I'm going to have to apologise again *hangs head in shame* first of all for the wait. That is not my fault. Second of all for the chapter length. I'm too tired for an explanation.
Falcon Horus, I shall pretend that you didn't beg :)
Ruth, sorry but lots of Sam angst and you shall see why.
Dena, please refrain from drooling on the computer screen, t'is undignified.
Thank you to anyone else who took the time to review. I'm not sure if this is the last chapter or not so enjoy.
Chapter 20
Tears began gliding effortlessly down her cheeks and she was doing nothing to stop them. The cool and collected exterior had crumbled away and she felt exposed without it, however, in her present frame of mind she could not find it within herself to reassemble it. She wanted to weep, she felt she owed it to this frail old lady who was her daughter. Silently she slipped back outside into the corridor and slid down the wall trying desperately to quell the building storm of sobs.
"I should have been here." She breathed out eventually to Alex who was leaning heavily on his cane with his eyes roving over her face, checking her reaction.
"There was nothing that you could have done. My parents…their work required them to travel a lot, particularly to Egypt. The sun protection was not as it is now." He bent on knees far more ancient than Colonel O'Neill's and attempted to haul her to her feet. "Perhaps you should go back in. the first look is always the worst." He said in a voice that said he was accustomed to seeing death. She swiped at tears, they felt hot and sharp to her frozen hands.
The window on the far right was open wide onto the sweeping grounds to air out the heavy, stagnant atmosphere. Apart from the ornate four poster bed the only other furniture was a bureau under the window, a wardrobe and a bedside table. The desk was littered with papers covered in a fine layer of dust, a small marble ink pot with an old-fashioned quill pen had been set down on top of them. The bedside table held an ornate faux-oil lamp with an electric bulb and a photo frame. The bed itself had dark green drapes that had been drawn back on one side to reveal a complimentary bed spread smoothed out over a body. Pale cold hands had been folded neatly over the top without creating a single disturbance in the neatened sheets.
"I'm so sorry." This time she kept her wits about her and swallowed down the lumps that built up in the back of her throat. She had lost her daughter once before and now she was losing her for a second time. She knelt by the bedside and touched a hand ever so gently.
Lilian's skin held an ivory pallor, her snowy hair had been brushed out carefully so that it fanned out over the pillow and over her shoulders. Her skin was wrinkled yet soft to the touch, her lips were tinged a greyish-blue and Alex had said her eyes were just like her mother's.
"I have some of her things to give to you. The rest will be given as directed in her will to her family." Alex reached over and wiped away her tears with his thumb. Gently he eased her off the ground and led her from the room.
Thanks for reading. Should this be the last chapter?
Coffee Bean
xXx