Chapter 9: Collinwood
Amanda's Journey
"Wake, my love, awake," a familiar voice called to her as she fought to regain consciousness. Her eyes flickered open, and she found herself staring into the gorgeous hazel eyes of her husband, who gazed back with a look of love and tenderness. She reached a hand up and ran it through his hair, before pulling his head down to hers for a kiss. As their lips met, she realized something was wrong. She pulled away and stared at the man she had just kissed, her eyes blinking rapidly. It was not Lee who held her so closely; his hair was slightly too long, his sideburns a bit too bushy, and he had a mustache, a mustache!
She barely trusted her voice, but she whispered, "Ian?"
He let out a hearty chuckle. "You were expecting another man in our bedchamber, wife?"
She glanced around. She was no longer in the sitting room of Collinwood but in a bedroom, the lilac room, she realized suddenly. "You're my husband," she said half questioningly.
'Yes, my love, your ever devoted and loving husband of one day," he replied with a devastating grin.
"One day," she gasped. "We were married yesterday?" Whispering under her breath she added, "Jonas. Jonas will be back today."
"What, my dear?" he asked.
She looked at him in terror. "Jonas returns today."
Ian looked at her with compassion, "Ah, my love, you're confused. Your poor Jonas perished at sea more than a year ago." He wrapped his arms around her in comfort, murmuring, "Evidently the preparations for our wedding put a tremendous strain on you, my dear heart. I shall have to do my best to make sure our wedding trip soothes and refreshes you." Arising from the bed, he pulled a silken cord hanging from the ceiling. "Cece shall be here presently to dress you and prepare you for the trip." After pulling on a pair of woolen breeches and buttoning on a close fitting shirt, Ian turned to Amanda and said, "I'm going downstairs to check on preparations for our journey, dear wife. I shall expect you downstairs soon; else I come back up and retrieve you myself." He smiled again, flashing his dimples at her before opening the door and exiting the room.
Amanda fell back onto her pillow, her head awhirl in confusion. "I'm dreaming," she said aloud. "That's it, it's a dream. I'll wake up soon and I'll tell Lee about this silly dream and he and I will have a laugh about my vivid imagination." She reached her hand over and pinched her left forearm, flinching as the pain registered. "OK, now, that's not right. I shouldn't have felt that." A thought nudged the edge of her awareness. "Daphne?" she called out. She didn't expect an answer and didn't get one, but she knew, nevertheless, that somehow she was living Daphne's life, a life that was destined to end that very day.
Amanda made her way downstairs about thirty minutes later, dressed and coiffed expertly by the servant Cece, feeling very uncomfortable in the confining dress and her insubstantial slippers. She had thought to remain in her room all day. If she never left, she couldn't die at the bottom of Widow's Hill. But somehow, Amanda was not fully in charge of her actions. So she found herself leaving the safety of her room on an uncontrollable path to destiny. As she walked, she took notice of her surroundings. The house seemed very familiar to her, as though she had lived in it her entire life. She was seeing it through Daphne's eyes, feeling it through Daphne's emotions, and it frightened her. How could she survive, living the life of a doomed woman?
She was greeted at the base of the stairs by her husband, no, by Daphne's husband. The differences were starting to blur and Amanda fought hard to retain some semblance of control, but Daphne's will was too strong. When Ian pulled her into his arms and kissed her, she couldn't resist; in fact, she didn't want to resist.
"I was just coming up to fetch you, wife," he murmured to her as he reluctantly ended their kiss. He raked his eyes up and down her slim form, admiring her beauty. "You are absolutely stunning, my love. I shall be the envy of all and I can't wait to show you off."
Amanda smiled back and asked, "Are we leaving soon?" She thought if they could make their escape before Jonas arrived, she might be able to change Daphne's fate.
Ian leaned in and whispered into her ear, "You seem anxious to be alone with me, my love, as I am with you." He pulled away and continued, "Our preparations are complete and we shall be leaving within the hour. Your children are waiting in the nursery for your goodbyes, and then we can be on our way. Now, I must supervise the loading of our trunks. I shall be right back." He kissed her again and left.
Amanda watched him walk out the door and turned to head up to the nursery. After seeing the children and wishing them goodbye, she went back downstairs, pulling on a pair of gloves and tying the ribbons of a bonnet under her chin. She had just stepped off the last tread when a shiver ran down her spine. Dread filled her heart and the sound of the front door opening froze her to the spot. She immediately recognized the man who entered the house; it was Jonas, whose eyes lit up at the sight of her. Dropping his bag at the door he ran to her, grabbing and twirling her around before bending his head and kissing her. "Daphne, oh, my dear Daphne, I have returned to you. Oh my love, you do not know how I have longed for this day."
"Daphne, my love, let us say our goodbyes and we can be on our way," Ian called to her as he reentered the room. He walked in, but stopped suddenly when he saw his bride in the arms of another man. "Unhand my wife," he demanded of Jonas, who responded by tightening his hold on Amanda's waist.
"You are mistaken, sir. Daphne is my wife," Jonas rebutted.
"Daphne and I were married yesterday, you fool. Who do you think you are?" Ian asked heatedly.
"I am Jonas West, just returned from sea. And Daphne is my wife, sworn to me before God over five years ago."
Ian staggered in shock, moving his gaze from Jonas to Daphne, "This is true, my love?" he asked tenderly.
Daphne nodded before pulling away from Jonas, tears welling in her eyes. "Jonas, we thought you dead in the shipwreck. There was no sign that anyone survived. How I grieved for you, my husband. How our children have missed you."
"I see how you grieve, Daphne. You think my body cold for but a year before giving yourself to another man." Jonas turned to Ian, fury in his eyes. "Get out of this house, sir. I shall not have you near my wife."
"I shall not give her up easily, sir. She is mine and you shall never have her again," Ian retorted.
As the two men advanced on each other, Daphne ran for the door, tears falling from her eyes. She just had to get out. She ran to the woods adjoining the property, deaf to the cries of Ian and Jonas who ran after her. Branches grabbed and tore at her dress; her hair coming loose from the intricate coiffure Cece had arranged so lovingly that morning. Her breath came in short gasps and she stopped, leaning against the trunk of a tree, her head slumped on the rough bark. She stayed there, keeping out of sight of the search party which had been formed to find her. 'If only Barnabas were here,' she thought. 'He would know what to do.' But he had left for Bangor after yesterday's wedding ceremony. She could see only one course of action open to her and she swiftly made her decision.
Daphne's will exerted itself even more strongly and Amanda now felt as if she were but a puppet being manipulated by strings. Daphne began to walk through the dark woods, heading up to Widow's Hill and her fate.
Daphne stood at the edge of the cliff, staring down the steep precipice to the swirling dark waters of the ocean and the jagged rocks piercing the surface. A feeling of serenity came over her and she edged ever closer to the brink. 'It will all be over soon,' she thought. 'The pain will end and I will be at peace.' She closed her eyes and moved forward, but Amanda's will to survive surfaced and her body lurched violently backward, and she ended up sprawled out at the edge of the drop, bruised but alive. She lay there exhausted as the sun set, crying and weeping as she dropped into deep slumber.
"Daphne! Daphne!" She heard the cries of the search party as beams of sun broke from the horizon, bathing her in a rosy glow. It was morning and Amanda sighed in relief as she realized she had survived the night. She rose and took a few unsteady steps away from the edge, shuddering as she looked down again at the fury of the ocean waves. It wasn't long before she was found and brought back to the house. Cece immediately took charge and brought her up to her room, bathing her and soothing the scrapes and bruises she had amassed during her adventure. She stayed upstairs the entire day, refusing to allow anyone but Cece access to her. She could hear the pacing footsteps of both Ian and Jonas outside the door, but she wasn't yet ready to see either of them.
The next morning, Cece was back to dress her and prepare her hair. As she finished, Daphne asked her, "Cece, are Mr. Hamilton and Mr. West still waiting to see me?"
The maid servant nodded and replied, "Oh, yes ma'am. They stayed outside your room the entire night."
"Show them in Cece. I will speak to them now."
