Chapter Twelve - Tuesday's Child
A slight smile touched his lips; she was coming today. They had told him earlier today and since then he'd been sat on the edge of his bed. Finally he would have someone to talk to, someone who could understand his wonder about Leá Monde. He had thought that she would never be coming; that he would be left to try and unravel the mystery by himself, but today she was coming. He'd been so lonely after his mother died from scarlet fever, but that had nothing on the empty pit he felt gnawing away at him, despite all of the people around him. Security had been increased since his father's murder: 'if you have the gall to assassinate the Duke, surely he'll come back to finish the job and kill the son?' was the idea running through the minds of Joshua's aides. 'Create a political vacuum and then fill it,' but who would be the one to succeed to the dukedom? Joshua Bardorba was the last of his line as far as anyone knew and none of the aides would be acceptable, so the solution would have to be found outside of the dukedom...
But none of that mattered to Joshua right now for she was coming. At last, a fellow survivor of the bizarre nightmare that had been Leá Monde, another soul who'd been eternally warped by what they had witnessed.
It felt like an eternity that he'd been waiting when he heard the cries of the doormen announcing her arrival. He closed his eyes, imagining her progress through the long halls. Her pace was calm and even, marked only by the clacking sound her heels made upon the marble; arms hanging loosely by her sides as her hips swaggered with the funny walk that he'd noticed women had. She'd made it over the black and white tiled floor and was making her way up the first set of stairs, her right hand trailing along the rich oak banister. The second floor was carpeted so her heels were silent, the swishing of her hair all that could be heard... Joshua sighed as he shook himself from his imagination. He knew he would have to make himself somewhat more presentable or he'd suffer the disapproval of his aides for the rest of the day. He drew himself upright, his small fingers fumbling with the buttons at the neck of his shirt. Top of the second flight of stairs; down the hall. Carefully he tucked the tails of his shirt into his trousers. Third door on the right, reaching for the handle. Grabbing his smock, he hurriedly pulled it over his head before running a hand through his hair to get it in some way neat as the door opened.
There she was, light from the window at the end of the hall caught her black hair, making all the loose strands shine like an aura of disarray around her. She had bags underneath her brown eyes and her lids were half-closed with exhaustion. Was this even the same person that Joshua had met in Leá Monde? Unsure of how to act in the situation, he gestured to a chair in the corner for her to sit in. Slowly her head turned to take the chair in and she finally understood, slumping gratefully into it.
"Callo?" a hint of child-like concern crept into his voice. "You alright?"
"Huh? Oh, uhm... sorry milord, I--" Callo stopped as Joshua giggled a bit. "OK, sorry Joshua, I've been... uhm... busy. How've you been since..." she trailed off, deciding she didn't want to go down that path, but she was too late. Joshua's head bowed as he sniffed to himself. Instantly regretting it, Callo rose from her chair and sat beside him on the bed, draping an arm around the young boy's shoulders. "I'm sorry... I should've..."
"No... he's dead, that's it. I'll be strong," he said, though the tears running from his eyes betrayed him.
"So, uhm..." Callo's discomfort was clear to see. "Tell me what you did today."
Shaking off the tears, Joshua turned and looked her in the eyes, his soul bleeding into hers. Quickly she snatched her gaze away, focusing on a spot on the wall behind him.
"I waited for you to come."
"Doesn't sound like much fun."
"I'm a Duke now. Dukes don't have fun..."
"I'm sure that's not true. Why don't we play a game?"
His face lightened up as a smile took its hold on his face...
"She's been here for hours now. What are they doing?"
"None of our business. He could be suckling from her teats for all I care. As long as I get paid, I don't care... just being in this place makes me feel dirty."
Pitter-patter
"I know how you feel. All the things we've seen while employed here... just to have witnessed them leaves me feeling queasy. And now our boss is a bloody child! This just takes the biscuit..."
Pitter-patter
"But what else can we do? I don't know about you, but I need the money and it's not as if I'm trained for any other occupation than th--"
The two servants looked up as the sound of running footsteps thundered around them. Through the open doorframe they saw their new master running as fast as his little legs could carry him. Shortly after, a laughing Callo Merlose went flying past the doorway as well, her black hair streaming backwards over her shoulders.
Her legs were starting to ache a little but she didn't care, the adrenaline carrying her onwards after her target. She skidded around the corner, going through the door to the right. She stopped after a few strides inwards, Joshua not in sight. She heard the rustle of clothing behind and whirled around just in time to see him slip through the doorway. Clever, he stood right there while I charged past him... Quickly she resumed the chase, her bare feet slapping against the cold marble - she'd abandoned her heels long ago, finding it rather difficult to run flat-out in them.
As he started to mount the stairs, she closed the distance, lightly tagging him on the shoulder. "You're it!" Overtaking him, she took the steps three at a time but luck wouldn't favour her today. Her right foot slipped off a step and she threw out her arms to try and stop her fall but to no avail. Her forehead came smashing down on the edge of a step, the wind being knocked from her lungs.
"Callo!"
Woozily, she rolled over, the steps digging into her back. She put a hand to her head, trying to push the pain out as her eyes closed. "Shi- ugar." Slowly she let her head rest on the steps, her chest heaving as she tried to fill her lungs with air. Opening her eyes, she saw the young Duke looking at her, worry painted all over his face. "Don't worry Joshua, I'm alright, though I think this might be a good time to cut my losses and run."
"Yo... you're going?" A petulant whine entered his voice.
"Don't worry, I'll come back."
"Tomorrow?"
"No. I'll need to do some work... I'll come in two days: Thursday."
