“He will not go far,” he assured her. “He cannot survive out in the big world on his own and he knows it.”
There was no sign of Dal by the time they were all back on their horses and ready to move on, but he quickly appeared as they started to head off. “I am just staying with you until we get to the next village,” he said, sulkily.
Tor smiled. “Sure you are,” he said then gently kicked his horse, urging her into a gallop. He was almost over the hill before the rest of the party caught up to him.
The next ‘village’ turned out to be no more than half a dozen small cottages and an inn. There was still plenty of daylight left so they continued on, Dal still trailing behind. As the sun slowly slipped below the horizon, Ellen moved to the front of the pack, pulling her horse next to Tor’s. “We should look for somewhere to make camp soon,” she said, but Tor shook his head. Pointing to a hill in the distance, he asked if she could see the tree on the top. Ellen could just make out what appeared to be a large old oak.
“That marks the border between Southland province and Eastlakes province. Amdale is no more than an hour’s ride away.”
It was dark by the time they arrived outside the only inn, the smell of freshly cooked food drifting temptingly from inside. All eyes turned to Bellak. “I say we eat first, then visit Mama Rose,” Grimmel said. “She prefers visitors to come at night anyway.”
Bellak grudgingly agreed and they all headed inside. Soon they were tucking into roasted pork, with plenty of vegetables. The gravy was a bit thin, but the bread was fresh and soaked it up well. When they had eaten their fill, discussion turned to their imminent visit to Mama Rose.
“Any volunteers?” Tor asked. Although Mama Rose had never harmed anyone, she was usually avoided. A man only went to her when he was in dire need and there was no alternative. Women visited more often, though apprehensively.
“We all go,” Ellen stated. “What we want her to do takes a lot of strength. She will need to take some from each of us. The more of us there are, the less likely it will be that one of us will die.”
Silence filled the room as everyone stared at her. “Die,” Seth said, in shock. “What do you mean die?”
Ellen looked around. Even Bellak seemed to have gone pale. “This is a very difficult spell,” she started to explain. “Mama Rose may be the only person still alive who knows it. Once started, it cannot be stopped before completion. If it is, the spell weaver will die instantly, as will everyone involved. Each step of the spell saps more and more energy. She will need to be constantly replacing her strength. She can channel it directly from us.” She paused, looking around again. “If she takes too much, you will not have the energy to keep breathing.”
After a moment, the sound of exhaling came from around the table, as if people suddenly realised they were holding their breath and had begun breathing again at the same time. For a while, nobody felt inclined to speak. Eventually Dal found his voice. “I do not suppose there is another way is there?”
Everyone looked intently at Ellen; they had all been wondering the same thing. It was Bellak who answered.
“Probably, but we do not have time to waste finding out. We need the next clue as soon as we can get it.”
They all jumped when Tor suddenly clapped his hands together. “Well ladies and gentlemen,” he said, taking charge. “It is decision time. You can leave now and no-one will think the less of you, or you can come with me and risk death. You have all been of tremendous help to me and have risked a lot. For that I thank you. But this is a risk I cannot ask you to take. It has to be totally your decision.”
He looked at them in turn. Patrick nodded. “What have I got to lose?”
Tor nodded back. “Seth?”
Seth looked pale and it was a while before he answered. “When ma and pa died, you took me in, gave me a job, a roof over my head and 3 meals a day, well usually,” he said. “How can I let you down now?”
Again Tor nodded. Each of the others slowly returned the nod, though some were visibly shaking. “So,” Tor said. “It is decided. Time to get going.” He looked at Dal, who was staring down at the table. “You wait for us here. Take a room. I have no idea how long we will be.”
As he turned to go, Dal looked up. “No.” He said it so quietly Tor almost pretended he hadn’t heard. He stopped and turned to face him again.
“You are not part of this and never have been,” he stated.
“Me being there could make the difference between one of you living or dying,” Dal replied, looking up at him.
Tor was about to respond when Ellen put her hand on his arm. “He is right you know.” Tor looked down at her, then at Dal. He nodded his head once, reluctantly, then walked out of the inn.
An hour later they found themselves sitting in a circle around a fire behind Mama Rose’s house, listening to her warnings about all that could go wrong. Mama Rose was a large, heavy set, woman with piercing green eyes that seemed to see what you were thinking whenever they fell on you. Nobody knew her exact age; she seemed to have always been around; lived in the same cottage all her life, some said. Her weather-worn face showed few wrinkles, though her hair was pure white. She spoke in a deep voice, her plump hands constantly moving. Eventually she stopped, expecting them to thank her for her time and leave. She was surprised when nobody moved.
“We know the dangers and are prepared to take the risk,” Bellak told her. “This is important.”
“Very well,” she replied. “I hope you all make it through this alive. I will put you all into a deep trance. Some of you may never come out of it.” She looked sternly at Bellak. “I need a name,” she told him. “I have to name the person you wish to bring across.”
Just as Bellak was about to speak, she held up her hand, instantly silencing him. “No-one else must know the name.” Bellak leaned across and whispered into her ear. She nodded, then smiled. “And now for my price.”
Tor had been wondering when they were going to get to that part. There was always a price with Mama Rose, though it was seldom what you were expecting.
“I have a friend staying with me at the moment. I want you to take him with you. Make him part of your team. He has no friends and is in need of some company.”
Tor frowned. “What is the catch?” he asked. There was always a catch as well.
“He is a vampire.”
Tor heard a few gasps and was not certain if one had been his own. “No,” he said firmly.
“Then I will bid you goodnight,” Mama Rose said and started to rise.
“Wait,” Bellak called. “Tor, we need to do this. What harm can it be having another person join us?”
“He is not a person,” Tor started to say, but was interrupted by Mama Rose.
“He will not hurt you, or anyone in your party. He will not get in your way and may even be of some use.”
Tor was quiet for a while, looking at the ground, obviously deep in thought. “This goes against my better judgement,” he finally said, gruffly. “But it looks like I have no choice, do I? He can come.”
When they were all seated again, Mama Rose began to chant, while throwing different coloured powders into the fire. Their eyes began to get heavy and sleep soon took them. The chanting continued until the pots she had brought with her were nearly empty. She suddenly went quiet, picked up her final pot and threw the contents into the fire. The flames turned blue and she shouted a name before collapsing.
Chapter 2
As she leaned over the rail, a single tear escaped from the corner of her eye, rolled down her cheek and fell into the waiting water below. The feeling of dampness on her face surprised her; she thought she would have run out of tears by now. It had been nearly a year since his car went off the bridge, disappearing into the darkness below, yet she still cried herself to sleep most nights.
She played with his ring on her finger. She missed him and probably always would. As usually happened when she was on the bridge, her mind wandered into the past.
The HR manager’s words rang again in her head. “Inter-company relationships are banned.” Obeying that rule had been easy to begin with. There was very little in the way of ‘eye candy’ in the entire firm.
Then she met Dean and everything changed. He was everything she disliked in men, well, nearly everything. Tall, dark hair always perfectly trimmed, flawless skin tanned brown by the sun. Self-assurance oozed out of him. She knew he was in love with himself the minute she laid eyes on him. She especially hated the way his eyes seemed to burn into her whenever she passed him in the corridor. Not that she ever saw his eyes, of course, as his sunglasses never left his face.
First impressions are not always correct, as she soon found out.
Every Friday, most of the employees headed to the nearest pub straight after work. Sam reluctantly went along that first week, feeling it would be rude to say no. She instantly regretted her decision. The place was packed. She lost track of the names and faces she was introduced to and eventually managed to make her way to a quiet corner. Placing her glass of red wine on the table, she sat on the bench seat, moving across to make room for others that were joining her.
Looking up, she found herself facing Dean. Her face dropped. It was going to be one of the worst nights of her life.
As it turned out, Dean was pleasant company. He was polite and quite witty. He even came across as rather shy. They got on remarkably well, or they would have done if he had stopped staring at her, or had the decency to remove his sunglasses. Whenever she left the table, she felt his eyes following her.
By the end of the evening she was feeling uncomfortable. As a result, her reply was less than polite when he asked if they could get together the next night. Regret usually creeps up slowly; that evening was the exception. She felt numb as she watched him leave the room, escorted by a friend, his white stick tapping in front of him.
Thankfully, he had given her a second chance, though it had taken a while. She made sure she joined in whenever group outings were organised, just in case Dean would be there. She didn’t throw herself at him exactly; she just made sure she was always close enough for him to know she was there. The more time she spent in his company, the more amazed she became by how little he let his blindness hold him back. He even took part in the ten pin bowling competition. And he beat her.
As luck would have it, she was within earshot when he mentioned that his flatmate was moving out, so he needed to find a replacement. She was still living with her parents so she quickly volunteered. Later, Dean had admitted that luck had nothing to do with it. He had purposely mentioned it in front of her, hoping she would take the bait.
Their friendship quickly turned to love and it wasn’t long before they were sharing a bedroom. Her bedroom turned into an office/library as they both loved reading. Sam would often read to Dean in the evenings, though he did have his own rather large collection of books in Braille.
The only problem was the company rules. They had to keep their relationship secret from everyone, or they could both be fired. Even family could not find out. They often discussed one of them leaving, finding work somewhere else, but both were doing well and didn’t want to risk taking a backward step.
A smile touched her face as she thought back to the day he had asked her to marry him. How silly he had looked, down on one knee, staring up at her, ring box in hand. How did he always know exactly where she was standing? It had been the best day of her life. But only a few days later it was pushed into second place. She could still see the tear of joy that had trickled down his cheek when she told him the pregnancy test was positive.
Their happiness only lasted a few weeks. Her entire life was destroyed that night, just under a year ago, when the car he was in went over a bridge into a river. This bridge. Why did she keep coming back here when it was so painful?
It had been a typical Monday morning; half the office late for work, the other half yawning. Dean had stayed at a friend’s house the night before and she had expected to see him in the cafeteria, where some of the workers usually met for coffee before starting the hard grind. It was strange that he did not show up, but she assumed he was just running late. It was nearly lunch time when the company-wide email arrived in her in-box.
As she read it, she felt like a knife, made of ice, had been thrust into her stomach and was slowly being pulled downward. ‘We regret to inform you of the death of 2 much loved members of staff. Dean Matterson and Andrew Smith died last night when their car went off a bridge and into a river. They will be greatly missed’.
It went on to describe each of their accomplishments since joining the company, but Sam couldn’t bring herself to read any more. She got up to run to the bathroom, then instantly sat down again when her legs would not support her weight. She wanted to cry, she wanted to scream, she wanted to be sick, but she could do none of those things. Nobody knew that she and Dean were more than just friends. Nobody would understand. Of course, everyone would have sympathy for her losing her flatmate, but nothing more. Somehow she made it through the rest of the day. As soon as she got into their apartment, her apartment now, she threw herself onto their bed and cried.
The next morning she was awoken by the doorbell. She was still in her clothes, having cried herself to sleep. It was Davey, the friend Dean was meant to have stayed the night with, come to see how she was. He hadn’t been driving, but had been in the car. He tried to explain to her what had happened, how an oncoming car had caused Andrew to suddenly veer to the right, how they all got thrown out of the car as it left the bridge, but she wasn’t listening; she didn’t want to know any details. The other car hadn’t even stopped.
After making her breakfast of toast and very sweet tea, and staying until she had eaten some of it, Davey left her alone. She didn’t make it into work for the rest of the week. It was the last time she had a day away from the office, except for weekends and public holidays, though she often worked those as well. Work kept her mind busy and the tears from falling, at least for a while.
She shivered and pulled her coat tighter around her. Wiping tears away with the back of her hand, she turned and walked toward the town. Janet, her friend from high school, would be arriving soon. She had moved away when she went to university, but made the effort to visit a few times each year. Janet was the only one who knew the truth. It had been Janet who supported her at the funeral. It had been Janet who held her hand in the hospital when her grief had caused her to lose the baby; Dean’s baby.
The memory of losing everything she loved took hold of her and she had to slow her breathing, trying to get herself under control again before she broke down. It was hard, but she managed it. Thinking of Janet helped. At least tonight wouldn’t be another night with a bottle of wine and a box of tissues.
Okay, so she was wrong about the bottle of wine, but at least the tears were tears of laughter for a change. Janet always knew how to cheer her up. She had one of those bubbly personalities that were impossible to dislike. Emptying the rest of the bottle into her glass, Janet went into the kitchen, in search of another, her curly red hair bouncing with each step.
Although not pretty in the traditional sense, her personality and figure made her a hit with men. She was single again, having dumped her latest conquest the night before, and it was telling Sam the reasons that had made them both laugh so much. For Janet, it was good to hear Sam laugh; it didn’t happen very often these days.
Taking a bottle from the kitchen table, she searched through draws, looking for a corkscrew. Trust Sam to buy the only bottle in the shop that wasn’t a screw top. Eventually she found it, hidden at the back of a drawer. Pulling the cork out slowly, it unexpectedly came free and her arm shot back, banging her elbow on the sink behind her. She swore loudly. Yelling to Sam that she was okay, she took the cork from the corkscrew, threw it in the bin and placed the corkscrew back in the drawer. She returned to the lounge to find Sam scraping the remains of the Chinese meal onto one of the plates, ready to carry it into
the kitchen. After everything had been cleared away and the dishwasher stacked, ready to be put on in the morning, they both relaxed on the sofa, newly filled glasses in hand, Janet with her long, slim legs under her and Sam with hers stretched out.
They talked for hours about anything and everything; jobs, the latest Brad Pitt movie, the upcoming election. They were both watching the new series about an alien invasion and compared notes on how they thought it would end. It had barely reached ten o’clock when Janet noticed Sam’s eyes stray, yet again, to Dean’s picture on the wall.
“It’s time to move on, you know,” she said, softly. For a while Sam said nothing, refusing to turn away from the photo. Eventually she turned to look at Janet, all signs of laughter gone from her face.
“I know,” she replied, sighing. “I’m just not ready yet.”
“And you never will be if you continue to hold on to the past. He’s gone and he’s not coming back.” Sam gave her a stern look, but she continued anyway. “Is this what he would have wanted? You shutting yourself in here while life passes you by.” She looked around the room. Nothing had changed in the last 12 months. All of Dean’s things were where they had been left. His clothes still hung in the wardrobe. Sam had thrown a fit when Janet suggested packing them up and giving them to a charity shop.
Sam shrugged her shoulders non-committedly and turned back to the photo once more. An uncomfortable silence filled the room. Not even Janet would understand that Sam couldn’t let go. The memories were still too strong. Besides, what did the future hold for her? She would never be able to find a man who could fill the emptiness Dean’s death had left her with.
“You need a vacation,” Janet said suddenly. “You haven’t had any time off in ages so you must have some leave due and I can take a few weeks off next month. Let’s hit the travel agents tomorrow and see what late deals are available.”
The Guide Page 2