Soul Snatcher

by annie nadine

  “What is the schedule for the day?” Annie asked ignoring the slight pain in her chest. She was inspecting her nails rather closely to make sure they were clean and neat.

  “Mr. Brighton will be joining Miss Danes for dinner,” Rosemary said meaningfully.

  “It looks like she may have an admirer.” Annie sounded unfazed as she concentrated on her nails.

  “I think she is the excuse and you are the reason,” Rosemary shared her opinion.

  “Well, I am not interested.” Annie placed her hands in her lap as if to show she wanted the matter dropped.

  “Annie, how can you say that? He could be your way out of this,” Rosemary said implying the situation of being the help.

  “What is wrong with what we do? We do not have idle hands, we have been educated unlike many other people in our plight,” Annie reasoned looking at the bright side of life. Rosemary finished the braid then walked around the chair and stood in front of Annie.

  “We only have had more education because Miss Danes cannot stand imprudent people. You could be the lady of a manor,” Rosemary tried to convince her.

  “Rosemary,” Annie said as she stood. “You are moving ahead of yourself, he does not even know me.”

  “But he could,” she persisted.

  “I do not have any desire to be married…” Annie paused for a moment and thought of Baden, maybe he could be the exception to her rule? Wait…it was ridiculous to even contemplate that. When she realised she hadn’t finished her sentence she shook the thought from her mind and continued. “But if I did, I am certain that I would want to marry for love.” She moved around her friend and went back to making breakfast.

  “Sometimes we do not have the luxury of love.” Rosemary went and stood next to her and started working.

  Annie didn’t say anything in response, she just wanted the matter to be dropped. She was also a little too distracted by the thought of Baden to answer.

  “Do not tell me it is Micah,” Rosemary kept at it.

  “No, Rosemary. Please let it go,” Annie almost pleaded.

  “Let what go?” Micah asked as he came through the door. Rosemary and Annie looked up and just stared at him. Annie looked to Rosemary for help.

  “I keep asking if she is fine and she wants me to stop pestering her,” Rosemary lied.

  “If she did not feel well she would not work,” Micah said with a smile. He walked over and grabbed an apple then headed out. The women shared a relieved look as he walked out the door to do his chores.

  After they had finished making breakfast Annie took Miss Danes’ food to her room, she preferred to stay in her room until late in the day. Annie went in without knocking, as that was what they had been instructed to do. She froze when she saw a man asleep in Miss Danes’ oversized bed and she was nowhere to be seen. He looked to be Miss Danes’ age with a few grey hairs at his temple. The sheets covered his lower body but from what Annie could see he was shirtless. The man suddenly woke and looked around, eventually finding her standing there.

  “Sorry Sir, I just…I was bringing Miss Danes her breakfast.” Annie looked to the ground, quickly placed the tray down and turned to leave. She had never been so uncomfortable in her life.

  “Excuse me,” the man said. Annie stopped and tried to keep her eyes anywhere but on him. She looked at every piece of furniture, from the window seat to the shelves and the dressing table in an attempt to keep her eyes busy. “Where am I?” He asked. Annie was surprised and couldn’t help but look over to him.

  “You are in Miss Danes’ manor,” Annie informed. He looked around as if he had no clue where he was. Before he could ask anything else she left the room, closing the door firmly behind her.

  “Annie,” Miss Danes said as she approached her room. Annie jumped from the surprise of her approaching but tried to keep herself composed. “You are feeling better?” She looked Annie up and down suspiciously.

  “Yes Miss,” Annie said keeping her eyes on the ground. “Your breakfast is in the room.”

  “Very good.” Miss Danes walked around her to get to the door. Annie started to leave then stopped when Miss Danes began speaking again. “Make certain that dinner is well prepared tonight, Annie. Mr. Brighton will be joining us.” She said it with meaning behind it but Annie couldn’t quite pick what it was.

  “Yes, Miss Danes.” With that Annie left. She didn’t mention what she had seen in the room to anyone, she thought it would be inappropriate.

  In preparation for the night, the butler had been sent to tell the help to dress in their best for the serving. Annie wore her lilac dress, it was simple in design but because of her lovely figure the dress looked quite exquisite. Miss Danes ensured that all of her staff was well supplied with presentable attire, she wanted to be known as the manor with the most. She hated the blandness of the attire she saw on the help at other manors, which Annie thought was funny because the colour scheme through the whole manor was bland.

  “Annie,” Micah said breathlessly as he came into the kitchen. She had kept her hair in the braid but wrapped it around her head into a bun.

  Annie smiled at him and noticed for the first time a look in his eyes that she hadn’t recognised before. She looked away from his intense gaze trying to pretend she didn’t see what she just saw, which was much more than friendship in his eyes. Rosemary came in and without meaning to, saved Annie from having to deal with this new insight.

  “Annie, you look darling,” Rosemary complimented as she gathered the things needed for the first course. Annie gathered what she would be serving and the two women were on their way.

  To Annie’s surprise the man from this morning was sitting at the table with Miss Danes and Eli. They were situated in the dining room at the end of a long table designed to seat twenty. The crystal candelabras caught the candle light beautifully and the table cloth was perfectly white, with the plates and cutlery set out flawlessly. This room had no paintings on the wall but it did have cabinets showing off Miss Danes’ most prized vases and ornaments.

  Rosemary and Annie served the three and stood off in the corner, hands clasped. Annie did all she could not to look at Eli but it felt like he had his eyes on her every moment. She began to worry that Miss Danes would notice and become infuriated that someone was paying her help more attention than her.

  “Mr. Brighton, is there something you would like to ask Annie?” Miss Danes questioned with agitation obvious in her voice. Annie’s heart felt like it stopped beating and Rosemary’s eyes widened in shock. An awkward silence filled the room and Eli glared at Miss Danes, obviously appalled at her rudeness.

  “Actually, I am quite curious as to why she is working. Should she not rest after her ordeal?” Eli didn’t find Miss Danes frightening in the least, which was either stupid or brave.

  “She was the one who chose to begin working again,” Miss Danes explained harshly. Annie wanted to run out of the room and lock herself away. The other man seemed to be oblivious to anything that was happening.

  “I am pleased for her sake that she had a choice,” Eli said through gritted teeth. This was beyond ridiculous. Why was he even talking about this? Didn’t he know that this was completely out of line?

  “Maybe it would be best if this night was cut short, Mr. Brighton.” It was obvious Miss Danes was holding herself back.

  “I could not agree more.” Eli stood, threw his napkin down and stormed out of the manor. Annie and Rosemary stood there, mouth agape in shock. The other man just stood and left without saying a word. Miss Danes turned to Annie with a look akin to hatred in her eyes.

  “You little trollop,” she spat the words. Annie placed her hand against her chest as if to ask, who me?

  Annie looked to Rosemary who was just as horrified as her. Before either of them could defend Annie, Miss Danes walked up and slapped her across the face. Annie’s face violently twisted to one side and she paused for a moment from the shock of it. She placed her hand over her cheek to subdue the burning as she
slowly turned back to the others. Her eyes watered from the sting and shock of the slap and she just stared at Miss Danes. Annie was left completely speechless from the older woman’s outburst. Rosemary stood there frozen in complete bewilderment

  “Get out of this place within the hour. Get off my grounds, I never want to see you again!” Miss Danes screamed and then left.

  As soon as Miss Danes left them alone Annie ran for her room, Rosemary was close behind. Micah was in the kitchen when they ran through to the help’s quarters. Annie raced into her room, slammed the door and jammed the chair against the handle so no one could get in. She knew that Rosemary and Micah would probably be thrown out along with her if Miss Danes saw them interacting after that display. She had to leave before they could suffer her fate.

  She gathered most of her things into her bed sheet and tied it all together with the corners. It wasn’t too heavy and the shape was manageable. Rosemary and Micah were banging on the door, yelling to be let in but Annie ignored their requests. Her only possible escape was the window. But where was she to go?

  Suddenly she remembered the piece of paper with Eli’s address on it. She grabbed it from her draw and placed it in the bust of her dress so she wouldn’t lose it. If he had gotten her into this mess then it was his responsibility to get her out of it.

  She pushed the window open and looked down to see how far the drop was. Only a few feet, she could manage that. She carefully dropped her belongings, which were mainly her clothes, to the ground and they landed with a soft thud. She then hoisted her feet out over the window and turned so her stomach was resting on the sill as her legs dangled over the edge. Her ribs were still sore and made it more difficult to manage but she made it to the ground with relative ease. She did fall on her backside but it wasn’t anything that would cause permanent damage. She picked herself up off the ground then grabbed her things. She looked around the pitch black night feeling as if she were the size of a mouse. How was she going to make it anywhere?

  CHAPTER 5

  Annie started walking into the cold night, cuddling her things as if it would make her feel better. She knew the grounds quite well and thought she could manage, at least until she reached the edge of Miss Danes’ land. She contemplated taking a horse but Miss Danes would probably have her arrested for theft.

  After wandering around for some time it started to rain, which just felt like a tribute to her bad luck. Annie ran for the nearest tree which was exposed when lightning struck through the sky. Not the smartest idea she ever had but she couldn’t just stand there getting soaked. It was bad enough that her hair was already drenched through along with her clothes. She was freezing and had no hope of finding her way anywhere. As she reached the slight shelter of the branches another lightning bolt lit up the sky and illuminated everything. What it lit up made Annie’s heart stop beating, she had seen an instant flash of a sea of tombstones. Somehow she had made her way into the graveyard without even realising. She began trembling from not only the cold but the terror that was running through her.

  Tears started to run down her face and mix with the rain as she tried to push away the fear rising inside her. What was she meant to do? How had she even gotten there? Was she just at the edge of the graveyard or in the heart of it? The scary thing was, she wouldn’t know until morning unless she ventured through it.

  Lightning lit up the sky again and this time exposed something even more frightful, a man she had never seen before standing across the other side of the graveyard. He had just been standing there, watching her. Annie’s body started to tremble even more and her heart beat wildly in her chest. Why was this happening again? How was it happening? Why were there all these people in graveyards at night? It was starting to feel less like a coincidence and more like someone had planned it. What was she meant to do now?

  Before she could think of anything she felt hands grab her arms from behind and she let out an almighty scream. She dropped her belongings instantly. She started kicking her legs around and hitting her arms through the air. Surely it had to accomplish something. She kept screaming until her throat was burning but it was no use against the sound of the rain. No one would hear, no one would come to help her this time and all she could think was she wished she had seen Baden again.

  The person put their hand over her mouth and held her tight against them so they could restrain her with one arm.

  “Annie,” the person yelled over the sound of the rain. When she stopped her struggling, whoever it was loosened their hold so she spun around and tried to see through the dark. She wasn’t sure but she thought she knew that voice.

  Lightning flashed and the face it lit up left her with a relief that buried itself into her soul. Eli stood before her and she had never been so glad to see someone in her whole life. He held onto her protectively and she was so comforted that she threw her arms around him and buried her face into his neck. After a moment the rain eased enough so they could hear each other speak.

  “What are you doing here?” Eli asked, happy to hold her in his arms.

  “After you left Miss Danes threw me out and I wandered into the graveyard by mistake,” Annie said through tearful sobs.

  “Come with me, I will take you back to my manor.” Eli took her hand after grabbing her things and started to lead her away by the arm.

  “Wait, I need to gather my belongings,” Annie said with left over panic from her previous fright. Eli held up her bindle for inspection but she couldn’t see in the dark.

  “I already have it,” he assured her. He led her a little way before he helped her onto his waiting horse. In the pitch black he managed to tie her bag to his steed and mount himself.

  “How did you do that?” Annie asked as they rode away. The rain was less than a drizzle now but she was still freezing. She sat in Eli’s lap as they made their way to his home.

  “I am very experienced,” he joked. She rested her head against his chest, not caring what he thought of it. She was far too weary to care.

  After what felt like forever, they arrived at his manor and she had never felt more exhausted in her life. Eli jumped down and helped her off the horse with great care. The light coming from the house made it so she could see and she felt a little more at ease. He walked her into the entryway of the house and closed the door behind them. A man appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

  “Garrick, this is Annie. She will be here for some time but for now just place her in my room,” Eli instructed. She froze from the thought of sleeping in his room and stood there feeling a little uncertain.

  “There is a fire already started and some clothes you can change into. I have somewhere I need to be but when I come back I will sleep in the guest room,” Eli assured her after seeing her hesitation. She still looked a little wary. “There is a lock on the door if you would feel safer.”

  “Sorry.” Is all she could think to say.

  “Whatever for?” Eli was genuinely confused.

  “For intruding on your life.” Annie hated feeling like a burden but she didn’t have anywhere else to go. Eli gave one of his sweet smiles.

  “I do not think ‘intrude’ is a word for someone you willing allow in. I will see you in the morning or sleep in if you need. In fact, do so. You need to rest.” His thoughts played out as he spoke and it made her smile. He wanted to stay and spend time with her but he had to go. After a moment of hesitation he spoke. “Good night, Annie.” Eli forced himself to leave through the door they had just come in.

  She turned to Garrick feeling a little silly, standing there soaked through and helpless.

  “This way, Miss Belle.” He smiled a warm smile that helped to make Annie feel more at ease. She followed behind him as he led the way up stairs.

  The stairs were almost directly in front of the door and the downstairs rooms branched off to the right and left of the staircase. The walls, banisters and shelves were made of dark, elegant, polished wood. Lovely paintings hung on the walls of landscapes rather than port
raits of people, like so many other manors had. The floor runners were simple but effective, a red so dark it was almost black with gold edges. Everything went together neatly.

  The colour of the walls were a lovely, light blue and refreshing. The same dark, elegant wood from the trimmings ran along the walls. They were cut to panel vertically, covering the last third of the wall down to the floor. The curtains were a royal blue and the furniture stuck to neutral tones, such as light brown and ivory, fashioned conservatively but still sophisticated. All together it was much more welcoming than Miss Danes’ manor.

  “How do you know my last name?” She asked as she followed Garrick. They were walking along the upstairs landing that housed some of the bedrooms and overlooked the open room at the front of the manor.

  “Mr. Brighton informs me of the things I need to know,” he answered vaguely.

  “My things, they are on the back of Eli’s horse,” Annie fretted. Garrick stopped and looked over the banister towards the door. She did the same and saw her possessions on the floor by the doorway. The bundle looked rather pitiable in such a refined manor.