Reyna Feldman, a twenty year old Jewish girl from the tiniest of villages in France, is on the run. Captured by German soldiers while trying to escape over the border, she's taken to an internment camp in Freiburg, Germany, where she meets SS Philli...
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Here's a shorter update for your guys so you're not left completely hanging after that last chapter! I know things have taken a turn, but buckle in gang! Full disclosure.. Things are about to get a bit crazy! :')
Reyna descended the stairs, praying Phillip wasn't following behind. She needed to put distance between herself and that room - herself and this house. Needed to find some way to stop the crushing sensation in her chest before it killed her.
Her vision blurred with fresh tears threatening to brim over. She felt as though a piece of her had been torn away - felt like the air had been ripped from her lungs. The bruises on her back a distant ache compared to the all consuming feeling of shattering. She wanted to run. Wanted to scream. Wanted to disappear into nothingness. She wiped her eyes before the tears could fall. She had nowhere to go. Nowhere. God, what had she done? What had she done?
She looked to her left. Luca was standing in the entryway, a crate in his hands. She met his gaze. His eyes darted to her forehead, following the bruising all the way down to her tear stained cheeks. Dropping the crate at his feet, he stepped forward, and she let the tears fall as she strode towards him, closing the remaining distance between them.
"Hey ... hey," He said, wrapping his arms around her as she buried her face into his chest. "What happened?"
"You were right," She said through a choked sob. "About everything."
"Come with me," He said against her hair. "Come on." He pulled her gently from his chest, keeping one arm around her as he led her down the hall, past the cellar.
They said nothing, her quiet sobs the only thing filling the silence as he opened a door at the end of the hallway. A shorter, narrower corridor came into view, and she followed along as he ushered her down it. Opening another door at the end of that hall, they stepped into a small room, hardly big enough for the bed, nightstand, and dresser arranged inside it.
Closing the door behind them, he slipped his arm out from around her and pressed his hand against her back to lead her to the bed. A shooting pain shot up her spine but she ignored it. She sat down on the bed, the mattress sinking underneath their weight as Luca took a seat beside her.
"Let me look at you," He said. Taking her chin gently in his hand, he tilted her head up to better examine the gash on her temple. "What happened?" He asked, his hand lingering on her chin as his eyes locked with her's.
"We got into a fight," She said, swallowing down the wave of fresh tears that burned her eyes. He straightened at those words, his brow furrowing and his jaw clenching. "No..." She shook her head when she realized the conclusion he'd come to. "No. He didn't do this." She gestured to the right side of her face.
"Tell me everything," He said. His jaw was still clenched, but his shoulders had relaxed considerably. "From the beginning."
So she did. She told him about the girl and the stolen bread - about Lieutenant Muller and the beating she'd taken - about Phillip and their fight that had ensued. He listened silently to every word, the subtle tic of his jaw, or the tensing of his shoulders the only reactions he let slip while she spoke. When she'd finished, he stood to his feet, stepping a few paces towards the door before he spoke.
"I know it's not what you want to hear," He turned around to face her. "But he's right... What you did - it was reckless."
"I know," She nodded, averting her gaze to the floor. She felt the mattress buckle as he sat back down beside her.
"Then why'd you do it?" The question had been an honest one - not angry or accusatory.
"I just..." She drew in a long breath and blew it out as she met his gaze. "I'm so tired of feeling so ... so helpless." Wringing her hands together, she glanced away. "Tired of standing by while people are suffering. I had to do... something."
She waited for the sigh - for the patronizing words laced with good intentions. But they didn't come. She looked back at Luca. His eyes were on her, his brow furrowed as he studied her intently, as if he was seeing her for the first time. And then he nodded. Just... nodded.
"Did he kick you out of the house?" The question was matter-of-fact, but his eyes held the faintest hint of worry in them.
"I... No," She shook her head. "I don't-" She glanced away.
Would he? No ... He wouldn't make her leave - wouldn't throw her to the mercy of Lieutenant Muller. No matter how horrible she'd been - no matter what awful things she'd said with the intent to wound him. He wouldn't do that.
"No," She said, more emphatically this time. "He didn't." She heard Luca let out a breath he'd apparently been holding.
"I don't know what to do," She shook her head. "I have nowhere else to go," She added, the weight of everything that had happened settling back over her.
"Do you want to go back to him?" He asked.
More than anything.
"I..." She swallowed. "I don't know if I can." She didn't know if there was a way to come back from what had passed between them - a way to salvage something from the wreckage her words had left in their wake ... or if there was anything worth salvaging to begin with.
"The room next door is empty," He said, pulling her from her thoughts. "No one really comes back here except for me, and there's a servant's entrance so you wouldn't have to come and go through the main house ... you could stay there if you wanted," He continued on. "Until you're able to sort all this out."
"Thank you." She looked at him. His lips were curved up into a small, comforting, smile. She did her best to return it with one of her own. "I-um," She frowned, realizing she had nothing but the clothes on her back. "All my things ... they're upstairs in - in his room."
"Oh," He blinked, nodding slowly as he realized what she was too embarrassed to ask outright. "I'll have Liza get some new things together for you."
"Thank you," She nodded.
"I have a few more jobs to finish up before I'm done for the day," He said after they'd sat in silence for a moment. "You can stay in here until I get back."
She nodded, and he stood to his feet, heading for the door. Grasping the door knob, he glanced over his shoulder at her. Pushing down the gut wrenching despair that gripped her heart like a vice, she gave her best attempt at a reassuring smile. It was midday, and there was still work to be done. He couldn't sit and coddle her all afternoon - she knew that.
"Unless you want me to stay," He said softly. She drew her eyes up to meet his gaze and nodded silently, a single tear gliding down her cheek. Without a word, he crossed the room and sat back down beside her. Leaning over, she rested her head on his shoulder, more tears sliding down her cheeks. She felt his hand grasp her's and squeeze it gently. She closed her eyes and squeezed his back.
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Sweet Luca saves the day again <3 Let me know what you think of this chapter! I will be working tomorrow, but hopefully will have another update out by the end of the weekend!
