by Smith, Ava
“Bless you!” she exclaims.
A few seconds later he sneezes again.
“Bless you!” she exclaims once more and the pair chuckle.
They approach Sarah’s house and Daniel notices the drive is empty but opts to park his car on the roadside. That’s when Sarah finally relaxes enough to ask him,
“Can you come in a moment? There’s something I want to show you.”
“Of course,” he replies.
Sarah leads her friend into a living room decorated with antiques from all over the world: French Rococo chairs, oriental sculptures and ornate paintings. It has a different feel to the manor house and is somehow classier. The antiques alone would fetch a small fortune and Daniel gawps at the splendour.
“Wow! This is your house? It’s like a mini museum,” he comments.
“Well, Uncle loves antiques. All this took him a lifetime to collect.”
She walks over to the mantle and picks up a figurine of a young woman in a dark blue gown, and walks back holding it like a new-born infant.
“This is Odette,” she says handing it over.
Daniel examines the figurine and realises it has more than a passing resemblance to its bearer.
“The prince abandoned her because she was cursed and then she became an outcast. They say she died of a broken heart,” Sarah explains.
Daniel raises his eyebrows. “Silly prince... Can the curse be broken?”
Sarah perks up and answers boldly, “If she finds someone to love her after they know she’s cursed.”
He puts the statue back and comments, “That sounds tricky.”
Daniel moves to kiss her when they hear a thump from above and they both look up at once. She appears less relaxed after this and she turns immediately to Daniel, her eyes pleading with him to leave.
“It’s getting late.”
Daniel gives her a gentle but meaningful kiss on the cheek.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he says.
He lingers a moment and walks out of the house. The instant the door slams she turns to see Victor standing midway down the stairs.
“I know what you’re thinking. That he’s not the one,” Sarah utters in a solemn tone.
“That’s not what I was thinking.” Sarah looks surprised as Victor clarifies, “But to convince him that he is won’t be easy.”
It’s the second time her Uncle’s words have given her hope and she makes her way to Victor’s car feeling less miserable than usual.
Daniel, of course, has no idea what’s being discussed and is driving home in the deluge. So far the whole evening has been somewhat bittersweet for him. He knows Victor is controlling her somehow and this ‘leaving before sunset’ rule is starting to get ridiculous. After all, Sarah is a grown woman. Daniel has a theory that maybe Sarah is a werewolf that turns at sunset.
“Nonsense!” he declares, laughing.
His car pulls into the driveway of his London home and this time a ‘“Sold”’ sign is posted firmly on the front lawn. Daniel ambles into the home and turns on the lights but the room is a far cry to how it was a few days ago. For a start it’s completely empty: no paintings, no ornate furniture and no grand piano. Only an armchair and a coffee table remain. He barely gives the place a second glance before marching upstairs.
The rain continues to pour down outside his bedroom window and Daniel lies in bed staring up at the ceiling. Suddenly the window flies open and lets in a lot of rain, so he rushes over and tries to shut it. The wind is unrelenting and he has to use all his strength to close it up again. He walks back to bed a little worn out and fails to notice that a swan is watching him from the tree opposite the house.
CHAPTER 19
John sits at his desk and waters an ‘African violet’ with a watering can. Bookshelves with leather-bound books and a large desk near the window decorate his study. His son sits opposite him and looks both tired and fed-up. Daniel has been summoned to the manor for a brief chat, but a brief chat in John’s mind usually means wearing down his opponent.
“So you saved the theatre?” John asks in a commanding tone.
“Yes sir, in the nick of time,” Daniel confirms.
“That just leaves Claudia.”
“What about Claudia?” Daniel asks trying to get a clearer picture.
John pushes the plant aside. “She is being neglected. And I don’t like her being neglected.”
“Why should it concern you? You don’t care about any of my relationships.”
“I care about this one! Claudia is one of us. And I don’t want her to be unhappy.”
John’s eyes are angry and his hands are shaking. Daniel watches his father and tries not to make a sound; even the sound of Daniel’s breathing seems inappropriate at this time.
“I want you to take into consideration that she is a lovely young woman and you can be very happy with her.”
“And if I don’t?” Daniel asks.
John doesn’t answer and merely pulls the plant towards him and starts to pour water over it again. That’s when Daniel decides it’s time to leave. As Daniel makes it into the garden he still reels from John’s demand but he’s distracted by the sounds of laughter and cheering. Finding this odd he ventures forth to investigate. Just round the corner from Daniel, his friends Ethan, Luke, Annabelle and Claudia are sitting by the pool and watching Hargreaves walk along the pool wall while balancing a tray on his head. Claudia holds tightly onto Ethan’s hand and enjoys the torture as much as anyone else.
Ethan yells out, “Come on, Hargreaves. Just a few more steps!”
“Yeah, Hargreaves. Just a few more!” Luke pressures.
Claudia giggles while Hargreaves struggles to maintain his balance. The butler dare not look to the side or he’ll fall like he did before. Of course no one is forcing him to do this, but Hargreaves happens to come from a long line of obedient servants for whom the guest is always right.
Ethan exploits this adage by taunting, “Hargreaves! Hargreaves!”
The others join in until...
“Hargreaves! Hargreaves! Hargreaves! Hargreaves!”
“Stop it right now!” an angry voice rings out.
They spin to see Daniel standing a few feet away and Claudia instantly lets go of Ethan’s hand. Daniel marches up to Hargreaves, throws the tray on the floor and helps him off the wall.
“Take the rest of the day off,” Daniel tells him.
Hargreaves looks at him with gratitude and answers, “Yes, yes, sir. I will.”
As soon as Hargreaves leaves Daniel turns angrily to the foursome. “You should be ashamed of yourselves! Picking on an old man!”
“The help here is excellent. Must ask your father where he hires,” Ethan replies, smirking.
This is the last straw for Daniel and he strides up to Ethan, pulls him up by his shirt and punches him. The others watch in disbelief as the once-composed young man staggers backwards and falls unceremoniously into the pool. Ethan stands up after flailing about for a couple of seconds and is instantly put in his place by Daniel’s pitiless gaze.
“By the way, this is a private residence not a public swimming pool. I expect you all to be gone in five minutes,” Daniel requests firmly.
He gives Claudia the same merciless stare he gave Ethan and promptly walks away. Realising she’s in danger of losing him, Claudia leaps from her chair and runs after him. When she catches up with Daniel she pins him against the brick wall.
“Okay, what’s wrong?” she asks in a forthright tone.
“Nothing.”
“Nothing? The instant you’re around me you want to leave and now you punch Ethan. So it’s not nothing,” Claudia remarks, stepping back.
“I already told you I’m no longer interested,” he says feebly.
“How can you say that? We’re so much alike. In fact no one is more alike than us!”
“And maybe that’s the problem. Maybe we’re too much alike. You know what they say? Opposites attract.”
“Stop this nonsense! We’re getting married and that’s final!” The tension fades and she steps forward. “I know you’re anxious, have cold feet. But once we’re married all that will pass.” She puts her hands on his face. “It really will, my love. You just have to feel it.”
To her horror, he pulls her hands away and quietly leaves through the shortcut. She hears him start his car and runs to the courtyard to stop him, but it’s too late. Daniel can sense Claudia’s rage as he drives away, but the only thing on his mind right now is getting to the theatre before 5pm.
* * *
No one in the theatre is going home anytime soon since Ian and Sarah are still dancing the penultimate act. Elizabeth’s eyes light up as she becomes more immersed in the routine.
“That’s it! Good! Now ease off a little and try...”
Sarah stumbles over Ian’s feet and Elizabeth’s face drops.
She turns to the others and shouts. “Nobody leaves this room until Ian and Sarah get it right. Five minutes.”
The other dancers glare at Sarah before they go for their break and Sarah rushes over to Elizabeth in hysterics.
“Miss Smith, I can’t stay. I have to be somewhere.”
Elizabeth sighs. “Frankly I’m getting a little tired of your excuses, Sarah.”
“But...”
“If you’re going to be part of this group you have to give one hundred percent. Not sixty-five,” her teacher explains.
Elizabeth walks away and Sarah gazes up at the clock to see it’s exactly 5 o’ clock. Sarah goes for her break like all the others and returns to rehearsal five minutes later. Elizabeth is stone-faced as are the many dancers who are prevented from leaving because of Sarah’s mistake. Miss Smith signals Ian and Sarah to start dancing and Sarah prays she won’t put a foot wrong. Her prayers are not answered as attempt after attempt ends in disaster. Elizabeth simply nods to them to start all over and Sarah and Ian try to focus on the job at hand. On the fifth attempt she glides round the hall with her partner and there’s a moment when she could trip and everyone holds their breath - but she doesn’t. The punishment ends when they miraculously complete the sequence without a single flaw.
“Better,” Elizabeth says nonchalantly. She addresses the others. “All right everyone let’s call it a day.”
The dancers disband and Sarah glances at the clock again; it’s now 6.50pm and she dips forward, when Ian catches her.
“Are you all right?” he asks her.
She turns to him with a smile and replies, “I’m fine.”
She rushes away and makes a beeline for the changing rooms. As Sarah changes out of her clothes she catches her reflection in the mirror and notices her eyes turn momentarily from brown to black. There’s no time to linger and she exits quickly into the corridor and dashes down the stairs. As she steps into the foyer she gasps and dives behind the wall, because Daniel is making his way to her. Peeking round again she sees him speaking with Felicity and she seizes her chance. All Daniel sees is Sarah zip past him.
“Can you excuse me a moment, Mrs Powell?” he says.
He runs after Sarah and Felicity mutters under her breath. “Show some dignity, sir.”
Daniel is determined to catch up and yells, “Sarah. Wait!”
Sarah continues to flee with Daniel right on her heels.
He yells again. “Will you wait for just one second?!”
Sarah ignores him and runs into a storage room where she slams and locks the door before he can enter.
“Open the door!” Daniel shouts from outside.
Once again his pleas fall on deaf ears. Sarah is standing in a room with many boxes scattered about the place, and as she steps away from the door she trips over one of the boxes.
“Go away. I can’t talk right now,” she yells as she steadies herself.
“I’m not leaving until I see you! Open the door now!”
The time of change is here and Sarah’s eyes turn black. She takes off her clothes and crumples on the floor in agony. When she looks at her hand she notices her fingers not only grow longer but clump together against her will. There’s a huge thud and Daniel kicks the door down and strides in, hHHHHHHHHH is eyes narrow when he sees her cowering in the corner.
“I’m so sorry, Daniel,” she whispers.
Sarah stands up and starts to transform into the creature; her arms and legs break and morph into different positions and feathers and wings appear. Her long black hair retracts and disappears completely, while her eyes move closer together. Those delicate feet that she controls with utmost precision now bend and twist against her will. And Sarah screams as her head compresses into a much smaller size. When the final phase completes she lets out an almighty shriek and is standing before him with her wings expanded – Daniel stares at her with his mouth open and an inability to understand. A second later, Sarah shoots into the air and flies through an open window. Daniel is completely dumbfounded by now, he shuffles over and picks up a white feather from the window ledge and utters softly,
“It’s true.”
Meanwhile, Sarah leaves the confines of the theatre and flies over the city wanting nothing more than to leave the hustle and bustle behind. She passes Big Ben as it chimes seven and edges past the London Eye. In her haste to get home she becomes lost and circles the same street three times, she shrieks when she realises she’s not getting anywhere. A few onlookers watch the strange sight of a bird gone mad and point and make comments. Sarah doubles back and reaches the markets on the other side of town. This is a cold and noisy place with smells that make her want to heave. Sarah flies through the marketplace and passes a fruit seller and her daughter who are packing away produce.
“Mum, look. She’s beautiful!” the teenager cries pointing upwards.
Her mother simply shields her eyes from the sun and declares, “She’s too far from the water.”
Sarah glides into the distance and disappears from their view.
After a lot of wrong turns she finally reaches Hope Lake. She is absolutely exhausted by now and flies so close to the water that her wings dip beneath the surface. She somehow gathers up her energy and heads for the largest tree on the far side of the lake, but she loses her momentum midway and dives head first into the tree. The only sign that Sarah is there are a few leaves that fall gently to the ground.
CHAPTER 20
Her Uncle Victor is understandably panicked when Sarah doesn’t return home. He searches the 30 mile stretch of water for her and enlists the help of all the other swans. Flocks of graceful birds search every nook and corner of the lake leaving no stone unturned. Ultimately, they don’t find her so Victor returns to the mound and waits for the change. As soon as it happens he scans the vast lake and his eyes furrow when he spots a hand protruding from under the brambles. Victor puts on his clothes and dives into the water and swims as fast as he can towards the brambles. When he reaches his niece he takes off his jacket and covers her up. Sarah opens her eyes and remembers everything, but all she can say is,
“I made a horrible mistake.”
Shortly afterwards, Victor drives his niece home like always but things have changed forever. It’s no longer just Victor and Sarah who know about the curse, someone else knows too. They arrive at the house and Sarah walks inside. Even the house seems strange to her this morning as it’s far too quiet. Sarah trudges up to her room and immediately climbs into bed. Victor knocks on her door shortly afterwards half expecting her to tell him to leave, but she doesn’t, so he walks inside and crosses to the window. He can hear her sobbing behind him but can’t even bear to look at her.
“Maybe he’ll understand?” Victor suggests gently.
“He saw me turn into a bird! He’s never going to understand,” Sarah cries out, but utters softly, “No one will.”
Victor walks up to her, saying, “You have to face him.”
“No.”
“Sarah.”
“I said no!”
“Listen to me! You have more courage than any
of your ancestors, than anyone I’ve ever known. You can do this.”
She turns away from him. Thankfully it’s a Friday which means she has the whole weekend to mull over what to say to Daniel.
While Sarah ponders an explanation, Daniel sits in his living room clutching the programme for Giselle. He doesn’t really remember driving home after seeing Sarah in the storeroom, but he remembers the creature that she turned into very well. He gazes at the dancer on the front of the programme, it isn’t even Sarah, but despite this he examines every detail in her costume and every curve on her face. He begins to shake his head fiercely before hurling the item across the room. He’s not done yet and he storms upstairs and proceeds to vent his fury on the few remaining bits of furniture. He throws the pillows, breaks a mirror and overturns the bed. When he’s finished he sits on the floor in utter despair. He can hear the birds tweeting outside his window and covers up his ears until he can’t hear a thing.
Claudia is just as distraught as Daniel is. There are no programmes to throw but if there were she would definitely hurl them. Right now she sits on the sofa opposite John and waits for him to say something comforting, but so far he hasn’t uttered a word. They stare at each other, knowing they each have failed when they’re distracted by a servant setting down a tray full of cakes.
“Try the lemon cake. It’s delicious,” John finally suggests.
She shoots him a disapproving look.
“Did you come here for a reason?” he asks for the second time in as many weeks.
“It didn’t work! He’s still going after that harlot!”
“Maybe he loves her?” John replies knowing that this is certain to annoy her.
Her eyes narrow. “Don’t toy with me, sir. We both know what’ll happen if Daniel refuses to marry me.”
“I also know that I don’t like being threatened, young lady.”
Claudia calms a little. “This is all your fault! If you hadn’t bought him that stupid theatre.”
