35__Truth or Tale, Fact or Fable

Kamilla tried to put her shoes on as normally as possible with Viktor staring at her from across the bedroom.

“Are you still refusing to answer me?” he demanded.

Kamilla tensed. Oh, God. She had no clue how to deal with any of this! Damon went on about irreparable damage if Viktor found out about Charming, now she didn’t know whether or not to tell him. Where was Damon when she actually needed him?
Biting her lip she turned to Viktor. “I t-told you… I’m just as confus—”

“Bullshit!” Viktor growled. Stalking over to her, he flicked back his black coat and crouched down to her level, staring intently into her eyes. “I saw myself in that mirror, Kamilla! No, no… that wasn’t… *me*. It’s… it’s so fucked up. One minute, I was looking at myself like I was looking at a reflection and then you popped up next to the reflection when you weren’t really next to me and then all of a motherfucking sudden, you were next to me and gone from the reflection…” Viktor trailed off and shut his eyes tightly. Kamilla watched him run a frustrated hand through his hair and grip it. “I’m losing my fucking mind…”

She grabbed the hand clutching his hair and loosened it, holding it in her own. “No, you’re not! Okay… what if I promise to figure out what happened? Because no matter what you may think, I’m really confused right now.”

Viktor’s frown darkened. “Then how the hell could you figure it out when I can’t?! Tell me, Kamilla. There’s something wrong with me, isn’t there?” He leaned into her and Kamilla found herself frozen, unable to even move back. “I know… it started long ago. Even before I found you. But you’ve seen it too, haven’t you?”
Kamilla bit her lip and stared at him.

Viktor’s throat worked as he swallowed. Kamilla stared into his eyes, seeing the swirls of blue and thinking that maybe now she knew why his eyes swirled that way. The dark blue and sparling light blue mixed in a beautiful array. There were times when they were perfectly dark and times when they were like this. The only time they were perfectly light was when Charming was awake, and Viktor asleep.
The eyes truly were the windows to the soul.

“I asked if you’ve seen it!” Viktor said sharply making Kamilla jump.
“Yes!” She said back, releasing a shaky breath. “Yes… I’ve seen it.”
Viktor brows rose and he nodded. “You have, haven’t you? You’ve… you’ve seen me disappear, right? It’s not just in my head?”

Kamilla stared at him for a silent moment and then, pulling her hand off his, she slowly reached up, cupping his face. “No... it’s not. But, where do you go?”

His gaze became downcast for a moment, his thick lashes dark against his fair skin. He looked back up at her with a dark frown. “I have no clue. I just feel pain, Kamilla. Pain and then I’m numb. If I actually feel it, trust me… it’s enough pain to kill a human.”
She rubbed her thumb against his cheek and nodded, swallowing against the lump in her throat. “I know… I’m sorry.”
Viktor released a heavy breath and Kamilla felt him lean against her hand as he closed his eyes. “If you’re sorry… tell me what you know. I know you’ve seen it… and I know that you and Damon are keeping something from me.”
Kamilla bit her lip. “Viktor… it’s… it’s really complicated. There’s a problem… No.” Kamilla shook her head. She didn’t want to think of Charming as a problem. He was a precious sweetheart who didn’t deserve any of his sadness. “Not a problem, but… a situation.”

Viktor looked at her. “There’s something messed up inside me,” he murmured darkly. Kamilla watched his mouth curve as he chuckled. “Well, I mean, Vampires have been called sons of devils for centuries, but there’s… something else that’s messed up. Isn’t there?”

Kamilla swallowed hard, pursing her lips.

Viktor scoffed. “That’s right. Seal those lips real tight.” He tilted his head. “I wonder… If I can’t trust my best friend and my soulmate… who the fuck can I trust?”
Kamilla’s lips parted in a silent gasp, but before she could say anything, he’d pushed her hand off his face and stood to grab his keys.
**************
Viktor silently put the car in parking alongside the street, ignoring all the tension between him and Kamilla as she sat stiffly in the passenger seat.
With heavy sigh, he threw open his door and got out of the car, waiting till she’d done the same before he locked the car and headed for the restaurant.
Kamilla pouted at his dark frown and shoved her hands in her coat pockets as hurried to catch up with him.

Viktor reached the entrance before her and went in. Kamilla watched a blonde woman walk out as Viktor disappeared into the restaurant, her brown-eyed gaze fixated on Viktor’s face until she was looking at the back of his head.
Kamilla stopped by the woman as the lady stared at Viktor’s back, her eyes wide and filled with shock. She was young, Kamilla thought. Possibly in her late twenties. She was beautiful.

“Charming…” whispered the lady.

Kamilla’s mouth dropped open. What in the hell? How did… how did a stranger in London know about Charming??
The woman dazedly took a step back into the restaurant, following Viktor. Kamilla gasped and leaped forward, grabbing the lady’s arm.

The woman looked back in fright. “What in God’s name…?”
Kamilla smiled brightly. “Ah… hello! Could we speak for a moment?”
The lady frowned and tried to shake Kamilla off. “Absolutely not. Who are you?”
Kamilla clenched her teeth, but kept her smile on. “I just want to talk for a minute…”

“Am I being mugged?!” the lady cried.

Kamilla’s smile fell flat. “What? Do I *look* like a mugger?!” she snarled. “Stand still before I karate chop you in the throat!”
Gasping in shock, the lady became stock still, her honey-brown eyes pleading. “Please… don’t h-hurt me.”

Kamilla huffed and rolled her eyes, easing her grip on the lady’s arm. This wasn’t the way to do it. She couldn’t scare the woman out of her wits, she’d need them to answer Kamilla’s questions.
With a charming smile, Kamilla patted the lady’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I startled you, didn’t I? Calm down. I promise I won’t hurt you, I just want to talk.”
The woman’s shoulders relaxed a little as she looked worriedly at Kamilla. “Uhm, yes… Who are you?”

Kamilla tilted her head adorably. She’d milk this woman for as much information as she could. “I just happened to hear you call my boyfriend’s name, so I got curious.”
“What?! Y-your…”
Kamilla nodded. “Yeah… uhm, I heard you say Charming as he went inside. We’re here to have breakfast.” She tilted her head at the lady. “May I ask how you know him?”
The woman frowned in confusion. “Uhm… he used to hang around my family home near Yorkshire. We became sort of friends.” She glanced back in at the restaurant. “I’m surprised he didn’t recognize me.”
Kamilla’s brows rose. “He used to hang around your family home? Why? Do you know why?”

The lady looked back at Kamilla with a raised brow. “May I know your name? It is only polite that we know each other’s name if we’re to engage in such personal conversation.”
Kamilla blinked once and then smiled. “Ah, of course… my name.” She sighed. “I’m Kamilla Drew.”
The woman made an expression of approval. “Oh. What a beautiful name. My name is Elizabeth. Elizabeth Ames. My friends call me Liza.”
Kamilla nodded. “Great to meet you. Now, about Charming—”
“He said he was made there,” said Elizabeth.
Kamilla frowned. “Pardon?”
The lady nodded. “Yup. I didn’t understand it either. Since I moved out, it's been empty, but my family has lived in the house, remodelling and renovating it over and over for centuries. He's in no way connected to us, so there’s no way he could have been… you know, conceived there.”

Kamilla looked at the ground with a frown as she thought it over. Could it be what she was thinking? What if Elizabeth’s family home really was where Charming had appeared in Viktor’s mind?
“How many times did he go there?” she asked the lady.

Elizabeth sighed. “Enough times for my parents to think that he was mentally disturbed and for me to feel bad for him. He always looked utterly sad whenever he strolled through our grounds.”
Kamilla shook her head in confusion. “Was that all he said when you asked him what he was doing on your property? That he was made there?”

Elizabeth pursed her lips and pondered. “Yeah… well, he said he was drawn to the place because he was made there. He also constantly asked me if I had a sister. But I’m an only child. You know what the weird thing is?”
Kamilla almost laughed. What *wasn’t* weird about this whole situation? “No… what?”

Elizabeth’s expression grew grave. “He asked me if I had a sister called… Emma.”
Kamilla blinked. “Yeah?”
Elizabeth sighed. “In my family, we have a lot of tales and legends surrounding our ancestors who lived on the property before us. Stories passed down to my great-grandparents, to my grandparents—”
“Uh-huh,” said Kamilla with a nod. “But, what’s so special about the name Emma?”

Elizabeth glanced back into the restaurant before leaning back into Kamilla. “Emma was… she was my great-grandfather’s great-grand aunt. Basically, she’s one of my ancestors. The scary part is, just how did Charming know about her? Nobody… not even our neighbours had ever known that name.”

Kamilla swallowed. Could it be that Viktor had known this Emma? He'd been around for long enough to have known Elizabeth's ancestors. She slowly shrugged. “Uhm… maybe he’s her descendant too?”

Elizabeth shook her head firmly. “Your boyfriend isn’t my relative, Kamilla. That's why we let him visit the grounds whenever he wanted. My parents believed he had a spiritual connection to the place that let him know Emma. He's definitely not her descendant. Emma never got married. She never had the chance to because when... when she was thirteen years old, her body was found torn to pieces on that property. She was murdered.”