Hello, everyone! I have been trying to find something to boost my creative drive for a few months now, and I think I have finally found it! This is a story I wrote back in middle school, based in Great Britain, that I think deserves to finally be posted. Unfortunately, there is a lot of revising to be done, but seeing as how the story itself is already finished I do not think this will take too much effort.
I also want to thank everyone who has been patient with me. I know PDTU and Cursed have yet to be finished and I promise to get the next chapters out as soon as possible. I think revisiting a story I have already finished will motivate me to complete the others.
Thanx again to everyone for putting up with me, and I hope you enjoy Flames of the Soul.
"Flames of the Soul"
By: LunaBell
Dawn was just making its way across the sky when a car pulled up to the front gates of the Laroque Estate. The driver, a redheaded woman of around thirty-eight, looked up at the imposing façade of the building sitting proudly before her. The front lawn was beset with large, stately oaks that lined the long driveway and branched out to cover the rest of the grounds. King Louis XIV of France, as a wedding gift, built the manor itself around 1675 for his great niece, Gaia, upon her marriage to Duke Damian Laroque.
"Well, I guess we arrived before Miss Jacobs," she said as she turned to the two teens sitting in the back seat.
"This place is huge! Are you sure we can afford it, Miss Anne?" asked the young man as he starred in awe.
Anne grinned to herself as she thought of the anonymous donation their orphanage had received. The children had been informed of the twenty thousand dollars, but thus far had no knowledge that the manor was included, along with the promise of extra funds to see that it was kept up and running. "Yes, Charles, we can afford it."
Grinning, Charles turned to the girl beside him. "Isn't this awesome, Serenity? We are going to be living in a castle!"
Serenity smiled at the boy's enthusiasm and nodded. Turning back to look at the manor, no one noticed her eyes, crystal blue in color, fog over as she studied it.
Charles sighed as he looked back to Miss Anne.
It had been years since anyone had heard Serenity speak. Four years earlier, she and another young girl were placed in a foster home. The family had been approved by the orphanage to foster a few of their children due to the lack of space. Two weeks after being placed in the home the other girl, Marissa, went missing.
Ultimately, it was Serenity who found the young girl's body buried beneath the swing set in the backyard. An autopsy showed that the girl had been beaten, raped, and then strangled to death by the "father". The man, convicted of first-degree murder, received seven life sentences with no chance of parole. It was believed that Serenity had witnessed the murder, and then threatened into silence. Bruises found about her wrist, ankles, and along her back showed that she herself had been beaten. Though whether it was to keep her quiet or evidence that she was intended to share her friend's fate, no one knew.
Psychiatrists explained that Serenity, in an attempt to remain separate from the things happening to and around her, had drawn into herself. Not speaking was a kind of after effect, a safety net.
It was at this time that the second car pulled up. Rolling down the window, Anne talked briskly to the other woman before backing up to allow the other car to pull around them and through the now open gate.
Pulling up to the entrance, Serenity and Charles quickly jumped out of the car and raced up the front steps.
The new arrival laughed at the teenagers' excitement. "Well, it looks like they're ready for the tour. Hello, I am Jennifer Jacobs, and you must be Miss Anne Hopkins. It's a pleasure."
"Yes, it's nice to finally meet in person. I have been looking forward to this for weeks," Anne replied.
"Well, then I won't keep you waiting." Walking up the steps Jennifer and Anne joined the teens at the door. Pulling out a large ring of keys, Jennifer unlocked the massive double doors.
Everyone ushered inside to get their first look at what would be their new home. Nothing had prepared them for the elegance of the main foyer.
Grinning, Jennifer walked ahead then swiftly turned to the others and with a grand sweep of her arm to encompass the entire manor she stated, "Welcome to Laroque Manor, your new home!"
It took close to three hours to tour the entire manor. Just beyond the foyer had a series of sitting rooms, two dining rooms (one formal and one informal), a library, the kitchen, the main ballroom, and a smaller, secondary ballroom. Two wings branched out at either end of the main house, making the manor U shaped, containing around thirty rooms apiece, along with a large nursery in the west wing.
Each room boasted its own unique theme, anything from color to style, and a few had even been equipped with modern day bathrooms. Four bathrooms were placed on each floor to cover the rooms that were not.
The group arrived back at the library to be greeted by a plump, rosy-cheeked older woman. Jennifer made the introductions and explained that the housekeeper, Mrs. Bardou, had been seeing to the house for the last forty years along with her husband, who was the grounds keeper.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Hopkins." Turning, she looked at Serenity and Charles. "And what have we here? You two look famished. What do you say to some lunch, hmm?"
The two nodded eagerly. Looking up at the women Miss Bardou asked, "Would it be alright if I took the children down to the kitchen? I have some sandwiches and tea prepared, and it will give you to time to talk business."
"Of course, that will be fine Madame. You two behave yourselves." Anne replied as she took a seat in front of a large mahogany desk.
Miss Bardou opened the door and ushered them outside before turning back. "I will bring you some lunch just as soon as I've taken care of the children."
"Thank you Emma, that will be all." Jennifer stated as she took her seat behind the desk.
Bowing, Emma quickly closed the door and ushered her two charges toward the kitchen.
"Now that we're alone I'll give you the particulars I mentioned over the phone." Jennifer shuffled though some papers she pulled out of her briefcase, setting a few in front of Anne. "The grounds and manor have been well taken care of as you can see. The Bardou' family has been caretakers here since the original family occupied it. Along with them, there are four maids and two young men, who help out with the manor and grounds. It is, of course, your decision whether to keep them on. The manor has been kept up to date and as you have seen, boasts many modern features." Jennifer pulled out another paper and perused it before continuing. "Now if you will look at the documents in front of you, you will see the paper outlining the agreement put forth in the donation papers. All that the recent owner asks is that you keep Mr. and Mrs. Bardou on staff seeing as how they are as much a part of this estate as the manor itself, and promise to use the extra funds he is including, to be distributed every month, to keep the estate running. In essence, the manor will pretty much be taken care of, all you will need to worry about is any cable and phone lines you will need hooked up and keeping the food stocked. The Bardou's, and any other help you decide to keep, pay is also included in the monthly donations."
Putting down her papers, Jennifer looked up expectantly. "Now, is there anything you don't understand or that you were wondering about that I didn't cover?"
"Actually, there is one thing that's been bothering me. Why would the owner want to just give away all of this? I mean, don't get me wrong, I really appreciate this, for it will allow me to keep all of our kids in one place, but it just doesn't seem real I guess." Anne said as she looked about the room.
Sighing, Jennifer stood up and walked to the windows over looking the back garden. "Mr. Delacroix has lived in this house his entire life. After the Laroques were murdered in 1698 the estate and title was passed on to the Duke's younger brother, Antoine. My employer's ancestors have kept this estate thriving over the years. Unfortunately, the family has suffered greatly over the last three centuries; only one child is born from each marriage, and seeing as Mr. Delacroix never married he has no one to leave his family legacy to." She turned back to look at Anne. "In a way, I believe he is worried that his heritage will be lost in the passage of time, and is looking for a way to salvage what little is left."
"Well, then I guess I'd better not disappoint him. Let's make this official." Anne said, grinning.
"So, what are your names?" Mrs. Bardou asked as she set the sandwiches on the small table in the kitchen.
"I'm Charles and this is Serenity."
"Well, it's very nice to meet the two of you. Are you looking forward to moving in?"
Nodding their heads the youths packed into the lunch provided for them.
Turning to Serenity, Emma couldn't help but be taken aback at the beauty sitting before her. With hair a light blond, with even lighter highlights, and crystal blue eyes she had an ethereal look to her. She seemed fragile too. "You don't talk much do you dear?" she asked her.
"Sere doesn't talk at all ma'am. At least she hasn't in around four years. Though I would guess she could if she really wanted to." Charles explained as he grabbed for another sandwich.
"Oh, I'm sorry dear. I didn't mean to offend you." Emma said quickly as Serenity shook her head.
"It's fine Ma'am. Serenity doesn't blame anyone for being curious." Charles paused as Serenity used sign language. "She says it's no big deal." Pause. "She also asks if you would mind showing her to the restroom. Nature calls!" he finished on a laugh, earning a playful slap from Serenity.
"Of course, dear. It's right this way."
Leading the way down the hall, Emma pointed to the second door along a narrow hallway. "Right through there, and when you're though the kitchen is right through these doors over here."
Serenity nodded her thanks before entering the door.
"Alright, I believe that covers everything. Now remember, if there is anything you do not want in the manor make sure to notify me so that I can have it sent to the British Museum. Congratulations, Miss Hopkins, you are now the proud owner of Laroque Estate." Jennifer said as they shook hands.
"Ah, good, so it's all settled then?" came a voice from the doorway.
"Mr. Delacroix! I didn't know you would be joining us." Jennifer exclaimed as she rushed to his side to assist him to a chair.
"Yes, well, I thought it would be nice to meet Miss Hopkins. It's not everyday an old man gives away his home, and I wanted to make sure everything was going smoothly."
Extending her hand, Anne smiled at the man. "It's an honor to meet you, sir. I must say that your donation will help out a lot of homeless children."
"Glad to hear it! I had thought of donating the estate to the museum, but decided it would be put to better use in this capacity. It has been centuries since this house was filled with life, and what better way to remedy that then to fill it with children?"
"You are correct, sir. At the moment, we have exactly seventy-eight children in our care along with twenty teachers, a cook, and me. With the manor we will now be able to keep the children together in one spot instead of having to foster them out." Anne explained as she retook her seat.
"Good, good; now tell me how you like the manor. I'm sure Jenny here has already told you that anything you don't want will be removed for you and that I plan to make monthly donations for the upkeep."
"Yes, she did and I was thinking that most of the artifacts could be moved to the smaller ballroom and put on display, so that the children can learn more about your heritage and the manor past." Pausing Anne looked about again. "I would hate to see all the history in the place go to waste. Seeing as how we follow the same curriculum as any boarding school, I'm sure our history teacher would enjoy having pieces to show the kids instead of merely pictures."
Sighing happily, Mr. Delacroix turned to study the fireplace. "Yes, there is much history here. Sometimes, it feels as if the ghosts of the past still remain, moving within the very heart of this place."
A commotion in the hall brought everyone's eyes to the door. A second later Charles burst through followed by an out of breath Miss Bardou.
Charles was the first to recover. "Miss Anne! Serenity is missing!"
There is the first chapter! I know it's a little short, but the next one will be longer I promise! Special thanks go out to my editor SerenitySparrow. The next chapter will be out in a few days. R&R.