Endless Winter (Guardians of The Light)

by J Armitage

For three months they had locked themselves away at The Manor whilst Jago did everything he could to get more of the elixir from them, even threatening to unleash a deadly disease upon the whole world. Thankfully, not long after he tried murdering Anais and Aethelu, he was caught hiding out in Florence, Italy. He’d spent the last weeks chained up in the cellar of The Manor, the family not knowing what to do with him now they had him. He was a murderer and had caused much suffering to them over the last few months, not least Anais who had suffered the most at his hands. Her parents had died, she had nearly died and she had been forced to undergo gruelling fertility treatment to conceive a child to give Aldric the DNA he needed to eradicate the virus Jago was set to unleash on the world. Tragically she’d had an early miscarriage and lost the three embryos that she had been implanted with.

  Anais was not a killer and neither were the rest of Aethelu’s family who she lived with at The Manor. Unfortunately letting Jago go was not an option as he was so dangerous but they could hardly hand him over to the police with near immortal blood running through his veins. This left them in a quandary. A quandary which was still not solved all these weeks later. Anais had not seen him since the night he had tried to kill her and even then he had been wearing a mask and a voice changer disguising his features completely. The thought of meeting her parent’s killer made her feel sick so she avoided the cellar as did most of the rest of the household. Aethelu’s other brother (and Alex’s twin) Rafe had volunteered for the job of looking after Jago until the household could come up with a solution of what to do with him. ‘Looking after him’ basically comprised of keeping an eye on him to make sure he didn’t escape. That was the reason that Rafe had missed Mike’s funeral. Other noticeable family members missing from the funeral were Aethelu’s older sister Arcadia who had moved back to her villa on the French Riviera the day after Jago was caught and Aldric, Aethelu’s father, who proclaimed he had never met Mike and hated funerals so had chosen to stay at home. Andrew, who apart from Anais, was the only non-family member to live at The Manor had locked himself away in his room ever since the love of his life, Judith, had been sent home to Kenya, weeks before.

  The houses were now beginning to thin out and large expanses of greenery told Anais that they were nearly home. Sure enough, very soon, The Manor’s gates came into view, opening as if by magic at a touch of a button, pressed remotely from the Range Rover. The driveway was impressive, flanked by huge oak trees at either side. For the first three months of Anais living here, they had been bare, stripped of their foliage by the harsh winter and covered in the relentless snow that had turned The Manor’s grounds into a winter wonderland. Now though, small green buds were appearing on the trees, a promise of greenery and leaves to come. Further up the driveway the oak trees gave way to cherry trees lining the driveway at the front of the house. The Manor itself was as impressive as ever. A huge stone façade, turned almost black with years of pollution, complete with huge oak doors, was the view that greeted Anais as the Range Rover pulled to a stop in front of the house.

  August jumped out of the driver’s seat and ran round to open the passenger door for Anais. She would have preferred Winnie to sit in the front so she could sit next to Aethelu and comfort her in the back but the thigh length leg brace and the crutches made it impossible for her to fit anywhere but the front passenger seat. August practically picked her up out of the car and set her down gently on the gravel, unnerving her slightly but saving her the awkward manoeuvring to get her leg and crutches out without knocking anything.

  Aethelu came running around to be by her side as they made their way up the stone steps to the main entrance. The crutches made it impossible for the pair to hold hands but Aethelu gently laid her hand on Anais back to guide her up the stone stairs.

  Once inside, Anais had another two flights to go to reach her bedroom. Three weeks ago, Aethelu and Anais had been living in Aethelu’s art studio, a little self-contained building complete with small kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. However, it was so cold in there that they had to run a heater all the time and it was becoming apparent that the heat was damaging the hundreds of pieces of artwork adorning the walls. That, coupled with Anais badly broken leg had led her to the decision to move back into her room on the third floor of the huge manor. It was the same room she had spent her first few weeks at The Manor in and although she didn’t particularly like the windowless austerity of it, she had to concede it was a damn sight warmer and more comfortable than the studio.

  She was offered the room adjoining Aethelu’s but at the time, Arcadia was still using it and Anais didn’t have it in her to move all her things for a third time in as many weeks.

  Aethelu had argued until she was blue in the face for Anais to move into Arcadia’s room. Her reasoning was logical. It was only one flight up from the ground floor, had an en-suite bathroom enabling Anais to use the bathroom without having to walk down a corridor (which she currently did) and most importantly was nearer to Aethelu who had the adjoining bedroom. Anais told Aethelu that it was because she didn’t want to put the family out by moving her stuff but the truth was she felt bad for Andrew. She’d not seen him since Jago had been caught but at night she could hear crying coming from his room next to hers on the third floor. Every night before bed she had knocked on his door and told him that she was there if he needed a shoulder to cry on. He never answered but she didn’t want to break her promise on the off chance he change his mind.

  Aethelu spent so much time keeping Anais company that it didn’t really matter that they slept a floor apart.

  Tonight though, Andrew was far from her thoughts. Her beautiful Aethelu was upset and it broke Anais heart to see her in such pain. When they finally got to Anais’ bedroom she sat herself down on the four poster bed, her leg awkwardly stuck out in front of her. Aethelu sat herself down on the edge on the bed and buried her face in her hands, sobbing loudly. Anais moved over, with some difficulty to Aethelu’s side and put her arm around her. With her other arm she gently removed Aethelu’s hat and placed it on the bed next to her. Aethelu turned and hugged Anais, burying her whole body into Anais open arms and her face, wet with tears into Anais neck. There she shook gently with each sob until she could cry no more. Anais pulled herself back a little and placed her hand under Aethelu’s chin to raise her face so they were eye to eye.

  Aethelu’s face, dripping in tears was still the most beautiful face Anais had ever seen. Despite the black mascara running streaks down porcelain cheeks and creating black smudges around almond shaped eyes, she still looked other-worldly. Almost too beautiful to exist in real life. Her black eyes usually flecked with diamonds now sparkled only with tears and her lips now colourless, the lipstick having been smeared all over Anais’ jacket.

  Anais pulled a tissue from her pocket and did her best to wipe away the tears and remnants of make-up from Aethelu’s face. Aethelu smiled a small smile and leaned forward to kiss her lightly on the lips.

  They had not kissed since the night of Mike’s murder.

  It was the softest of touches, Aethelu’s lips brushed hers for a mere second, just the whisper of touch, but Anais was surprised to feel the familiar tingle. There was a time that just the slightest touch from Aethelu would send lightning bolts through her. Not the electric impulses of passion but much more thanks to the power of The Light. Time and control from Aethelu made these shocks lighter and lighter but grief could also lessen The Lights power. However the feelings running through Anais now were more to do with her own feelings rather than any elixir. She could feel her heart rate rising, just that small kiss had sent shudders through her and for the first time in weeks she felt completely awake. She desperately wanted to kiss Aethelu again but held back waiting for Aethelu to make a move, content in looking into her endless diamond flecked eyes. Aethelu didn’t move and Anais could wait no more she moved forward to kiss her again, this time with the passion she was feeling. Aethelu moved, as if to embrace her but then moved back.

  “I
’m sorry, I can’t,” she said and moved away from the bed. “I’ll go and get your dinner.”

  With that she left the room without a backwards glance.

  Anais was confused. Had she done something wrong? She had felt the electric in Aethelu’s lips so despite the grief she was feeling, she had wanted the kiss. Despite her disappointment she realised that Aethelu just needed more time to get over everything that had happened over the last few months.

  She waited patiently on the bed for Aethelu to bring up her dinner which would have been cooked by Winnie. It was bound to be delicious, it always was. She would sit and have a heart to heart with Aethelu then. Talk to her, let her cry.

  A few minutes later she heard footsteps and the bedroom door opened slowly. She was surprised to find, not Aethelu with her dinner, but Rafe, holding what looked like a plate of Coq au vin on a silver tray.

  “Aethelu asked me to bring this up for you,” he said, laying it on her bed in front of her. The tray also held a crystal cut glass filled with wine and a small pink iced cupcake for desert. She had been right. It did smell delicious and looked perfect. Winnie could win awards for her cooking if she had the notion to enter competitions for it.

  Crushing disappointment and a little fear spread through Anais, not because of the food but because Aethelu hadn’t brought her dinner. Aethelu always brought her dinner. She would always go straight back down and bring a second tray for herself and they would eat together and then just chat for hours until either of them were too sleepy. Then Aethelu would take both trays back down to the kitchen and head to bed herself.

  “Where is she?” Anais asked.

  “She said she was not hungry and decided to go to bed.”

  “But it’s only five o’clock!”

  “I assume the sadness of the day has been a bit too much for her. She had known Mike for sixty years. In some ways, before you came along, Mike was her best friend. Her only friend really.”

  Anais felt guilty and a bit silly for worrying. Of course Aethelu would feel awful after the day they had. She made a mental note to do everything she could to cheer Aethelu up, starting tomorrow. Tonight she would let her sleep. Of course it would mean getting herself mobile. She’d spent most of the last few weeks in this bed, because of the damage to her leg. Today proved she could move around, albeit slowly. She would take Anais out somewhere. Anywhere. They would enjoy the fresh air. She was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she hardly noticed Rafe heading towards the door. It was only when she heard the soft creaking of the door being opened that she looked up.

  “Where are you going?”

  Rafe looked surprised by the question.

  “I’m going downstairs. Why? Do you need anything else?”

  Aethelu looked down once again at her dinner. There was nothing else that she needed but she really wanted some company. Her room was beautiful. Gold and black damask wallpaper, thick red carpet and a chandelier adorned the room but there was no form of entertainment in here. There was not even a window to look out of. The thought of spending the next few hours sat here by herself was too much.

  “Please stay and talk to me,” she asked as politely as she could. She had had a stilted relationship with Rafe right from the first time they had met when he had slit his own throat to prove he was immortal. However, company was company and she didn’t want to be alone after such an emotion filled day.

  If Rafe was surprised by her first question it was nothing compared to how surprised he looked at this one. He did nothing to conceal it either.

  “Why?”

  “I’m just lonely, Aethelu usually talks to me.”

  “I’ve not eaten myself yet. I was planning on eating in the dining room with the rest of the family.”

  “Oh.” Anais gave a downcast look which obviously gave Rafe a change of heart.

  “Ok, I suppose I could bring my food up here.” He made it sound like he was doing her a huge favour. “But I can’t stay long. Alex has taken over watch on Jago and I promised him I wouldn’t be too long.”

  Rafe left the room swiftly to get his dinner. Unlike most of the Guardians, Rafe had chestnut hair. His white locks were dyed meticulously to look natural, more normal. He even dyed his goatee beard. Despite his hair colour, he still dressed as though he was in the Victorian age. Today, for example he was wearing a grey suit with a grey waistcoat and pointed black shoes. He always carried a cane topped with a silver tigers head although Anais knew he could walk perfectly and it was just for show.

  A few minutes later he came back with his own silver tray, identical to Anais’ except it was devoid of the cupcake. Unlike Aethelu, who usually hopped up on to the bed to eat, he brought forward a chair that was in the room and sat there, placing the tray delicately on his knee.

  Now that he was here, Anais didn’t know what to say. Rafe looked totally consumed with his dinner and did nothing to break the silence.

  They both sat quietly eating until Anais could stand it no more.

  “So, Jago then?” It wasn’t really a question, just a way to break the tension and start a conversation.

  “Mmmm,” replied Rafe without even looking up from his meal. He obviously wasn’t going to make this easy for her.

  “What is he like?” She actually didn’t really want to know what he was like. He murdered her parents and caused her such misery, which is all she really needed to know about him. However she didn’t fancy sitting with Rafe in her room in silence for the next couple of hours so she persisted. “I mean, what does he say?”

  Rafe chewed on a piece of chicken and swallowed before answering her. “He doesn’t say anything at all.”

  “About what he has done?”

  “About anything. He’s not said a single word in three weeks besides asking to use the bathroom.”

  “He’s not spoken at all?” Anais was incredulous.

  “Not whilst he’s awake at any least.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “He talks in his sleep. Keeps repeating the same name over and over again. When I ask him who it is, he clams up again.”

  “What name does he say?” asked Anais thinking he might be calling out one of her parents’ names in a fit of remorse. She was surprised by the answer. It was no one she knew.

  “Sabine.”

  “Sabine? Who’s she?”

  “I told you, I don’t know. He won’t tell me. Does it matter? It could be his pet cat for all that it’s relevant. The question is, what are we going to do with him? I have to admit, it’s getting rather irksome having to sit in the cellar all the time to make sure he doesn’t escape. Not that he could. He is chained up day and night and the only way out is through a thick metal door which needs a key code and fingerprint of a Guardian to open. I wish someone would make a decision about how to dispose of him, and soon.”

  “Dispose of him? Do you suggest we kill him?”

  “I don’t see why not. I don’t see we have any choice unless one of us spends the next millennia at in the cellar. It sure as hell won’t be me. I have better things to do with my time. I fancy a trip out of the country.”

  “What does Aldric say?”

  “I think Aldric is waiting for you to get better so he can call a family meeting and we can discuss it together. He was probably waiting for the funeral to be done with so don’t be surprised if he calls a meeting in the next few days. Not that there is much of the family left. Auntie Ava and Uncle Freddie left last week, Cousin Audsley left not long after, Arcadia left the second she was free to go and Andrew, although here in body is still locking himself in his room and refusing to talk to anyone. Of course we need someone to watch Jago at all times which will leave six of us for a meeting. It’s hardly worth it, but that’s what Aldric wants.”

  Anais didn’t know how to reply but was saved having to by Rafe getting out of his chair. He took his tray in one hand and doffed an imaginary hat to her.

  “I must take my leave, Alex is waiting for me. It was nice talking
to you.” With that he left the room, taking his tray with him.

  Anais noticed he had left her tray behind. She looked at the clock. It was not quite six o’clock yet. She sat and pondered everything that Rafe had said for a few minutes. She had to admit that killing Jago did seem like the only option. He had shown how dangerous he was. His complete disregard for humanity placed him at such a high risk factor that letting him go free was not an option at all. Still, the thought of killing anyone, even her parent’s murderer left an unpleasant taste in her mouth.

  She briefly wondered who Sabine was. She didn’t know but she suspected it was not a pet cat like Rafe had said. Curiosity was beginning to build. She shrugged it off and looked around the room for something to occupy herself. She’d forgotten to ask for more books from the library and the few she did have, she’d already read. She decided to go try knocking on Andrew’s door again. She knew it was a waste of time, even as she picked up her crutches but if she wanted to get stronger on her leg, and go outside with Aethelu, she would have to exercise and build up her muscles. She would also have to get used to using her crutches without a family member to help her.

  She pulled herself up using one of the crutches and slowly made her way to the door. Opening it was awkward and she managed to knock it into her leg causing her to cry out in pain. She held her breath for a few seconds until the pain subsided before making her way through the door and down the corridor to the room next door. She tentatively knocked as she had done many times before.

  “Andrew. It’s me, Anais.”

  Nothing.

  “Just checking to see if you are ok.” She listened. He was definitely in there as she could just about hear him through the door. She knocked again.

  “It’s just me tonight. I’m feeling lonely too. Do you want to talk?” Still nothing. She turned to make her way back to her room and was surprised to hear the door click softly open behind her. She turned and saw Andrew looking out at her.

  Now the door had opened she didn’t quite know what to say. She felt as though she should say something inspiring and comforting but she couldn’t think of anything. She settled on, “Are you ok?”