Arielle Immortal Awakening (14 page)

“Your French is very good,” he added with a smile.

“I have been practicing quite a bit,” she said. “After all, we’re here every year, and I can’t expect everyone to speak English.” They both laughed, and Arielle felt so happy that all her efforts at learning French were being appreciated.

After Tristan had moved away, she walked towards the big window, hoping to see the man of her dreams walking up to the front door, but she didn’t. She tried to walk around and socialize with Jane, but her mind was completely filled with excitement and eagerness; she just couldn’t wait to see Sebastian again.

But as the time passed, she started to get a horrible feeling that he wasn’t going to show up. How could he make a promise that he wasn’t planning to keep? He could have refused her invitation, but he hadn’t done that. He had said he would be there. Her heart began to sink as she remembered the words of the woman in the bookstore. Maybe it was all a lie. Maybe she had imagined all the words she heard him say on the beach.

When midnight had come and gone, it was clear that he wasn’t coming; with a heavy heart Arielle walked around the room, saying goodnight to all the guests, making sure that she pleased her parents. Then she went up to her room, sick at heart.

Well, here was the end of a beautiful dream. How could she have been so stupid? She burst into tears of outrage and frustration. How could she have allowed herself to be hurt so badly by a man she didn’t even know?

Two days went by and Arielle saw no sign of Sebastian. He never even tried to call her, and she knew that he had her phone number. She woke up each morning with a cloud of depression settling over her and went through the day in a mood of black despair. She was absolutely certain that Sebastian was the man she wanted to be with for the rest of her life, and her heart was broken.

The day before they were scheduled to leave for Brighton she asked Jane to go with her to visit the house that they had talked about with the bookseller in town. “That would be wonderful!” Jane said, eyes sparkling with excitement.

This was going to be Arielle’s last, desperate attempt to see him again. She didn’t have to tell him that she had gone there to see
him;
she could just say that the bookseller in town had suggested she should see the house before leaving for England. That sounded like a good excuse, and it was more or less true.

They drove out to the edge of town and took a small two-lane road towards the house. At the end of the road, there was a fork. To the right she could see a small gravel road leading to a parking area right below the house. To the left the road went straight up to the front gate. They chose to park below and take a small path leading to the house, up a steep rise between beautiful trees and flowering shrubs.

She could smell the fragrance of blooming jasmine and sandalwood. It was in the middle of a scorching summer and the heat was unbearable. The air felt heavy, making it hard to breathe. When they finally reached the top of the hill they let out a cry of exhilaration, not believing their eyes. The house was magnificent! Jane and Arielle looked at each other unable to speak, their mouths open in amazement.

Arielle had a strange, muddy taste in her mouth. She was pretty excited even though she was also a little bit scared, wondering how they would be able to gain access into the house. She was sure she would have to lie unless Sebastian answered the door, and she started trying to think about what she would say if she encountered someone other than him. She looked over at Jane; she could see that Jane was just as excited and scared as she was, though putting on a brave front.

What would it be like to be the lady of this magnificent house, married to Sebastian?
Arielle wondered to herself, looking up. She remembered reading in the book she had seen in the bookstore that the house was of Tudor origin but that it had been restored a couple of times in the last four centuries. It was really beautiful. Next to the house stood a tall, mysterious tower. It must have been wonderful in its day, but today it looked like a gray phantom, enclosed by empty stonewalls. It was amazing yet forbidding.

The walls were built with massive, flat gray stones—imported from the Abbey, the bookseller had said—and every six feet a set of incredible carved stones created a very mysterious, fascinating pattern.

The huge windows reached from floor to ceiling and were made of beautiful beveled glass reflecting a variety of colors. The panels on the side of each window were carved with striking designs. The small pieces of glass were diamond-shaped, with painted images arranged to form various patterns and shapes. Some of the patterns were displayed after the emblem on heraldic armor while others replicated beautiful landscapes, flora, and fauna. In the center of each and every window was an elaborate letter G. Arielle was sure it referred to the Gaulle family.

As they both stood there, mesmerized, they could not help thinking of how powerful the house looked. It felt like a huge magnet that was pulling both of them towards it and filling them with the desire to explore every inch of it.

There was something about the stones that surrounded the house that made Arielle feel as if she had been transported to another era. The front door was massive and made out of beautifully carved oak. The two handles in the middle were made out of heavy intricately wrought iron.

They climbed up the stairs and stood in front of the magnificent door. Just as Arielle raised her hand to grab the handle, the door opened and a small, very attractive middle-aged woman stood in the doorway. Arielle and Jane were both taken aback since they hadn’t even had the chance to knock.

“
Bonjour!
I saw you coming up the hill,” the woman said. Her voice was soft and kind. “Can I help you?” she added with an inquisitive look.

“I’m Arielle Lloyd, and this is my friend Jane,” Arielle said. “I’m a friend of Sebastian’s, and I was wondering if he’s here. He told me that he would show me the house before I left for England,” she lied. “We’re leaving tomorrow and this will be the last chance we have to see it,” she added. She was a bit surprised at how easy it was to lie once she had gotten started.

She was driven by her compulsion to see part of the world in which the man of her dreams lived, if there was any way possible to do so.

“I’m sorry, but Mr. Gaulle is out of the country. Please come in,” she said, smiling. “If you’re friends of Mr. Gaulle I’m sure he would have no objections to my showing you the house.”

She was smiling and she had a very friendly air about her. It seemed as though she was happy to see them, as if she were eager to have company.

Arielle and Jane stepped into the great hall and followed Mrs. Wilson into a huge room decorated with gorgeous antique furniture and huge tapestries hanging from the high ceilings. They were both shocked by the incredible beauty of the place.

Arielle’s heart was beating fast and she could feel the air thickening around her. She wasn’t sure if it was fear of the unknown or the fact that she was standing among very old and very incredible things that were part of Sebastian’s world. Suddenly Jane touched her arm, and it made her jump.

“I’m cold,” she whispered, and Arielle suddenly felt a chill come over her as well. She started to think of Sebastian’s ancestors and the ladies who had lived here, who had purchased all these beautiful things and were responsible for decorating the room so exquisitely.

There was no doubt in her mind that a great deal of love and caring had gone into choosing each and every item in this house. She thought of all the great balls that must have been given in these huge rooms, as well as the sadness that must have taken place throughout the centuries.

“It’s so exciting to be here!” she heard Jane whisper.

She nodded and walked further in. There was an absolutely beautiful, very wide staircase that led to the upper level. “To the bedrooms,” Arielle thought.

In the dimming light the room was full of shadows. Suddenly she had the weirdest feeling that all the people who had lived in this place were now looking at her and Jane, wondering what they were doing in their home And what they wanted.

“Do you know when Sebastian will be back?” Arielle asked. She tried to keep her voice bright and casual, not at all the way she felt.

“No, I never know how long he will be gone when he leaves,” Mrs. Wilson said. “Would you like me to show you around?”

As she gave them a tour of the house, Arielle moved through the rooms in a state of bewilderment, completely mesmerized. There were so many hallways and so many rooms, and they all looked dark and scary with heavy satin curtains hanging in all the windows. The rooms seemed to be about twenty to twenty five feet high and the beveled glass windows with the amazing designs reached from the floors all the way up to the ceilings, which were decorated with remarkable murals. Someone had gone to great pains to make sure everything was done with exquisite taste, down to the last detail. The amazing stained glass windows allowed sunlight to pour through and bathe the furniture and all the woodwork in a lush late afternoon glow.

In the background, servants were moving about silently.

Pictures of Sebastian’s ancestors, those who had lived here, hung on the walls in the hallways and in the rooms. Arielle was sure that famous painters had painted many of them.
What a mysterious world!
she thought as she looked at portraits of men in armor and beautiful women wearing gorgeous gowns. She thought of them laughing and crying in the very place that she and Jane were standing right at this moment. It was almost as if you could still feel their presence in the room.

They went back down through the main staircase and were getting ready to thank Mrs. Wilson for her kindness and hospitality. Jane was smiling and sheer enthusiasm covered her face. “I have never been to any place like
this
before!” she said, her face glowing with excitement.

Just then she heard Mrs. Wilson say “Miss Annabel!” She sounded startled as she added, “I didn’t hear you coming.”

Jane and Arielle froze in place. Arielle hadn’t heard footsteps either, but as they both turned around they could see a woman standing on the top of the landing.

Annabel was of medium build with gorgeous blond, silky hair. The coldness of her gaze sent chills down Arielle’s spine. Her face was absolutely flawless. She was dressed in a soft blue pantsuit that made her look very striking. Arielle had never seen a more beautiful woman.

There was a complete and uncomfortable silence in the room. Not knowing what to say, Arielle and Jane just stood there waiting for someone to speak. They looked at each other and instinctively moved closer together, reaching out to touch hands.

Annabel moved with elegance as she descended the staircase. Then she looked directly at them and held their attention. It was as if they were transfixed and couldn’t move.

Arielle felt lightheaded and weak. She suddenly felt she couldn’t breathe, as if there were no oxygen in the room. Her nostrils were filled with the strange smell of death, and all she could think was that she needed to get away from this place as quickly as possible. She told herself that her imagination was running wild, but her thoughts ran in a panic.
What is her relationship to Sebastian? Does she know how I feel about him? Does she know all the wonderful things he has whispered to me?
These questions raced through her head as she fought the feeling of dread that was sweeping through her body.

As that feeling became stronger, she wanted to run away. She wondered what would happen if she fainted right then and there. Finally Annabel spoke. When she did it was in a very cold voice that struck terror in both Arielle and Jane.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

Suddenly Arielle knew she had made a big mistake in coming here. There was no way she could explain why she was there, why she wanted to see the house. But she collected her thoughts as well as she could and replied as calmly as she could, trying to keep her voice from shaking. “Hello,” she said. “My name is Arielle and this is my friend Jane. We visited a bookstore in town and we saw a book that had some very interesting history about this house. The bookseller advised us that it would be a wonderful thing to visit the house and experience its greatness up close. We are sorry for the intrusion and we very much appreciate the time Mrs. Wilson has taken to show us around.”

She knew that she had told Mrs. Wilson an entirely different story, but she was terrified to use the same lie with Annabel. All she could do was pray that Mrs. Wilson wouldn’t say anything about her lie.

“How do you know my husband?” Annabel continued frigidly.

The question hit Arielle as if someone had just punched her in the stomach. She didn’t care anymore about being caught in a lie; all she cared about right now was what she had just been asked. What did she mean by her “husband”? She couldn’t be referring to Sebastian. She was sure that was not a possibility at all.

“I’m not sure that I know your husband,” she said.

“I thought I heard you tell Mrs. Wilson that you were a friend of Sebastian’s?”

Arielle swallowed the lump in her throat. “Oh yes,” she mumbled as her heart crashed to the floor. She knew she had to say something and get out of there as quickly as possible before she fell apart completely.

“We…. We met a couple of days ago in town,” she stammered. “He also told me about your beautiful home, and I wanted to see it.”