Undying (10 page)

“Victoria, Charles Barton is not and never will be my friend. His older brother, Mark…was.” Jonathon eyes were now full of sadness
.

“Mark fell ill last winter, and being clearly aware of his brothers unpleasing character, he made me swear to keep an eye on him. To replace Mark as brother figure in a manner of speaking. I feel accountable that a request from my dearest friend, a dying wish, is now impossible to keep. It seems both Charles and I have fallen deeply for you,” he confessed
.

“Jonathon,” I whispered, not believing what I was hearing
.

“You will be mine for eternity and I will never leave your side. I will love you until the end of time Victoria. Marry me?

My writing was interrupted by footsteps outside my door.

“Knock, knock!” Jules’s voice sang from my door.

“Come in…” I yelled, packing my laptop away.

“I just could not get back any earlier to see you. And I might add, neither could Mr Kemp. Well not to see you though, just to get back. And I suppose just as well because Mr Barclay was waiting for him…”

“What?” I interrupted Jules mid-sentence.

“
What
, what?” replied Jules, puzzled.

“James and Mr Kemp?”

“Yes, Mr Barclay was waiting out front, and I must say, he looked quite uneasy. He grabbed Mr Kemp and wanted to speak with him in his office right away. Why this late at night I wonder? How strange! Oh well, how are you feeling, dear?”

“I’m fine, just tired,” I explained, trying to hold back my real emotions, in shock about what I had just been told.

Mr Kemp was the person James needed to talk to? That can’t be right…

“Oh yes, of course, my apologies. I will let you sleep. Oh, I almost forgot. Tomorrow I have to go to London for a cousin’s birthday lunch. Would you like to join me? It will be absolutely fine and I would love your company there. And I would feel a lot better knowing that you’re not on your own.”

“Thanks Jules, but really I am fine. I’m thinking about going into the village, seeing as I missed out this evening. And I could do with a scenery change. You go and have a wonderful time. I promise I will be fine here,” I said, trying to convince her.

Jules just nodded with a smile and left my room. She was so sweet and caring. I wish I could tell her what’s just happened, I would have liked to talk to someone right now, but there was no one. Annie had said she would make contact with me when she could, so I just had to wait.

James and Mr Kemp? What could they possibly be talking about now? Could James be getting advice from him? But he can’t! Mr Kemp hates me. His advice will be so obvious, so one sided. He wants me to leave the college! There’s no way he would say anything nice about me to James
.

So many things were racing through my mind and I just didn’t know what to think anymore. It was all too hard. I changed my clothes and went to bed, deciding to figure it out tomorrow.

C
HAPTER
S
IX

When morning broke, I had to drag myself out of bed. My head was heavy and my body felt drained. I looked in the mirror. My eyes were sore and puffy, reflecting how I felt. Strangely, since arriving at the college, I hadn’t remembered many dreams, which was unusual. I was kind of counting on this trip to inspire me to write more.

I felt confused and insecure about James and I. You would think after what happened with us I would be over the moon, but the way he left the room and then sought advice from Mr Kemp had left me feeling that unsure of where we stood. I felt a real need to clear my head before I next saw James or Mr Kemp for that matter, so I decided to get ready and make my way to the village and spend most of the day away from everyone.

When I was done getting ready I had a look in the mirror and was taken aback by the way I appeared. I felt I didn’t look like my usual self for some reason, but I suppose I didn’t feel myself either. I grabbed my handbag and added a few other items – gloves, a matching scarf and a small umbrella. I then called a cab, which promised to arrive in ten minutes, sprayed on some perfume and made my way out.

By the time I got to the grounds at the front of the building, the taxi was already waiting on the driveway. The weather was familiarly cool, so I put on my scarf and gloves. The taxi ride was short. I almost felt guilty troubling the poor driver, so I compensated him with a good tip. I wasn’t exactly clear as to what I was going to do at the village, or more importantly, what I was going to do when I got back. I just needed to be somewhere else, in a different environment.

The village was quaint. Not big by any means and from where I stood I could see everything that it had to offer. It appeared to be hundreds of years old, unspoilt by time and saturated with original features. I guess it had everything an old English village ought to have; a church, pub, post office, supermarket and a few other shops in between. The main street was wide and cobblestoned, yet off limits to cars, and off the main street were many residential laneways. The majority of locals that were out and about were elderly, which accounted for the lack of noise. You could hear a pin drop or, in this instance, my heels crushing into the stone ground. The air was unspoiled, which allowed me to take in all the smells of the local bakery as I passed and in the distance, high above the village was a landscape that could be employed by any photographer.

Suddenly, a great idea came to me. I would buy a gift for James! Firstly, it would give me an excuse to see him when I got back, and secondly, he would love the gesture. Everything would be OK, I convinced myself. A long shot, I know, but definitely worth the try. I continued to stroll down the street, this time with a mission, looking from side to side for ideas for James’s gift. Knowing that it would only take me about 20 minutes to go through this main stretch I decided to take my time.

I noticed a wooden bench outside the bakery and sat there. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and took in a cold breath. I thought about the perfect gift, knowing that my choices would be limited to what was around me.

A cold wind rushed by me, causing me to shiver. I kept my eyes closed. I was in complete darkness. Suddenly there was laughter and only pure happiness in my mind. Still with my eyes shut, I tried to focus on where the laughter was coming from. I could smell sweet-scented flowers and hear the rustling of autumn leaves. Victoria and Jonathon were in the distance, laughing together, deeply in love and joyously happy. Jonathon was trying to catch Victoria, but she was being playful and trying to avoid being caught. He finally gently took her hand and brought her close, his laugh turning into a soft smile. Victoria was pleased to be caught. She opened the palm of his hand and placed something in it. She kissed him, passionately, before she ran away, laughing, encouraging yet another playful chase. Jonathon didn’t react. Clearly taken by the kiss, he opened his hand and with the other, lifted up a gold chain with an oval locket. Visibly pleased, he clenched it safe into his palm and with a smile back on his face again, was in pursuit of the woman he loved.

I loved it. I really loved that scene; they were obviously married and completely happy, finally some new inspiration for my story.”

“Is everything alright?” a man’s voice interrupted my thoughts.

“Excuse me,” I exclaimed as I opened my eyes, embarrassingly realising that I must have appeared to be asleep on the bench.

“My apologies, I didn’t mean to intrude, Catherine,” the gentleman said.

How did he know my name?

I sat up and corrected my posture. When I refocused, I realised it was Richard Cartwright.

“I noticed you sleeping here a while ago, but I didn’t want to wake you.”

“Wake me? I wasn’t asleep. I was just closing my eyes and thinking,” I replied self-consciously.

“Oh, thinking? What about?”

“Nothing!” was my quick and defensive reply.

“It didn’t seem like nothing. If I didn’t know any better, I’d have said that it looked like you were enjoying a man’s company in your thoughts.”

“What? That’s ridiculous!” I shouted back, offended by his suggestion. I refused to talk about it with him any longer, and got up to walk away.

“Wait!” He grabbed my hand and pulled me back down onto the seat. “Please stay. I will go. It’s your thinking bench and I was out of line, I’m sorry.”

I tried to keep a serious look on my face, but I couldn’t and we both broke into laughter.

“Let’s start this conversation over again, OK?” he pleaded.

“OK,” I agreed and sat back down.

“What brings you to our humble village this gloomy Sunday morning, may I ask?”

“Well, I am looking for a gift for a friend actually. Maybe you could help me. I naïvely didn’t expect a limited amount of shops here. Is there a jewellery shop close by?”

“Jeweller? Of course! I will take you to the best jeweller in London if you like.”

“No… that’s not necessary. I’m sure there is something here… in town.”

“Alright… I know just the place. Very reputable,” he paused for a second and then continued. “Well it happens to be the only one,” he joked with a wink. “I will take you now if you like,” he said as he stood up and put his hand out.

“Oh, OK, thank you…” I got up without his help, which I could see took him by surprise.

As we made our way to the jeweller, Richard gave me a guided tour, enlightening me on the history of the village and the people of the town. It was all very interesting and I was grateful, but inside, my stomach was turning over and over. I felt uneasy that I was walking around here with him and not James. Luckily for me, we didn’t have to walk far. The jeweller, a tall, bald man in a crimson velvet jacket, seemed very happy to see us, and welcomed Richard as we walked in.

I wondered why someone like Richard be spending his Sunday in such a quiet village
.

“Nicolas, I would like you to meet Catherine, who is looking for a gift for a friend,” he explained as he turned to me and smiled.

“Hello,” I replied, still amazed by the colour of Nicolas’s jacket, which was quite audacious for an Englishman.

“Good day. Do you have something in mind?” Nicolas enquiry as he motioned to the glass cabinet in front of him.

“Um… kind of. May I?” I said, requesting permission to browse.

“Of course, please do. Take all the time you need,” he said.

Nicolas then came out from behind the glass counter towards Richard and shook his hand as they started talking. I scanned through the items he had on display. He had unusual rings, bangles, necklaces, almost everything. But I couldn’t seem to find what I was looking for. Both Richard and Nicolas must have noticed my disappointed moan as they both turned to look at me.

“No luck?” Richard yelled out from across the shop.

“No. I mean you have many beautiful items. But not what I am looking for,” I replied.

“What is it that you are looking for?” Nicolas asked, now more than curious to help me. “I do have other stock packed away, as I can’t have everything out at once.”

“Well, what I was after was a gold oval locket.”

“Oval locket… Yes, actually, I do have one. But it’s estate jewellery. Is that fine?”

“Of course, that’s fine.”

“I won’t be a minute,” he said, excusing himself as he went out back.

I looked across at Richard and gave him a half-hearted smile. I wasn’t quite sure why he was being so helpful. I just wished it was James here with me now, not him.

“Here we are, how’s this one?” he said as he took the locket out of its box and placed it on a black velvet mat. “That’s it! It’s perfect! I’ll take it!” I couldn’t contain my joy. “Thank you, thank you!”

“Would you like me to engrave it for you?”

“Engrave it… Ah, I’m not sure. I’ll think about it, thank you,” I replied. This certainly wasn’t the time for that and I didn’t want Richard to see the message. Once I had paid for the locket, Nicolas placed it in a black velvet box, handed me a business card, and reminded me to return when I decided to have it engraved.

“Where to now?” Richard asked excitedly after we had left the shop.

“Well, I think I will head back to the college. Thank you again for your help,” I thanked him and started to walk away.

“Go back? You must be joking! Please, let me take you to lunch,” he pleaded.

“No! I mean, thank you, but I really need to get back. I have some work to prepare for my students before tomorrow’s classes.”

“Alright then, I will let you go. But please let me drive you back. It really isn’t worth troubling a taxi.”

I didn’t want to go with him, but he did have a point about the taxi and he had helped me find the gift, so I agreed.

We walked to his car, which was a very flashy sports car. He opened my door and held my hand to help me in before going around the car to get into the driver’s seat, starting the car and driving off. Surprisingly, he drove quite slowly, which was not what I was anticipating. I let out a little giggle.

“Have I missed something?” he asked.

“Well… to be honest, when I saw your car, I assumed you were going to tear off and I would have to hold on tight. But you drive like an old woman!” I said, with a smirk on my face, quite surprised that I had told him the truth.

“Well, on a normal day I would, but today isn’t a normal day… you’re in my car and I want my time with you to last as long as possible.”

My face instantly became red hot. I was so embarrassed by his response and it made me feel very uncomfortable. I turned towards the window, praying he couldn’t see my face.

“Did I embarrass you?”

“No… of course not!” I quickly replied turning my head forward again. As soon as I could see the college, I felt more at ease. The car came to a sluggish stop.

“Thank you for today,” I told him, opening my door and getting out of his car as quickly as possible.

I quickly made my way to my room, not wanting to see or bump into anyone. When I finally got into my room, I closed the door, locked it and leaned my back on it, clenching my bag. And then, like a child opening a birthday present, I pulled out the velvet box from my bag, took out the locket and held it in my hand. I brought it close to my chest and prayed that it would bring James and me good luck. I opened my eyes and studied the locket. It was perfect. I tried to open it but I couldn’t. It was stuck. Frustrated, I placed it on the desk and walked away, feeling foolish that I hadn’t checked it while I was in the shop. I still wanted to give it to James, and soon. I was no good at surprises or waiting for the right moment. I hated being surprised as much as holding onto one. I grabbed the locket, placed it back in its box and headed out of my room to look for James. I went to the common room first, but didn’t go all the way in, just poked my head in.

“If you’re looking for Miss Kent, she is not back, dear!” yelled out one of the professors.

“OK, thank you,” I replied and quickly left the room, starting to make my way towards James’s office. As I got closer I started to feel insecure again and child-like. I then remembered the Victoria in my dreams. She was child-like and Jonathon loved her for it. I got to the door, took a moment and then knocked. There was no answer but I heard something inside, so I grabbed the door handle and started to turn it slowly.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Mr Kemp whispered from behind me placing his hand over mine, stopping me from entering.

“I am here to see James,” I explained, stunned that I didn’t hear him creep up.

“Well he is not in his office,” he said. Mr Kemp grabbed my hand and directed me away from James’s office.

“Come with me!” he demanded.

I was mortified. I didn’t want to go
anywhere
with him!

“Let go of me!” I protested.

“No! You are playing with fire, you know. Don’t you realise that?” he said.

“No! I think
you
are! Wait until James hears about this!” I retaliated.

“Whose orders do you think I am following, Cathy?” His smugness was frustrating.

“What? I don’t believe you,” I struggled, trying to make him release my wrist, but the man, although short and stumpy, was surprisingly strong.