by Fiona Faris
The two men stood facing each other, knowing full well they were about to part.
“Thanks, lad fer helpin' me tae make me way back tae me Alice.” Aithe stuck out his hand, but Barney simply pushed his hands aside and pulled him in for a hug and a hearty three pats on the back. Aithe laughed and hugged him back.
“Thank ye fer helpin’ me get an idea of which way is home. If we ever see each other again, may it be in good fortune and health and nay anythin’ like where we found each other tae begin with.” Barney added with a wide smile. The glow of life was slowly making its way back into his cheeks at the mere thought of seeing his wife again.
The two men shook hands and parted ways, each going in the opposite direction. Aithe generally did not enjoy traveling at night, but he knew it was the best chance to travel far without being seen. Come morning, he would need to find a way to steal some weaponry and food. He was going to need it if he was to stand any chance of making it all the way back to the estate.
He moved with the skill of a man who had survived many troubles, and with the dedication of returning to the woman, he needed more than anything else. He needed to rescue Alice and that fact alone pushed him along through the cold night.
* * *
By morning Aithe had made it to the city where the estate was situated. He hid out behind a small bakery and waited for the owner to step away to relieve himself, before steaingl a few loaves and devouring them. During the night, he had chanced upon some clothing when he passed some sleeping travelers. Though he hated to steal from men who looked like they needed it, he did his best to only take what was absolutely necessary.
After his fill of bread, he wandered towards the estate. He was not entirely sure what he was going to do when he arrived there, but he moved with purpose. He hoped Alice would see him, that would be the best scenario… if she saw him from the window and ran away with him.
When he was near the front of the estate, he noticed there were many more workers employed that day than he recalled seeing the last time he was there. Standing near the fence, he did his best to listen.
“And where is that carriage driver?” A maid asked as she shook off some linens and rugs. She turned to a man nearby who was loading a variety of luggage into the small cart.
“The miss must leave very soon; otherwise, she shan’t make it to Sussex as expected.” Aithe perked up at the mention of Sussex. Surely, they had to be referring to Alice.
“The earl is expecting her, and we cannot have him waiting. Go into the town and see if anyone has seen him.” She pointed him towards the front of the gates just as he had finished loading the carriage. It was then that Aithe was struck with, quite possibly, the most absurd and dangerous plan. But it was his only option, and he knew he had to take it.
Chapter Sixteen
Alice rose that morning from sleep, dreading the day. She had postponed the inevitable marriage to the Earl as long as she was capable of doing so. That evening, she would be forced to take all of her belonging, hop on a carriage, and be moved to Sussex. Her whole life had been at that estate, and now she was moving somewhere far away, only to belong to another man who would treat her as nothing more than a burden. Except the Earl also planned to make her into a nest to house his children. Alice wished she could do something, but even if she ran, there would be nowhere to go, no one to turn to.
Most days, she still felt the weight of grief from Aithe’s death. She mourned him all year and was now told she would not be allowed to speak of him ever again. How cruel her uncle to think that in only one year would she would be over the death of her husband and brother. The only two men she had cared for were gone. Alice pulled out her smallest and final piece of luggage; it was where she would store all the last little things she needed to pack. It would be the luggage that would be at her side for some time. In there, she began to pack her nightdress, and hid more of Christopher’s letters, a book he had favored, and a small pebble from near the tree where she first met Aithe. She wished she had more from him, a second letter, a record of their marriage, something to hold for comfort when she most needed it… She would definitely need comfort in her new home.
Rebecca entered the room. “I've brought some things to ready you for your journey, miss.”She held a tray of perfumed white powder, rouge made from root vegetables, and a bottle of Bella Donna. Alice rolled her eyes; she was not interested in getting made up for her future husband. Still, she had to abide by the commands of her uncle if she was to leave in peace, instead of being thrown in the dungeon for her final hours.
“Fine, Rebecca, let us get this over with.” She added with a sour tone. Alice sat on a small stood in front of her dresser. The oval mirror reflected back a sad face that lacked color.
“I’ll have someone bring up some more buttery broth for you, miss. Perhaps that will give you some more color?” Rebecca added before she began to twirl and adjust the length of Alice’s hair.
Alice sat, thinking of all the time that was passing and being wasted on preparing for a man she did not want to be with. She should be enjoying her last day of freedom, perhaps reading in the fields, or spending time in the kitchen with the few staff members she did like, not the betraying Rebecca.
After adjusting her hair, Rebecca got to work on her face. She began by applying a gentle white powder until her skin looked a pearlescent pale white, not the pallor she held from grief, but a lightness that whispered the word “elegance.” She moved on to the rouge and applied soft circles to the apples of her cheeks with the dust made from dried beet. Finally, she mixed this same powder with a bit of water and smoothed it over Alice’s lips to give the illusion of color to her face. Just then, Alice heard her uncle’s voice from the door. She turned to give him her attention.
“Wonderful, I see Rebecca is doing a fine job, indeed, of making you look much less of a corpse. Your husband should be pleased. Rebecca, please ensure Alice has all the materials she will need to continue this look at her new estate. I wouldn’t want her husband trying to send her back when he sees her without these little touches.”
Rebecca wanted to pour the Bella Donna down his throat and watch him writhe about in agony. How she hated him and his pretentious smile, the look that showed he had won the battle between them.
“Uncle, when am I to leave?” Alice asked. She didn’t really want to leave but desired to get away from her uncle before she did something to anger him.
“The carriage driver should have arrived some time ago. Rebecca, can you check to see if he’s arrived? And have Louis take down the remainder of Alice’s things.”
Rebecca nodded without saying anything and rushed out of the room, followed by Alice's uncle. Alice was left with only a short time to add whatever else she wanted to her luggage. There were a few things that made a place feel like home, and she added a small shawl that had belonged to her mother.
There was nothing else to do, no more memories to force into a small container. Alice let out a long sigh and moved to sit on the bed. She turned and faced the window to see the trees and small village where the man who had helped them escape lived. She wondered what her life with Aithe would have been like. But now she would never know.
Alice felt a wrenching on her heart. She did not want to go live in Sussex, did not want to be married to a man she could barely stand to be in the same room with. What had her life come to? She was merely a tool in someone else’s life, and this embittered her greatly.
Rebecca returned to Alice’s room to retrieve the final luggage.
“If you will follow me miss, the driver has just arrived.”
Alice nodded and stood from her bed. Before leaving the room, she looked around one last time. In her heart, she said one final goodbye to the place she had grown up in. Even if it wasn’t exactly home, it was the closest thing she had. Alice turned and left, following Rebecca. They moved along the hall, and down the winding staircase. Her uncle came out to say one final goodbye.
“Don't forget. I w
ill be calling on you from time to time, ultimately you are of my blood and will do as I need. Safe travels.” And with that, he turned back to his study and back to business.
Rebecca and Alice walked towards the carriage, where the driver was waiting with a strip of fabric and a patch over his eye. His hair was tucked beneath the fabric and Alice thought he looked vaguely familiar, but he only nodded at her instead of speaking as Rebecca rushed her inside.
“Alright, miss, you must leave now, go on in. I’ll load the luggage after you,” Rebecca said quickly, rushing her inside, obeying her uncle’s orders.
Alice wondered if it was wise to have a carriage driver who had only one good eye to see from, but she kept that comment to herself. As soon as she had climbed inside, Rebecca set the small luggage alongside her, before giving clear instructions to the driver who didn’t speak but nodded only.
Quiet man, I suppose. She thought to herself. Alice took out a small book and began to distract herself by trying to read. Before she knew it, the carriage started the journey to Sussex. She tried not to look back at the estate, at the life she was leaving behind. There was no point. Perhaps she would return to the area one day later, maybe after the death of her husband when she would be a free woman.
The road was smooth and not too rocky, which allowed Alice the opportunity to become very involved in her book. She tried to focus on the fantasy world instead of her own reality. Taking out a small bread roll she had packed earlier, Alice began to nibble on it, hoping it would lull her into sleep or state of relaxation. She took care to take small bites since she had no liquid to wash it down with, and the bread was slightly dry.
Alice looked out the window for a brief moment and noticed that the area around them looked very unfamiliar. Where are we? This was most definitely not the direction to Sussex. Alice wanted to say something to the driver but wasn’t sure it was in her right to say they were going the wrong way. Surely the driver knew more than she did? If she acted up, what would her uncle do? What would her new husband do? But the more Alice looked around, the more unfamiliar everything became, they seemed to be heading further from Sussex not driving to it! The land around them looked much greener and damp than she recalled. The villages they passed did not appear to be entirely in the English style, and Alice could stay quiet no longer.
“Um, excuse me, driver, it seems we might be going the wrong way. I'm meant to be en route to Sussex. Am I mistaken or are we heading towards Scotland?”
The man cleared his throat but made no effort to respond. Alice began to worry, was this man mute? Did he speak English? Surely, he understood her. But what if he was deaf as well and had misheard or incorrectly been given the directions to Sussex. Alice didn’t know what to do and struggled to find a solution.
She tried to focus on her reading, but the words did not distract her mind, and Alice began to worry that she was being taken somewhere else entirely. Perhaps her uncle hadn’t married her off at all, but instead sold her to someone else? Maybe she was going to live with an older earl, or something worse.
“Excuse me, please answer me. Can you hear me?” Alice cried out to the driver. He did not respond and instead focused on the road. From what she could tell, he seemed to speed up the horses’ pace.
Alice was suddenly struck with a powerful sense of panic. She banged her palm against the inside of the carriage. “Please, sir, I am meant to be en route to Sussex! Where are you taking me, please!” Alice felt her heart begin to race. She realized, even if the driver could hear her, he was ignoring her. Where was she going? She needed to get out… didn’t trust what was happening and was worried she was being taken elsewhere against her will.
“Stop this vehicle, please.” Alice tried to hold the emotion in, but she could hear the shakiness of her voice. “Please, stop, or, or, I will leap from this carriage!” Alice threatened the man, but he continued to ignore her even as she kicked at the walls of the cart. The panic threatened Alice and continued to overtake her body. Then, it happened, the tears started to fall from her eyes and there was no way Alice could hold them in.
“Please, sir, please let me out. I promise I will give you whatever you want, just let me go!” She wailed and kicked at the carriage door, but nothing seemed to convince the man to respond or stop. Overwhelmed with fear and worry, her breathing quickened. Her breaths rushed in and out against her will, even as she tried to still her heart.
“I can’t breathe,” she cried out as she banged on the walls. Finally, it seemed the driver finally heard her, for the carriage halted abruptly, and Alice almost hit her head against the wall.
Holding her breath, she waited to hear a response from the driver, looking through the window of the carriage, hoping to get a sense of the land, but there was nothing around as far as the eye could see. If she was forced to run, she would not know where to go.
Alice was confused and worried and scared all at once, and it was making her body quiver. She had no other solution, no way of escaping, there was nothing to do but see where the driver was taking her. Holding her breath, she heard the unmistakable crunch of shoes on the dirt road and saw from the corner of the curtain against the window that a shadow was moving towards the carriage door.
The door swung suddenly open, and Alice stared at the face in front of her. No, it couldn’t be. The face was grimy and hairier then she recalled, but even with an eye patch, she would have recognized his face in an instance.
“Aithe?”
Chapter Seventeen
Aithe drove the carriage forward. All around them, the land changed. They were heading in the direction of the borders. The flatlands were slowly shifting into low and long-reaching hills. The skies, which had been dreary, were opening up, and the day was getting brighter. Aithe wondered how long they had before the real carriage driver showed up. How long until her uncle knew they were not heading towards the future he desired for Alice? He urged the horses to go as quickly as they could go. He had hoped Alice would be so focused on her future that she would not realize that they were traveling in an entirely different direction. Unfortunately, that was not the case.
The horses moved forward, and Aithe used the reins to push them on. He could hear Alice’s questions. She had caught on that they were not going towards Sussex, but he worried about revealing himself. If he told her from where he sat, she might think herself crazy or she might not believe him. He needed to tell her when they had a calm moment, when he could be there to comfort her if needed, to hold her if that was what she wanted.
They were not far enough yet for Aithe to feel comfortable stopping. If the real carriage driver showed up shortly after they left, Alice’s uncle would surely come looking for them all over again. No, this time, Aithe promised himself, he would die before he let anything happen to Alice.
The closer he got the carriage to the border, the better. He needed to protect her. After the first question, Alice seemed to quiet down a little bit. He hoped she had drifted to sleep like on their first journey together, or perhaps she had thought herself confused.
But within a few moments, she asked him again where they were going. He ignored her yet again and pushed onward. He was determined to ignore her for as long as needed to ensure her safety. After a few more rounds of questions, he could hear the pleading in Alice’s voice.
It was clear she was frightened, and it was the last thing he wanted her to feel. He wanted her to know she was safe. Suddenly, he could hear her panic break into weeping. She was wailing and hitting the inside of the carriage, and then Aithe knew he had to tell her. The road was empty as far as he could see, so he hoped if they moved quickly, he could reveal himself. It would feel good to tell her he was alive, to hold her, bring her close and embrace her, after thinking of her for a whole year. Aithe had greatly missed Alice.
He thought of all the things he wanted to tell her. He wanted her to know he had changed his mind about living so freely or living the life of an adventurer. Now he longed simply for peace and lo
ve. He wanted to be close to his family and longed to be by her side again. Aithe had thought only of her in the mines and all he owed her and had vowed to himself that he would give her the life she deserved. The more he thought about it, the more that came to mind. It was as if all his thoughts over the last year were suddenly on the tip of his tongue, and all Aithe wanted to do was talk to Alice and hold her.
As he listened to her cries, he stopped the carriage. He looked forward and backward, and when he had verified for the second time that every direction was clear, he approached the cart. He was so close to Alice that he could hear her panicked breaths. He slowly opened the carriage door.
“Aithe?” Alice looked at him, standing there, and he could see the confusion flash through her mind.
“Aye, lassie, tis me.” He didn’t know what else to say. The words that were there moments ago had vanished. He moved towards Alice but she backed away. She looked beyond him, around her, and out the other window.
“But— I don’t— Aithe, is that really you?” She asked again, leaning towards him.