Katerina and Niko have grown close in the two weeks since Niko had offered her his help. Of course, she knew it was probably doubtful that he knew anything about who hunted her. But she had permitted him to follow her regardless simply because he seemed like he’d be an interesting company. Within those two weeks, she had countless nightmares of her time in the place before she had escaped. She tried to keep it to herself, tried not to bother Niko with her problems. However, he could probably tell that something was wrong. She had dark circles under her eyes and she seemed haunted by something.
This all came to a head when Katerina broke down into tears her nightmares getting the better of her emotions. Niko had been there for her holding her while she cried in his arms not pushing her. It was then that Katerina spilled everything to Niko, everything about her past why she was on the run all of it.
“I have a gift, one I’ve had ever since I could remember. The gift is that I can make anyone relieve their most painful memories with a single thought or touch as many times as I want. When it first manifested my parents tried everything they could to help me control it, it would activate at random times. But it wasn’t something any of us truly understood so as a form of protection my father taught me how to properly fight and use a dagger against an opponent” she told him giving him a moment to process what she had just said.
She took a deep breath continuing, her eyes shining with unshed tears. The memories washing over her pulling her into that time in her life.
“I was sixteen when I was kidnapped by the person who hunts me, although I think that he might be a demon. I had no idea at first why he wanted me, wanted me to use my gift but I refused. Having no idea how to use my gift and being stubborn to do anything he wanted. It was after that that he had kidnapped my parents using them against me by torturing them in my place. Eventually, I mastered my gift and my parents tried to help me escape. That night they died and a piece of me broke, he used that as a lesson that if I loved anyone he would hurt them the same way he did to my parents. Although I doubt he would kill them based on the fact that I completely shut down refusing anything he wanted despite physical, emotional and psychological torture he inflicted on me. He would twist my memories to make it so it seemed as though I murdered my parents to make the pain go away. Those memories still haunt me in my dreams being the reason I can’t sleep properly. Eventually, I escaped it almost killing me to do so. It’s been two years since I escaped running ever since. It doesn’t help that we share this invisible bond that tells the other when we're close to one another, something that was forced on me” she finished.
She couldn’t bear to look at him, to see his reaction to everything she had said. Growing to like his company she was afraid that he would leave her, that he would deem her unworthy of the risk. These few weeks she had even thought of leaving without saying a word, knowing that she wasn’t worth the risk. That she didn’t want Niko to be harmed because of her. She tried to look strong to will the tears to stop flowing, not wanting him to see how broken she truly was from everything she endured.
