by K.N. Lee
Audsley had also inherited her mother’s love of talking and between them, they dominated the conversation.
It was like watching a tennis match. Anais swivelled her head from one to the other as they both jabbered. The constant talking punctuated with the occasional “Yes, Dear” from Alfred.
Despite having not been able to get a word in edgeways all morning, Anais very much liked the newcomers. It was a nice change to hear about life outside the manor. When Winnie and Alex turned up later, the pair was still in full throttle.
“Lunchtime!” announced Winnie brightly. She’d brought two giant platters of sandwiches and a fresh pot of tea. Alex had obviously been helping out in the kitchen.
The silver platters were placed on the coffee table and everyone tucked in. Alex sat on the floor as there were no spare seats and Aethelu joined him to allow her mother to sit on a chair.
Ava pecked at a small triangle of sandwich and carried on talking. She had free reign now, as everyone else was too busy eating to talk. Even Audsley was quiet, as she wolfed down sandwich after sandwich, eating far more than anyone would expect for such a slight girl. Once she’d had her fill, she quickly got back into trying to outtalk her mother.
Eventually, both women ran out of things to say, and Alfred took advantage of the pause in conversation to finally get a word in.
“Winnie, tell us of the situation. Aethelu says that Jago is somehow blackmailing Aldrich to make more Elixir. Is that correct?”
“I’m afraid so, Fred. He’s made some kind of virus, which will in effect wipe out most of the people on the planet. Aldrich is working on an antidote, but he’s run into some problems.”
“I’ll say!” said Alex.
“What problems?” Alfred’s moustache twitched.
“It’s an extremely complex virus. Nothing seems to be able to kill it, except our antibodies. The problem is, our antibodies are so strong that they will kill off a human before the virus does.”
“Can’t he just brew some more of the Elixir?”
“He says he can’t remember the recipe. Even if he could, do you really think giving this maniac the key to eternal life will be a good idea? Who knows what he’d do with it.”
“Mmm.” Alfred’s moustache wiggled, as he thought the situation through. “It sounds like we are all in a sticky pickle, indeed.”
“Anais is going to save the world.” Alex looked proudly at her as he spoke. “She’s having my baby.”
Anais felt all eyes turn to her and suddenly felt very uncomfortable. Aethelu didn’t seem any happier about Alex’s announcement than she was.
“I thought you were dating Aethelu? Is this some kind of modern love triangle, because I must say...”
“Let the girl talk, Freddie, Love.”
Anais would have found it ironic that it was Ava telling her husband that he was talking too much, but she was just grateful that he’d stopped talking at all.
She’d have given her right arm not to have to explain her situation to these strangers, especially now that she could see both Aethelu and Alex looking at her, waiting to see what she would say.
“I am Aethelu’s girlfriend.” She could feel herself going red as she spoke. She purposely kept her eyes away from Aethelu and Alex; she didn’t want to see either of their expressions as she told the story. “The baby was solely conceived to have the correct DNA to enable Aldrich to make an antidote. When it has been born, it will be brought up by Aethelu and me, as it’s parents.”
She hadn’t discussed this with Alex, and she knew that she was hurting him, but what else could she say? To lie and say he would be anything more than the biological father would only end up hurting him more. She’d never promised him anything, but she despised herself now, as Alex made a lame excuse and left the room.
She felt herself get even hotter as she looked into the eyes of three shocked faces, obviously horrified at what she had told them.
Even Ava and Audsley were lost for words, as they stared at her open mouthed.
She made her excuses and left the room to cool down. Running back to the studio she heard footsteps behind her. Looking back, she saw Aethelu following her. She slowed her steps and let Aethelu catch up to her. Once inside the confines of the studio, she started to cry.
“Please don’t cry!” Aethelu held her tight, her voice full of concern.
“I hurt him” Anais sniffed, tears pouring down her face.
“He’ll come round. He must have known that the baby was never going to be his.”
“He knew. At least, I think he knew.” She thought back. Had she ever told him that he was never going to be a father to this child? She couldn’t remember. She remembered back to when they were alone in the library, before she’d fallen asleep and before Aethelu had come back. He’d been talking about happy families then. Why hadn’t she stopped him? Because deep down she wanted it to be true? She was so confused that she didn’t know what to think.
Aethelu wiped the tears from her eyes. The buzz from The Light made her blink.
“He’ll be off chasing some girl and getting into arguments with Rafe over her in no time. Once the babies arrive, he’ll have forgotten his part in it all.
Anais shook her head. As much as she’d like to believe it, she knew it wasn’t true.
“He told me he loved me.”
“He did what?” Aethelu’s tone was incredulous “I’ll kick him all the way to next week, the slimy toad.”
“He wasn’t coming on to me. He just told me matter-of-factly.”
“Still!” Aethelu still sounded annoyed.
“Don’t be hard on him. Look at what he’s going through. He’s having to father a baby against his will and then being told that he’s not going to be anything to the child.”
“He would be favourite uncle.”
“It’s not the same and you know it. He’s heartbroken and it’s all my fault.” The tears once again began to fall.
Aethelu softened “You are right. He’s been placed in a horrific situation. I can’t blame him for falling in love with you. If he didn’t, I’d probably wonder why. We are all in a horrible place right now, but it’s not your fault. It’s not anyone’s fault.”
“It is someone’s fault.” Anais wiped her eyes and adopted a look of steely determination. “It’s Jago’s fault. He has done this to all of us. I cannot wait to find him, because when I do I’m going to...”
“Kill him? I don’t believe you would ever be able to kill anyone. You don’t have it in your heart.”
“Maybe not, but I hate him.”
“We all do, honey. We all do. Look. If you like I’ll go and talk to Alex. At the end of the day, does it matter if these babies have two mothers and a father? Surely, the more people that love them, the better off they’ll be.”
“Do you really mean it? Thank you.” She hugged Aethelu tight.
“Of course I mean it. I’d do anything for you. You know that.”
With that, she left Anais, heading back through the studio door to the main house.
Anais hugged her tummy. “You guys are so lucky!”
It was the first time she’d spoken to her unborn triplets.
Chapter 20
When half an hour had passed and Aethelu still hadn’t returned, Anais began to get bored. She had a quick look around the studio for something to read but found nothing. Remembering all the boxes of books that Alex had brought back from the shop yesterday, she wished she’d picked one of them out and brought it back with her. It was then that she remembered she had brought a book back with her--her father’s journal. She’d slipped it into her pocket just before she’d fainted in the storage warehouse car park the day before. She found her coat hanging on a little hook by the studio door. Putting her hand into the coat pocket she quickly brought out the book. The noise of something metal hitting tile made her jump before she realised she’d brought her mother’s necklace out along with the book. She hadn’t noticed and now it had fallen onto t
he floor. She picked it up and brought it back to the bed with the book in her other hand. Settling down in bed, she hung the necklace on the bedstead and opened to the first page of her father’s Journal. She flicked through it until she found what she was looking for, the first mention of her. It would have been written before her parents moved to America.
March 21st
Sarah has been acting oddly in the last few days. It seems she wants to tell me something but clams up when I try to talk to her. Something is definitely going on, though. She says she is making me a special meal tonight, so perhaps that is when she will tell me what’s going on.
March 21st
(Evening)
Wow! Wonderful news. Sarah is pregnant. I’m over the moon but feel at odds with the situation. None of my kind has gone on to have a healthy child. Of course, they were all women. I don’t know of any of the men having children with human partners. Perhaps I am the first. I pray that Sarah will be ok carrying my child. I love her so much, correction, I love them so much.
March 22nd
I’m still in shock over the news. I woke up this morning with a huge grin on my face. So far, Sarah has not had any symptoms, Morning sickness is yet to come, but I do believe she is glowing. Not in our sense, of course, but there is a radiance there. I wonder if our child will look like her, or if he or she will inherit my damned white hair and black eyes. I pray the baby will look like his or her mother and not suffer from this curse. I learnt to control my peculiar little affliction many, many hundreds of years ago. Keeping around people has helped me so that I do not think on it anymore, but how can a newborn be expected to do the same? I have visions of the midwife getting an electric shock when she delivers him or her. What a calamity that would be.
Anais smiled. Her father had got his wish. Her hair and eyes were the exact shade of her mother’s. She’d not thought of all the things her father had to worry about, but she did stifle a giggle at the image of her shocking the midwife. She read on.
Of course, I have to worry about the birth. Sarah cannot go into a hospital to give birth. If everything runs smoothly, then there should not be a problem, but if the baby needs its blood tested for any reason, then that will be the end for all the Custor Lux. Sarah understands my concerns and has agreed to give birth at The Manor. She loves being there. She spends half the time chatting with Astrid in the kitchen and the other half playing chess with Andrew on that wonderful chessboard of his. She’ll be getting better than me at this rate!
Anais reread the last line again. So her mother did know about her father. She thought that finding out for sure would make her feel angry, but she was too fascinated by her own history to feel too much in the way of anger. She wished she’d pushed the point on bringing the whole box of journals now. She made a note to go get them as soon as possible. She flicked through a few more pages until she found a bit about The Manor.
May 1st
Morning sickness is full on now. Poor Sarah can’t even be around food at the moment. Just the smell is making her feel sick. She has survived the last week or so on crackers, potatoes and peas. It’s the oddest meal, but it’s the only thing she can keep down. I’ve joined her in her new menu out of a sense of solidarity, but when she has gone to bed, I must confess to going out for fish and chips or curry. Of course, I clean my teeth well when I get home so she doesn’t know I’m cheating.
I’ve been thinking about the birth again. Now that Sarah is starting to show a bit, it’s becoming all too real. She is much braver than me and tells me that she’ll be fine and that women have been giving birth for millions of years. I know this is true, but she will be the first to give birth to one of my kind. She has already got past the three-month mark which was the first hurdle to cross. My good friends Astrid, Ava and Audsley, have fallen at this hurdle many times and lost countless babies. I’ve seen how heartbreaking it can be and I don’t know how they can bear it. I’m already completely in love with my little one and he or she is only the size of a bean.
I called Aldrich today to tell him our news and ask him if we could stay in the manor for the birth. Of course, it took me half an hour of chatting with a very excited Astrid before she would even pass the phone over to Aldrich. Aldric told me that he would get acquainted with the medical side of childbirth and get the surgery prepared for any eventuality. Astrid would also help. I feel a little less nervous now. Aldrich and Astrid make quite a team and there is nothing they don’t know about medicine. Sarah and Bean will be in good hands.
May 2nd
Sarah finally seems to have got over her morning sickness and requested Worcester sauce on her porridge this morning. It looked and smelled horrible, but she yummed it up and asked for more. I’ve heard that pregnant women crave weird foods, but this was truly disgusting. I’m not sure how I feel about having to make it every morning. This is one part of her new diet that I won’t be following!
I got very excited phone calls from everyone this morning including two from America. Arcadia called me from some Hollywood party, so I could barely hear her over the noise, but I got the gist of it, that she’s happy for us. Audsley called from her home in Las Vegas. Honestly, Did the Light infect the Custor women with some need for bright lights and showy locations? She was very excited about the news and invited us all over for a holiday. She called it a vacation. I think she forgets she’s English sometimes with her American vernacular.
Anais flicked through a few more pages when she heard the door open. It was Aethelu returning from her talk with Alex. She was holding a pizza cut into slices. Anais was going to put the journal down when something caught her eye and she carried on reading.
May 10th
I received a letter this morning which was most peculiar. It simply read ‘I know about the baby’ and was signed Jago. I was about to throw it in the bin, but the name sparked something in my mind. I’d heard it before, but it took me a good few hours to remember where from. It finally came to me. Jago was Aldrich’s partner. I’ve not heard his name for six hundred years. I decided against calling Aldrich about it, perplexed as I am. It is probably a funny joke of someone’s. Of course, the letter went straight into the bin.
Aethelu joined Anais on the bed and started to tell her about Alex.
“He’s ok. He understands why you said what you did and he’s not upset with you. He really liked the idea of being daddy to the little squirts. By the way, sorry I was so long. I got pizza. I thought you might like to eat in here away from the talky twins in there. I do love them, but they don’t half go on!”
Anais knew she was talking about Audsley and Ava and not Alex and Rafe. She was glad that Alex was ok. She would go and talk to him herself tomorrow. In the meantime, she beckoned Aethelu over to her side of the bed.
“Here, what do you make of this? It’s my father’s journal for the year my mother was pregnant with me.”
Aethelu quickly read the entry for May tenth and then looked in amazement at Anais.
“Jago knew about you even then?”
“I guess so. It seems he’s been threatening us longer than we thought.”
“It’s not a threat, though, is it? He just said ‘I know about the baby’.” Aethelu got under the duvet as she spoke.
“Well, no, it’s not a direct threat, but it’s kinda creepy, don’t you think? It’s hardly a note of congratulations.”
“Does it say any more about him?”
“I don’t know. I’ve not read any further.”
She skipped ahead again.
June 6th
Another letter from Jago. This one says that he’s watching us. I don’t really know what to make of it. The implication is that he’s threatening us, but there seems to be no reason to it. I checked the envelope. It was posted from York, so he at least is telling the truth about being nearby. I’ll keep this one, just in case I need it for evidence
The next mention was less than a month later.
June 19th
Yet another letter fro
m Jago, Also posted from York. Sarah picked it up from the mat, but I recognised the handwriting on the envelope and snatched it from her before she could read it. I realised that they were addressed to me only and not to Sarah or to both of us. That, at least, is some consolation to me. This one actually threatened harm to the baby. I’ve taken them to the police, who say they will look into it. I don’t expect they will be able to do much seeing as they’ve only got a couple of letters to go on.
July 1st
This is getting ridiculous. Jago’s latest letter has threatened both my life and that of the baby outright. The police have now got this letter as well, but they have told me that they are getting nowhere on the case. Apparently, there is nothing they can do unless Jago actually hurts one of us. Surely, it’s too late by that stage? I’m actually beginning to feel nervous about Sarah’s safety. I’ve not told her about Jago. I don’t want to worry her, but I can tell she’s beginning to suspect something is wrong. I’ve taken to walking with her to work and picking her up afterward. I’m trying to pass it off as being a devoted dad, but she’s not stupid.
August 18th
I’ve had another three letters, death threats. The police investigation is going nowhere, and I’m at the end of my tether. I’ve still not told Sarah. I’ve not told anyone at the manor either. It seems pointless to worry them, but if this continues I will have to tell someone.
August 25th
I’m writing this journal thirty thousand feet above the Atlantic Ocean. I got home from the university yesterday to find the house broken into. Of course, it wasn’t hard to guess who had done it. I knew Sarah was safe at work, so I went into the house to check. There was blood everywhere. He’d killed Sarah’s cat and smeared the walls with its blood.
