Chapter 24
"Go away crow," Georgina muttered.
She lifted her tired arm to try to swat the bird away, but it was so heavy. She managed to crawl into the house after the last power release that afternoon, with just enough energy to make it to the bed. Her body shivered, not for the excess power, but she was so cold. She fell asleep the night before outside and it rained. The dawn broke over the cliff by the time she realised where she was. Barely having enough time to change her clothes before the next one hit her. Not even the warm bed could take the chill out of her.
And now the blasted crow was back. The past day it hadn't left her alone. It kept cawing at her. By now she put it down to another hallucination for it didn't behave like a bird. It kept rifling through her papers with its beak. Cawing unsatisfactory at whatever it found. She watched it from her duvet as it now ruffled through her back pack. It's shiny black tail feathers disappearing.
It would have been funny to watch if she had the energy. The bag shuffled around as it picked out things of interest. When it picked up the note that Jamie left her at Eleanor, did it finally fall silent. She fell asleep as she watch it look at the parchment, thinking it was strange for a bird to be reading.
Reid woke up with a start, the black of his eyes disappearing. Grabbing a piece of paper from the table, he wrote down everything he saw on the note. It was an address. Somewhere along the northern coast. For the first time in weeks he felt hopeful and the books he saw the past day were completely different to what they had all be reading. There might still be a chance. He quickly pulled on his black long sleeve jumper and jeans and headed out the bedroom.
He heard voices coming from the living room. He was about to call out to them to let them know when he heard Kate's voice.
"I really feel bad for your Grandmother, Caleb. When I saw her in the kitchen she looked so broken up about Georgina," Kate said softly.
He frowned as he listened. Unless something had really changed or he's been asleep for longer than he thought, someone must have told Kate everything. That's the only way she would know about her.
"We all are," Caleb agreed.
"And there's nothing anyone can do?" she asked.
"No. We've all tried to help but it doesn't look good."
"My god," Kate said. "She looked so full of life when she first saw her. I can't believe she's going die."
Reid closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. They were sat in there, talking like she was already dead. He shook his head and hurried down the stairs.
"Reid?"
Grabbing his car keys from the hook, he ignored the scraping of chairs as his friends stood up and walked over. He made it to the front door, when Caleb grabbed his arm.
"Don't touch me," Reid snapped, slapping his hand away.
"Reid, what the hell?" Tyler asked in surprise.
"Hard at work I see?" Reid said looking at the empty table. "Finding answers must have been so boring."
"Reid," Caleb said gently, it finally dawning on him as to what it looks like. "It's not what you think."
"What should I think," Reid said lowering his voice dangerously as he stepped up to Caleb. "You're all in there talking like she is already gone. After what you were saying the other night, man, I must have been stupid to think you would ever mean it."
"Reid. You've got it wrong?" Pogue said giving Kate a look, who stood with her mouth open.
"Have I. So this isn't you giving up, uh?" Reid asked.
No one could answer the question without Kate knowing what really was going on. They watch as Reid looked disgustedly at them all.
"Drop the caring act Caleb," Reid said as he open the door. "Go back to your finals, and your colleges and fancy dreams-"
"Reid-," Caleb said.
"You may have given up but I've sure as hell haven't."
Reid slammed the door behind him and made his way to his car. When he started it up, he could see the boys stood inside the open front door. They watched as he speed out the driveway.
"What the hell was that all about?" Kate asked, running her hands up her bare arms.
"Reid, he, uh. He hasn't taken it very well," Caleb said seeing the car lights disappear into the woods.
Kate looked pityingly through the windows and Sarah led her back to the living room.
"Should one of us go after him?" Tyler asked anxiously.
"No," Caleb sighed. "Let him cool off."
"Don't make it sound like he's overreaction," Tyler sniped quietly. "You heard how we were talking. He doesn't know the lie we told Kate."
"I know Tyler, I'm sorry," Caleb said quietly.
"This is my fault, man. We shouldn't have invoked Kate in this. I just couldn't tell her-"
"If or when you decide to tell Kate, is you business and don't feel you have to because of the situation is a little tense right now. We'll just sit Reid down when he comes back and tell him whats going on. He just needs to get it out of his system."
Tyler and Pogue made their way back to the room and Caleb gave the night a last look before closely the door.
—-
Two men sat in the woods opposite the lit up grand house. One lowered the binoculars and turned to his partner who was on the phone to their uncle.
"One of the Ipswich boys has just left. Do you want us to follow him?" he accent was strong Midlands English.
"No," a voice replied over the line. "I have no interest in them. The only person who will lead us to her, is Eleanor. Continue to watch her."
The phone went dead and the men went back to their vigil.
—
It was nearly midnight by the time Reid made the 40 minute drive up the coast. He frowned at what he had written for the dozenth time as he drove up a steep incline on the cliff. His headlight beams cut through the darkness to show nothing. On one side of the road was acres of barren lands and the other looked over the cliffs to the sea below.
He crested the cliff and his lights showed a familiar looking small run down cottage. The lights were inside and the front door was wide open. He got out of the car and approached the open door. Inside looked the same, but different from his human eyes. Books and papers were everywhere. The place was clean but there was a depressing air to it. Like the awful history of the place pressed heavy on the present.
He checked around the house but found the bedroom and living room empty. The door to the basement was open but the candles were cold. Going back outside he strained his eyes to the fields but saw nothing through the night.
"Georgina," he shouted.
Looking around the land, he realised she could be anywhere and he wouldn't see her. He began walking into the field when he called her name again.
"Georgina."
Only when he looked behind him did he see a shadow.
"Jesus," he said and set off at a sprint.
He slowed down as he reached the cliff where the lights from the house showed a weary form of Georgina standing on the edge of the cliff.
"Georgina," he said softly as he approached.
"Go away, crow," she mumbled.
"Georgina I need you to step back for me," Reid said, stepping a bit closer.
"Reid?" she frowned, turning her head to him. Her eyes were blacked over.
"Yeah," he smiled, "It's me."
Georgina started to smile but frowned and it fell away, "It's not really you. They are just playing with me again."
"Of course it's me," Reid said, slowly getting a bit closer. "I finally found you. I'm here to try to help."
"You can't help me," she said, her black eyes looking out to the dark horizon. "There is nothing that can stop inevitable."
"Maybe not," Reid said. "But we can sure as hell try."
Georgina looked back to Reid and frowned, "The others don't care."
"I'm not them," Reid said firmly.
Georgina looked him up and down and tilted her head, "You are pretty convincing, for a hallucination."
"This isn't a hallucination," Reid said barely a foot away from her.
"None of this is real. They play with my head. I'll just wake up on the floor of the cottage like the other times."
"It is real. You're stood on the top of the cliff behind the cottage."
"What are you talking about?"
"Come on, Georgina. Try and fight it. Please," Reid said, his hands ready to catch her if she goes.
She frowned as she fought whatever internal demons she faced.
"You're really here?" she asked.
"Yes."
She squeezed her eyes shut and when she opened them, her eyes flamed. Leaving behind her usual light green eyes. Which widened when she saw her toes were practically dangling off the side of the cliff.
"Shhhiii-"
Reid grabbed her and pulled. They both fell backwards in a heap. Reid felt her shivering in his arms as she stared at the moonlit ocean.
"Oh my God," she whispered, the shaking racking her body.
"Shhh," Reid whispered, his arms tightening around her cold body. "It's okay."
Georgina tried to fight the tears but it was getting too much, she didn't know how she was going to last another five days of this. Reid calmly stroked her head as she clung to him. The only real thing she has felt in days.
Once she had regained some of herself, Reid helped get her into the cottage.
"It's absolutely freezing in here," Reid said, his eyes blacking over as a roaring, instantly warming fire lit the wood in the fireplace.
Georgina stood in front of the fire trying to bring any feeling back into her hands. She felt Reid put a blanket over her shoulders then heard him go into the kitchen. When he returned he had hot soup that smelled great, considering how bad her appetite had been lately.
"So this is where you've been," Reid said as he sat on the rug next to her, and handed over the bowl.
"Yeah," Georgina said taking her first bite of the soup. Her stomach growled. She looked up to see him looking around apprehensively.
"You should see my families place back in England. If you think this is bad…" she said.
"I don't doubt it," he said. "You've been here by yourself?"
"Jamie usually came every few days with food and to keep me in the loop. But she hasn't been for a while. Rowena's been keeping a close eye on her family that she daren't leave."
"Jamie? Black hair?" frowned Reid.
"Yeah. She's the granddaughter of Lionel Cornwall, the Head of the Council. He's the one who told her to get me here. He's supposed to have some answers. But no one's heard from him since the council."
"Hell, I wished you let me know, it would have saved me weeks of reading musty books that bored me to death," Reid said.
"Why didn't you tell us any of this," Reid said.
"I couldn't-"
"You could. How easy is it to pick up the phone. We've been worried about you and you don't even have the curtsy to tell us that you've got it sorted.."
"Reid. I would have told you if I could-"
"There was no stopping you," he said, his blue eyes boring into hers. "Did you think we couldn't handle it. Because I understand that they are powerful -
"They are not just powerful," Georgina snapped. "They are the strongest of all the lines."
"We can protect ourselves. We can protect you."
"You can't protect her!" Georgina shouted.
Reid frowned.
Georgina took a breath and said, "Besides my mother, Eleanor has done more for me than anyone in the world. I don't doubt you and the other guys abilities, though you need to understand you are no match for my uncle. You do have to power to protect yourselves. But she doesn't. And if anything happened to her because of me, I would never forgive myself."
They both fell into silence as the heat from the fire quickly warmed up the small cottage.
"I am sorry I didn't tell you," Georgina said, looking down at her hands. "Any of you. I guess I'm not used to have people back my corner."
"You better get used to it," Reid said with a small smile. "We're not going anywhere."
Georgina looked up to him. She was going to say something when she was hit with shivers. Her bowl was about to fall out of her weakening grasp.
"Woah," Reid said, grabbing the bowl. "You okay?"
"No. I need to get to the fields," she said getting unsteadily to her feet.
"Why-"
Reid didn't need to continue, he saw the black veins from before snake down her neck.
"Okay," he said, putting her arm over his neck and helped her outside the house.
Her legs gave up outside the door, but he simply picked her up and ran into the fields.
"About here?" he asked when he got to the middle.
"Yeah," she said breathlessly.
He set her down on the floor as she dug her fingers into the ground.
"You need to leave-"
"I'm not going anywhere-"
"I don't know what will happen to you if you stay," she said panicking as the familiar pain began to rise.
"I'll be fine," he said, kneeling down to her as his eyes flamed over.
She saw his black eyes but couldn't say anything else as the shakes took over. She found that if she welcomed the released, instead of pushing against it or letting it take her over, it didn't hurt as much. Releasing the power, she gritted her teeth and saw the blinding white light cover her vision. When it was over, she saw Reid uncover his eyes and check to see if she was alright.
"Better?" Reid asked.
Georgina nodded tiredly.
"I can take you back in if you like?"
Georgina shook her head.
"Not yet," she breathed. "I like to look at the stars."
Reid looked up and said, "I keep forgetting they're up there."
"Most people do."
Reid looked back down at Georgina and shifted till he lay next to her.
"I'm sorry you had to read all those musty old books," Georgina said.
"It's not all bad," shrugged Reid. "It came in useful for my history final."
Georgina turned her head and smiled at him. He has his small smile as he looked up to the stars. She forgot how beautiful he was. He looked down as she laced her fingers into his. Without knowing it, Reid allowed her to touch someone for the first time in a very long time.