Chapter 15

Vicki waited for Jeremiah to leave and rushed to the washbasin and poured out the water and began to bath herself. She so wanted to remove the touch of him from her body and she wanted to change and burn these clothing she now wore. The thought of how he had taken her with little regard for her feelings made her physically ill.

Finishing her wash, she changed and then slowly made her way down the stairs and out the door. She needed to be alone and to clear her mind and find some peace with what had happened and why it had happen. Walking along the pathway without realizing it she had made her way to the top of windows hill and looked out at the sea and saw how it was no different than in her universe or time.

The sight of the ocean that seemed so tossed with its own turmoil just reflected her feelings and she closed her eyes. "Oh Barnabas, my love, help me now if you can. Find me and bring me home." She sighed and looked below to the storm tossed beach and a part of her was feeling alone and lost and helpless. Gone was the security she had found in her newly discovered talents of using the white witch's ways and having the security of the elementals at her disposal. Here in this time in this universe she felt numb and nothing.

Hearing a scuff of a shoe upon the path she stiffened and waited for the new arrival to announce his or her intentions. Then as if in answer to her prayer she heard his voice. "Oh I am terribly sorry, I did not realize someone was here."

Spinning around her eyes widen and there he stood a younger version of course but there he stood her husband, Barnabas Collins and he never looked so wonderful as he did at this moment. Rushing forward to throw her self into his arms and hold tightly to him she felt the tears course her cheeks she whispered, "Barnabas my love. You have come for me!"

The man that now held Vicki had a most curious if not astonished look on his face as he gently put hi8s arms around her and then ever so tenderly but with much regret pushed her back. "My dear young lady. What did you call me?"

Vicki feeling the separation and hearing the tone of his voice felt bereft being thrust back and then she stepped back and looked up at the features of the man that was her husband in her time in her universe. "I said Barnabas. . ."

He laughed apologetically, "My dear as much as I wish I were Barnabas and trust me I would be thrilled to be him, I am not he. Now as the next question I have is, who are you?"

Looking at him in total shock she frowned and her brow furrowed with her distress. "I am sorry but you look just like him."

He chuckled softly, " I can assure you I look nothing like Barnabas Collins. May I present myself to you madam?" he bowed from the waist with a flourish, "My name is Peter Bradford and you are?"

Again, she was disoriented by the introduction as this man that looked so much like her husband Barnabas was now claiming to be Peter Bradford in this universe. Then if he were not Barnabas Collins then who was Barnabas in this timeline? She knew the man that claimed to be Jeremiah was the exact double for Quentin in her timeline. She spoke mostly to herself muttering soft, "of course if things are different here then surely the Barnabas of this time would not look like my Barnabas."

This elicited a curious look from the man that had identified himself as Peter Bradford. "I beg your pardon, not look like your Barnabas?"

She sighed and looked away from him. How could she not want to be in his arms and held by him since he so resembled the man she was married to in her timeline. Sighing deeply she lowered her gaze to the rocks below and softly said, "I do beg your pardon Mr. Bradford, you reminded me of another man I know named Barnabas naturally it is not Barnabas Collins."

She felt him move up next to her and was studying her very intently while she watched the ocean below. "I was just startled that you looked so much like him. He meant a great deal to me and now he is gone."

When she spoke so passionately about this man he began to feel a bit sorry for her and it showed his concern and then a show of respect. He bowed and then spoke his condolences to her. "It would make my life so much easier if I knew your name. You are such an enchantingly beautiful creature that I feel at a disadvantage of not having that very important piece of information."

Vicki gave only the hint of a smile. "I am truly sorry for not being so forth coming. My name is Victoria Collins. I am Jeremiah's wife."

She could not help but notice that the mention of Jeremiah's name had immediately caused him to frown. "Yes, I had heard he had married and that his wife was very beautiful. I am honored to meet you my dear. Now, why would a newly wed wife find herself alone on the top of the one place that was designed for the destruction of life?"

Vicki glanced to his face and had to curb her desire to raise gentling fingertips to his face and kiss those lips that that now smiled for her benefit. That is when she noticed he wore a band on his left ring finger, which meant he was married. Another crushing blow for her in this time as she thought if she could form a friendship with him? Then perhaps she could tolerate what she had to endure at Jeremiah's hands.

"You are being too kind Mr. Bradford. I see I also owe you another apology for being so forward with my intent in greeting you. You are married?"

It was his turn to offer forth a soft flush of embarrassment he looked down at the ring that adorned his ring finger on his left hand. "Well yes, yes I am married. If you would like she is back at the big house and I am sure anxious to meet you."

Vicki turned and felt the wind whip her hair out from under her bonnet and lift the material of her dress to press against her body. "She is at Collinwood?"

He nodded and offered her his arm. "Yes, she and I arrived about an hour ago and were settling in. We had heard of Jeremiah's good fortune and came to meet you and to congratulate you both on your marriage."

Lifting delicate fingertips to his arm she smiled tightly and spoke softly, "That is most kind of you to offer to escort me back. I would love to meet your wife." Using the wind as the impetus to walk them back to the main entrance of Collinwood, she remained oddly quiet in their stroll back.

Approaching the door she was not sure if she really was prepared to meet the woman that would claim the man that looked like her husband in this timeline. Vicki paused to take a deep breath and letting it out. This was a form of controlling her stress and preparing for the worse. She waited for him to open the door to allow her entrance into the house. Taking time to remove her bonnet and then her cape, she smoothed her dress down and step with hesitant footsteps to the doors of the drawing room and stopped short.

She saw Naomi, Millicent, a young girl that had to be Sarah, a young boy that looked very much like David and then her gaze shifted to the back of a woman that stood watching out the windows of the drawing room.

She was slender, tall and had deep auburn hair that was caught in the sunlight and seemed to catch fire. The hair was dressed elaborately in ringlets that lay down her back and over one shoulder she turned Vicki gasped and not able to hold back her comment she whispered, "Julia?"

The woman blinked at her in surprise, "Why yes. Have we met before?" Vicki was not sure why but this woman was not what she expected, this was Julia Hoffman and she was married to the man that looked like her Barnabas.

Vicki shook her head. "Oh I am so sorry, I am Victoria Collins Jeremiah's wife. I am sure I heard one of the servants speaking of you and your husband's arrival."

She watched him cross the room and took up his position next to Julia and drape a protective arm around her shoulder and kissed her forehead. "My dear I met Mrs. Collins out by windows hill and she has the most extraordinary tale to tell."

Vicki looked down and sighed. "Yes, I fear I was quite taken by the arrival of your husband and mistook him for a friend I used to know and called him by name."

She was getting better at covering up her near disastrous mistakes she was making and opening the door for Jeremiah to find reason to have her locked away. They all looked upon her with some degree of confusion not understanding why her mistaking Peter for a friend was not that so extraordinary.

Then Peter filled in the missing part. "She called me Barnabas. Her friends name was Barnabas not Collins of course but still another man named Barnabas."

Then the look of delight and understanding filtered across the faces of those that occupied the room. "Really? How extraordinary in deed."

That was Millicent with her tittering and high pitched annoying voice. "I would think our Barnabas would find that bit of information intriguing."

Vicki watched at Peter lead Julia to a chair and sat her in it then pulled the foot stool close so he could be close to her and hold her hand in his. Vicki knew those hands so well. They were gentle and kind and even the way he laced his fingers with Julia's she could see he dearly cared for her and something in her felt at ease with this thought. Here this man was happy and this Julia was happy with her Peter Bradford.

Vicki immediately stiffened hearing him enter the room behind her. "Yes, my dear wife has a lot of extraordinary tales to relate but unfortunately she will be too busy to worry about any past relationships or liaisons she now belongs to me and is my wife and together we will build our own memories."

She forced her body to not recoil from his touch when he came in and roughly laid his hand over her shoulder putting pressure on her shoulder. Then he extended his arm around her waist and drug her body close to his. "Is that not right my dear."

He spoke into her ear but not in a whisper. He spoke in a voice that carried the room over to allow every one hear his claim on this woman that now stood at his side. Vicki felt her throat grow tight with emotion and dry up with her anger. She tried to respond she found herself clearing her throat. "Yes, that is correct."

The words came out stiff and not much to Jeremiah's liking. He dropped his arm to her arm and grabbed it pinching it tightly to let her know he did not appreciate her attitude. Biting her lower lip she held the grimace she felt was forthcoming. Lowering her gaze to the floor she said softly, "I am sorry m'lord. If you all will excuse me I fear that I am quite fatigued and really should go lie down before mid afternoon meal."

Jeremiah not so quick to allow her that escape laughed and spoke with a command that had caught everyone's attention in the room and brought an immediate sympathetic look to Vicki standing with her chin tucked. "None sense my dearest Victoria, you have visitors and it would be entirely too rude of you to just abandon them."

Vicki braced herself against his tight hold he half drug and half led her to the chair that sat opposite Julia and Peter where he forcefully thrust her into the chair and smiled. "Now Peter so good of you and Julia to join us. We are of course delighted that you could clear your schedule in Boston and make the long trip up to Collinsport. Tell me how is the shipping business and have you heard from my nephew and his bride?"

Naomi was not ignorant that Jeremiah was still upset over her son running off with his wife and finding happiness in their island paradise. Vicki had folded her hands together in her lap and tried to keep her chin elevated so that she could look at the newly arrived visitors but found it was difficult seeing how loving the two were together and how attentive Peter was to Julia.

Jeremiah draped his hip on the edge of Vicki's chair and slid into her to pin her to the chair and keep her aware of his presence while he carried on the banal chatter with little sincerity to his tone. Millicent was almost as annoying as the Millicent from her timeline had been with her prattle and obvious ignorance of the under play that was being carried on right under her nose.

Vicki only responded when forced to offer up an opinion or asked a question that related directly to her. The hour seemed to drag on Vicki truly was becoming so agitated that she had managed to give herself a headache. Feeling the pressure behind her eyes she blinked tightly a couple of time but not before Julia had noticed.

"My dear young lady are you having difficulty with your eyes?" All eyes seemed to fix to Vicki as she sat stunned by the observation and the comment.

"I fear I have a slight head ache and it is most annoying. Please forgive me."

Julia waved her hand and smiled. "Well allow me to offer you some head ache powders I recently brought back from London. They are less addictive than the laudanum that most doctor's prescribe."

Vicki looked gratefully at this woman that seemed to be very familiar with medicine. "Are you a alchemist?"

Julia lowered her own eyes modestly and chuckled deeply with her base voice and her coy nature. "No my dear I am a physician. Of course not recognized in this country. I mean heaven forbid that a woman would be able to know something of medicine in this day and age."

This caused a chorus of laughter to filter the room and Vicki was not sure what the joke was except for the fact that women were only suppose to decorate the homes and arms of the gentlemen of this time.

Peter patted his wife's hand and smiled proudly. "Yes, we are fortunate the islands are far more tolerant of women of education and knowledge for medicine. Julia is a practicing physician in the Caribbean and travels the islands taking care of the natives that require her attention."

Vicki was astonished that this Julia here was a doctor like the Julia from her time. "Really? How wonderful for you to be able to ply a trade as a woman and to have a degree in the field of medicine. What school did you attend?"

Julia chuckled softly, " I studied under my father who was a professor at Harvard."

Vicki was fascinated and showed an immediate interest. "Really what was his name?" Julia smiled proudly as she spoke her fathers name as Eric Latham.

Vicki nodded. "He was a practicing physician himself?"

Julia sighed, "No he was a theorist of sorts. He did feel his daughter should be schooled in the field he had found his interest and he made sure I received a degree. However trying to establish a practice here in the Colonies had proved to be most difficult. Then I met Peter and he was a friend with Barnabas and together they put a clinic on the isle of Martinique and I had a thriving practice established. Though most males feel threaten by my abilities they have to admit begrudgingly that I am very good at what I do."

At the mention of Barnabas Vicki could feel Jeremiah tense his body? Having found herself involved in the lively conversation she had almost forgotten the headache until she felt the throb of it return to rudely remind her of her malaise. Pinching the bridge of her nose she sighed.

"If you do have those powders I would greatly appreciate them." Julia stood and as she did the men in the room rose as well.

"Come my dear allow me to take you to our room and get you those powders and them perhaps you should lie down and rest before we are called to dine."

Vicki followed Julia from the room and allowed the conversation to run its natural course making her way up the grand staircase to the second floor family living area. Vicki had grown very quiet as she followed Julia down the hallway opposite her room to nice airy room and entered noting the large four-poster bed and the signs of the unpacking having been interrupted.

Julia moved to a small black leather satchel and opened it taking out some paper that been folded over. "Take this and dissolve it in water and then drink it all down. Then lie down in a dark room and allow it to work for you."

Vicki looked at the folded packet and asked. "What is it?"

Julia laughed, "What I found of all things it's a drug that is used on horses when they have inflamed tendons. I took and ground it down into powder form and cut it with sugar and found that it works wonders for human pain too."

Vicki was amazed that this Julia had figured out the first form of aspirin. Smiling at her she nodded as she left the room and said softly, "Thank you so much Mrs. Bradford, I shall see you later I am sure."

Vicki moved down the hallway to the room she had been assigned and found Jeremiah waiting for her. "Oh you think you are going to retire to this room? I do not think so my dear. Come I require my wife's attention in my room."

Snagging her arm he jerked her down the hallway to his room and opened the door then threw her across the room to the bed. "Take your medicine and then service me I have needs and those include you."

Vicki felt her body grow rigid she watched him close and lock it behind him trapping her inside with him. He smiled and she was for once in her life afraid of that look she saw in his eyes. Rolling from the bed she backed away from him and shook her head. "No, I am not going to be forced into having sex with you Jeremiah. I refuse."

The look that crossed his eyes was one filled with rage advancing on her and back handed her across the face sending her flying to the wall to hit it and slump to the floor having been struck senseless. None to gently he drug her up to a standing position and pulled her hard against his body.

"Do you not think from here I could see you run into his arms? Do you not think I did not see that you were pawing all over Peter wanting him to take you like some common whore?"

Grabbing her by her hair he drug her to the window he must have stood at and watched her meeting with Peter on Widows Hill.

The color left her face, and she now knew why he was so terribly angry with her. Feeling the course shove of his hands to her body she once again felt him throw her back on the bed and he fell on top of her and pinned her beneath him. "Do I need to remind you that I could easily have you committed and locked away for the rest of your natural life?"

Locking his gaze to hers he gritted his teeth and glared down into her eyes. "Why do you test me this way? You are my wife and you will conduct yourself as a lady and not some common dock whore."

He lowered his lips to hers and forced her lips apart and ravaged the inner part of her mouth and used his hands to seek out and explore the tender feminine parts of her body as he claimed his rights as husband to her. Each time she showed a little resistance he would hit her and then take what he wanted.

Finally the assault was ended and his needs were once again satisfied by what he took from her she found herself curled into a ball of fear and pain. She had never been so foully abused before as she had been this day and she knew he had accomplished what he intended. For she had resolved to never put him in the position to make him mad like that again.

Vicki closed her eyes and fought not to cry but it was impossible. Her humiliation had been complete and he knew it. He lay next to her and then rolled to pull her close to his body and snuggle his chin into her neck.

"I am pleased with you my dear. For your capitulation to my demands I shall allow you to go back to your room now and you may rest and take your medicine the quack Julia gave you. But be forewarned do not let me catch you trying to play come hither with Mr. Bradford again do you understand?"

The words had been calculated to be menacing and demeaning t all she could do was nod. Releasing her from his hold he stood and slowly dressed watching her huddled on his bed in a quivering mass of fear and he smiled.

Oh yes, she had been tamed and now she would learn that he was never to be trifled with nor cheated on as that slut Josette had done. He finished tying his cravat he leaned over and placed a chaste kiss on her forehead. "Now rest my dear, I shall see you later."

Vicki waited for him to leave the room and when he did she grabbed the sheet and pulled it around her body and grabbed her clothing and made a mad dash down the hallway to her door and grateful that so far she had made it without being seen that is until she saw the incredulous look upon the little boy and little girls face looking at her.

"Mrs. Collins? Have you been injured?" The young Daniel Collins could see the blood that had caked under her nose from the nose bleed that Jeremiah had given her with one of his punishing blows. Daniel and Sarah were distracted by the arrival of Naomi entering the hallway and saw the battered Vicki hanging to her door.

"Daniel, Sarah go to your rooms. I shall attend to Mrs. Collins and not a word of this to anyone is that understood?" Naomi rushed down the hallway and waved the two younger Collins family members away. Then she turned her shocked and appalled look to Vicki's battered form. "Come child. We must fix you before anyone sees you."

Naomi moved to open her door and usher into the room that she had hoped would be her refuge from Jeremiah. Vicki stumbled into the room and collapsed on the bed in tears. Naomi dragged the blankets from the bed around her form and held her close. "I know, I know my dear, dear Victoria but you are not alone. I am here and I will help you. We will deal with first things first. We must clean you up and then I will show you how to hide the bruises and the cut lips."

Vicki looked in amazement at the calm way she handled this matter. "How is it possible that you know so much about this?"

Naomi stood and moved to peer out the window. "Because the two brothers are not that different. When Joshua thought I had cheated on him and carried another man's bastard I was subjected to the same treatment you just received. I learned my dear there are ways to hide bruises and cuts and be able to put on a pretty face and appear to be happy even if you are so terribly miserable." For the first time since she arrived in this timeline Vicki felt she had been offered a life raft on a sea of madness.