In Another Life (27 page)

“Stick,” she willed it. “Stick and keep my daughter here. She’s safe here.”

More snowflakes were released from the clouds like reluctant parachute jumpers, pushed from their safety net and sent cascading to the ground. Each one was different and unique yet they were all destined to suffer the same fate. To either melt or unite as one and create pure, perfect snow.

*

“Marie? I said it’s snowing,” Carol peered round the door to the study and found Marie curled up on the office chair staring intently at the illuminated monitor. The rest of the room was filled with shadows making the images on the screen appear even brighter.

“Marie?” Carol edged further in to the room as Marie spun around and looked at her. “Did you hear me say it’s snowing?”

“It is?” Marie responded with disinterest. There was a vacant look in her eyes which troubled Carol. Glancing past her daughter she focused on the computer screen.

On it there was an image of a man in his mid to late thirties with sharp cheekbones and a severe expression.

“What are you reading?”

“Nothing,” with a click of the mouse Marie swiftly minimised the page she was looking at.

“You seemed awfully interested in it,” Carol kept looking at the monitor even though the image in the man was now gone.

“It was nothing, really,” Marie insisted.

“Okay, well perhaps we can go out and walk in the snow?” Carol moved forward and pulled open the curtains in the room, revealing the air outside which shimmered with snowflakes. They swirled and danced in flurries like tiny ice fairies.

Marie squinted at the sudden influx of light, shielding her eyes as though she were some sort of nocturnal creature.

“What do you say? Shall we go outside?” Carol’s eyes twinkled hopefully as she waited on her daughter’s decision.

“Maybe later,” Marie answered quietly, turning back to the computer.

*

“It’s really coming down out there,” Bill stamped his feet on the doormat as he re-entered his home. White specks of snow still clung to his hair and broad shoulders.

“How bad is it?” Sebastian enquired anxiously. The hallway was already filled with an assortment of luggage which needed to be loaded up in to his car, ready for the return journey to London.

“Pretty bad,” Bill stated. “Visibility isn’t great. It’s not sticking yet though.”

“So if we want to go we’d better leave sooner rather than later?”

“Exactly.”

“So where is Marie? Is she ready?” Sebastian glanced up the stairs as he spoke. He was more than ready. Freshly showered and dressed in a Ralph Lauren jumper and jeans he was as prepared as he could be to take Marie to Dr Colton’s office.

“She’s still upstairs.”

“I’ll go have a word with her, see if I can hurry her up a bit.” Sebastian sprung up the stairs two at a time his long legs making the task easy for him.

Bill looked after him and sighed. From her position in the living room Carol caught his eye and he shook his head.

“We can’t delay it anymore,” he told her sadly.

“But look at this snow, Bill! It can’t be safe to drive in this.”

“But is it safe to leave Marie any longer? We’re losing her.”

Carol clasped her hands in her lap and lowered her head thoughtfully. She willed the snow outside to intensify and create a blockage outside her front door, sealing them all inside. 

“I know you want her to stay here,” Bill removed his coat and boots and entered the welcome warmth of the living room. Even though he’d only walked down the street to check the conditions his cheeks were already bright pink from being pinched by the cold.

He sat down beside his wife of almost thirty years and placed a consolatory hand upon her knee.

“This is her home, Bill. We shouldn’t send her back to London when she’s not well.”

“Sebastian is certain that this doctor is the best there is and that he can help her.”

“I don’t know,” Carol unclasped her hands and let one settle over Bill’s. “I just wish she was back to her old, happy self. I thought she was at dinner and then…she just slipped away again. It scares me.”

“She’s just struggling with everything she’s been through, she’ll get better.”

Carol tilted her body so that she was leaning against Bill’s strong shoulder. It was comforting to feel his weight supporting her.

“She will get better,” Bill promised her. “She has to.”

*

“Marie?” Sebastian walked in to the study where Marie remained focused on the computer and the same image of the man in the navy coat who had threw himself beneath an oncoming train.

Marie didn’t turn to look at him as he entered the room.

“Marie, the snow is really coming down, we need to leave for London now.” His voice was stern as he spoke. He noticed that his fiancée was still in her nightwear, not having yet dressed for the day. Her hair was matted upon her head and the scent of sleep still clung to her.

“You need to go get dressed,” he told her.

“In a minute,” Marie mumbled, transfixed by the computer screen.

“What are you looking at?” Sebastian stormed over to her. He didn’t like being ignored, especially when time was of the essence.

He immediately recognised the man from the story which she’d spotted on his iPad.

“Why are you reading about that guy?” he demanded angrily. “Did you know him or something?”

“No-”

“Is he an ex-boyfriend or something?” Bitterness crept in to Sebastian’s voice, mixed with jealousy.

“No,” Marie cried, exiting the page on which the story was being broadcast.

“Then why are you so concerned with some bum who jumped in to the tracks?”

“I’m not,” Marie shut down the entire computer. “He just…looks familiar. I was trying to place him, that’s all.”

Sebastian studied her expression but couldn’t be certain if she was telling the truth. He decided he had no time to decipher what was really going on. The snow kept falling and the appointment with Dr Colton was drawing ever closer.

“Look, can you just go get dressed and then we can leave?”

Marie stood up and smiled weakly at him.

“Sure,” she nodded.

“Great, so downstairs in like ten minutes, ready to go?”

“Actually,” Marie glanced back at the computer screen which was now dark and devoid of information.

“My legs are really aching,” she ran her hands down her legs and winced for effect. “I was thinking of having a bath, giving them a soak to ease up the pain before I have to sit in the car for hours.”

Sebastian clenched his jaw. A bath would take considerably longer than a shower but how could he object when Marie needed the warmth of the water to alleviate her pain? After all, he was the one forcing her to sit in a car for hours, the least he could do was allow her some time to relax and prepare before they left.

“Thirty minutes.” He told her.

“Forty five,” Marie bartered.

“Fine!” Sebastian threw his hands up in defeat. “But please, Marie, don’t dawdle. If this snow gets any worse we can’t leave for London.”

“Would that really be so bad?” Marie asked innocently.

Sebastian sighed and ran a hand down his face. She was so oblivious to what was waiting for her at Dr Colton’s office. She was about to be judged and potentially declared insane and a danger to herself. But she was still Marie, his sweet, beautiful Marie.

“I’ll go bath now,” Marie headed towards the door when Sebastian failed to answer, assuming that his silence was to cover his mounting anger.

She paused in the doorway and turned to face him, her eyes sparkling slightly.

“Thank you for trying so hard to save me, and for never leaving.”

“Its…okay,” Sebastian was caught off guard by the comment. Normally she was so cut off from him by her anger and unhappiness.

“I mean it,” Marie insisted. “Thank you, for everything.”

Sebastian was silent. He wondered how grateful Marie would be once her freedom had been taken from her?

“I love you,” she concluded gently before leaving the study and heading towards the bathroom.

It took a moment for Sebastian to recover from his shock and call after her;

“I love you too,” but he was a few seconds too late and the bathroom door had already closed behind her.

*

“Is she nearly ready?” Bill asked as Sebastian came back downstairs.

“She’s just having a bath, her legs ache,” the younger man explained.

“Ah.”

Both Bill and Carol were enjoying fresh cups of tea as the snow continued to intensify outside.

Sebastian watched the tiny ice fragments dance chaotically in the faint breeze and contemplated letting the elements win. He thought about giving in and remaining in Manchester, never taking Marie back to Dr Colton and just accepting that she believed that she was a princess of some imaginary realm.

As if hearing his doubts Sebastian’s phone began to vibrate in his jean pocket with an incoming call from the doctor’s office. Stepping out of the lounge and in to the hallway he answered the call.

“Dr Colton?”

“Mr Fenwick good morning,” the doctor’s voice sounded slightly hoarse as he spoke. “I just wanted to ensure that we are all set for this evening?”

“I think so,” Sebastian glanced tentatively out of the window. “It’s started snowing here but hopefully we can still get back to London alright.”

“Very good. I just wanted to suggest that following Marie’s recent hallucinations you try and keep something of a constant eye on her.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just don’t go leaving her alone for prolonged periods of time. Patients who record daytime hallucinations can display quite erratic, unpredictable behaviours. Often there may be cases of self-harm. It’s just a precaution that it might be worth keeping her in sight, just until I’ve assessed her fully.”

“She’s at home with all her family,” Sebastian explained. “She’s got a pretty consistent set of eyes upon her.”

“Good, good.”

Sebastian’s eyes followed the carpeted stairs up to the landing where just at the top Marie was indulging in a long bath to soak her sore legs. The carpet was a shade of dark green set off against light green walls. It was an acquired taste in terms of interior design, one Sebastian had never appreciated. He found the overall look gaudy and dated.

“She’s just having a bath,” he explained to the doctor. “Her legs still ache from time to time and give her trouble. Once she’s finished we’ll head down to London.”

“Okay, see you soon. Call me if there’s any problems.”

Sebastian ended the call and wandered back in to the living room where the television was now on and Carol and Bill were laughing at some British comedy sketch show.

“That was Marie’s doctor,” he explained to them. “He just wanted to check in on everything.”