Claimed by the Dark

CHAPTER 19

It took every ounce of strength to let Dragomar go.

As I was left alone in the quiet cabin, I was hoping for some sort of calm and peace to take over.

But it was so quiet. All I could hear was the wood cracking in the fire. Everything outside was covered in snow and death. No birds, no noises, just tall, still trees. Not even a breeze.

As I was watching all this from my window, anxiety took over.

I started to breathe heavily. I was overwhelmed by all these sudden emotions.

Fear… worry… grief…

I started to walk nervously around the room, talking to myself, mostly nonsense.

Pacing around the room, grabbing my hair wasn’t helping.

I needed to calm down. So, I grabbed my notepad and a pencil, tried to put my thoughts on paper, making lists of pros and cons.

The frustration was eating me alive. No matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t stop cursing myself for doing that stupid ritual, for messing with the paranormal, instead of just minding my life.

Why was I so desperate to see my soul mate? Was I that worried at just 22 that I was going to die alone? STUPID, Kira. It was STUPID!

Now here I am, torn! Torn between this ancestral love that burns me, and my desire to remain human, to not hurt anybody.

But I also didn’t want to die… I wanted my life. I wanted to grow old. I wanted to get married, have kids.

Oh my God! Now I sound like Diana. Marriage, kids… I thought I didn’t want all of that.

But I do… I want all of it.

I started crying uncontrollably like I had just found out the greatest news.

But what did that mean for me and Dragomar?

Regardless of what I chose, my life was never going to be a suburban house, with children and a dog…

And then I cried some more, I cried until I fell asleep.

And as I drifted to the sound of wood cracking in the fire, everything stopped and remained dark.

--

I finally opened my eyes; light was shining through the window. I forgot to close the curtains.

I turned my back to them and stretched. It took me a minute but then I jumped so hard, startled and panicked.

I was back home! In my apartment. In my bed.

The room was a mess and it smelled so stale. My coffee mug was on my nightstand. It had mold in it.

What was happening?

I stumbled out of bed, looking around in disbelief. My body ached in so many ways.

Clothes on the ground… I had this T-shirt on me. It stank! My sweat smelled horrible.

I was trying to process things. Why was I there? Wasn’t I at the cabin? Was that a dream? Or was this?

I picked up a plate and threw it in the sink. It broke. It seemed very real.

My phone.

I couldn’t remember where I put my phone.

I started looking for it, throwing stuff around.

My phone was missing.

I drank a glass of water. There were traces of vomit in the sink. Grabbed my head between my palms. Was I losing my mind?

What day was this? I turned on the TV. I needed to know at least what time it was.

I put on the news.

I couldn’t believe it!

January 7th. JANUARY 7TH?! I screamed in the empty room.

No. No. No. No.

Dragomar! Dragomar, come out!

I stared at the walls, my eyes popping out of my head.

He didn’t come.

I sat on the couch, looking into nothing. Did I really dream all of this?

Then what happened to me? Why is my house in this state?

I heard vibrations.

My phone! It was somewhere in the room. I followed the noise, trying to keep as quiet as possible.

IN MY BOOT! My phone was in my boot.

I picked it up. My mother called. And my father. And my friends.

I was actually afraid to call back.

It started to ring again. My mother. I answered.

“KIRA! KIRA, CAN YOU HEAR ME?” the panicked voice screamed at me.

“Mom, I hear you. Please stop screaming!” I replied, pulling the phone away from my ear.

“We were worried sick! Elena called us because she couldn’t reach you! She told us you came down with the flu. Why didn’t you call me? If you are sick, I can come over and take care of you!”

“Mom, please, you’re still speaking very loudly and I have a horrible headache. I just needed rest and plenty of sleep. Apparently, I slept for too long to make you all panic. My phone was on silent. I’m feeling a little better now, and I would like to just go get some food. I’m going to send a text to everyone saying that I’m fine so you won’t worry anymore.”

“But we do worry, honey. You’re all alone there,” said my mother, sobbing.

“I’m fine, mother. We’ll talk later.”

I hung up the phone. Sent a text to everyone else.

I ordered some food. I had nothing in the house. I started randomly cleaning up as I was waiting for the food.

Then a knock on the door.

I checked the visor.

It was Michael! He was at the door.

I opened hesitantly, looking horrible, smelling even worse. I just cracked the door and looked up at him, not knowing how to speak with him.

“Howdy, neighbor,” he said with a friendly smile.

“Uhm, hello…”

“Wow, you look like you got hit by a bus! Are you OK?”

“Uhm… the flu… I have the flu…”

“Oh, bummer! Then this is the worst time for me to show up, but, there’s a water leak in my apartment. It might be coming from your place.”

The leak? This happened before. Didn’t we fix it? Oh, no, wait. Was that a dream? Damn, I’m so confused.

“So… can the plumber come check it out?” Michael hesitantly asked.

“Uhm… my place is a mess, as you can imagine. And I don’t know if I’m still contagious or not…”

“I know, I can imagine, and I’m so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Just give me a minute to tidy up, air the room and find a mask. Can you come back in like half an hour?”

“Sure, I can do that. I’m sorry I had to barge in on you like this.”

I closed the door. I hallucinated. It was all a dream. Was the flu all along?

I laughed nervously by myself as I began to clean the room and open the windows to let in the cold winter air. It felt like a faint smell of sage lingered in the air.

I took a shower and changed into clean clothes. By the time Michael was back with the plumber, I was a brand-new person.

“Feeling better, I see,” Michael commented. “I come bearing gifts” he said, lifting a bag of goodies. “Coffee and bagels, just what the doctor ordered,” he said, pulling everything out of the bag.

“Oh, you’re a saint!” I smiled, grabbing one of each.

“One of these days you have to let me take you out on a proper date, OK?” he asked with a sparkle in his eyes but also with a bit of suspicion, I felt.

I hesitated. I looked up at him feeling conflicted, yet drawn to him. I knew him. Intimately!

"In my mind, I think we have already done more than that," I replied, lifting an eyebrow.

“You naughty girl! And yet you left me hanging the last time I asked…” he said, rubbing his chin.

“It must’ve been the flu…” I responded carefully.

“So, if you’re feeling better, would tomorrow be OK?” he asked, smiling.

“How about tonight? I’m available.” I smiled back at him… but for a split second my chest tightened.

No reason. Just nerves, exhaustion, and the remnants of a nightmare I couldn’t remember clearly.