‘Are you in trouble then?’ he frowned.
When am I not in trouble? Olivia thought dryly. ‘It’s complicated,’ she answered with a sigh.
‘I wish you could both trust me,’ he sighed.
‘It’s not so much a question of trust’ Olivia told him softly, feeling bad for the guy who was obviously trying real hard to understand the situation they had all landed in the middle of. Deciding to take a little leap of faith she pulled in a deep breath. Her gut was telling her she could trust this man and so far, her gut had not steered her wrong.
‘James,’ she spoke quietly, ‘I come from a different time, from a time far into your future.’
‘I know,’ he nodded.
‘You do?’ she replied with some surprise.
He nodded again, seemingly organizing his thoughts before speaking once more.
‘Emmy saw a great many things. At the time not all of it made sense but I have not forgotten a single word she breathed to me, especially when it concerned Theo. Not only that but I have my own limited gifts when it comes to foretelling.’
‘How much exactly do you know about me?’ she asked curiously.
‘I know you come from a time and place many, many years from now. I know that you have been betrayed by your own blood and that a great evil overshadows you. It is hunting you because you have a great destiny. There is something important you have to do and it can only be you. Theo is deeply entwined in that destiny.’
‘I see,’ she murmured as she watched him.
‘I also know that you hold fire of deep lavender in your hands and yet it does not burn you; the fire is more an extension of you than an outside force.’
That was interesting, Olivia thought. Twice now he had referred to her wielding a lavender colored fire, but that was not one of her abilities. She could call forth Earth fire, the easiest fire there was as it was part of the mortal world. It was gold and red and filled with warmth. She could also call Spirit fire which was a cool silver flame and which carried with it the sense of thousands of souls. She was also able to summon Hell fire of deep sapphire blue flames edged in jet black. Vast and all-encompassing it was as seductive as it was powerful and carried with it the weight of thousands upon thousands of years. Perhaps in time the strange purple fire would be another skill she would add to her abilities.
‘You seem to know much about me James.’
‘You can trust me,’ his mouth curved with an amused smile.
His expression was suddenly so familiar a sneaking suspicion began to grow in her mind.
‘Can I?’
‘An exchange of secrets then,’ he offered, ‘so you will feel less vulnerable. You may ask me anything at all and I will answer truthfully.’
‘Alright then,’ she tilted her head slightly as she watched him, ‘what exactly is your ability? Your magical ability I mean?’
‘It’s hard to put into words,’ he frowned thoughtfully. ‘I feel the Earth; I am at one with it.’
He seemed to struggle explaining to her what he was able to do and she wasn’t surprised. Other than Theo’s mother, he’d probably never discussed it with another living soul.
‘I can sense its change of mood,’ he continued, ‘I can nurture it or change it, or even move it.’
‘I see,’ she nodded in understanding, ‘your element is Earth.’
‘Element?’
‘There are five elements that make up all of creation,’ she told him, ‘Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Spirit. In magic it is possible to call upon all five elements but certain people have a very strong affinity for one element in particular. My element is Fire, I understand it, I can control it and it is a part of me, a part of who I am. You have a very strong affinity for Earth, it is a part of you.’
‘Yes that is it exactly,’ he answered, relived that she seemed to understand.
He looked back at the road, scanning his surroundings.
‘We’ll come upon the village soon,’ he told her. ‘I will introduce you as my niece, the daughter of my sister Ann and her husband Thomas Wardwell. They left Salem after they married and moved to Plymouth where his people are from. It was so long ago I doubt anyone will question us, although it’s probably best if we tell them you are married and that your husband is away. It would not be seemly to have a young unmarried woman in my household, even if she is my niece. We need a name for your fictional husband.’
Olivia frowned thoughtfully as she searched back through her memory turning over the historical facts and lists, trying to come up with a name that would not sound out of place.
‘How about Oldham?’
‘Very well then I’ll introduce you as Olivia Oldham.’
‘You’d better introduce me as Livy Oldham’ she frowned, ‘it’s probably best that no one here knows me by the name Olivia.’
‘Is there someone in particular you wish to avoid hearing that name?’
‘You are too astute,’ she replied as if musing to herself. ‘How much do you know about the cleric known as Nathaniel.’
‘I know enough to avoid him whenever possible,’ he scoffed as he noted the serious expression on Olivia’s face. ‘I have sensed great darkness in him, in truth I have tried not to place myself in his path if I can help it. He is not what he seems.’
‘No he is not,’ she agreed.
‘You know what he is don’t you?’ his eyes narrowed.
‘I know enough to know you should continue to avoid him,’ her jaw tightened.
‘Is he a danger to you?’ James frowned.
‘Let’s just say I would prefer not to announce my presence to him.’
‘Very well,’ he nodded.
Before long buildings started to come into view, tall and rectangular, some of reddened wood, others with dark wood clapboards and pitched roofs. A few were lower, more squat and probably only one level. The noise level began to build and now the peaceful afternoon air was filled with the chatter of villagers, the laughter of children and the insistent squawk of a battery of hens wandering aimlessly.
‘I see Corey’s hens have gotten loose again’ James chuckled, ‘I told him to shore up his fence.’
Olivia glanced around and saw most of the houses had simple wattle fences which came up to maybe waist height, bordering off their plot of land. Children ran the dusty worn paths under the stern eye of the other residents. James navigated the narrow paths skillfully, slowing his pace to a safer crawl as the children laughed and chased the wagon.
They finally came to a stop beside a low fence, beyond which was a pretty little wild flower garden and a taller rectangular house. Clearly a two storey house which spoke of wealth, it had a steeply pitched roof and dark wood clapboards. The windows were glass reinforced with thick black metal strips in a recurring diamond shape pattern. To the side stood a small wooden shed with a broad overhang, beneath it were stacks of neatly chopped firewood.
James climbed down from the wagon and tethered the reins to the fencepost before reaching up to help Olivia down. He turned in the direction of the house and she followed him hands folded neatly at her waist, her eyes demurely cast downwards. She had a part to play now as she had to make sure no one suspected that she didn’t belong there.
James knocked firmly at the door and waited patiently as it creaked open slowly. A young house servant, a girl of perhaps fourteen answered the door, staring silently at them both with wide eyes.
‘Good afternoon,’ James smiled, ‘I am here to see your master girl. Be so good as to fetch him.’
She curtsied and disappeared and a few moments later a tall man in his late thirties appeared. He was dressed soberly in a dark colored coat, his lank brown hair hanging to his shoulders.
‘Ah James there you are,’ he nodded, ‘come in.’
He stepped back allowing them to pass, his gaze landing with interest on Olivia.
‘I apologize for the absence of my wife, but Elizabeth is at present unwell and
not receiving visitors.’
‘I am sorry to hear that,’ James nodded, ‘I shall pray for her swift recovery.’
‘You are too kind’ Samuel responded, ‘I don’t believe you met the children last time.’
‘No I have not yet had that pleasure.’
‘My children Thomas and Betty,’ he indicated towards three young children playing in front of the fireplace. ‘The other girl is my niece Abigail Williams.’
Olivia glanced over at the three children playing happily on the ground in front of the huge open fireplace, where a fire burned cheerily. They seemed to be playing some kind of game which involved a wooden board with pegs in it. Small clay marbles were scattered on the floor next to them and in amongst them were small wooden objects which looked a lot like jacks. It was incredible really Olivia thought, three hundred years separating her generation and theirs and yet they still grew up playing the same games.
She turned her attention to the children themselves. The boy was a sweet little thing with chubby cheeks and dark wavy hair and couldn’t have been more than four years old, but it was the girls who had really piqued her curiosity. Abigail Williams and Betty Parris were two of the names most synonymous with the infamous witch trials. It was their accusations which led to the arrest of Tituba, Sarah Good and Sarah Osbourne in February of 1692. Her gaze narrowed as she studied them both. The older one, Samuel’s niece Abigail was about five years old and the younger Betty who was his daughter was maybe three years old. They looked so sweet, so innocent, it was hard to believe that in a mere seven years’ time their accusations and spiteful theatrics would set in motion a chain of events which would lead to so many innocents being condemned to death.
‘Perhaps you’d like to introduce your companion?’ Samuel suggested pointedly.
‘Beg your pardon,’ James inclined his head lightly, ‘this is my niece Livy Oldham the daughter of my sister Ann, she hails from Boston. Her husband has recently sailed aboard ‘The Deliverance’ bound for the West Indies and in his absence Livy has come to visit to satisfy her curiosity about the Orchard.’
‘Well, you are gaining a reputation for quality I’ll admit,’ he conceded grudgingly before glancing at Olivia. ‘You have no children of your own yet Goody Oldham?’
‘No Sir,’ she replied quietly, ‘my husband is often away for long periods of time. We have not yet been blessed with the joy of a child.’
‘It is not just a joy but a sacred duty,’ he replied solemnly.
‘As you say,’ she agreed contritely, ‘I pray that I will be judged worthy of such a duty.’
He nodded, somewhat mollified by her answer and her deference.
‘So James you have brought the Cider I requested?’
‘I have,’ he answered easily. ‘I brought your usual cider and two casks of applejack but I have also brought a gift. A new flavor of cider I have been working on.’
‘New you say?’ he huffed.
‘Aye, apple and peach. It has been well received by the folks who’ve already tried it. Perhaps your wife may care to sample it, it has a sweet and pleasing flavor.’
‘Maybe,’ he shrugged, ‘you’ll be wanting some help to unload then?’
‘I can manage.’
‘Nonsense,’ he turned towards the back of the room to the open doorway. ‘JOHN!’ he bellowed, loud enough that the small boy Thomas flinched.
A few moments later a tall dark skinned man stepped into the room, so tall and broad he almost filled the entire doorway.
‘Sir?’ his voice was a deep and pleasing rumble.
‘Where are Tituba and Rebecca?’
‘You wish I fetch them?’ his voice was a rich baritone filled with a thick island accent.
Olivia cast her mind back to her history books. This must be John Indian, Tituba’s companion and the only other slave Samuel Parris had brought back from his failed plantation in Barbados. She could not seem to recall the name Rebecca though, perhaps she was a house servant borrowed from a neighbor whilst Elizabeth Parris was abed ill.
‘Yes… yes,’ Samuel snapped irritably, ‘and be quick about it.’
John nodded and disappeared from the room. They stood in silence for a moment and then the young girl of fourteen scurried in followed by a taller slim dark skinned woman. Her wild raven black hair was tamed beneath a demure coif and she wore the clothes of a proper puritan woman but it did not mask her exotic beauty. As she entered the room her eyes flickered to Olivia, pausing for the barest of moments before she lowered them again. Olivia almost sucked in an audible breath with the punch of power that hit her. James hadn’t been wrong when he said he’d felt the edges of her power when he’d been in close proximity to her.
‘Rebecca take the children upstairs; Tituba clean up their mess. John you come with us,’ Samuel barked orders before turning back to James. ‘You can tell John here which casks to take, then we can retire to the study and settle up with coin.’
‘Of course,’ James inclined his head.
Olivia stepped to the side allowing the three men to pass. Samuel swept imperiously from the room. A man used to power and privilege he did not give Olivia a second glance. The man was an absolute prick, Olivia thought to herself as she bit her tongue. She knew that his personality and conduct were very typical of his time but it still didn’t change the fact that she instantly disliked the man.
The girl named Rebecca scooped the children from the floor and ushered them nervously from the room. Olivia turned her attention to the fireplace where Tituba was kneeling picking up the children’s discarded playthings, avoiding Olivia’s gaze. Checking that they were indeed alone Olivia hurried across the room and dropped down in front of the beautiful slave woman.
‘Tituba?’ Olivia whispered, ‘I need your help.’
Tituba ignored her and continued to pick up the clay marbles, dropping them into a small cloth sack.
‘Tituba please,’ Olivia tried again.
‘You not supposed to speak with I,’ she glanced up at Olivia. Her eyes were a startling ocean blue and the longer Olivia stared into them the more she could have sworn she heard the hiss and roar of the waves breaking upon the shore. ‘Go and wait for Mister Wilkins otherwise risk discovery and bring punishment.’
‘Tituba I am not trying to get you into trouble with your master,’ Olivia whispered, ‘but I need your help, please…my friend is dying.’
‘Then that is a matter for your God,’ her voice held the same musical lilt of the islands as her companion John.
‘It is not as simple as that, he has a fever that won’t break. There is nothing else we can do and he is too important to leave his survival in the hands of fate,’ Olivia reached out and grabbed her hand and felt a jolt of power sear up her arm. ‘I swear I mean you no harm but I cannot save him alone. I need your help…please.’
A sudden intrusion of voices had them both pulling apart and standing abruptly. Olivia moved back a distance, watching warily as James re-entered the room followed by Samuel.
‘Come Livy,’ James indicated for her to follow, ‘we have taken enough of Goodman Parris’ time.’
Olivia moved to stand at James’ side obediently but she risked a brief glance at Tituba who was watching her with troubled eyes. There was no way she hadn’t felt the jolt of power when she’d grasped her arm.
‘Samuel,’ James nodded as he stepped out of the main door back into the garden. Olivia bobbed in a small curtsy and followed, feeling Samuel Parris’ eyes boring into her back.
James kept his silence until they reached the wagon and glanced around warily to make sure they would not be overheard.
‘Did you speak with her?’ he asked in a hushed whisper.
Olivia nodded, her brow curved into a frown. ‘I don’t know that it did any good, she’s afraid of exposing herself.’
‘Do you think she will help?’
‘I just don’t know,’ she shook her head.
‘Well th
en I suppose all we can do is wait and hope,’ he told her softly. ‘Come, I have a few more casks to deliver and then we shall return and pray that your friend’s fever has broken.’
It took another few hours before they were once again on the worn path traveling back towards James’ home. For the most part they journeyed in silence, each lost in troubled thoughts. The sky burned in wild slashes of pink and purple as the sun descended slowly towards the horizon and by the time the wagon came to a stop in front of the house the brightly blazing sky had given way to the dark curtain of night, filled with tiny pinpricks of starlight. James jumped down from the wagon and reached up, grasping Olivia around the waist to lower her gently to the dusty ground.
As they walked to the door it swung open abruptly and Theo stepped out, pulling Olivia roughly into his arms. She smiled as her arms snaked around his waist holding him in return and breathing in the warm comforting scent of him.
‘Are you alright?’ he pulled back suddenly, holding her face gently in his hands, his gaze running over her body as if checking for injury.
‘I’m fine Theo,’ she smiled softly as she cupped his hand against her face. ‘James took good care of me.’
Theo looked up at James, his gaze losing a little of the mistrust as he nodded at him.
‘What about Sam? Olivia asked, ‘has his fever broken yet?’
Theo stared down at Olivia, the tension in his jaw tight and visible.
‘What?’ she asked worriedly sensing his change of mood, ‘what is it?’
His eyes when they locked back on hers were dark and filled with concern. ‘There’s something you should see.’
She took his hand and hurried into the house. Hoisting her skirts as she climbed up the ladder to the loft she settled down beside Sam. His body was wracked with deep shudders, his shirt clung to his skin and was soaked through with sweat. Olivia cupped his face gently and turned his head towards her. A startled gasp escaped her lips as she took in his appearance. Deep winding veins of a sickly green color spread from his throat, past his jaw and crawled like vines across his cheek. His eyes were now open but unseeing, the whites of his eyes riddled with the same sickly green veins.
The Guardians Complete Series 1 Box Set: Contains Mercy, The Ferryman, Crossroads, Witchfinder, Infernum Page 126
