Endless Winter (Guardians of The Light)

by J Armitage

  The old man then realised that his elixir did not promise eternal life as he had thought, just eternal youth, or at least a halt to the aging process. It would protect you from disease and old age, it would drastically speed up the healing process and halt time at a cellular level but it would not keep you alive if your body was so badly beyond repair.

  It put the old man in a perilous position. His wife and children were now in danger of, not the plague, but the villagers who he had spent his life looking after.

  He packed his family up and escaped with the others who had taken the elixir.

  They travelled on foot for many miles and for many days until they were safe from the villagers and in a place where they were unknown. They settled in a new town and picked up their lives again but not before making a pact to never, in any circumstances divulge the secret of why they never aged. They changed their names, each taking a name beginning with A in a gesture of respect to the young daughter who had died of the plague. She had been called Anna.

  This group stayed together and moved regularly as not to arouse suspicion. They already looked strange, a group of fourteen people who all looked the same, it was easy to assume they were all family, probably foreign, an assumption that was never challenged by the group. The less people knew of them, the safer they were. The children continued to age normally until they were in their early twenties and then some chemical reaction happened in their bodies making the elixir first slow, then stop aging altogether.

  “That’s a lovely story,” Anais butted in impatiently, purposely not keeping the sarcasm out of her voice.

  “It’s a true story Anais. I’m the youngest daughter.” Aethelu had now gotten over her nerves and was looking Anais in the eyes. She did not blink but held her stare.

  “Uh huh. But in the story the youngest girl died of the plague.” Anais pointed out the flaw in the tale.

  “Anna was my little sister. I was fourteen years old when she died. I was the youngest to drink the elixir.”

  “Of course you were!” Anais said sarcastically “You’re hundreds of years old and can’t die unless I cut your head off. How exciting for you. Now thanks for the hot chocolate, it was delicious but if I remember rightly, before story time you promised I could leave, so I’ll just be on my way.”

  Anais had heard plenty of fairy tales growing up, Tales of monsters and princesses, of vampires and heroes but never had anyone try to tell her that they were true before.

  Aethelu, once more had that stricken look on her face as if she was willing Anais to believe her. She really does believe her story, thought Anais. She had come across as being so sane, so rational. Anais almost began to feel sorry for her but now she knew about Aethelu’s delusions, Anais worried she would not be allowed to leave after all. She readied herself to sprint towards the door, trying to think of a way to distract Aethelu so she could make a dash for it.

  Just then Anais heard footsteps behind her. A man was walking down the stairs. He couldn’t have been much older than Anais but he was dressed like a character from a Dickens novel. His chestnut hair was neatly parted to the side with a bit of a curl and sideburns. A small goatee decorated his chin. He was wearing a long tailored jacket in dark grey with a waistcoat in the same material underneath. He wore pointed black shoes on his feet and carried a black cane topped with a silver head of a lion. He was equally as beautiful as Aethelu but had a hardness to his face which was not helped by the sneering expression on his face.

  “Aethelu.” He nodded at her as a welcome and then turned his attention to Anais. “And this must be our little captive. Raphael,” he introduced himself. So this was one of Aethelu’s brothers. One of the twins.

  He walked over to Anais and held out his hand which she took to shake. She wasn’t expecting him to bend over and kiss the back of her hand. It was such an old fashioned gesture and she was acutely aware she was meeting this beautiful man wearing Pyjamas, men’s pyjamas at that. His whole demeanour, combined with his natural beauty, made Anais nervous.

  “Charmed.” He never took his eyes from Anais as he bent for the kiss. He had the same black irises as Aethelu but without the light flecks. Anais felt uncomfortable and was glad when he turned his attention back to Aethelu.

  “Now dearest sister, why is she here?”

  He talked right over Anais as if she wasn’t in the room, as if kissing her hand just seconds ago had never happened.

  Aethelu coloured.

  “She wanted to leave.” Her eyes looked down as if she was ashamed.

  “She wanted to leave,” Rafe repeated. It was not a question. The corners of his mouth rose in what was supposed to be a smile but to Anais looked like a sneer.

  “So your plan was to give her hot chocolate and let her go?”

  “No, I told her the truth.” Aethelu still didn’t look up and her voice was barely more than a murmur.

  “Mmmm.” He once again looked at Anais and her feeling of unease increased. “Let me guess, she didn’t believe you?”

  “Not yet but...”

  “Did you believe it?” Anais could see he was addressing her but she didn’t know how she was supposed to answer him. Of course she didn’t believe it, it was ridiculous, but at the same time, however misguided it might be, she felt a strange sense of loyalty to Aethelu. She was also beginning to dislike this older brother who was doing nothing short of bullying his younger sister.

  “No, Aethelu, she did not.” He saved her from having to answer by answering the question himself. “Pass me a knife.” He held out his hand.

  “Aethelu, pass me a knife,” repeated Raphael loudly. Aethelu obviously had thought he was still talking to Anais, but when she realised he was talking to her, she slowly handed him the nearest knife. It was an ordinary serrated bread knife that had been left out on the table.

  He held it up, doffed an imaginary hat to Anais and then slit his own throat. Not just a scratch, but a big deep gash. Blood spurted out over the table and splattered Anais.

  She screamed at the horror of what had just happened and drew herself back in a panic, not knowing what to do. He was still stood there, looking at her through those black eyes and with a curious expression of mirth. Anais was now in a full blown panic. She’d done a first aid course in the past but no amount of training would save Raphael’s life with such tremendous blood loss.

  Anais estimated that he had minutes left to live, if that. She ran to get a cloth, anything to stem the bleeding. The only thing she could see was a tea towel which said ‘I’m the chef’ on it. She picked it up and ran back to Raphael, past Aethelu who hadn’t moved and had a look of horror frozen onto her face. Holding the cloth as hard as she could to the three inch wide cut on Raphael’s neck Anais looked at his face. He was calm and still smiling. He was not showing any reaction to the fact that his blood was now decorating the kitchen.

  Anais wondered if he had gone into shock but he was so pale before it was hard to tell if the blood loss had drained him of colour.

  “Thank you Anais.” He looked at her with an expression of amusement which caught Anais off guard.

  “How the hell can you talk? How the hell are you still standing? Sit down, let me call an ambulance.”

  “No need,” said Raphael said as he calmly moved the now red tea towel away from himself and then used it to wipe around his neck.

  The cut had vanished completely.

  Anais heart was performing drum and bass in her chest and she was struggling to get air into her lungs. She was hyperventilating and she knew if she didn’t manage to get her breathing under control she would faint.

  It was too late, blackness enveloped her and the last thing she felt as her legs buckled beneath her was Aethelu’s arms reaching out to catch her.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Anais woke minutes later to find her head in Aethelu’s lap and being fanned with what looked like a flyer from a local pizza company. Aethelu’s arms and neck were coated in congealing blood that had splattered her,
and her hair matted together in great red clumps, silver blond stained pink.

  Raphael stood over her and Anais could see his neck clearly. The blood there was dark red, already old. There was not a drop of fresh oxygenated blood there at all. No cut or scar where there had been a gaping wound, just a faint silver line where the knife had cut the skin and the smears where Raphael had clumsily wiped the cut.

  He looked like something out of a cheesy horror movie, red, ghastly from all the blood, but this was no tomato ketchup fake movie scene. It was real. Anais felt the horror of the moment slowly begin to pass, but the reality of the last five minutes, Aethelu’s story, was more horrific than anything else.

  “It’s true!” She put her hands up to touch the silver line on Raphael’s neck but Aethelu grabbed her hand.

  “Yes it’s true. I’m sorry you had to find out that way” Aethelu shot Raphael a look that clearly meant ‘go away’

  He took the hint and headed back up the spiral staircase but not before apologising to Anais.

  “I’m dreadfully sorry that I had to do that to you but you’ve got to admit it was effective.”

  Anais had just got over the shock of Raphael when the back door to the house opened and a man who looked to be in his late twenties shuffled through. A flurry of snow followed, swirling prettily around his head until he kicked the door closed and the flakes fell to the ground. He was a giant of a man with his big fur lined coat and hat only adding to his bearlike frame. She recognised him as the Rook from her game of chess. Anais couldn’t see his hair under his hat but he had a big bushy beard, the same silver blond as Aethelu’s hair, which looked like it could do with a long overdue trim. His eyes had the same, now familiar, black sparkle. His massive arms were as thick as the logs he was carrying and his shoulders and hat were flaked in fresh snow.

  He seemed momentarily surprised at the scene awaiting him in the kitchen but he quickly dropped the logs and ran over the blood drenched pair on the tiled floor.

  “It’s ok August, the blood is Raphael’s – she just fainted at the sight of it. I think she’s ok. I caught her before she hit the floor. She’s just in shock that’s all.”

  “What the hell happened?” His voice, full of concern was deep and somewhat gruff.

  “I told Anais about us, she didn’t believe me. Rafe came in and thought it was a good idea to prove the story.”

  August rolled his eyes. “Don’t tell me, I can guess the rest.”

  “Yup, I’m going to kill him.”

  “Not if I get to him first, look at the state of this kitchen.”

  “I thought the whole point is you can’t kill him.” It was a feeble joke and Anais knew it.

  “I guess you must be feeling better.”

  August grabbed Anais with his mitten clad hands and lifted her to her feet before turning to Aethelu and doing the same for her.

  This is August, He’s my biggest brother. August, you already know Anais,

  “Pleased to meet you.” His voice was as big as he was and boomed out.

  He held out his hand and Anais shook it. Up close Anais could see his eyes crinkled up at the edges when he smiled and she could still see snowflakes clinging to his eyelashes. He was at least a foot taller than Anais so she had to look up to meet his friendly gaze.

  “Likewise,” she answered still in a daze but instantly liking this bear man.

  “Why don’t you guys get yourselves cleaned up and I’ll mop up in here. What a ruddy mess.” He tutted to himself and went to fetch a mop.

  Aethelu grabbed Anais arm and guided her back up the spiral staircase to the main house. They didn’t see anyone else as they ascended the grand staircase. This time, however they turned a different direction, down a corridor that Anais had not been down before. They walked the full length of the well-lit corridor and took the third door on the right. It opened out into a room, the likes of which Anais had never seen before. Plush red carpet covered the floor matching the heavy red fabric that adorned a massive four poster bed that dominated the room, its only occupant a big white teddy bear. The luxurious duvet was half on the bed, its other half on the floor as if someone had got out of bed quickly and taken the duvet partly with them. There were piles of clothes, all red in colour, strewn in messy piles all over the floor and over the backs of velvet covered chairs.

  Directly opposite the bed was a vanity table with various make up bottles with no lids, a nail varnish brush had been put, still wet onto the white table and had dried, sticking there permanently. Clothes also had been piled onto one side of the table along with books and papers, some of which had the same nail varnish as the stuck lid on.

  The room would have been the most beautiful room Anais had ever been in if it hadn’t been so messy. The walls were covered in white wallpaper with what looked like hand drawn flowers and birds in vivid scarlet and pinks. It was very similar in design to her wallpaper at Winnie’s.

  The room was finished off with yet another crystal chandelier and this, at least, did not have anything strewn over it.

  There was another door leading off from the bedroom and this is where Aethelu was now headed, picking around the messes on the floor like a navigator sailing through islands and rocks for safe passage.

  “Sorry about the mess,” Aethelu said, “I didn’t expect you to see this room today. I’d have tidied up if I’d have known.”

  Anais was surprised to find that Aethelu was blushing. That coupled with the matted blood all over her and the red dress meant that she was threatening to just blend into the background like an army soldier in camouflage. All the red was making Anais think of the kitchen again and her head once again began to spin. Aethelu noticed her this time and put her arm around her waist to help her though the door. Anais found herself in a pleasantly white ensuite bathroom, the only red being a couple of soggy towels that had been left on the floor. Aethelu hurried to pick them up turning pinker by the minute.

  “Sorry,” she murmured.

  At least most of the bathroom was clean, the main mess being reserved for the bedroom. The bathroom was tiled all in white which matched the white bathroom suite. Above the oversized sink stood a vanity area which was clogged up with numerous bottles and lotions, most of them missing lids. There were at least three half empty tubes of toothpaste, one of which had dribbled its contents over the sink. It was not this that shocked Anais though. It was the sight of herself in the mirror. She looked paler than usual in the harsh light which made the black circles under her eyes all the more prominent. Her blue striped pyjamas were splattered with Raphael’s blood as was her face. Little spots of red made her look like she had caught a particularly virulent strain of chicken pox which had extended from her skin to her clothes. Her blood stained hair was matted and limp and clung to her face. She heard the sound of the bath taps turning and gushing water behind her.

  Aethelu gestured for her to have the first bath which she was grateful for. The bath was an old fashioned roll top bath which was filling deeply with water. A little yellow rubber duck bobbed around merrily on the surface. Anais wondered if Aethelu was going to leave, she was not comfortable getting undressed in front of strangers. On the beach at home she always wore the most covering swimsuit she could find. It probably came from the fact that all her friends were 5 ft. 5 and had perfect bodies. At 5ft 9 she stood out no matter what she wore. She needn’t have worried though, as Aethelu left through another door in the bathroom which Anais had assumed was a cupboard. As Aethelu had not immediately returned, Anais had to change her assumption. It must be an adjoining room, possibly another bedroom. Anais started to undress, folding her pyjamas neatly and placing them on the toilet seat. She tested the water carefully with her foot. It was hotter than she usually took a bath but in her desperate need to cleanse herself of Raphael’s blood, she jumped in regardless. The hot water almost burnt her skin, leaving it tingling pleasantly with the heat. Letting out a sigh, she closed her eyes and lowered her whole body into the water.

&
nbsp; Hearing a noise she quickly opened them again. Aethelu had walked back into the room carrying a folded blue towel.

  Anais quickly drew her knees up to her chin and wrapped her arms around them. Aethelu didn’t notice Anais discomfort. She was too busy rummaging through a cupboard under the sink and idly whistling a Christmas tune. Producing a bottle of shampoo and a bar of soap from the cupboard, both unopened, she placed them on top of the towel on the floor next to the bath. Aethelu’s eyes lingered on Anais a little more than Anais was comfortable with and she was glad when Aethelu turned towards the door to her room still whistling.

  “Look after Mr Quackers,” Aethelu called through the open door.

  Anais picked up the little duck and balanced it on her knee. She waited a minute to see if Aethelu would come back through the open door. Hearing movement coming from the room, it sounded like Aethelu was tidying up. Deciding that she was safe, she dropped her legs back down, sending Mr Quackers on a tidal ride around the bath. She picked up the soap and shampoo and did her best to wash herself and her hair. She was used to showers and there was nothing here to use to pour water over her hair so she submersed her hair under the water, keeping her face above the waterline. A few seconds later, she took a big deep breath and then, closing her eyes, submerged her whole face. The sounds of whistling and cleaning were now muffled but she could clearly hear the tap dripping a beat on the water. Tap, tap, tap. The lack of visual and sound stimulation allowed her to clear her mind, emptying it of thoughts of the horrific scene from the kitchen earlier. No matter how much she tried, though, flashes of blood and the strange sneering look of Raphael’s face came back to haunt her. She held her position under water for as long as she could, holding her breath, eventually giving up and resurfacing for air. The water had a gruesome pinkish tinge to it from all the blood. She made a mental note to have a shower as soon as possible because as much as she had enjoyed the feel of hot water on her skin, the thought of washing in bloody water was repellent.