by Amy Cross
***
“Five pigs,” she muttered, reading from the faded old piece of paper. “Payment upon delivery. Must be certified by veterinarian.”
Standing in the middle of the archive room, she tried to focus on the task at hand. Although Jacob had told her to rest, and although she knew he was probably right, she simply couldn't spend the whole day just sitting on the sofa and doing absolutely nothing. Even though her mind was still swimming with confused thoughts and brief flashes of images that filled her with terror, but at the same time she couldn't remember what had happened to her. All she'd been able to work out so far was that the cuts and scratches on her arms actually extended much further, covering her chest and abdomen as well as parts of her neck, face and even her legs. She was sore all over and she felt weak, and she couldn't shake the feeling that it was almost as if she'd been attacked by something.
After spending a few minutes looking around the archive room, she began to feel that pushing herself to keep working might not be a good idea. Heading back out into the corridor, she made her way to the main part of the house and looked for Edgar, but there was still no sign of him. When she got to the window overlooking the patio, she spotted Didi swimming in the pool, but the last thing she wanted was to go and start a conversation, so she turned and wandered into the games room, then the library and the study, and then finally through to the kitchen. Lost in thought, she almost didn't notice Jacob by the door, until he cleared his throat.
“Good morning, M'am,” he said calmly. “Can I help you?”
“No, I just...” She paused as she realized that she had no particular reason to be in this part of the house. “I guess I was just looking around.”
“The doctor did say that you should rest,” he told her.
“Doctor?”
“A doctor came up from the town during the night to check on you,” Jacob continued. “It was just a precaution, really, but His Lordship insisted that you must be properly cared for.”
“So what exactly happened to me?” she asked.
“His Lordship will -”
“Can't you just tell me?”
Jacob paused for a moment, evidently feeling a little uncomfortable.
“Was I attacked by something?” Kate asked eventually. “These scratches... It's like something mauled me.”
“I'm afraid it's really not my place to say.”
“So where's Edgar?”
“I believe His Lordship is busy at the moment.”
“Well, then maybe I should go and see the doctor. Do you have his number?”
“Doctor Burns was most insistent that you should simply rest,” Jacob replied. “I believe he is planning to come back up in due course and check on you, most likely this afternoon. I overheard him telling His Lordship that your injuries are not too serious, but that the emotional shock -”
“I don't remember anything about the other night,” she said, interrupting him. “I mean, I remember being in town, and then I remember walking back up here by myself and then...”
Her voice trailed off for a moment as she thought back to her journey through the darkness. She'd already replayed her steps over and over in her mind, but the same thing happened every time: she got to the point at which she thought she heard something nearby, but as she turned to look the memory evaporated completely. She felt certain that her mind was covering something up, and she was worried that she'd been through something so horrific, so traumatic, that her senses were trying to protect her from the truth.
“Are you starting to remember?” Jacob asked.
“How long have you worked for Edgar?” she replied, changing the subject.
“Oh, a very long time,” he said with a faint smile. “Longer than I can remember, almost.”
“So you must know him pretty well.”
“I have come to learn his habits,” Jacob replied, “but I would not say that I know him on a personal level. Ours is very much the relationship of a master and his employee.”
“Huh,” Kate replied, feeling as if Jacob was being deliberately evasive. It was clear that he was on a very tight leash and that he wouldn't say anything that she might actually find useful. “Tell Edgar I'd really like to talk to him as soon as he's free,” she said finally. “Tell him... Tell him I'll be around all day.”
For a moment, her mind was filled with a flash of memory: something in the darkness, slowly unfolding its vast wings.
