Nine Steps to Sara

by Olsen, Lisa

  “Are you alright back there, Joanie? You’re awful quiet,” Sara commented with a worried look over her shoulder.

  “Is there a destination in mind to this trek or is this as good as it gets?” Joanie asked, sitting a little askew in the saddle from a combination of little used muscles and too much drink.

  “I thought I’d take you the length of the estate and then back again. There’s a small lake that abuts the rear of the property that’s worth seeing. Much of the parcel of land is wooded and quite unusable, but affords you a great deal of privacy. There used to be a small boathouse down by the water, but I’ve no idea if it still stands, I haven’t been down there in years.”

  “Maybe we can eat down by the water,” Sara proposed cheerily. “I suppose it’s still too cold out for a swim.” Though the first blooms of spring were already in evidence, she could imagine the water would be much too frigid without the full heat of the summer sun.

  “I don’t know, I’m always up for a challenge.” Urging her horse a little faster, Joanie rode ahead and Will traded looks with Sara, nudging his horse faster to catch up.

  “This isn’t a good place to go wandering off,” he cautioned. Joanie either didn’t hear or didn’t care, the black horse slipping faster through the trees. Sara didn’t dare try to keep pace with the uneven forest ground, but pushed as fast as she thought she could manage. The pair pulled farther and farther ahead, until she couldn’t see them; only hear Joanie’s laughter floating back to her.

  “Will?” Sara called out softly, not wanting to let too much panic creep into her voice. It was ridiculous to worry she wouldn’t catch up to them in just a minute. The size of the property wasn’t that big; if she kept riding straight she’d eventually hit water and then it’d be easier to spot them.

  Eventually.

  Only the longer she kept riding, the more convinced Sara became that she was the only person out in the woods. Strike that, not the only person, the only living creature. The forest sounds dispersed on the wind, leaving nothing but the clop of Rhiannon’s feet on the loamy earth. No more birdsong, no more rustle of leaves, no buzzing of insects, only heavy silence that grew oppressive as it stretched longer. Was she headed in the right direction? What if she was making it worse? That thought alone made her rein the horse in to a stop.

  “Will?” Sara tried again, her voice sounding small in the stillness. Rhiannon pawed at the ground nervously, shifting first to one side and then the other. A breath of air stirred the leaves, but instead of the natural sound calming her nerves, Sara imagined she heard the wind calling to her in a dry, raspy voice.

  Leave…

  “Yep, time to go,” she murmured, nudging Rhiannon forward again. At that point it didn’t matter what direction she went, as long as she didn’t stay in that place. The horse whickered, eager to be on its way and Sara let her set the pace, just as eager to find her companions.

  Instead she came upon a clearing in the woods, maybe thirty feet across. At the center stood a circle of nine stones set around an ancient slab of granite. Had she stumbled across someone’s old campsite? The stones didn’t look like they could be used as chairs really, and wouldn’t be needed for shade in the wooded area. The big slab could have been a picnic table, but it was slightly uneven and had a rusty cast to it; not at all what she’d want to set lunch out on.

  Rhiannon whickered again, stepping backwards and Sara had to fight to keep her seat for a moment as she tried to keep the horse in place. “Whoa, calm down girl… there’s nothing to worry about, it’s just a pile of old rocks.” Something about them made her want to get a closer look though, see if she could figure out what it was used for. It was probably a good a place as any to wait for the others to find her; if only the ground didn’t look so far away…

  Every time she tried to get into position to dismount, the horse shuffled its feet, so that she started to think Rhiannon was doing it on purpose. “Oh, would you stand still,” she complained crossly, “I just want to get down!”

  “Sara?” Will’s voice echoed through the clearing, sending a flutter of relief through her.

  “I’m over here!” she called out, wondering if he could tell what direction she was in, it all sounded distorted and echoey to her. Luckily, he didn’t have any trouble finding her, and Will emerged a few moments later, the reigns to Joanie’s horse in his hands.

  “How did you get out here? You were right behind me,” his brows were drawn together in puzzlement. Joanie looked a little green around the gills, and Sara couldn’t help but wonder if she’d drunk the entire contents of the flask by herself.

  “I don’t know, I followed after you, but when you took off like that…” Sara couldn’t disguise the relief in her voice when he dismounted and reached up to help her off the horse, more than ready for a break from being in the saddle. Willingly she let him pull her off the horse, hands resting on his arms as she slid down beside him.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to give you a fright, love,” his voice was soft as he searched her face for signs of distress.

  “I’m okay. I admit it was a little spooky out here when you guys took off like that, but I’m fine,” Sara smiled, more than a little aware of the casual endearment and the fact that his hands still rested comfortably on her hips. “Um, what is this place?” she dragged her gaze away from his to look back to the circle.

  Will’s hands fell away as he turned to inspect the standing stones. “Lots of old places have these stone circles. No one really knows what they were used for, but people say they were part of rituals performed by the Druids.”

  “Really?” Somehow she could almost imagine it; a group of ancient mystics draped in flowing, white robes, chanting words as old as the stones themselves.

  “He’s screwing with you, Sara,” Joanie snorted. “God, you can be so gullible. They probably built this place for the tourists when they gave tours of the property. They used to do that, right? Charge the public to take a look at how the other half lives?”

  Will leveled a flat, unfriendly look in Joanie’s direction, and Sara wondered if there had been a confrontation with them when he’d chased her down. “The house was opened to the public at one time, but no fees were ever charged. It was considered an honor to share the family’s great works of art with the community.”

  “Yeah right. More likely it was a good way for the Lord of the manor to scout out some fresh tail among the locals.” The black horse reared suddenly, Joanie’s mouth forming a perfect ‘O’ as she tipped over backwards, landing hard in the brush.

  “Joanie! Are you alright?” Sara rushed over to where Joanie lay still, her face ashen.

  “That horse hates me,” she groaned, pushing herself up on her elbows before a wince of pain made her think better of it and she fell back against the dead leaves.

  “Lie still, get your legs back under you before you try to get up,” Will ordered, crouching on her other side. “Now, where does it hurt?”

  “My hip and shoulder are sore on the side I hit, and I think I bit the inside of my cheek,” she blinked, looking straight up at the sky.

  “Did you hit your head at all?” Sara asked, checking her over for any bleeding, but she seemed to be in one piece.

  “No, I don’t think so. I may have conked it a little, but I didn’t land on it, thank God, or I could have ended up with a broken neck.”

  “Would’ve saved us the trouble…” Will muttered, busy examining her arm, moving it slowly. Joanie winced again, but didn’t cry out in pain while he moved it one way or the other. “I don’t think your arm’s out the socket, now try to move your leg slowly.” After some hesitant testing, Joanie seemed to be sore, but mostly alright, and they helped her to her feet without too much fuss.

  “The horse is gone,” Sara frowned; there was no sign of the black animal anywhere.

  “Joanie, you take Sara’s mare, she’ll be a gentle ride back. Sara, you ride with me,” Will said decisively and it made sense, his horse was the only l
ogical choice to carry two.

  “No way I’m getting back on a horse again,” Joanie backed away, her hands coming up as if to ward it off. “No way.”

  “Come on, Joanie, it’ll take forever to walk back, especially with your sore hip. Rhiannon’s really sweet, she won’t throw you,” Sara tried to persuade her, but Rhiannon didn’t help by shying away when she tried to lead her to Joanie.

  “I’d rather take my chances on the ground,” Joanie shook her head.

  “Right, suit yourself. We’ll see you back at the house then, shall we?” Will replied with an innocent smile, and Joanie’s face paled again.

  “Wait, you’re gonna leave me out here by myself?”

  “No, of course we won’t,” Sara sighed, “we’ll all walk back together.”

  “Maybe, if I rode with you…” Joanie cozied up to Will’s side, “then I wouldn’t have to be so worried about the horse getting away from me.”

  Sara could see it was all a ploy to try and warm up to Will again; couldn’t she take the hint? It was obvious to Will too, but after a moment’s hesitation, he produced a reasonable facsimile of a smile. “Alright, we’d best be on our way then, the sooner we get back, the sooner you can rest. Let me help you up.”

  While they were monkeying around with getting her up onto his horse, Sara looked for a way to hop onto hers without any help, spotting a fallen log she thought would do very nicely. By the time she got into the saddle, Will was up behind Joanie, doing his best to take control of the reins while keeping his distance from her. They headed back at a slow pace, the conversation practically non-existent; everyone in the mood to get it over with, except for maybe Joanie who didn’t seem to mind her perch next to Will.

  When they arrived, Joanie waved off the offer of a doctor, asking for a hot bath and a bottle of brandy. Will left to see to the horses in none too good of a mood, and Sara hardly had a chance to do more than wave goodbye. Searching for Jack to see if he wanted to join her for a picnic lunch on the patio outside, Katie told her he was in the library, already bored with throwing horseshoes.

  Sara heard him talking to someone as she approached, stopping to tie her shoe just outside the door.

  “Want to play again?” Jack asked, and an unfamiliar woman replied.

  “Perhaps one more game, though I don’t know how much longer I can tarry.”

  “We can always try chess if you’re tired of me beating you at draughts.”

  “I fear my time grows short. Do you remember what I told you, Jack?”

  “I guess so, but I still don’t get why.”

  “It’s dangerous for you to stay here; I don’t know how much longer I can protect you.”

  “But I don’t want to leave, I like it here. Why would anything happen to me?”

  “Accidents happen every day. Look to your mother’s friend; she met with a terrible spill in the woods, she could have easily broken her neck. I urge you to take caution, young Jack, I dare not say more.”

  Sara frowned over the conversation, not recognizing the woman’s voice. Was someone harassing Jack about staying? Straightening, she burst into the room, prepared to give whoever it was a piece of her mind, only to find there wasn’t anyone in there but Jack, who was setting up a checker board on the edge of the desk.

  Chapter Eight

  “Who was just in here?”

  “Hey Mom, draughts is checkers!” he replied, eyes full of excitement, but Sara ignored him, looking behind the door.

  “Who were you talking to?”

  “The lady.”

  “What lady?”

  “I dunno,” he shrugged, uninterested. “Want to play some checkers?”

  “What was that stuff she was telling you? About it being dangerous for you to be here?” It didn’t sit right with her, especially not in her own home.

  “Something about accidents, I wasn’t paying attention.”

  “But it wasn’t Katie and it wasn’t Mrs. Poole?”

  “No,” he gave her a look, like she’d said something stupid. “Can we have lunch soon? I’m really hungry.”

  “Hold on, I want to get to the bottom of this first. Mrs. Poole?” she called out the library door. Realizing she’d never hear her, Sara rang the bell pull and Mrs. Poole appeared a few minutes later.

  “I’ve sent up some Epsom salts for Miss Wilson’s bath, I do hope she’s feeling better soon,” she clucked in sympathy.

  “Thanks. Listen, was anyone else in the house just now? Any visitors?”

  “Visitors? No, my Lady, not to my knowledge. Why, are you expecting someone?”

  “No, but someone was in here talking to Jack, and I mean to find out who it was.”

  Mrs. Poole’s mouth fell open, turning first from Sara to Jack and back again before she snapped it shut. “I can’t imagine who it could have been; I’ll ask Thomas if anyone came to the door.”

  “What’s the big deal?” Jack asked, after she’d gone.

  “The big deal is someone waltzing into my own home and trying to warn you off is definitely not cool. Are you sure you don’t know her name?”

  “I don’t think she ever said it.”

  “Ever? You’ve talked to her before?”

  “Sure, lots of times.”

  “Where? In town?” They’d met so many people; maybe one of the villagers had taken an interest in the boy?

  “In my room or here in the library. She says she likes to watch over me, that I remind her of her son.”

  “Then why is she telling you to leave?” It didn’t make sense. If someone was truly concerned for Jack’s safety, why not come to her?

  “She said it’s not safe here.”

  “Did she say why?”

  “No, not really, something about accidents.”

  Not quite a threat… “If she ever shows up again I want you to come and get me, okay?”

  “Yeah, okay.”

  “I mean it, Jack.” How could he be so unconcerned?

  “I don’t get why you’re so upset; you saw her yourself.”

  “I did?” Sara blinked. “When was that?”

  “Just now, before she left.”

  “Jack, there was no one in here when I got here.” That was another strange thing; how had she left so quickly? Had she gone out the window?

  “Yes she was, but you scared her off. She gets scared really easy.”

  “I’m sorry to interrupt, my Lady,” Mrs. Poole appeared by the door, “but Thomas has informed me that there have been no visitors today apart from young Will. No one has rung the main bell.”

  Just what she was afraid of. “That means we have someone who’s walking into the house unannounced. I want us to start locking the windows and doors during the day, do you understand?”

  “If you say so, my Lady,” she replied dubiously. “Though that will be difficult once we take on more staff.”

  “I don’t care, I don’t want people sneaking in and threatening my son. Once we figure out who it is and what to look for, then we can revisit the rule.”

  “She didn’t threaten me, Mom.”

  “She told you to leave or you’d get hurt, that sounds like a threat to me,” Sara snapped, immediately regretting the way he shrank away from her tone. “I’m sorry, honey, I didn’t mean to bite your head off. What does she look like?”

  “I don’t know, like a lady,” he shrugged.

  “What color hair does she have?”

  “Sorta brown.”

  “What color eyes?”

  “I don’t remember. Can I go wash up for lunch now?”

  “Yes, come right back here though. We’ll eat what Mrs. Poole packed out on the terrace, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “I can assure you, Sir Jack’s wellbeing is at least as important to us as it is to you,” Mrs. Poole smiled reassuringly.

  “Do you have any kids, Mrs. Poole?”

  “Thomas and I were never blessed with children, no.”

  “I’m sorry,” Sara gave her a sad s
mile in return. “I don’t know what I’d do without that boy.” Having a child had changed her life, and there wasn’t one day that went by that she wasn’t grateful for how wonderful he’d turned out. It was even worth her disastrous marriage to Peter.

  “Forgive my impertinence, but did you never think of remarrying and extending your family?”

  Sara shook her head. “I’m fresh out of a bad marriage; I’m not so sure I want to jump into a new relationship anytime soon.” An image of Will’s smile rose unbidden, distracting her for a moment. “Eventually maybe. I mean, I’d like to have more children someday, give Jack a brother or sister.”

  “I daresay young Will would do a credible job of it,” Mrs. Poole winked so quickly, Sara thought she might have imagined it.

  “I kinda had the idea you wouldn’t approve of that sort of thing, Mrs. P.” Her being a Lady (even if she was new at it) and him a lowly not-chauffeur.

  “My dear, we’re not in Edwardian times,” Mrs. Poole chuckled. “We’re living in the modern world, my Lady. If he makes you happy, I say… convention can go hang.”

  “Does that mean you’ll call me Sara?” she grinned, but Mrs. Poole shook her head.

  “Let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater.”

  Sara did enjoy Will’s company, even if he was a bit of a flirt; she liked to think she was a good judge of character. Then again, she’d fallen for Peter, hook line and sinker… On the other hand, Will was nothing like Peter, and he hadn’t fallen for Joanie’s act, so double points there.

  “Hey, do you know anything about a circle of stones on the property?” Sara remembered to ask before Mrs. Poole slipped away.

  “He took you as far as that?” she frowned, though Sara hadn’t thought it was all that far. They hadn’t even reached the lake.

  “Yes, have you been out there?”

  “It’s been quite some time, but I have visited them before.”

  “What are they? Will said they had something to do with the Druids.”

  “It’s certainly very possible; these lands are full of such holy places. Probably best not to disturb it, my Lady. Will you be wanting lemonade with your luncheon?”