Page 4 of Sage

"How could she betray me like this?" Hans paced back and forth across his living room floor, gripping the note and locket in his hands so tightly that his knuckles started to turn ghostly pale. He wasn't even sure how Sage had managed to beat him back to his apartment let alone how she got inside.

Who was he kidding? It was Sage he was talking about...

No, not Sage… Gretta.

What had happened to his best friend? This couldn’t be the same person he once knew.

Hans continued to ponder what his next move would be.Where would she go?

Despite the fucked up shit that Hans had been through over the past few weeks, that she had caused, he still had a twinge of feelings for her radiating from his core. Hans wanted - no,needed- to help her get through this. To get Gretta back.

My Gretta.Hans smiled at that thought.

Hans remembered the first time that he and Gretta were captured by the witch in Brighton Forest. He had missed school that day because of a dentist appointment, but was going to meet up with Gretta after. He never imagined that she would have attempted to go through the forest alone. Not until screams came echoing through the trees. He had followed the sounds, reaching her right after Charles had run into the same pocket knife Hans had given her. Gretta’s eyes were wide open, the look of innocence was gone, now almost feral. Her hands shook as the knife fell to the ground, blood splattered across the front of her clothes, and her skin stained with crimson.

"What happened?" Hans inquired as Gretta came running to him, burying her face into his chest while trying to conceal her sobs, tears rolling down her face.

"I messed up, Hans." He pulled away from her and looked her in the eye.

"I need you to tell me what happened." This was probably the moment that Hans should have known he was destined to become a detective.

"Everyone is going to hate me!" Gretta looked away from him, her cheeks flushed bright red as embarrassment began to take over.

Hans desperately wanted to protect Gretta, but between their ages and the fact that Charles was the Mayor’s son he knew the reality was that no one would ever believe them. Especially with the past that Gretta had created for herself.

Gretta looked deep in thought and in that moment, Hans knew he was going to marry that girl one day. She was the only person who got him, and he was the only one who understood her fuckery.

Gretta took off.

"Gretta, wait!" Hans had no idea where she was going, but he chased her deeper and deeper into the forest, his gut telling him that he needed to do his best to stay close. When they finally came to a clearing, there was a beautiful cottage a few hundred feet ahead of them. From a distance, it looked just like a gingerbread house, the aromas radiating from it luring them in.

"Hello, children." An older woman appeared. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun and she wore a long, flowing floral dress. "You look exhausted. Would you like to come in?"

"I don't think-" Hans started to say before Gretta interrupted him.

"Yes, I would love a glass of water!"

"I made a fresh apple pie, too!" The old lady seemed innocent enough. Gretta cheered as she ran inside. "Hans, apple pie is your favorite!" Hans couldn’t place his finger on why, but despite the stranger’s apparent friendliness, something about the entire situation still felt off.

"It's fine, you can wait out here if you'd like." The old lady winked at Hans while turning around to head back inside her cottage after Gretta.

"No, I'm coming, too" Hans caught up to Gretta, and he wrapped his arm around her as the door slammed shut behind them.

A knock at the door pulled Hans out of his daydream. Except, it wasn't really a daydream, it was real life. The beginning of the end of Hans' relationship with Gretta; when she was stillGretta.

Hans peered out the peephole, there stood Officer Billings, cocky as usual.

Regardless of how Hans was feeling, there was no doubt in his mind that he needed to make the call to file a report. Too muchhad happened. Normally, he would have been able to make a report over the phone, but considering the circumstances, the police department insisted on sending an officer out to make sure that it really was him, which was fine.

"Is anything missing?" Officer Billings inquired.

"I don't think so, but I also haven't taken the time to do much investigating myself." Hans made his way around the apartment to see if he could find anything that notably stood out. He walked over to where the note and locket had been found and noticed that the drawer hadn't been closed all the way. He opened the drawer, instantly realizing that the pocket knife he had kept in there for opening packages was missing.

"Well, my pocketknife is missing and I know I never take it from the drawer, so I can only assume that it is in her possession."

The officer was taking notes when Hans realized he had written the words armed and dangerous.

"You really think Sage is armed and dangerous with a little pocket knife?" Hans tried to stick up for her before he remembered who he was talking to.

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