by Amy Cross
Behind him, in the room, a floorboard creaked.
Turning, he saw to his shock that Madeleine was standing just a few feet away. She had one hand on her face, trying to claw the bandages away.
“Wait,” he said, stepping over to her and putting a hand on her arm. “Don't touch any of that. Edgar says it's important.”
He waited, but she didn't reply.
“You should be in bed,” he added. “Please, Madeleine, you need to rest.”
As he tried to steer her back toward the other side of the room, she turned and allowed herself to be led, although she was clearly a little unsteady on her feet.
“Everything's going to be fine,” he told her. “No matter how bad things seem right now, I promise you, we'll be okay in the end.”
She opened her mouth to reply, but no words came out.
“Get back onto the bed,” he added, easing her down as carefully as he could manage. “You probably have a lot of pain right now, but it'll pass. Edgar says your body can heal rapidly, so...” He paused, hoping against hope that she'd reply, that she'd give him some hint that she even remembered who he was, but finally he realized that there was no point pushing her too far, and that he was in danger of rambling. “I don't know how much you remember from last night,” he continued. “A lot happened, you... Edgar will be up to see you again soon, he's been very good. He refused to let anyone else tend to your wounds, and he's been changing the bandages every hour.”
Again, he waited.
Again, she offered no reply.
Looking down at her bandaged belly, he realized that he had to tell her everything.
“Madeleine...” He paused, but the words wouldn't come.
They sat in silence for a moment.
“Maybe there'll be time for that later,” he added, feeling a shiver pass through his body. He knew it wouldn't get any easier, but he also felt that perhaps she already sensed what had happened. Either way, he couldn't get the words out. “It'll be okay,” he said finally, with a hint of desperation. “I promise. The -”
Before he could finish, the door burst open and Estella hurried in, with a broad smile across her face.
“I thought I heard voices,” she exclaimed, making her way over to Madeleine and sitting next to her, before taking her hands. “How are you doing this morning?”
Slowly, Madeleine turned to her.
“I don't think this is a good moment,” Benjamin suggested. “We -”
“You mustn't dwell on the negatives,” Madeleine continued. “Almost everyone loses at least one baby in their life, and you have plenty of time to try again. What's important right now is love, and the fact that you have this wonderful man by your side. And in that spirit, I've come up with something that I think will really help give us all the boost we need to get back on our feet.”
Madeleine didn't reply. Her eyes were still covered by the bandage, but her lips were visible and they twitched briefly, as if she was on the verge of saying something but couldn't quite find the strength.
“Have you spoken to Edgar?” Benjamin asked.
“Briefly,” she replied. “Anyway, I've arranged for the priest to come at four, and Edgar and I shall be getting married outside, by the fountain. I know what you're thinking, that after all this build-up it's hard to believe that the happy day is here, but life marches on without paying much attention to the needs of man. What's important, I feel, is that we show we still have a future. All of us, as a family, with the strong parts supporting the weak when necessary.” She squeezed Madeleine's hand even tighter. “We're in this together. I'm sure one day you'll repay the favor many times over.”
“I think maybe you should speak to Edgar again,” Benjamin said after a moment. “Estella, he -”
“So four o'clock, then,” she replied, getting to her feet and heading to the door.
“Estella -”
“Don't be late. And remember, things will seem so much better when we finally have some hope back in our lives!”
As she hurried out of the room, Benjamin sat in stunned silence for a moment, before turning to Madeleine and seeing that she was still giving no clue as to her thoughts.
“I think she's got a shock coming,” he muttered, before reaching out and taking Madeleine's hands again. “Everything's going to be okay,” he added, although he instantly bristled as he realized that he'd said those words so many times, they were starting to lose all meaning. Unfortunately, as they sat in silence once again, he could think of nothing else to tell her.
All he could do was hold her hands.
***
“Oh God, that hurts!” Kate winced as Doctor Lassiter took a look at her ankle. “Please, whatever you do, don't touch it again!”
“I can give you something for the pain,” he replied. “I have to examine your injuries properly, Kate.”
“I don't want to take anything that'll knock me out,” she told him. “I need to be alert.”
“Then you're putting me in -”
“Just do what you need to do,” she continued, bracing herself for more pain. “But do it quickly.”
“Estella's rushing around trying to get this wedding up and running by four,” Nixon muttered, watching from a nearby chair. “Sometimes I think it'd be kinder to just take her around the back and put a bullet in her head. She's losing her mind.”
“You shouldn't say things like that,” Lassiter replied.
“I know, but -”
“I don't know this Estella woman,” he continued, as he prepared to turn Kate's ankle a little, “but you shouldn't joke about murdering someone.”
“You don't know her?” Kate replied with a frown. “What do you -”
Before she could finish, she saw that Nixon was tapping the side of his own head, as if to tell her something.
“I'm sure no-one tried to kill anyone,” Lassiter continued. “I've got to admit, though, when I was called up to the house this morning, I hesitated. The place gives me the creeps.”
“Estella's a good person at heart,” Kate told him. “She just ended up in a bad position.”
“And responded appallingly,” Nixon pointed out.
“But you do know her,” she continued, watching as Lassiter continued to work. “You and Estella have been friends for a long time.”
“Have we?” The doctor paused, as if for a moment he was starting to remember. “Well, I'm not sure about that. As far as I recall, I've only met the woman... Well, barely ever!”
“But -” Kate began to say.
“She damn near tried to kill Kate last night,” Nixon said suddenly, conspicuously trying to interrupt them, “and before that she was using pins and a doll to -” He stopped suddenly, although he immediately knew that he'd spilled the beans.
“That was her doing?” Kate asked, clearly shocked. “All those pains I was getting... Estella was responsible?”
“Sorry,” he continued, “but... I caught her, last night, not long before Quill made his move. I doubt it was the first time, either.” He looked at the back of Lassiter's head as the doctor prepared a fresh splint. “She's been trying out quite a few pieces of magic lately.”
“This is going to hurt a lot,” Lassiter said, “but I'll be quick, I promise. The break on your right ankle is actually only a fracture, and on your left there's just a small amount of swelling. You were very lucky, Ms. Langley, you should be able to get about reasonably well in no time.”
“Just get it over with,” she told him, with clear tension in her voice. “I don't want to -”
Before she could finish, Lassiter attached the splint, causing her to cry out in pain. Grabbing the sides of the bed and closing her eyes, she held her breath and waited for the worst of the agony to subside, and finally she opened her eyes again and took a series of slow, deep breaths.
“That's looking good, then,” Lassiter continued. “I just have to attach one more piece.”
“I have to go through that again?” she asked, clearly shocked.
>
“It's for the best,” he replied, getting to his feet and heading across the room. “I just need something else from my bag.”
“Why doesn't he remember his relationship with Estella?” Kate whispered to Nixon.
“Isn't it obvious?” he replied. “She used her powers to wipe parts of his mind. As far as he's concerned, she's just another person he might have passed on the street once. Quite tragic, really.”
“Why would she do that?”
“To bind herself more closely to Edgar, I suppose, and to -”
“What are you two whispering about?” Lassiter asked as he wandered back over to them, with a fresh splint in his hands.
“Estella's going to crack,” Nixon muttered, as he glanced over at the clock in the corner. “It's already two.”
“Are you sure Edgar won't go through with the wedding?” Kate asked. “I mean, he never really loved Estella, so maybe this doesn't make too much difference?”
“Not after what she did,” Nixon replied.
“But if -”
“She tried to kill you, Kate,” Nixon added. “To Edgar... Let's just say that Estella made one of the biggest miscalculations I've ever seen in my life, and there's no way Edgar will ever forgive her. In fact, she needs to be careful, or he might just turn on her and...” He paused. “Well, I've seen what happens when Edgar turns on someone after they betrayed him. It's not pretty.”
“This kind of thing sickens me,” Lassiter said as he prepared to attach the second splint to Kate's ankle. “The way pain is so casually inflicted... I spend my life trying to heal people, and it horrifies me to realize that there are people on this very island who think of little else but how to cause pain and misery.”
“I know the feeling,” Kate whispered.
“Ready?” the doctor asked.
Looking down at her ankle, she braced herself for the pain. “Ready.”
V
“It'll just be a small wedding,” Estella told the priest as they reached the top of the hill. “A few close family and friends, that sort of thing. My fiance and I have no desire to make the event too flashy or over-the-top.”
“No,” Father Prior replied, looking across the bare garden and seeing no-one about. “That much is rather clear, but... These guests... I mean, I don't...”
“They'll be here shortly,” she replied, checking her pocket-watch. Her hands were trembling and she was starting to speak too fast, but at the same time she was determined to hold herself together and ignore the fear in the back of her mind. “It's still ten minutes to four so, obviously... We're a little early.” Glancing at the mansion, she felt a shiver of doubt in her chest, but she quickly told herself to stop being foolish. Of course Edgar would marry her; he'd forgive her transgressions and focus on the true and eternal nature of their love.
After all, that was how love worked.
“The skies are darkening,” Father Prior continued, looking up at the gray clouds that were rolling in fast from the sea, and the blacker ones a little further off. “Looks like rain, maybe even a storm.”
“No,” she replied.
“No?”
“No. There will be no rain. And no storm.”
“Well -” Looking down at the bible in his hands, the priest saw the first drop fall from above and land on its cover. “Are you sure we shouldn't move the wedding inside? No-one wants to hold such a ceremony in bad weather, do they?”
“There will be no rain,” she said firmly. “I will not allow it. Edgar and the guests will come out soon. Just let me go and make sure they're ready. I'm sure they're all...” She took a deep breath, as she realized that it was getting harder and harder to stem the sense of panic in her chest. “I'm sure they're all in their fine clothes by now.”
Leaving him by the fountain, she hurried across the garden until she reached the doors that led into the ballroom. When she pulled on the handles, however, she found that they were locked. Swallowing hard, she ran to the next door, but this too was locked, as was the door that led into the study. Making her way along to the main entrance, she tried to pull that door open too, but once again she found her progress halted. Spotting Joseph in one of the rooms, she knocked on the glass and waved at him, but he simply glanced at her with a hint of sadness in his eyes before heading through to the corridor.
“Joseph!” she called out, forcing a smile as she tapped on the glass again. “It's me! It's Estella, I seem to be locked out!”
As more rain began to fall, she turned and looked over at the garden, where the priest had begun to take shelter under a tree. In the distance, a rumble of thunder could be heard.
***
“What's everyone doing in here?” Kate asked as she shuffled into the library, leaning heavily on her crutches, to find Edgar over by the drinks cabinet and Nixon on one of the sofas, looking through a book. Jacob was just leaving the room through one of the other doors, and as he glanced at Kate it was clear that he was unhappy about something. In fact, the whole room seemed filled with a sense of unpleasant expectation.
“We're waiting it out,” Nixon replied, with a hint of concern in his eyes. He glanced up from his book, but not for long. Evidently he was trying to distract himself.
“Waiting what out?”
Before anyone could answer, she heard Estella calling Edgar's name in the distance.
“What -”
“She's been locked out,” Nixon continued. “On the orders of His Lordship, Baron Edgar Le Compte.”
Kate paused as she heard the study door being rattled from the outside.
“It's raining,” she pointed out. “I think there's a storm coming.”
“Not entirely a coincidence,” Nixon added, glancing toward Edgar. “Did you really have to go so far, old pal? I'm sure Estella's miserable enough already, without a deluge to deal with. She's going to get absolutely drenched.”
“If she won't leave quietly,” Edgar replied, taking a sip of brandy before setting the glass down and heading over to join them, “then I will just have to use other means to get her away from my home. I will wash her down into the sea if necessary.”
“I didn't know you had any control over the weather,” Kate told him.
“He doesn't,” Nixon said with a sigh, “but Estella does, even if she doesn't realize it. She'll learn eventually, but for now her emotions are causing havoc with the climate. Her inability to control her powers means that she's turning the place into one huge metaphor. Quite adolescent, really, if you think about it.”
“Edgar!” Estella shouted again, her voice this time coming from a different direction, as if she was making her way all around the house in search of a way back inside. “My love, please, let me in!”
“Can you really do this to her?” Kate asked, heading over to Edgar. “I know she's made some mistakes, but -” Pausing, she realized she could hear the rain falling harder and harder outside, and within seconds it was clear that a torrential storm had arrived. “At least let her come inside and get dry,” she continued. “You don't have to see her, it's just... It's inhumane to leave her out there. Even if you don't want anything to do with her, surely you don't want her to suffer?”
“Edgar!” Estella could be heard screaming from somewhere near the front of the house. “My darling!”
A moment later, the grandfather clock in the corner began to strike four.
“Edgar, please,” Kate continued. “Show a little compassion.”
“That woman,” he replied, “will never again set foot in my house. I would have thought, Kate, that you of all people would understand why I feel that way.”
“Yes, but -”
“She tried to kill you.”
Pausing, Kate realized that even though he was right, she still felt that Estella was misguided rather than evil. She thought back to all the times Estella had spoken of her upcoming wedding, and she realized that the poor woman's heart was probably breaking. Finally, she was starting to understand how Estella had ended up as such
a bitter, vengeful figure less than a century later.
“Maybe this is the best approach,” Nixon said after a moment. “Get it over with quickly, you know? It would be cruel, would it not, to give the poor woman even the slightest scrap of hope?”
“She's not a bad person,” Kate replied. “She's a good person who made mistakes.” She headed over to join Edgar. “I think this could end very badly,” she continued. “I've seen how things work out in the future, remember? Estella -”
“I can deal with her,” he said darkly.
“I'm not sure you can. I've seen what she becomes.”
At this, Edgar turned to her.
“Edgar!” Estella screamed, as the doors leading from the ballroom could be heard shaking. “Let me in! We have to talk!” Her voice was difficult to hear now, since the storm was picking up pace. “For God's sake, won't you at least talk to me?”
“She could get pneumonia out there,” Kate pointed out.
“The storm is of her own making,” Edgar replied.
“But she doesn't know that.”
“Then she must learn.” Stepping past her, he headed toward the door that led through to the stairs. “I must go and check on my sister. There are more important matters to deal with, such as Madeleine's continued recovery. What Estella Graves does or does not do... That matter is no longer any of my concern. After that, I do not wish to be disturbed for the rest of the night. I must head into town later and attend to a matter, but I will be back shortly after midnight.”
“He's had Jacob take all the keys,” Nixon said, once Edgar had left the room. “I think he was worried that one of us would take pity on Estella and let her in.” He paused for a moment. “You can't argue with him when he's in one of these moods, Kate. You can't even try.”
“Am I a fool for wanting to ease her pain?” Kate asked.
“Maybe. A little. She has to face the consequences of her actions.”
“Still -” Suddenly there was a flash from out in the corridor, followed a moment later by a rumble of thunder. “Is Estella really causing the storm?” she asked.
