White Flag

Prologue

~*~

It was very dark outside. The stars could not be seen and the streetlights had coloured the sky orange. The trees behind the house were swaying in an alarming manner. Some had already fallen, crushing the smaller bushes beneath them. They were slowly being concealed by the heavily falling snow. The wind was blowing fiercely, covering some things in its way and uncovering others.

Sabina was sitting by the noisy table, listening to the noise the others were making. Some of the men were talking with loud voices, gesturing animatedly in order to be better understood. Most of them were swaying ungracefully in their seats. A few of them had already passed out, head first in something revolting. Others just stared straight ahead. Most of the women had disappeared long ago, taking their children with them. The ones that were left were indulging in the pleasures of the flesh upstairs in one of the host couple's many guest rooms.

She was the only woman left among the many men. She was sitting on a chair, her mind slightly clouded by the alcohol she had consumed earlier. It was a right task for her not to fall asleep. She searched the room for her husband but couldn't find him. A little boy was sleeping soundly in her arms, his head resting against her breast. His body heat made her very warm and she felt even sleepier.

She rose slowly from her seat, careful, not to drop the boy and still be able to stand on her own two feet. This was the curse of the alcohol. Her mind would not be as affected by it as her body. She felt something bubbling up in her stomach and she pressed her lips together as she felt some of the contents of her stomach rising inside her. She felt the sour taste of vomit in her mouth but she swallowed hard and prevented herself from vomiting all over her son.

Finally, she spotted her husband in a corner, talking to some girl in her mid twenties. She was leaning over to him in a suggestive manner, letting him have a good look at her soft breasts beyond the cleavage.

Sabina felt anger rising in her chest at the sight of her husband's hungry looks. She sobered somewhat as she strode over to them on wobbly legs. She almost dropped her sleeping son as she stumbled over an empty beer bottle.

"Victor, we have to go now!" she screeched, her voice unbalanced by her rapidly rising anger and nausea.

Her husband looked at her, drunkenness clearly veiling his eyes. It took him a moment to actually realize who was standing in front of him. When he did, his face contorted in a scowl. He put some distance between himself and the woman he had been flirting with. Sabina was thankful for this. At least he was doing something to conceal the fact that he was but a few minutes away from cheating on his wife. However, he didn't seem to wish to move. After a few minutes of being stared at, she had enough.

"Victor, I said I want to go home. Theo has to go to bed and you have to go to work tomorrow." She said, looking sternly at her husband. This was a difficult task however, seeing as how everything seemed to melt together. She had a hard time distinguishing her husband's face from the light pink wall behind him.

She was thankful when Victor rose from where he had been sitting. He leaned over to the girl and whispered something in her ear. Sabina made a point of looking away, holding her son closer to her chest as she did so. When she looked up, she saw Victor stepping up beside her, slipping a piece of red paper in the pocket of his trousers. She looked away again as she followed him toward the door. She was grateful they didn't stop to say good bye to the host couple. She wasn't sure she would be able to stand up straight long enough to do so. Black spots were making her vision cloud even more and when they were finally outside the door, she took a deep breath from the crisp air outside. It helped her predicament somewhat and she could almost ignore her nausea. It hit her full force though, as she saw her husband head for their car.

"Victor! What are you doing? You can't drive in that state!" she yelled as she stumbled down the stairs. She landed on her ass in the cold snow. Her son got himself a rough awakening and started to cry loudly.

"I'm sorry, baby. Mommy is just very clumsy. Go back to sleep, honey." she tried to soothe him while she stood and hurried toward the car. Victor had already started the engine, obviously ignoring her complaints about his plans for driving home. When she got to the car, he was looking at her with a warning, somewhat dangerous look in his eyes.

She had lost again. She went around the car and put the little boy in his chair in the backseat. She made sure he was buckled up before she went to sit in the front seat. She felt another belch making its way up but she swallowed again. She closed her eyes as she felt the car tear off with them in it. Her nails dug into the car seat and she pressed her back into it as far as she could.

Half an hour later they were inside the woods. There were no streetlights, just the darkness all around them. She didn't dare open her eyes. She knew that if she did, she would look at the dashboard and scream at Victor to slow down. That would only make him drive faster. He would love to punish her for having interrupted his little moment with that girl.

Suddenly the car was wrenched to the side and Sabina's head collided with the window. Searing pain and the helpless cries of her son filled her head as she tried to understand what was going on. As soon as it happened, it was over and the car was once again back on the dark, icy road, its speed increasing in an alarming manner.

Sabina's heart was hammering loudly in her chest and the pain in the side of her head made her temporarily blind. The loud screams of his son made her head throb even more and when she could finally see something again, her nausea was back, worse than ever. She held her hands in front of her mouth as she emptied the contents of her stomach all over the floor and herself.

"What in the devil's name are you doing, you cow?!" she heard Victor scream as the last drops of her dinner left her mouth. She looked up and was blinded by a pair of headlights.

"Victor!" she wailed as she yanked the steering wheel toward herself. After that everything went black. Everything came to and end.

~*~

It was Christmas Eve and the wind was blowing outside, shouting fiercely against the walls of the tower block. It was beautiful outside. Somehow the snow cleansed the big city from the sordid pleasures its citizens so eagerly indulged in. At least, that was what it all looked like from the tenth floor. The lights of the city had painted the sky orange. Killian loved it when the city looked like this. It was so different from up here at this time of year than when he walked along the dirty streets. It looked almost intoxicatingly innocent. Christmas lights were making the street look warm and welcoming.

He smiled as he snuggled into the warmth of his blanket. He took a gulp from his hot chocolate and he held the mug with both his hands, pressing it close to his face. It was very comforting, sitting cocooned like this, feeling so little in front of the whole world. He felt quiet content feeling that he was in fact a part of all that greatness outside his window. He was one of the millions, celebrating something this warm and nice. He was one of the millions making it true. He was a part of it all.

A little noise drew his attention from the big world outside to his bed. A light snoring was mingled with the sound of rustling sheets. Killian smiled as a warm and tingly feeling made his cheeks turn pink. He rose from his seat on the wide windowsill and walked toward the bed. He put the half full mug on the bedside table, beside the empty wineglasses. He was cautious not to make any noise or any sudden movements as he sat down on the bed.

His lover was sleeping soundly beneath the red covers. His mouth was slightly parted and a trail of saliva was slowly making its way down, toward the pillow. Killian put a hand over his mouth to muffle the laugh that had escaped his throat. One of his lover's arms was thrown to his side, searching the other side of the bed for Killian's body, finding only cold, rumpled covers. His eyes were fluttering slowly, his dark eyelashes caressing his cheeks repeatedly as his eyes opened. He seemed a little lost as he turned to lie on his side, facing the empty side of the bed.

"I'm over here," Killian whispered, his voice laced with amusement. His lover turned toward him and blinked a few times, getting adjusted to being awake. He stretched, throwing his arms above his head, squeezing his eyes shut then he slumped back on the bed, reaching his arm toward Killian.

"Have trouble sleeping?" he asked, his voice hoarse from sleep. He wiped his cheek where he had drooled, blushing as he did so. Killian smiled and caressed his damp cheek with one hand.

"Not really." He whispered as he moved closer to his sleepy lover. He let his own blankets fall to the floor and slipped under the ones covering his lover's lithe form. His skin was hot from sleep and Killian felt his heartbeat under his fingers. It was even and very relaxing. He rested his head on the tanned skin above his lover's heart, listening to the firm thuds beneath the muscles and bones of his chest. He felt his own heartbeat slowing down, matching those of his lover's and he traced his fingers down the side of his ribcage.

"Don't do that. You know it tickles." he heard and felt the vibrations of his lover's chest as he chuckled and squirmed under his weight. He pressed a light kiss above his lover's nipple and moved to lie face to face with him.

"I love to watch you sleep. You're very beautiful when you drool all over yourself and your pillow." he whispered with a mischievous voice, a teasing smile gracing his lips. His lover blushed profusely and looked away muttering something Killian could not make out. He chuckled and pressed a kiss on his red cheek. His lover turned to look at him, embarrassment shining in his stormy, green eyes. A pout was making its way onto his crimson lips but Killian stopped it with a short kiss.

"You're such a tease, Killie." he cried, hitting Killian lightly on the arm. This earned him another chuckle.

"I am not. But you certainly are." Killian retorted with a loving smile, ignoring the childish nickname.

"Come here, you." he said, drawing his green eyed lover closer, kissing him full on the lips. This time the kiss was deeper and lasted longer. Killian felt his lover's hands in his hair and his own hands moved to tug on the sandy blonde tresses of his lover's.

He loved when they were together like this. The warm lights from the Christmas tree in the living room mingled with the lights from the street complimented his lover's fair skin beautifully. Nothing could ruin this moment. He hoped that they would be able to stay this way for ever. Twined tightly together, skin on skin, soft lips touching his own. This was their first Christmas, living together and he wanted to savour every moment of it.

They jumped apart as the loud ringing of the phone filled the room. Killian was pushed on his back as his lover moved toward the phone, making a face as he lifted the receiver to his ear.

"Mark Donahue." he drawled, his voice vexed, into the receiver, making Killian smile. Such a fierce little creature his lover could be sometimes.

His smile faltered as he saw the annoyed look on Mark's face change into a grave one instead. He shot him a questioning look as the receiver left Mark's ear and was pushed toward him. He took it hesitantly and pressed it to his own ear.

"Yes?" he asked curiously.

"Are you Killian Woodward?" a strange man's voice asked, sounding serious and strict.

"Yes." Killian answered; slightly alarmed by the severity and the odd hour this person chose to call him.

"I'm afraid there's been an accident"¦"

Author's Note: So this is the beginning of my newest story. I hope you enjoyed this prologue and that it stirred you curiosity enough to read the coming chapters also. Please, review and tell me what you think about it. Thank you very much for reading.