reach him, somehow, and bring him fully home to us.
"Are you sure he can't talk?" Frank asked.
I frowned. Anyone who met Henry knew he couldn't talk. Wind blew over his vocal cords like a gust through the desolate old mill. Only in the grip of his nightmares could he scream. "What do you mean? Of course he can't talk."
He shrugged. "Lot of women in your household, are you sure he just can't get a word in?"
He laughed at the look on my face, and I smacked his arm. "Not funny."
"You and Alice are doing the right thing by him, Ella. Just keep reminding him he's home, among the living. Some of us saw so much death, it's hard to imagine anything else."
I cleaned out my bowl with a piece of fresh bread and placed it in the large wicker basket to go back to the kitchen. "I'm going for a walk."
Frank pointed to the north side of Serenity House. "You can go that way and spy in the window if you like. Don't wander too far though."
I patted the shotgun. "I won't."
I followed one wall of buff stone and walked around a corner. This side of the house had high windows and light spilled out onto the gravel. Laughter and chatter rose over the quiet music playing in the background. I bit my lip, should I peek? Part of me wanted to know how the dinner party was unfolding, but another part didn't want to end up shot, mistaken for a prowling vermin.
Curiosity won out. I crept behind a rampant shrub and peered between its green boughs. My line of sight was somewhat hampered, but I saw enough. The dinner table was cleared, and the diners had moved to the adjourning room to take their coffee, brandy, and cigars. Charlotte looked a gem amongst them in her harem pants. Two men were talking to her, and I saw a blush creep up her neck. Good for her, her sister always dominated attention and it was nice to see her garner some for herself.
Seth stood talking to a number of expensively dressed women. Diamonds dripped from ear lobes and around necks. Louise by contrast was bereft of ostentatious jewellery. I knew exactly what topic she would castigate her mother about on the ride home. She clung to Seth's arm as though he were a life preserver thrown off the Titanic. Her grasp looked so tight, even from my position in the shrubbery I could see his hand twitch, no doubt trying to regain sensation.
His handsome face seem pinched, and tired lines were drawn around his eyes. Not that anyone seem to notice. We obviously had a difference of opinion about the disposal of vermin, but I felt genuinely sorry for him. He was trapped by his title and position, he couldn't remove it or set it aside. It hung over him like an enveloping cloud.
I backed away and headed across the drive to the garden at the side of the house. The darkened maze drew my attention. Oh to lose to myself within its verdant walls. What will I find? Myself perhaps, wondering what to make of my life? I repositioned the shotgun on my back and heaved a sigh.
Happy birthday to me.
I should leave, perhaps go to London and start afresh, but I could never leave while father still breathed. And not while the others needed my sword arm.
Someone turned up the music, the melody floating across the lawn as I entered the maze. The dense shrubbery muted the sounds, but it lent a magical air to my wanderings. I kept my left hand trailing through the tufts, an old trick to ensure you didn't turn yourself around and double back. It would take longer, but I didn't mind. I enjoyed being lost, if only for a little while.
Before too long, the last corner turned into the heart of the maze, revealing a square clearing with a large pond at its centre where bright orange koi flashed under the moonlight. A fountain of a young woman holding an urn trickled water below, adding a high sweet note to the soaring saxophone.
Peace enveloped me as I sat on the stone edge, trailing my fingers in the cool water. Lush jasmine wafted across the night air from an arbour on one side of the clearing. The perfect place
"Are you sure he can't talk?" Frank asked.
I frowned. Anyone who met Henry knew he couldn't talk. Wind blew over his vocal cords like a gust through the desolate old mill. Only in the grip of his nightmares could he scream. "What do you mean? Of course he can't talk."
He shrugged. "Lot of women in your household, are you sure he just can't get a word in?"
He laughed at the look on my face, and I smacked his arm. "Not funny."
"You and Alice are doing the right thing by him, Ella. Just keep reminding him he's home, among the living. Some of us saw so much death, it's hard to imagine anything else."
I cleaned out my bowl with a piece of fresh bread and placed it in the large wicker basket to go back to the kitchen. "I'm going for a walk."
Frank pointed to the north side of Serenity House. "You can go that way and spy in the window if you like. Don't wander too far though."
I patted the shotgun. "I won't."
I followed one wall of buff stone and walked around a corner. This side of the house had high windows and light spilled out onto the gravel. Laughter and chatter rose over the quiet music playing in the background. I bit my lip, should I peek? Part of me wanted to know how the dinner party was unfolding, but another part didn't want to end up shot, mistaken for a prowling vermin.
Curiosity won out. I crept behind a rampant shrub and peered between its green boughs. My line of sight was somewhat hampered, but I saw enough. The dinner table was cleared, and the diners had moved to the adjourning room to take their coffee, brandy, and cigars. Charlotte looked a gem amongst them in her harem pants. Two men were talking to her, and I saw a blush creep up her neck. Good for her, her sister always dominated attention and it was nice to see her garner some for herself.
Seth stood talking to a number of expensively dressed women. Diamonds dripped from ear lobes and around necks. Louise by contrast was bereft of ostentatious jewellery. I knew exactly what topic she would castigate her mother about on the ride home. She clung to Seth's arm as though he were a life preserver thrown off the Titanic. Her grasp looked so tight, even from my position in the shrubbery I could see his hand twitch, no doubt trying to regain sensation.
His handsome face seem pinched, and tired lines were drawn around his eyes. Not that anyone seem to notice. We obviously had a difference of opinion about the disposal of vermin, but I felt genuinely sorry for him. He was trapped by his title and position, he couldn't remove it or set it aside. It hung over him like an enveloping cloud.
I backed away and headed across the drive to the garden at the side of the house. The darkened maze drew my attention. Oh to lose to myself within its verdant walls. What will I find? Myself perhaps, wondering what to make of my life? I repositioned the shotgun on my back and heaved a sigh.
Happy birthday to me.
I should leave, perhaps go to London and start afresh, but I could never leave while father still breathed. And not while the others needed my sword arm.
Someone turned up the music, the melody floating across the lawn as I entered the maze. The dense shrubbery muted the sounds, but it lent a magical air to my wanderings. I kept my left hand trailing through the tufts, an old trick to ensure you didn't turn yourself around and double back. It would take longer, but I didn't mind. I enjoyed being lost, if only for a little while.
Before too long, the last corner turned into the heart of the maze, revealing a square clearing with a large pond at its centre where bright orange koi flashed under the moonlight. A fountain of a young woman holding an urn trickled water below, adding a high sweet note to the soaring saxophone.
Peace enveloped me as I sat on the stone edge, trailing my fingers in the cool water. Lush jasmine wafted across the night air from an arbour on one side of the clearing. The perfect place
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