The damming chants chorused, echoing through the usually sleepy village at
first light. The stamping caused the floor to vibrate violently under
their feet, they could see glimpses of torches ablaze and clenched fists
through the widening gap in the doorframe.
"Servant of Satan" they proclaimed, "You shan't shed darkness upon our
village with your sinister practices!"
There was a distant humming of the scriptures rising above the loathing
clamour. The crowd grew fiercer; splinters of wood shot out from the
pulsating doorframe; dust rose from the stone floor; crockery shattered to
fragments of china. Chalda crouched in the shadiest corner of the room,
pearly tears glided down her cheeks onto her daughter's chestnut hair, she
clutched her trembling children tightly and whispered in a quaky muffle,
"It'll be alright, Daddy'll be knocking at the door, D-daddy should be home
soon. he- he'll come and r-rescue us." Chalda rocked gently from side to
side on the cold stone floor, her quivering children still gripping
frantically to her shabby clothes. She repeated the same words over again
trying hard to blockout the thundering din form outside. "Daddy should be
home soon, Daddy is walking up the path, D-daddy won't be much longer. not
m-much longer now." Then there was an ear-spilling crash as the door hit
the floor. People came streaming in; everything was on fire. A scarred
hand reached for her mother's arm. Dragging her further away, her cold
eyes gleaming as if with some sick satisfaction as Rowena's hand slipped
from her mother's. "Don't worry.. Daddy'll be back! He's coming soon!
Don't cry Rowena! Daddy's coming.."
"Daddy's home! Rowena, he's back from town, get up!" "Th-Theodore?" breathed Rowena feebly, still partially drifting in sleep. "Rowena? Have you fever?" inquired Theodore as he placed a damp cloth over her burning forehead. She stared at him with a hollow expression, her eyes screaming with untainted memories. "You haven't still been having them nightmares?" Though he was only eight, he had good instincts and knew the answer before he finished the question. "I'll fetch some water" Through she tried, Rowena could only summon the strength to grasp the cup, only to be drained of energy to raise it from the table. Theodore lay the rim of the cup on Rowena's mouth so it spilled down her throat in trickles, he was well accustomed to this scenario, but while his Father had been absent, her state had progressed rapidly. His heart quivered with every shaky breath she mustered. Theodore hated seeing her like this. There was a rap on the door that sent ripples of throbbing sound vibrating through Rowena's body, quickly followed by the grating screech of a rusty key in the lock. "I'd better go" whispered Theodore, "Remember to drink as much as you can and get some sl- well, stay and rest" Theodore shuffled down the staircase, his footsteps were drowned out by the voices emerging from the kitchen, one of them was undoubtedly Daddy, but what about the other?
Note before long, Rowena had her ear pressed on the kitchen door, listening intently to the conversation inside. "Ill, you say? What pray, is she ill with?", spoke an elegant high pitched voice. "Um, well, she's been very faint and tired lately, very tired" murmured Theodore with an air of apology. "Tired? Laziness you mean! Really, she's too lazy to get up on her feet for ten minutes to greet a guest from the city, there must be /something/ wrong with her!" I'll tell you what's wrong with her, no manners sheer RUDENESS! "Well, its bad, but it should clear up in a day or so, all she needs is rest." Said Theodore irritably through clenched teeth. "Oh, and what makes you think you can diagnose people like that? Think you're some kind of doctor, do you? If that's so, you are clearly an uneducated and frankly misguided little toad! And I doubt your excuse of a sister is much better! Laziness! How your father copes with this incompetence." Rowena spotted a loose nail in the door. Her fierce curiosity to match a face to the woman's elegant but strangely familiar voice forced her to unscrew it. She pressed an eye to the hole. She recognised that thin figure, that bony, scarred hand, that painted-on smile, those frosty eyes. Rowena let out a gasp and the rusty nail tinkled as it fell to the floor. The woman's head whirled around and she made her way to the door, lilac dress sweeping behind her. Rowena scrambled to her feet. the woman was reaching for the handle! Then her father's voice filled the room, filling it with warmth. "Ah, Theodore! Sorry to keep you waiting, where's Rowena? Ah, Jemima!" Rowena's heart sank as they embraced. "Theodore, I'd like you to meet Jemima Eastbank- my fiancé"
"Daddy's home! Rowena, he's back from town, get up!" "Th-Theodore?" breathed Rowena feebly, still partially drifting in sleep. "Rowena? Have you fever?" inquired Theodore as he placed a damp cloth over her burning forehead. She stared at him with a hollow expression, her eyes screaming with untainted memories. "You haven't still been having them nightmares?" Though he was only eight, he had good instincts and knew the answer before he finished the question. "I'll fetch some water" Through she tried, Rowena could only summon the strength to grasp the cup, only to be drained of energy to raise it from the table. Theodore lay the rim of the cup on Rowena's mouth so it spilled down her throat in trickles, he was well accustomed to this scenario, but while his Father had been absent, her state had progressed rapidly. His heart quivered with every shaky breath she mustered. Theodore hated seeing her like this. There was a rap on the door that sent ripples of throbbing sound vibrating through Rowena's body, quickly followed by the grating screech of a rusty key in the lock. "I'd better go" whispered Theodore, "Remember to drink as much as you can and get some sl- well, stay and rest" Theodore shuffled down the staircase, his footsteps were drowned out by the voices emerging from the kitchen, one of them was undoubtedly Daddy, but what about the other?
Note before long, Rowena had her ear pressed on the kitchen door, listening intently to the conversation inside. "Ill, you say? What pray, is she ill with?", spoke an elegant high pitched voice. "Um, well, she's been very faint and tired lately, very tired" murmured Theodore with an air of apology. "Tired? Laziness you mean! Really, she's too lazy to get up on her feet for ten minutes to greet a guest from the city, there must be /something/ wrong with her!" I'll tell you what's wrong with her, no manners sheer RUDENESS! "Well, its bad, but it should clear up in a day or so, all she needs is rest." Said Theodore irritably through clenched teeth. "Oh, and what makes you think you can diagnose people like that? Think you're some kind of doctor, do you? If that's so, you are clearly an uneducated and frankly misguided little toad! And I doubt your excuse of a sister is much better! Laziness! How your father copes with this incompetence." Rowena spotted a loose nail in the door. Her fierce curiosity to match a face to the woman's elegant but strangely familiar voice forced her to unscrew it. She pressed an eye to the hole. She recognised that thin figure, that bony, scarred hand, that painted-on smile, those frosty eyes. Rowena let out a gasp and the rusty nail tinkled as it fell to the floor. The woman's head whirled around and she made her way to the door, lilac dress sweeping behind her. Rowena scrambled to her feet. the woman was reaching for the handle! Then her father's voice filled the room, filling it with warmth. "Ah, Theodore! Sorry to keep you waiting, where's Rowena? Ah, Jemima!" Rowena's heart sank as they embraced. "Theodore, I'd like you to meet Jemima Eastbank- my fiancé"