Chapter 1
White smoke against the midnight sky. Shining stars in the far, golden locks on his leather jacket. The half smoked cigarette in her trembling hands, his warm breath on her neck. She leaned into him, gripping his arms, hiding her face in his chest. Charlie held her face. „I can’t.“ Her voice was a whisper, not daring to speak of her fate even in this lonely night. „I can’t leave them“, she repeated, a sob threatening to leave her lips. „Helena“, he spoke, his index lifting up her chin. The cold of the December night caressed her cheeks and froze the single tear, that had escaped Helenas grip on control. „You won’t survive him.“ Despair glimmered in his eyes, although they both knew this had been coming. Both had known what tragic they were welcoming, what pain they had to expect. She dropped his gaze. „My parents would hunt me down“, she muttered, resolution heavy on her heart. But Charlie’s hands rose to her neck, his lips mere inches above her head. „Let them hunt us, curse us, but I’ll love you. Until the day the burn my body, I’ll love you, Helena.“