Share
Chapter 55
Related chapters
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 56: Charlotte, taking small steps on a new road
Lieutenant Bain became a regular visitor, knocking on the manse door every afternoon and staying for at least two hours. His quiet presence wrought a slow transformation upon Reverend Mason that began the day we cornered the Turned in the orchard. The reverend began to answer, and the lieutenant no longer had to keep up a steady monologue. Simple, single word answers at first, then one day a snatch of conversation.Over a period of days, Mr Mason returned to the world around him. Like a sleeper emerging from an overlong slumber he rubbed his eyes and stretched. His thought processes were still somewhat muddled and his words confused, but he climbed out of his isolation and took stock of his surroundings.Mr Mason even visited the barber for both a shave and a long overdue haircut. His frame was too thin for such a large man, but the warmth and intelligence returned to his gaze. He still spent hours in his study, but now it was poring over old books and scribbling notes that he discusse
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 57: Ella, hot jazz and land ships
Seth took me to what he called a nightclub. It seemed so frivolous to spend a night dancing at such a time. We now knew that Crowley not only started the pandemic but planned to rouse Millicent. We should hurry back to Somerset and find out all we could about the witch. Instead of contemplating digging up Seth's ancestor to confirm her death, I was wearing a gorgeous gown and drinking champagne.Our destination was a playground for the wealthy and popular, housed below street level in a vibrant part of London. People jostled on the pavement as the motorcar stopped. As I stepped from the car, a flash went off in my face and I turned away, blinded for a moment."Blasted reporters," Seth said as he took my elbow and guided me across the pavement. "We'll be in tomorrow's paper unless something more exciting happens tonight."My heart tightened at the thought of our picture in the newspaper. We would be publicly linked. My vision returned to normal and we took the steps leading down. Two
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 58: Ella, embarking on a witch hunt
We arrived back at the farm early afternoon. I barely had time to kiss Father's cheek before I climbed the stairs and headed straight for bed. I drew my curtains, peeled off my clothes, and crept between fresh sheets. Sleep claimed me eagerly and didn't relinquish its hold for fifteen hours.The next morning I awoke refreshed, and Alice and I took the cart to Serenity House. Seth waited in his study, dressed for riding. He stood next to the large table, studying the battlefield. While there was much to admire about a commanding man in jodhpurs and tall boots, still my heart sank.He turned on hearing my light tread and smiled. "We can't put it off, Ella. We both know what we need to do." He held out a hand to me.No we couldn't put it off, but I could grumble about it. Which I did all the way out to the courtyard. Two horses with gleaming coats waited for us. Attached behind their saddles were hurricane lamps, coils of rope, and a crowbar. It looked more like we were going on a mountai
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 59: Charlotte, things lost and found
Even as the wound on my arm healed, I continued to scratch my skin. The angry red line itched and I worried at it, waiting for my pulse to slow and then stop as I became one of them. In the days that followed finding that horrid thing in the backyard, the scratch it had left?oozed.Lieutenant Bain?David?came every day to change the dressing. A noxious black substance stuck to the cotton as though my body repelled some poison. He never once showed any revulsion at the task he undertook or the foul odour that clung to the bandage.David's gentle friendship was so at odds with everything I knew that it did something mother's cruel words used to do. It drove me to tears. At night I sobbed into my pillow, trying to grasp that he might genuinely like me.From the day I was born, I knew only criticism. It was a constant disappointment to my mother that I wasn't as beautiful, poised, or talented as either her or Louise. Every single day of my life I had been judged and found wanting. Until now
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 60: Ella, weaving together the web
Lieutenant Bain excused himself to help Charlotte with the washing up. He stacked the laden trays and left the library humming ?It's a long way to Tipperary,?and I briefly wondered if he was thinking of the sweetest girl he knew. As the library door snicked shut, my mind returned to the issue of witches. I digested the new information and then grasped a tenuous strand of spun silk. The web began to make a pattern I could discern, and this particular fibre could hold the missing patch in a larger question.I turned to Reverend Mason, the idea still spinning in my head. "Are you able to trace genealogies?"His eyes lit up and he rubbed his hands together. "Of course. Nothing the clergy likes better than to keep records of births, marriages and deaths. Or hatched, matched, and dispatched, as we say. What did you have in mind?""Sarah Wynn and Anne Oakley, can you trace their maternal lines to the current generation?" A persistent niggle in my mind refused to go away. How did Elizabeth
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 61: Ella, the search continues
Seth dismissed the men for the evening and he suggested I freshen up in the room set aside for my use. I didn't even offer token resistance. Not when there was the lure of modern luxuries like hot running water and electric lights. I discarded the sixteenth century and embraced the twentieth. After shedding my dusty clothes, I filled the green tiled bathroom with steam, poured a little fragrant oil into the bath, and then sank into the water.I closed my eyes and let my mind unwind. We were so close to answers. Yes, I was disappointed not to find Millicent recumbent on her bed, awaiting a kiss from her demonic prince. But she was near. She chose this particular spot for the house for a reason. Fae paths and ley lines ran under our feet. The ancient catacombs criss-crossed this land. Events were set in motion hundreds of years before, but we would stop her from spreading her plague.An hour later I was freshly scrubbed, scented, and wearing a clean dress. I headed downstairs to the li
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 62: Charlotte, a day of revelations
I sat at the kitchen table with my feet up on the opposite chair, relaxing after another busy day. I had tackled preserving with the last of the autumn peaches. A half dozen glass jars sat on the bench, and I couldn't put them away in the larder just yet. The skinned fruit were like jewels, their rich golden colour contained by the juice that would keep them from spoiling over winter.I allowed myself a moment of pride at another task conquered. I basked in the sense of accomplishment, silly perhaps, but there had been so few such instances in my life. With the dishes done and the kitchen tidied away for another day, silence settled over the house as darkness fell. I idly flicked through a recipe book, considering my options for tomorrow's dinner, when the hall door swung open and Reverend Mason appeared."Ah, Charlotte," he said.I dropped my feet to the ground and sat a little taller in my chair. "Yes, Mr Mason, do you require something?"A kind smile crinkled the corners of his
Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 63: Ella, a game of cat and mouse
An early start was nothing new to me, although once it meant labouring to ensure the house was perfect before step-mother's feet touched the bedroom rug. Today I crept out the kitchen door in the half-light to climb into Seth's motorcar for a strange journey. I would protect one step-sister and ensure the other stayed incarcerated. Let's hope the War Office didn't get the two confused.It was a short trip to our tiny train station. The dark green engine awaited us already, a steady plume spiralling up from its funnel. The train had two carriages hooked up behind it. One was for passengers, with large windows for watching the scenery chug by. The other looked like a metal box, devoid of any windows or source of light. Steel bands reinforced its sides and an armed guard stood at its single door.My curiosity was piqued. I frowned at Seth and indicated the armoured carriage with my head.He glanced at the secure carriage and then shrugged. "No doubt something the War Office wants to ke
Latest chapter
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 90
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 89
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 88
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 87
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 86
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 85
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 84
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 83
- Serenity House: Ella's Journey Chapter 82
