Till Death Do Us Part

The ride was long. I picked up on knitting pretty well and I was soon creating shapes on a whim. When we finally pulled to a stop, Elisabeth dug in a rucksack and handed out our mittens and hats to keep our ears warm. Lucian opened the coach door and immediately a rush of cold air and snow spread through the coach, making me shiver. Elisabeth followed and Nicolæ helped me down.

We were in the mountains. The camp was set in a valley so all around us, all we could see were mountains. I squinted in the distance. Set in each direction, four towers stood. It was hard to tell, but there was somebody at each tower. I could only assume they were look outs.

People were bustling around me, unloading our luggage and greeting Nicolæ. It just occurred to me that a lot of these people had not seen him in a very long time. I wondered if he had any friends here as he pulled me next to him.

“This is where we’re staying,” he said loudly over the roaring wind.

It was a large cabin, one of many. There was a chimney that was exuding grey smoke. A fire must be lit in there…. The other cabins had chimneys as well and I stared at them in fascination. I had never seen so many in one place before. Back home, we had to open windows for the smoke to get out.

Nicolæ led me inside as people bowed to us. They were all dressed warmly and were extremely pale; some almost looked blue. When we entered the cabin, warmth rushed over us.

There were four rooms on the bottom floor. In front of us, there was a small staircase that led to the second floor. To the left, a small kitchen area next to a dining table that seated maybe eight. To the right, a sitting room and a study which held the large fire.

Nicolæ steered me to the study. The walls were wood and covered with books. The desk was much smaller than Lucian’s but had a lush leather chair behind it. There were two chairs on the other side of the desk and a couch beside one of the many bookcases. Nicolæ seated me at the couch and Elisabeth joined me as the men sat in the chairs in front of the desk. We waited in silence for our host and we heard loud footsteps coming down the hall and a man’s voice.

“And make sure that Jonathan harvests the plants in the greenhouse,” the man was saying. “We need as much as we can.” Someone responded and the door opened. “Welcome,” the host said, smiling at Elisabeth and me while shaking Nicolæ and Lucian’s hands. “My name is Erick.”

“Thank you for hosting all four of us,” Lucian said as Erick took the seat behind his desk.

“News has reached me of Liam,” Erick said with a grim look. “Have you found any sign of him?”
Lucian shook his head. “I’m afraid not but we have the Black Hand waiting for him if he does show his face.”

Erick smiled, showing abnormally straight and white teeth. He was a very round man with large brown eyes and very short brown hair. As he sat, he had to shift his clothing to cover his large belly. The buttons on his vest looked ready to burst. I couldn’t help but find it odd; everyone else was thin, almost malnourished.

Erick cleared his throat. “Well, I am very pleased to see you have taken a wife,” he said to Nicolæ who turned to smile at me. “Perhaps children will follow?” I blushed and he laughed. I looked at Elisabeth. Her lips were thin with disapproval. I hoped he wasn’t always this blunt…. “Now, we have much to discuss,” he said, turning his attention to the men.

As they spoke, I settled more into the couch. It was incredibly comfortable. While the men continued talking, I looked around the room. There were three paintings in total. Behind Erick’s desk was a large portrait of him with a woman I assumed was his wife. Across from the fire was a simple landscape painting. The third was a peculiar painting.

It was a panoramic view of the mountains just outside the window. The difference: above one of the mountains, a spiraling black smoke stretched into the sky. Flames were at the base of all the smoke. Just looking at it made me shiver. Why would he hang such a grim painting in his study?

Elisabeth and I were in the room for a while. The men had drawn together at the desk and were muttering over documents. A couple times I had to shift from a stabbing pain in my lower back and lower region. Each time, Elisabeth would stare at me with a confused expression on her face.

“I think that will do for this evening,” Erick said, three hours later. He stood as did Nicolæ and Lucian. They shook hands. “We’ll continue tomorrow, gentlemen.” He bowed at Elisabeth and me. “Ladies, thank you for your patience.”

Elisabeth and I nodded as our husbands came to help us up and lead us to the dining room where dinner was waiting for us. It didn’t occur to me until then how hungry I was. I immediately put as much food as I could on my plate without looking improper. I could feel Elisabeth watching me and I started getting uncomfortable.

“It’s a shame you aren’t hungry,” Lucian said with a good humored smile.

“It was a long trip,” I answered with an embarrassed laugh.

But the moment I put the chicken in my mouth, I knew something was wrong. My first reaction was to spit it back out but that would be the height of bad manners. I swallowed it and looked around the table. Everyone else was eating just fine, talking and laughing. I reached for my glass, slightly nervous. The cold water felt good in my mouth and down my throat. I turned back to eat but the sight of the food made my stomach flip and I gently pushed it away, taking a warm yeast dinner roll.

Thankfully, it settled well with my stomach. I looked up and saw Elisabeth beckoning me to follow her.

“Gentlemen,” she said as I stood, “please excuse us. Celfina and I are rather tired from our trip.”

“Of course,” Lucian said, looking surprised. “Please, go rest.”

Elisabeth took me by the arm gently and led me out. I was nervous. Was she about to chastise me for my behavior? My mother used to smack the back of my neck when she taught me dining etiquette. We climbed the stairs which creaked under our feet. On the top floor, three doors were set. I was sure that the third room was a washroom, assuming the other two were bedrooms. Elisabeth seemed to know where she was going, though, as she confidently entered a door to the right.

Inside was another fireplace with a fire blazing. The bed was large but before I could do anything else, the door closed and Elisabeth looked me straight in the eyes.

“Are you sick?” she asked.

I blinked. She dragged my all the way up here to ask if I was sick?

“Not that I’m aware of,” I said slowly. “I don’t feel sick, just queasy.”

“Do you trust me?” she asked and my heart quickened. Something was going on. I nodded slowly and she closed her eyes. She put one hand on my shoulder and the other on my stomach. “Close your eyes, Celfina,” she whispered and I obeyed.

Two things happened that nearly made me faint. Warmth spread from her hands and images flashed in my mind’s eye. I couldn’t see what the pictures were. Everything was moving too fast. But then everything suddenly froze. Everything was black aside from a white oval. After a few seconds, the oval expanded and moved slowly in a circle. As it grew, it changed.

My eyes flew open and I stumbled back into the wall. Elisabeth was smiling but the only thing I felt was terror as I put my hands on my stomach.