Banshee Song
Book One
Chapter Thirty-One
She stood on the stone terrace over looking the castle grounds. Rhianna watched the early morning sun splay its golden rays over the rolling green hills that lay before her. A sudden gust lifted up her red gold tresses and held them momentarily suspended in the air. She closed her eyes and breathed in the rich spring fragrant air. She was still amazed by the beauty of the place that she called home.
As she stood there serenely watching the world come to life, she sensed another presence on the stone balcony. She didn't turn to see who it was; she already knew. She smiled as his strong arms wrapped around her waist; hugging her body closely to his. She looked down at the tanned muscular arms encircling her waist and lightly caressed the rough skin. Her hands found his and their fingers reflexively intertwined. She smiled when a lightly bearded chin nuzzled at her neck. A soft, rich voice sang in her ear.
"Good morning."
Chloe smiled happily in her sleep and continued her light snoring.
Brady looked at his sleeping angel. How was it possible that she was this beautiful? Acting on impulse, he leaned over and kissed her full lips, eliciting a soft moan from the sleeping girl.
"Good morning, Chloe."
Snore.
"Chloe, wake up."
Chloe fluttered open her eyes and looked around her. "what?" she asked sleepily. "I was having a nice dream."
"I'll bet you were. You're about to miss your first look at New York."
She yawned and stretched her legs. "We're there already? That was a short trip."
Brady chuckled. "Yeah it is, if you sleep the whole way."
Chloe wanted to reply but was too engrossed in the breathtaking view before her. Brady glanced at her out of the corner of his eye to see her reaction.
The city lay stretched out before them; the buildings reflecting the golden morning light. It was already a beautiful day; the buildings stood tall against a cloudless blue sky. Chloe was speechless. They were not even in the city, yet she could still feel the energetic spirit radiating from the vibrant city.
Her gaze soon drifted as her eyes were magnetically pulled to a gaping hole in the skyline where the twin towers of the World Trade Center had once majestically stood. She glanced over at Brady to find him gazing at the same place.
He gifted her with a small smile. "It's so different now."
"Have you been here before? Before 9-11?" She asked.
He answered while concentrating on the growing traffic on the freeway. "Yeah. Senior year at the boarding school. Some friends and I took a road trip and this was one of our stops. I know some great places here."
They drove into the city and soon found themselves in the heart of downtown. Even at 7 am on a Saturday the city was alive and bustling with energy. As Brady competently maneuvered his jeep down the city streets Chloe craned her neck to look at the various buildings as they passed.
"Wow! The buildings are soo big!"
Brady laughed at her childlike enthusiasm. Chloe's eyes darted rapidly from one building to another; she didn't want to miss a thing. She was amazed at the different architectural styles. Some buildings were classic Greek, others Art Deco, and still others ultra Modern.
They came to a large, old structure in the heart of the arts district. Brady motioned to the large gray stone building.
"That is where we are staying. We have a suite on the top floor."
Chloe's eyes widened with delight. "Brady! It's so wonderful." Her eyes took in the graceful designs of the exterior.
"And it's walking distance to everywhere we need to be. Broadway, the Met, Julliard. And we can always take a bus to anywhere else we want to go." (A\N: I know squat about NY. I've never had the fortune to go there, although I'd love to. So just ignore my blaring errors, okay?)
They checked into their hotel and took their bags up to their room. Chloe grabbed a quick shower and then changed into a cotton dress with a light sweater over it. While Brady was showering, Chloe gazed out the window at the view. They were so high up, and a great deal of New York was visible to her. She could even make out the trees of Central Park.
"You like?" Brady asked as he came out of the bathroom wearing casual slacks and a blue button down shirt.
"Oh Brady, it's unbelievable!" she breathed as she once again looked around at their spacious suite. It was beautiful, elegant. {Perfect for tonight.} she thought.
"Sorry about the bed. I had specifically requested two beds." Brady sighed in annoyance.
Chloe hid a small smile. "Don't worry about it. You said all the other rooms were taken, right? We'll just have to make do with this large, king- size bed." She smirked.
They went to breakfast at a little family run diner that Brady knew of. It was just down the street from their hotel, so they walked the distance, enjoying the spring morning. Their food was fantastic. Pancakes, of course, with all the toppings that a good pancake dinner requires. Chloe patted her full tummy.
"Yummy. Now what?"
They had no specific agenda in mind, so they just began walking down the streets enjoying the sights of New York. Before long they had reached the financial district. An idea suddenly formed in Brady's mind and he walked over to an elderly woman selling flowers on the street. He carefully selected two white roses and paid the smiling vendor. Chloe smiled when she saw the delicate flowers.
"Don't get too excited. They aren't for you." Brady told her. He took her hand in his and walked further down the street toward a destination that he had in mind. As they strolled down the bustling streets, their fingers intertwined and their arms swayed in unison between them. They walked past a fire station where people had placed signs reading, "God Bless You." They walked past brick walls where graffiti letters said, "New York lives on." They walked past a police station where a large banner simply declared, "New York's Finest." They walked past telephone poles where pictures of people were tacked, with the sad caption, "Missing as of 9-11." After many quiet minutes, Brady finally stopped.
"We're here." He said quietly.
Chloe sucked in her breath, suddenly moved with powerful emotion. Before them was a makeshift memorial to the victims of September 11th. There were countless cards, signs and banners, countless bouquets of flowers. In the center of one display was a handmade sign stating, "We won't forget." Chloe looked around them and found many other people there, weeping, paying their respects to those lost on that dark day.
Hot tears burned Chloe's eyes. "It's amazing. Six months have passed. Yet, it's like no time at all."
"Time passes very slowly when you lose someone you love." Brady replied hoarsely. "And everyone here lost someone. Even if they didn't personally know someone who died, they collectively lost. Part of New York died that day."
They stood in silence, side by side, hands locked together, fingers laced. They brought back to mind the memories of that day and uttered a quiet prayer for the many suffering souls in a deeply wounded city. Then wordlessly, they dropped their white roses on the ground.
Chapter Thirty-One
She stood on the stone terrace over looking the castle grounds. Rhianna watched the early morning sun splay its golden rays over the rolling green hills that lay before her. A sudden gust lifted up her red gold tresses and held them momentarily suspended in the air. She closed her eyes and breathed in the rich spring fragrant air. She was still amazed by the beauty of the place that she called home.
As she stood there serenely watching the world come to life, she sensed another presence on the stone balcony. She didn't turn to see who it was; she already knew. She smiled as his strong arms wrapped around her waist; hugging her body closely to his. She looked down at the tanned muscular arms encircling her waist and lightly caressed the rough skin. Her hands found his and their fingers reflexively intertwined. She smiled when a lightly bearded chin nuzzled at her neck. A soft, rich voice sang in her ear.
"Good morning."
Chloe smiled happily in her sleep and continued her light snoring.
Brady looked at his sleeping angel. How was it possible that she was this beautiful? Acting on impulse, he leaned over and kissed her full lips, eliciting a soft moan from the sleeping girl.
"Good morning, Chloe."
Snore.
"Chloe, wake up."
Chloe fluttered open her eyes and looked around her. "what?" she asked sleepily. "I was having a nice dream."
"I'll bet you were. You're about to miss your first look at New York."
She yawned and stretched her legs. "We're there already? That was a short trip."
Brady chuckled. "Yeah it is, if you sleep the whole way."
Chloe wanted to reply but was too engrossed in the breathtaking view before her. Brady glanced at her out of the corner of his eye to see her reaction.
The city lay stretched out before them; the buildings reflecting the golden morning light. It was already a beautiful day; the buildings stood tall against a cloudless blue sky. Chloe was speechless. They were not even in the city, yet she could still feel the energetic spirit radiating from the vibrant city.
Her gaze soon drifted as her eyes were magnetically pulled to a gaping hole in the skyline where the twin towers of the World Trade Center had once majestically stood. She glanced over at Brady to find him gazing at the same place.
He gifted her with a small smile. "It's so different now."
"Have you been here before? Before 9-11?" She asked.
He answered while concentrating on the growing traffic on the freeway. "Yeah. Senior year at the boarding school. Some friends and I took a road trip and this was one of our stops. I know some great places here."
They drove into the city and soon found themselves in the heart of downtown. Even at 7 am on a Saturday the city was alive and bustling with energy. As Brady competently maneuvered his jeep down the city streets Chloe craned her neck to look at the various buildings as they passed.
"Wow! The buildings are soo big!"
Brady laughed at her childlike enthusiasm. Chloe's eyes darted rapidly from one building to another; she didn't want to miss a thing. She was amazed at the different architectural styles. Some buildings were classic Greek, others Art Deco, and still others ultra Modern.
They came to a large, old structure in the heart of the arts district. Brady motioned to the large gray stone building.
"That is where we are staying. We have a suite on the top floor."
Chloe's eyes widened with delight. "Brady! It's so wonderful." Her eyes took in the graceful designs of the exterior.
"And it's walking distance to everywhere we need to be. Broadway, the Met, Julliard. And we can always take a bus to anywhere else we want to go." (A\N: I know squat about NY. I've never had the fortune to go there, although I'd love to. So just ignore my blaring errors, okay?)
They checked into their hotel and took their bags up to their room. Chloe grabbed a quick shower and then changed into a cotton dress with a light sweater over it. While Brady was showering, Chloe gazed out the window at the view. They were so high up, and a great deal of New York was visible to her. She could even make out the trees of Central Park.
"You like?" Brady asked as he came out of the bathroom wearing casual slacks and a blue button down shirt.
"Oh Brady, it's unbelievable!" she breathed as she once again looked around at their spacious suite. It was beautiful, elegant. {Perfect for tonight.} she thought.
"Sorry about the bed. I had specifically requested two beds." Brady sighed in annoyance.
Chloe hid a small smile. "Don't worry about it. You said all the other rooms were taken, right? We'll just have to make do with this large, king- size bed." She smirked.
They went to breakfast at a little family run diner that Brady knew of. It was just down the street from their hotel, so they walked the distance, enjoying the spring morning. Their food was fantastic. Pancakes, of course, with all the toppings that a good pancake dinner requires. Chloe patted her full tummy.
"Yummy. Now what?"
They had no specific agenda in mind, so they just began walking down the streets enjoying the sights of New York. Before long they had reached the financial district. An idea suddenly formed in Brady's mind and he walked over to an elderly woman selling flowers on the street. He carefully selected two white roses and paid the smiling vendor. Chloe smiled when she saw the delicate flowers.
"Don't get too excited. They aren't for you." Brady told her. He took her hand in his and walked further down the street toward a destination that he had in mind. As they strolled down the bustling streets, their fingers intertwined and their arms swayed in unison between them. They walked past a fire station where people had placed signs reading, "God Bless You." They walked past brick walls where graffiti letters said, "New York lives on." They walked past a police station where a large banner simply declared, "New York's Finest." They walked past telephone poles where pictures of people were tacked, with the sad caption, "Missing as of 9-11." After many quiet minutes, Brady finally stopped.
"We're here." He said quietly.
Chloe sucked in her breath, suddenly moved with powerful emotion. Before them was a makeshift memorial to the victims of September 11th. There were countless cards, signs and banners, countless bouquets of flowers. In the center of one display was a handmade sign stating, "We won't forget." Chloe looked around them and found many other people there, weeping, paying their respects to those lost on that dark day.
Hot tears burned Chloe's eyes. "It's amazing. Six months have passed. Yet, it's like no time at all."
"Time passes very slowly when you lose someone you love." Brady replied hoarsely. "And everyone here lost someone. Even if they didn't personally know someone who died, they collectively lost. Part of New York died that day."
They stood in silence, side by side, hands locked together, fingers laced. They brought back to mind the memories of that day and uttered a quiet prayer for the many suffering souls in a deeply wounded city. Then wordlessly, they dropped their white roses on the ground.
