by Alison Pensy
She stood frozen to the spot for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only a few seconds. She wasn’t quite sure how to react. She felt numb. All these people were here for her, but the one person she wished could have been, wasn’t… her mother.
She regained her composure. She wasn’t about to embarrass her father, or herself, in front of all these people by throwing a hissy fit. She took a deep breath and plastered a smile on her face. One she would have to fake for the rest of the evening, of that she had no doubt. Everyone cheered when she smiled. She saw her father heave a sigh of relief.
The music started and everyone dispersed and started to mingle. When she thought no one was looking, she narrowed her eyes at her father and made a beeline straight for him. He flinched, and braced for the worst. Uncle Leo and Nicki stood their ground next to him.
“Dad, you promised,” she stated when she reached him.
“Faedra, it wasn’t your dad’s idea,” Leo interrupted, “it was mine.”
She shot him a puzzled look. “Why, Uncle Leo? You knew how I felt.” She couldn’t bring herself to be mean to her uncle, and, surprisingly, she felt hurt, not angry.
“I did it for your mother,” he stated.
She stepped back like someone had just punched her in the gut and continued to look at him in bewilderment.
“Lillith made me promise to hold a big party for your eighteenth birthday. She was most insistent about it. So if you want to blame anyone, Fae, blame your mum.”
Obviously, she could never blame her mum for anything. She stared at her dad and uncle, tears pricked behind her eyes. Her mother had wanted her to have a party for her birthday, and she was going to make sure she enjoyed herself.
“Sorry,” she mumbled at the floor, feeling a little ashamed of herself.
“No apology needed, you big goof,” Leo said, grabbing her in a bear hug. “Just make sure you enjoy yourself.”
Faedra had a good look around the room when her uncle released her from his iron grip. There were banners all over, announcing ‘Happy Birthday’ and ‘18 at last.’ A long buffet table, filled with food, stretched the length of one wall. Helium-filled balloons tied to little weights, floated above each of the tables that surrounded the dance floor. Streamers hung from the rafters of the exposed oak beams that were holding up the roof. A DJ was playing music at one end of the room, and people were already on the dance floor dancing.
“You did all this for me?” she asked her dad, uncle and Nicki. They nodded. “Thank you.” She opened her arms for a group hug.
“Go on now,” her dad said after they were finished with their hug, “go and enjoy yourself.” And without further ado Amy and Zoë each took an arm and dragged her towards the dance floor.
Faedra enjoyed dancing to all the latest music on the charts, and some of the older stuff that she liked to listen to, also. It seemed like a constant stream of people came up to wish her a happy birthday. She greeted each one graciously, and thanked them for coming. Although she had told her dad that she would only have a couple of drinks, they kept being put in her hands by friends and relatives who wanted to buy her one for her birthday. She had managed, very discreetly, to dispose of some of them in the various potted plants that were dotted around the edge of the banquet room. But when she’d been caught in conversation with someone, she found it hard not to take a few sips and was starting to get a little tipsy.
The music slowed down and she made her exit off the dance floor. She watched as Amy and her new boyfriend were slow dancing their way around it; Zoë and her long-standing beau were doing the same. They looked really happy and she smiled at her friends who were enjoying the moment with their respective partners. She turned to go and find someone to talk to and bumped straight into Faen’s chest. She took a step back in surprise and looked up at him. She hadn’t seen him since that time in the bar and wondered if he was still around. To be honest, she’d been so distracted by everything going on, that she hadn’t even thought to look.
“May I have this dance, Ms. Faedra?” he asked politely.
She squirreled around in her mind for a moment. She’d never danced with a man before, except for her dad, and that was when she was little and stood on his shoes while he twirled them both around. She didn’t think that counted in this instance.
“Um, I don’t know how,” she admitted, sheepishly.
“I do,” Faen replied, holding out a hand for her. “May I?”
She felt her cheeks flush and her heart pound. Not only was she a disaster with her power, she was now going to embarrass herself on the dance floor, too.
Faen took hold of her hand in one of his, placed her other hand on his shoulder, then placed his other hand around her waist. She was too nervous to giggle, but she felt like they should be on an episode of Dancing with the Stars. That image disintegrated almost immediately as Faen led her with grace and fluidity around the floor. The other couples that had been dancing were now turning their attention to her and Faen, and had moved to the edge of the dance floor. She noticed that people who had been mingling all over the banquet room were now forming a circle around them, watching them intently. She also noticed that they were now the only couple dancing.
Faedra couldn’t ever remember feeling this alive. She felt like she was floating above the dance floor, it didn’t even feel like her feet were touching the ground. She looked up at Faen and focused all of her attention on his eyes that were doing the same to hers. She was locked in a moment of sheer tranquility and wondered if she would ever come down to earth again.
She did, with a bump. As soon as the music finished, there was a loud applause that emanated around them. She tore her gaze from Faen’s and looked around her. The whole party had been captivated by their dance, and she scanned their faces. On most, she could see pure delight, but when she got to her father, his features screamed concern. On her friend’s, Amy and Zoë, pure confusion.
Oops, she thought, none of them know about Faen.
Heck, she’d only found out about him just over twelve hours ago; she’d certainly never thought of a story to tell them when just such a thing like this occurred. But then, in all fairness, she hadn’t been prepared for a surprise party, either. She had been prepared for sitting in the bar, having a few drinks with her friends, while Faen sat inconspicuously in the corner and kept an eye on her. He’d failed miserably on the inconspicuous aspect of the evening, and she made a mental note to show him what it meant in the dictionary when they got home.
She looked at her father like a deer caught in the headlights. As he stalked towards her, her friends followed behind him. She would have to think of something quickly.
“Oh, no,” she whispered.
“Stay calm, Ms. Faedra,” Faen whispered back, putting a calming hand on her shoulder.
The crowd that had accumulated around them, was now back to mingling and dancing. Faen had led Faedra off the dance floor after their dance, and they were now standing to one side of it.
“So, who’s the dark horse then?” Amy said to Faedra, while raking her eyes up and down Faen.
“Are you going to introduce us?” her father said, with a politeness that was laced with just a hint of venom. He had never seen his daughter with a man, especially one as good looking as this one, and she had never mentioned a boyfriend. His father senses were on full alert.
Faedra scanned their faces again and swallowed hard. She could feel herself starting to tremble. Faen sensed it, too, and gently squeezed her shoulder. Her father was not doing a very good job of masking his concern; her friends were just positively brimming with excitement for her. It was about time she had a boyfriend… she could read it in both of their expressions.
“Um, everyone, meet, uh, F-red.” she caught herself at the last second.
Every pair of eyebrows shot up in unison, including Faen’s.
“Frederick, I mean. This is Frederick. He is a new boarder at the stables. We just met, recently.” Her hands were gettin
g clammier by the second. Faedra didn’t like to lie and it wasn’t something that came easily to her.
“Pleased to meet you, Frederick,” Amy said as she took hold of his hand and shook it with just a little too much enthusiasm.
“Yes, pleased to meet you,” Zoë reiterated with a much more graceful shake of his hand. Faen did the noble head bob that he always did when acknowledging people. It was so old-worldly, and so completely Faen.
“Frederick,” her father said, taking Faen’s hand in a firm handshake. He eyed Faen cautiously and gave him the ‘you lay one finger on my daughter and I’ll swing for you’ glare.
“You can be assured, Mr. Bennett, my intentions are nothing but honorable,” Faen responded to her father’s unspoken warning.
Faedra cringed, looked up at him, and gave him a silent ‘no one says stuff like that anymore, you’ll give yourself away’. He just smiled calmly back at her and it took her breath away, as usual.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Faen had caught the interest of Uncle Leo and Nicki, too; they now wandered over to meet him. Faedra was feeling more and more uncomfortable with her family surrounding them. They were all very polite, but there was no doubt in her mind, it was a thinly veiled inquisition. She started to relax as Faen charmed the pants off them. Answering their questions without so much as a hint of subterfuge, or annoyance. Faedra thought if she had been questioned like him, she would be feeling exasperated by now, but she was impressed by how quickly he could think on his feet. Obviously, all his answers were lies.
She excused herself to go and use the restroom. She needed a break from the surrealism that was surrounding her at that moment and wandered down the corridor to where they were located. As soon as the door closed behind her, the sound of the music muffled. Once inside the restroom, she looked at herself in the mirror. She was feeling a little tipsy after having one too many drinks handed to her. Wandering back towards the party, she stopped to look out of one of the floor-to-ceiling windows that lined the corridor.
The courtyard was lit up with floodlights that cast a warming glow over the fountain. There was seating surrounding the fountain; the whole picture looked inviting. She decided she needed some fresh air to try and clear the fuzzies that were addling her brain and went to sit out there for a moment. She would be on the soft drinks for the rest of the night she told herself sternly. She stepped outside into the welcoming warmth of the summer night air, wandered over to one of the benches, and sat down. The sound of the music was reduced to a muffled beat in the background now. She leaned back against the bench and soaked in the atmosphere of the courtyard. The fountain was very pretty in its own austere way.
It was an uncomplicated structure, but grand in its simplicity. The water trickling from the top tier, fell into the tier below it, which then cascaded down to the basin at the bottom. People had thrown coins into it. The coins glinted in the light from the floodlights that illuminated the water; she wondered if any of their wishes had come true.
A noise coming from beyond the courtyard towards the rear vehicular entrance of the hotel, pulled Faedra from her thoughts. It was black as pitch over there, out of reach from the floodlights in the courtyard. She didn’t think much of it; it was probably just a guest and there were plenty of people milling around this evening. Although, she noticed now that she was completely alone in the courtyard.
“Hello?” she called into the darkness.
“Faedra,” a gravelly voice responded.
She didn’t recognize it, but that didn’t mean much either. There were a number of the party guest’s partners here tonight that she had never met before. She rose from the bench and wandered over to where the voice had come from.
“Hello, is anyone there?” she asked again, squinting her eyes, trying to force them to see into the darkness.
She felt a warming sensation on her ring finger and looked down at it. The symbols on the ring were glowing brightly. Wear it also and never take it off. It will warn you if danger is near. She remembered what her mother had written in her letter. The fine hairs on the back of her neck raised and goose bumps flashed up her arms. A chilling cold enveloped her, a cold like she had felt in the woods. She turned to leave but was not quick enough. She didn’t see it coming; doubted if anyone could have, it happened so fast.
No longer were her feet on solid ground. They were now dangling at least a foot above it. Something was holding her around the neck and she grabbed at it in desperation, trying to pull off whatever was holding her. Her eyes widened with horror when her hands were grasping at nothing but thin air and realized that nothing physical was holding her. How could she fight against an imperceptible force? She kicked out with her feet in all directions, hoping feebly that she could make contact with something and maybe knock it off balance. But again, she made contact with nothing, no one. A spine chilling cackle erupted at her futile attempt to free herself from whatever was holding her captive.
“We have waited patiently for this moment,” the voice spoke again with revelry. Whoever it was, they were certainly enjoying themselves.
She looked around wide eyed, trying to see who else made up the ‘we’. But she couldn’t even see what was holding her, let alone anyone else that may have been lurking in the shadows. Faedra could feel the ring on her finger heat up even more. It didn’t hurt, but it was a powerful reminder that she was in very grave danger, a fact that hadn’t escaped her attention.
“Who are you?” she croaked through the stranglehold on her neck. Her question was answered in an instant, as a pair of eyes glowed in the darkness below her. She felt sick, a deep retching, nauseous feeling resonated from the pit of her stomach. “Oh, God, a redcap,” she continued through restrained vocal chords.
There was another gravelly cackle and it turned Faedra’s blood to ice. The force holding her began to move her over towards the light from a streetlamp that was behind the wall of the back entrance to the hotel. Whatever it was that was holding her, backed her up until the circle of light from the streetlamp illuminated them both.
Faedra looked down, terror-stricken, as the figure holding her gradually came into view. Fear couldn’t even begin to describe what she was feeling when her eyes sent what they were seeing to her brain. It was grotesque. One of its long sinewy arms was held upwards towards her. Spindly fingers with yellowed, claw like nails were shaped as though they were gripping something invisible. Then she realized they were… her neck. She was hovering at least three feet up and away from the hand that was held out towards her.
The creature couldn’t have been much more than four feet tall, but what it lacked in stature, it made up for in repulsiveness. It wore a long, dirty brown leather tunic that came to mid thigh and was belted at the waist. What looked like steel boots adorned its feet and they made a small clanking sound as it walked. She remembered the sound from the woods when they had been running, but hadn’t been able to put her finger on it at the time.
It had an ominous looking dagger thrust through its belt that was slightly rusty and stained with blood. Its other hand had hold of a menacing looking weapon with a huge axe blade at the top of a long handle that stood at least a foot taller than the redcap, and was finished off with a spike at the end. It, too, looked well used and blood stained.
Its face was gnarly, like old elephant hide, with black soulless eyes that no longer glowed now that they were in the light. A long crooked nose protruded out morosely from the center of its face, and the jagged, uneven fangs it had for teeth, jutted out from its lower jaw and were yellowed and rotting. On its head it wore the article for which it was named, a red cap. It fit its head like a glove, and although she didn’t want to admit to it, she thought it looked like skin, but not its own skin, someone else’s. It glistened moistly in the light from the streetlamp.
“What do you want from me?” Faedra croaked, scanning the area. She still couldn’t see any more of them.
“Why, the amulet, of course,” the redcap spat back at her in
disgust, then turned his attention to the necklace dangling from her neck.
“Why?”
“I don’t ask why, I just get to keep my prize…you,” it cackled with delight.
In a flash, it had forced Faedra to her knees. She was now almost eye level with the hideous creature as she kneeled in front of it. She wrinkled her nose when it leaned in close to her and wafted a breath over her face. It smelled repugnant; she almost threw up right there and then. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t close her eyes. Faedra stared frozen in time at it, as it examined her closely.
“I can understand why she wants you dead,” it whispered with spine chilling contempt.
“Who wants me dead?” Faedra squeaked.
“That is of no consequence, Custodian,” it replied, its gravelly voice scraping at her skin like a rough piece of sand paper. He laid his axe-like weapon on the floor and took hold of the amulet with his free hand. Faedra wasn’t sure what happened next, but the creature was flung across the darkness. A howl screeched through the air as it made contact with what she assumed was the dumpster. She made to get up and run for her life, but the creature was back on her in a flash. The redcap held her neck with its actual hand this time; much more violently than before. It held the palm of its other hand for her to see.
“The amulet is warded; only you can touch it. It would seem no one else can while you live. So, it looks like I’m going to have to kill you right here to take it from you. We were looking forward to having much more fun with you than that, but,” and it shrugged its shoulders, “needs must.” There was a glint in its eyes when it said it.
Faedra moved her eyes downward to look at its hand. She couldn’t move her head, it was being held too tightly. The palm of its hand had been seared with the pattern from the amulet, burning a permanent brand into its skin.
Her mind whirled as the oxygen was being cut off to her brain. She couldn’t die, not here, not now.