For Love of Evil - [Roman Godfrey/Hemlock Grove]

-20-

"Lyra, wake up!" Peter's voice awoken Lyra from her sleep - the best sleep she'd gotten since moving to Hemlock Grove.

"What-what, what is it?" Lyra sat up quickly, squinting through the brightness of the sun peeking in through the blinds.

"Roman's here, what do you wanna do?" Peter's words came barreling out of his mouth; Lyra's eyes widened as she kicked off the blankets, ready to run into the nearest room to hide.

"Lyra!" Peter called out - but Lyra didn't stop. She ran into the back bedroom, quietly closing the door before the sound of Roman's fist began knocking.

Peter sighed in frustration, wishing that Lyra would tell his friend the truth. He wasn't sure how much longer he could keep up with the lie.

Peter opened the front door, revealing the level of distraught in Roman's face. Two rings of darkness set under his worried and tired eyes. His usually poised hair was in a greasy disarray, wearing the same clothes as the day before.

"Whoa, you look like shit." Peter said, stepping out of the way as Roman pushed through into the trailer.

"She's gone. I don't know where she is, she's fucking gone!" Roman paced the floor, running his hands through his dirty blonde hair.

Peter had never seen Roman so panicked before - as if he were lost and the only one who could find him was Lyra. It pained Peter to know Lyra was just a room away, hiding from him.

"Dude, calm down - I'm sure she's fine." Peter tried calming his friend, but his words seemed to only make matters worse.

"No, she's not fine. I talked to her yesterday, something's going on. I don't know what, but something's wrong."

"Well what did she say?" Peter asked, trying to keep Roman's attention on anything except for the couch.

He noticed Lyra's bag setting on the end, he rushed over to cover it with the blankets before Roman had time to notice.

"That she was sick. What does that mean - you think she's sick of me?"

"I really doubt that." Peter pursed his lips, sitting back in the sofa, relishing in the fact he had successfully concealed Lyra's bag without Roman noticing. "Maybe she just needs some space. The two of you could use a break. Give your bodies some time to... recuperate."

"You're not listening, she's gone."

"Maybe she just went out, got some groceries with her mom or something."

"Her mom was there, the car was there... her mom doesn't even know where she is. I should go to the Institute, she said her dad works there. Maybe that's where she's at."

"No, I wouldn't do that." Peter insisted, his urgency causing him to pop up out of his seat.

That was exactly what Lyra was trying to avoid - any contact with her father. There was no telling what he would say or do if Lyra's father got Roman alone.

"I've gotta do something - I can't just sit here and wonder what happened to her, I have to know." Roman stopped, staring into nothing as he chewed on his bottom lip.

Peter hoped Lyra could hear the desperation in Roman's voice and come out of the bedroom to ease his mind. Time was wasting, she needed to emerge from the bedroom now.

"She's fine. I promise you, Lyra is fine. She's really pissed off at her dad." Peter said, looking down the hall to see if the door had budged. Peter was seeing just how stubborn Lyra was. He knew she could hear their conversation - she had heard him tell Roman a sliver of the truth.

"What do you mean she's pissed off at her dad? When did she tell you that?"

"Dreams." Peter said without a hitch. "I dreamed it."

"And you're just gonna believe it, not even look into it?"

"They've all been right so far." Peter said, walking to the fridge.

He remembered the dream he had of Lyra once. He saw her kneeling - crying. He pictured her wearing a red v-neck sweater with light wash jeans. He saw her sitting in front of a black puddle in the old steel mill Roman and himself had searched. That particular dream had not happened yet, but Peter knew that it would soon.

He handed Roman a beer, still hoping Lyra would come to her senses and come out of the room. He didn't have the heart to tell Roman himself - this was Lyra's news to tell.

"I had a dream about Lyra last night. She was holding a baby that wouldn't stop crying. But she handed it to me and... it stopped." Roman's face fell a little; Peter saw the tension in his shoulders loosen as his gaze turned into a trance, remembering the dream.

"For the first time in my life I didn't hate myself, because someone needed me." Roman finished, setting the beer down on the old coffee table cluttered with ashtrays and empty pop cans. "I'm gonna go. Just- keep a look out for her." Roman left, closing the door behind him with a thud; the charms hanging from the dreamcatcher above the window rattled.

After a few moments, Lyra emerged from the bedroom; the door opened slowly, revealing Lyra in a distraught state just as Roman had been.

She stopped at the end of the hall, her puffy eyes on Peter as he stood watching Roman climb into his car.

"He's worried about you. He thinks something's happened to you."

"No." Lyra shook her head, wiping the fresh tears falling from her eyes as she pictured what Roman had looked like when he spoke to Peter. "He's worried I don't love him."

"Why didn't you come out of there and say anything?" Peter plopped down on the couch with his beer in hand, looking to Lyra with narrowed eyes - disappointed in her selfishness.

"Because if Roman knew you were hiding me, he'd never forgive you."

"Oh, how honorable of you." Peter shook his head, taking a drink of his beer, refusing to acknowledge her presence with his gaze.

Lyra sighed, "I felt it. Roman knows I'm okay, he's just scared that I don't want him anymore."

"Well that's obviously not true, so why didn't you say anything to him? You heard him standing here talking to me."

"Because his feelings for me aren't real!... They never were." Lyra mumbled, walking past Peter to snatch her bag. She slung the strap over her shoulder, storming toward the door.

"Where are you going?" Peter asked, getting to his feet.

"I don't know, Peter - I have no fucking idea. I can't go home, I can't stay here... but I'll figure something out." Lyra swung open the door to the trailer, rushing to walk to her destination of nowhere.