I placed my new phone on the kitchen table and started cleaning this mess before Lena and Louis came back from a friend’s place.

Looking from this point of view, I could see what a mess did we made. Everything was covered with flour and egg shells.

Lena will kill me if the kitchen wasn’t tidy. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and started cleaning the kitchen, and at the same time humming some music to pass my time.

Twenty minutes after I broke my ass off by cleaning this hell of a mess, the kitchen was finally the way I wanted. Clean and everything at their place.

So I decided to have a reward, maybe chocolate or something similar for my work. It was a lot harder to clean than I thought it would be. Some chocolate would be really good right now. Opening the top drawer, I searched for the chocolate when I heard a knock on the door. That was probably them.

„Did you forgot your keys?” I asked as I walked to the door. When I opened the door, there was no Lena and Louis, instead, an older woman was standing there with a white dress. Looking at her closely, I realized that this woman was actually Henry’s mother.

„Good evening, Elizabeth,” She smiled at me. „Can I come in, my dear?” Not knowing what to say, I simply nodded and turned my attention to her car where a young man was sitting in. He was probably waiting for her.

„I remember like it was yesterday when we came here to meet Lena for the first time. She was just like you. Young, curious, brave and beautiful,” Her eyes were traveling through the whole hallway, not missing a single thing.

„I don’t know what to say except thank you for your comment,” I blushed as I closed the door.

„I can see why Nicklaus shows affections towards you even if you belong to his brother.” Belong? I shook my head.

I lead Mrs. Nightclaw to the living room and watch her sitting on the couch.

„Nicklaus and I are just friends,” I took a deep breath, „Henry and me...It’s different. Even if I liked Nicklaus, I will always love Henry even if he makes me go crazy,” I played with my fingers as I continued. „It’s just that my heart will...”

„Always belong to him. I know how it feels because I love my husband like that,” She stood up and walked to me, taking my hands into hers. „I can see that you are a mess just like him. You both are hurting each other,” She placed my hair behind my ear, revealing the scar on my neck. Her eyes widen and her mouth opened. I placed my hair back where it was so that she wouldn’t stare at it anymore.

„Where did you get that?” She sat back on the couch, trying to catch her breath. She was more shocked than every person that had seen this scar.

„I had an accident two months ago,” That was all I had said as I leaned on my chair and crossed my arms. „I’m sorry if I’m rude but I don’t even know your name to tell you something like that. The truth is, I don’t even know what happened.”

„Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Ella,” We shook hands. „I think you know what happened, you just don’t want to confess it to yourself,” I pulled my hand away. Who was she?

„Do you want some water?” I didn’t wait for her answer as I stormed out of the living room to the kitchen for some water. With my shaky hands, I took two glasses full of water and walked back to the living room where I found Ella still sitting on the couch.

„Here,” I placed the glass on the table.

„Thank you, my dear.” She took a few sips and placed the glass back at the table. „I came here to talk to you about Henry,” I nodded. I knew that he was the reason why she came here.

„I know,” She smiled at me.

„Both of you remind me of Michael and me. We were just like you,” I listened to her as she was telling me the story of how she had met Michael, her husband – love of her life.

„Back at my time, the Nightclaws were a scary family. No one dared to talk to them or less, mention their name. Everyone was terrified of them and there were a lot of rumors that the Nigtclaws possed beasts that walked in the night and killed people in the village..” I shivered at the mention of the beasts. It was the same story that my friends told me about.

Noticing how my face turned pale, she took my hand in hers again as she continued. „No one really saw them in the village, and when I had met Michael, he didn’t tell me who he really was. I only knew him as a farm boy who lived near the woods. Since that day, I would see him in the village all the time and somehow during those times I fell in love with him.”

„How did you found out who he really was?” I asked her, looking her directly in the eyes.

„From Mrs. Wolfowitz. One day, she went to the village with him and then I heard her calling him by his last name,” Her smile faded away and her eyes turned sad. „I remember being so mad at him for lying about who he was. He hurt me so much for lying to me who he was, what he was but, in the end, we found our way again. And you can already tell how the story had ended.”

“I understand, but he lied to me, and to top it all, he told Nicklaus, Tyler and everyone else to not tell me,” I whispered her name.

“I know that my son isn’t perfect. None of them are. But you have to understand that after Noah left, Henry changed. We all did.”

“I heard about Noah. Nicklaus told me something about him,” I said.

“What did he tell you?” She asked.

“That he was a psychopath.”

Mrs. Nightclaw nodded. “Noah was the cruelest from my four children, and that was something I couldn’t change. It’s a curse that they carry.”

“But what does he have to do with Henry?”

“Noah abused Henry and Tyler. All the time. And even at some point almost succeeded in killing them. That trauma Noah gave to Henry was much worse than Tyler’s. Tyler never showed his emotions, while Henry, the trauma Noah gave him made him the spitting image of himself. He made Henry a man that he was today.”

I gasped, not knowing what to say, but I believe every word she said. There were times when I would see the cruel side of him. The way he would grab my hand too hard, yell at me and would snap every time when another man was near me.

“I know what you are thinking,” She said. “That Henry is a cruel man, but I sure you, he was never cruel near you. He loves you, Elizabeth, and you are the best thing that ever happened to him. You calm him down and you control the beast that is in him.”

I was about to say something when I heard the main door open.

„What’s going on here?” Lena walked into the living room with a concerned look on her face. Shortly after, Louis appeared too, his eyes were focused on Mrs. Nightclaw.

„Mrs. Nighctlaw,” Louis bowed his head to her.

„Hello, you two.”

Lena smiled at her. „How are you?”

„I’m fine. I see that you are still pregnant,” She walked to her and gave her a hug.

„Only a month left,” Letting go, Lena looked at me and then back at Mrs. Nigtclaw.

„I should go now,” She turned her attention back to me. „Think about what I said, dear.”