by Emily Sharp
Glancing over, there was enough light to soak in the beauty beside her. Adara was looking at the screen, her brown eyes bright, the smile on her face wide. That is what Louise wanted, to be alive, to feel things like Adara did. To see the world through such innocent eyes. Many times, like now, Louise wondered what it would be like to kiss her plump lips, which were a rose red without the help of lipstick. Or run her hand across her smooth skin, let her lips press a kiss upon her breast. Then she would gaze at herself in the mirror and realize that would never happen.
But, if she married her, she would not be alone. Being alone is what scared her the most, and why she paid her staff far more than they would make anywhere else. It was why they stayed and why Adara would as well. And contrary to the notions Adara held, money triumphed love.
Taking a drink from her straw, she set the cup back in the holder, her breath catching in her throat as Adara’s arm brushed her own forearm, the skin smooth. A heat, a desire, ran through her body, feelings that had burned out long ago along with the blaze that had disfigured her, now suddenly back.
Louise turned, and Adara looked at her for a moment, a smile on her face, those brown eyes calling out to Louise, wanting her to join her on the adventure of life. The thought of it excited Louise for a brief moment, but the reality of having to stay here in the castle came back, extinguish the dream rather quickly.
As Adara turned back and watched the screen, Louise allowed herself to let her eyes roam down the shirt Adara wore, the opening of the blouse exposing the large swell of her breasts. After giving her the credit card, she at first thought Adara would not buy anything. But two weeks later she had ordered quite a few clothes for herself. And for Sofia. The idea still angered her, for she wanted Adara's sole attention. But in fear of upsetting her, she had let it go.
“That was a lovely movie. Did you enjoy it?” Adara asked, breaking Louise from her thoughts. She focused on the screen, the credits rolling.
“Indeed, it was,” Louise said, standing up. She turned as Adara rose as elegant as the princess title she had given her.
“What do you require me to do next?”
“You are a princess, you tell me.”
Adara leaned over and grabbed her drink, and Louise allowed her eyes to roam over the shapely and firm body again.
“No reason to break the routine. Let’s head out to the gazebo so you can propose to me,” Adara said, her voice light and cheerful.
With a nod of her head, Louise walked over and headed out the door, going out into the hallway. They walked in silence and soon found themselves outside. It was past nine, and the sun had long been down, but the stars once again were covering the sky, like a black blanket above them, their friend, the moon, hidden behind it.
“When did you realize you were beautiful?” Louise asked, her hands clasped behind her back as they strolled down the path, their footsteps unhurried.
“My parents always told me from a young age that I was. And then when I was twelve or thirteen, I began getting looks from other people. By the time I was eighteen, right around the time my father lost everything, it had become apparent. Both women and men sought my attention.”
Louise smiled. “When you came to me three months ago, your answers were not as sharp nor direct.”
“You disapprove?”
“To the contrary. I am impressed. You speak what you know to be true.”
“Some, though, may see it as conceited. I am not vain, but I am blessed to be considered beautiful,” Adara said as they took another path, this one leading to the flowers that were still managing to hold on.
“I would agree. Although your beauty gives you every right to be vain, you are not. And as you realize, you are truly gifted in that area.”
Adara had stopped walking, and turning around, Louise looked at her.
“I am more than looks. Though I have not gone to college, I considered myself educated and have always loved to read.”
“My apologies for the way that came out. I understand you are more than just looks,” Louise said, worrying she had hurt her. Then the shock that ran through her from her own thoughts scared her. Why was she worried what this woman thought or felt? Shaking her head, she saw a small smile come to Adara's lips. “Every night we come to this gazebo,” Louise said a few minutes later as she took the few steps up to it. “And every night you reject me. But as you said earlier, it is a tradition, and I will not break it.” Louise turned around, and watched as Adara leaned against a post, the slight breeze in the air gently moving her hair about. As she soaked in her beauty, Loise pulled out a small box and opened it, the gold band holding a diamond that cost a small fortune.
“My Beauty, enchant me every day forever with your presence,” Louise said.
As she did every night, Adara shook her head. “I must regretfully decline your proposal.”
Louise nodded, slipping the ring back inside her jeans. Walking over to the opposite post from where Adara stood, her back to Beauty, she let her eyes run across the sky.
“What will the woman be like who takes you away from me one day?”
There was no reply, only silence, the only sound coming from the faint buzzing of electricity that ran to the grounds. Not being able to stand the silence any longer, Louise went to leave but stopped, hearing the voice of the angel come to her.
“She will be a woman who is my friend and confidante. One who not only loves me but others. A woman who dares to try new things, and yet is happy doing the same things. One I can talk to no matter if it’s about something as casual as the weather or as deep as what is in my heart. That woman is the one who will one day capture my heart.”
Louise nodded. “And after all your searching and you do not find such a woman, then what? Will you return to me then?”
“I will not have to search, for the woman will come my way. I feel—no, that is not the right word—I know she will come to me in some way. Her path will cross mine, whether at a store or some other way of bumping into each other. And once our paths cross, she will whisk me away to live a life of love.”
Though small jabs of anger pierced at Louise's heart, she held it back. There was still time to convince Adara to stay, and though the nights were getting cooler and fall and winter nearer, it would not be until the next summer when the beauty would be leaving.
If she could convince her to stay, then Louise’s fear of being alone would go away. She thought about Adara's words for a few minutes, then turned around. Adara had her back leaned against the post, her arms crossed over her chest as she gazed far out into the distance. To know what that woman saw, and more importantly, what she felt consumed Louise.
“I want to be your friend,” Louise blurted out, then felt foolish for saying as much.
Adara turned her head, an eyebrow raised. “Why?”
“Why not?”
She watched as Adara sighed, her hands leaving her chest and now going inside the pockets of her jeans. Moving one leg back, she rested it against the post while looking ahead.
“I am here as your employee, nothing else. You do not want a friend, you want someone to justify your spending on. You cannot buy my friendship.”
Louise nodded. “You are right. Then teach me how to be a friend.”
Adara turned her head back to her, a single eyebrow raised yet again. “Are you serious? This is not another lesson for me to learn?”
Louise walked forward, her hair pulled back and flowing behind her. How she wanted to keep walking and not stop until Beauty put her arms around her and held her. But she did stop a few feet away, not wanting to break the flow of conversation.
“No games, no lessons to be learned. I see how you joke around with Sofia, how you get her to smile. Show me how you do this. I ask…sincerely.”
Adara pushed back against the post and turned around to face her. “Fine then. Will you give me a raise?”
“You already have all the money you could ever want. Why would you need a raise?”
Louise nodded. “Done.” Walking past Beauty, she came to the steps. At this point in time her next request was always shot down, but tradition required she ask.
“I am going to stroll around my gardens. Would you care to join me?”
And she felt joy in her heart for the first time in a long time upon hearing her reply.
“Sure.”
***
“And when the relationship ended with Emma, that was pretty much my last friend and connection to that part of my life. Living here for the last three years, so far secluded from everyone, I was too busy looking after my two sisters and my dad to have time to make any new friends. Or meet someone special,” Adara said as they walked along the path that led to the outer boundaries of the gardens.
“Interesting story. And your sisters? You told me before they ran off with men they met online for comfort, is that right?”
Adara laughed. “You could call it that. The truth is they are spreading their legs and living a luxurious life for doing so. They certainly don't love the men, but if that is what they desire, then so be it.”
Louise smiled. “Again you speak to the point. Your sisters spread their legs for money.”
“Well, I didn't mean…” Adara started to say, but Louise cut her off by raising her hand. She saw the frustration in Adara's face, and though she was being hard on the woman, Louise could not allow her to forget her place.
Continuing their walk, the path in front of them came to a row of hedges, cut so they stood only about four feet in height. The vast mountain range lay out far in the distance, running across the horizon, the moon highlighting its peaks a majestic sight to behold.
“I often come out here to look at those mountains, wondering how much they have seen throughout time. And then I wonder what lies beyond them. Who is living out there? What are they doing?”
Adara turned to her. “You have to leave this place to find out.”
“That will never happen,” Louise said, the thought of doing so terrifying her.
Adara turned back, looking out in front of them. “Why not?”
“Because this is my castle. Here I am safe from the outside world.”
“No harm would come to you out there. Your bodyguards alone would protect you from any harm.”
“From physical harm, I have no doubt. The looks and words of others, however, they cannot prevent.”
Adara turned back toward her. “Some would look at you, or say cruel things, but you can’t let that stop you from leaving this place.”
Louise sighed as she grew impatient. “This is my castle.”
“It has become your jail.”
Shaking her head in frustration, Louise watched as Adara walked a few feet over, then leaned against the hedge. Her eyes roamed over Beauty, who was so confident in her words.
“Easy for you to say. Your beauty receives looks and admiration. I own a modeling agency, and I could put you in it tomorrow and you would have millions of fans. Or I could have you represent my cosmetic company, and then you would be the face for beauty,” Louise said, then laughed. “Yes, a new line. ‘Beauty’, that is what I would call it, named after the woman in front of me.”
“I could have that, but I don't want it,” Adara said, her voice sweet.
“But I do! I had it all at one time. My photo in every magazine. News interviews, the fans, and it is all gone!” Louise said, her voice rising, while her heart raced. She did have it all, until the fire.
“And if you could have it back, then what?”
“What do you mean? How can I have it all back?” Louise asked, her hand coming to her hip.
“Think of it as a game. Pretend that tomorrow you have it all back. Then what? How would life be different?”
Dropping her hand, she walked over to Adara, standing a hand’s width away. “Because people could look at me and not be repulsed. That is what I desire and that is what could be different,” Louise said, peering into the brown eyes in front of her. “But you, oh, how you have it all, a face any painter would love to transfer to canvas, that a poet would write about. And you waste it away hoping someday you will meet the right person.”
“And by you staying confined here in these walls, you never will. One day you will meet a woman who catches your eye, and yes, she will stay with you because of what you can buy her. But at night, as she lays next to you, her arm around you, how are you going to feel knowing it’s because it is the money and not love that keeps her there?”
Louise stepped back, the realization of the words striking her hard. Her stomach hurt as her mind raced. She was angry at Adara's words because she knew them to be true. But she did not have to like them. “Enough of this foolish talk. Tell me more about your life before moving out here,” she said, as they continued walking along.
Adara went to speak, and then Louise brought her hand up, a loud noise suddenly greeting them, her arm blocking the light from the helicopter that appeared above them. “No! No!” she screamed as she fell to the ground. A moment later, Adara was beside her, their hair being thrown about from the wind the blades created.
“Louise! What is wrong?” Adara cried out from her knees next to her.
“They are after my photo,” Louise sobbed. “Do not let them get it!”
Adara pulled her into her, the gentle arms enveloping Louise’s body as her intercom squawked, voices of her security team calling out orders to one another.
“It’s OK. I am here,” Adara said, letting Louise sob into her shoulder as she put herself between Louise and the helicopter. Louise's greatest fear was of someone seeing her and managing to get a photo so the world saw her. If that happened, she would not be able to continue living.
“Don't let them see me,” she cried out, holding on tight to Adara.
“I won’t let them. You are safe. No one will hurt you.”
Louise heard the yells, and then the floodlights came on from atop the castle, the helicopter now leaving, the wind dying down. Still sobbing, Louise found her breath again as her lungs opened up, the cool night air refreshing.
With tears in her eyes, she pulled back and looked at Adara, the soft brown eyes kind, the face beautiful and looking concerned. Then Adara moved her hand up and pushed a few locks of Louise's hair behind her ear.
“They are gone. You are safe now,” she whispered, her voice soothing.
Reluctantly, Louise pulled her hands away and wiped at her eyes, yet Adara did not stop looking at her, and the safe, comforting embrace was still around her.
“Why did you…protect me?”
The concerned look on Adara's face disappeared, the soft eyes no longer worried but now lit up as she smiled.
“Because that is what friends do.”
Chapter Nine
The flowers were dead.
A cold front had come in the night before and the last remaining flowers had given up their last breath. Adara sipped her coffee as she looked out her bedroom window and across the now bland gardens. It was mid-October and having been in the castle for four months, she was beginning to go a little cabin-crazy. And she missed her father dearly.
His letters came every two weeks without fail, letting her know that he was happy and looking forward to seeing her once her job was up. With promises from Louise that he would advance and command the shipping company in the future if he continued his hard work, his words on the page were filled with joy. Adara wished she could be there to see his rejoicing and share it with him. But she was going to be here for a while.
Playing with the cup in her hand, she had a sudden urge to go back to the cabin they had lived in. To watch the deer that greeted her every morning. To have nothing and be truly happy was far better than having everything money could buy and being sorrowful.
With Louise's constant urging, Adara had bought more clothes, a television for her room, and other items that she really did not need or care for. Antique vases, old books
, the items all expensive and a sight to behold, but there was no joy in buying them. It was a process much like the friendship they had formed.
After the night with the helicopter, Louise refused to talk about it when Adara brought it up. Letting the matter go, she spent the usual time every day with her, talking, strolling around the gardens, or inside the castle when the rain outside was too heavy. Adara tried to make the woman see that a friendship worked both ways, and it seemed like the Louise was finally taking it to heart.
Setting her coffee down, she opened her diary and began to write.
“What has started off as a strict business arrangement has actually become a friendship of sorts, though I still can’t shake the nagging feeling it’s all a ruse. Over the course of the last six weeks, we have shopped online together, talked for untold hours, and even opened up a little to each other. Do I consider her a friend? By all outward accounts, we are. But I have to admit, I could call her a friend at this point, though with some hesitancy.”
Letting out a sigh, she set the diary back down and rose up from the bay window seat, right as a knock came to her door.
“Yes?” she called out.
The door opened and Louise stood there, her hands clasped in front of her. Adara smiled, looking at her outfit, which consisted of a pair of jeans and a red sweater. It was an outfit they had picked out together, and with Adara's urging, Louise had bought it.
“Good morning. I was wondering if I could enlist your help?” Louise said.
Adara reached for her coffee. “Sure, what do you need?”
“The game room, I want to add some things to it and need your opinion.”
Taking a drink from the mug, she set it back down. Anything was better than another walk. “Sure, I would love to.”
They left the room, and going to the staircase, Adara noticed that Louise's hair was still pulled back. At times she would still let it hang around her face, but when she was in a bad mood, her hair covered it completely.
