Chapter 4
Clara
I watch Asterion at the stove as he slides a fresh tray of bread from it.
He is wearing only an apron, which I insisted he wear while baking.
The last thing I need is for him to burn that magnificent cock of his while cooking.
The streets eventually were cleared a few days after he rescued me, and I went to the store to buy more food, but thankfully, I didn’t have a need for firewood.
The trip was short and uneventful for me. I have only ever been to town a few times, but I try to go when it is crowded so I can blend in, and stay just long enough to get what I need and leave immediately.
Asterion stays with me most nights, and I have never felt safer or more cared for.
Sometimes we talk about his life before, or we lie quietly and watch the fire together.
I feel my body and my soul healing a little bit more day by day.
I once mentioned seeing his home, and he is excited to show me, but it is definitely a long hike into the woods, so we would need to prepare and stay a few days before coming back.
I think to myself, why would I want to come back? He has lived in his house tucked deep into the woods and has barely seen a human wander in. But maybe instead of running from what is chasing me, I should face it head-on.
We are just sitting down to enjoy Asterion's bread with some homemade butter when I hear the telltale ringing of my burner phone, and I freeze.
Asterion looks at me questioningly, and seeing the fear on my face, his expression changes to one of concern.
“Clara?”
I run to the small cellar tucked into the alcove by the kitchen, and dig my hand into the sack of rice, fumbling to answer before it stops ringing.
There is only one person on the planet who knows this number, and if she’s calling me, then I know what it must mean.
Mark has found me, and I need to run.
???
I SNAP THE PHONE closed, my back to Asterion.
Taking deep breaths, I try not to panic, try not to let my imagination run wild, but I can feel the walls closing in on me, the tears threatening to spill from my eyes.
Just as my resolve is about to crumble, I feel Asterion’s solid body enveloping me, his lips against my ears, my cheek.
The tears still fall, but I feel myself calming instantly.
“What is wrong, sweet Clara?”
“He’s found me…Mark. Someone he knows is here and saw me in town the other day.
They must have asked Mark about it, and Mark called my friend Kate, who owns this cabin, to ask about me.
She said he was trying to seem casual on the phone, and she played dumb, saying the cabin had been empty for years. I don’t think Mark told anyone I left.”
Asterion turns me around slowly, and I sink into his chest. He is so massive that the top of my head barely comes to his chest, and I feel him drop more kisses on my hair.
With one gentle claw, he tilts my head back and gazes at me with those delicious golden eyes. “What would you like to do?” His brow is creased with concern over me.
“I…I think I need to leave.” I look around the cabin and realize that evidence of my staying here is everywhere. “I need to grab all my things and leave the cabin, just like it was when I arrived. Make it look shut down for the winter, and…go.”
Asterion only nods. “You will come with me. My hut is far into the woods. Only a fool would think that you would hide alone too deeply in the woods.”
A small chuckle escapes me before I can stop it.
“He cannot get here magically, right? We have time.” His smile is so reassuring, I can’t help but smile back.
“You’re right. It takes a while to get here, and I don’t know the conditions of all the roads. We have time.”
Asterion and I spring into action. He immediately begins to clean out all the fireplaces, sweeping them thoroughly as though no one had ever been here warming the small cabin.
He cleverly thinks to cover the newly chopped wood pile with a tarp and some snow, to make it look like the wood has been sitting there for several seasons.
Meanwhile, I pull out the old suitcases that were in the house.
I had arrived with so little, and still did not have very much by way of clothes, so I started to pack what was already in the cabin.
Kate would understand. Whatever room was left over, I packed anything extra I think we might need in Asterion’s house.
If I thought Kate’s cabin was rustic, I had a feeling I was in for a rough ride in the hut in the woods.
We go through everything with a fine-tooth comb, and just before we leave, Asterion chops a large branch from a pine tree. My bags are loaded up on a sled that we found in the shed, and we begin our trek into the woods, Asterion brushing our tracks behind us with the branch as we walk.
“There will be more snow, and it will add a fresh layer over everything.” He reassures me.
Taking one last look at the little cabin that saved me, I give it a silent thanks before I set my sights firmly on the forest and what lies ahead.