Ravens Deep (one) (14 page)

             
Samuel had been right, the winding road up to Selman Point was beautiful and scenic. A short distance from the top the road ended, but a large patch of gravel provided  a parking place for my car.  I continued on foot for maybe a quarter of a mile, it was actually further than I had first thought, but the walk was worth it, as the scenery was breathtaking when I finally reached the summit. 

             
It did indeed feel like I was on top of the world.  It was a clear day and I could see for miles.  To the left, I looked down upon the village of Beaconmayes and across the moors, and to the right, down across the rugged cliff face to the sea.

             
I wondered if it was possible to see Ravens Deep from here, but as I scanned the distant woodland I could see no indication of any building.  I spent a tranquil hour sitting on the grass, contemplating the events that had occurred since my arrival on Exmoor, the sadness I felt at today’s turn of events and of course Darius, who was never far from my thoughts at any time.

             
It was hard to imagine that I had only known him for such a short while.  He seemed so familiar to me.  The way he spoke, the way I felt when I was with him, I couldn’t’t remember a time when I had felt happier.  He was so unlike any other man I had ever met. I was drawn to him and his irresistible charm, he was a being like no other, but that thought continued to play on my mind, for I had a strange feeling of not understanding some elementary part of him. I dismissed my confused notions and wondered if Darius ever came up here. I wished he could see the beautiful landscape in front of me. Witness it as I did, bathed in warm sunshine. 

             
I finally left Selman Point and drove slowly back down the winding road, and back through the village. The traffic had all but disappeared and Beaconmayes had regained the air of a sleepy country village once more.

             
I returned to Ravens Deep and unloaded my groceries from the car.  I walked through to the kitchen. The pantry door stood wide open.  But by now, I was half expecting it.  I looked down and saw that all four mousetraps had sprung, but there was not a single mouse body anywhere.  I didn’t know why I even bothered setting them. After all, I hadn’t seen any more mice. I picked them up and put them in the cupboard under the kitchen sink.

             
I continued working on my book for the rest of the afternoon and wondered what time Darius would arrive. I now knew that he wouldn’t’t be here before sunset.  I thought about his illness. Had it developed, or had he been born with it?  He would tell me when he was ready I was certain, for his life must be a difficult, not to be able to go out in the sunshine. I could not imagine living in perpetual darkness.  It was no wonder he was so pale, his skin was never exposed to daylight, and part of the reason he appeared so dark and mysterious.  But none of that mattered to me.  I could deal with it, and we would work around his illness. What did matter was being with him. Anxiously I looked at the clock.  Only a couple more hours of daylight left, but my world felt inexplicably empty when he wasn’t in it, and I hoped he felt the same way about me.

             
Darius arrived at precisely eight-thirty and as he entered the hallway he brushed my lips with the lightest of kisses.

             
“Good evening Madeline” I was taken aback, but managed to respond.

             
“Hello Darius, come in.”  That was a moot point, as he was already in.  My inner voice told me to tell him how I felt, to tell him how this strange magnetism was compelling me to him, but my voice of reason told me to wait, let him make the first move. 

             
Just as before I poured out two glasses of wine and set them on the table by the sofa.  We sat down together.

             
“You look tired,” he said, watching me.

             
“I didn’t’t have a very good night,” I confessed. “I must admit the story you told me was a little disturbing.”

             
“It is my fault, I shouldn’t have told you,” he began.

             
“No, you were right to tell me.  I needed to know.  Sometimes it’s better to know the truth, so you can move on from it.”

             
“Maybe you are right,” he said thinking. “But sometimes there is danger in knowing too much and the truth can be too painful.”

             
“What do you mean?”  I said looking at him curiously. He seemed agitated, not cool and composed as before.

             
“I don’t mean anything.  Are you happy here Madeline?”  he said regaining his normal composure.

             
“Yes, I am.”  I took a deep breath, plucking up the courage to utter the next words.  “I am happiest here with you, Darius.”  He smiled softly at me and took my hand in his.

             
“I am happiest here with you also.”  He pulled me close to him and I laid my head on his shoulder.  I could feel an overwhelming sense of being drawn into a state of complete security.  It was as though there was an invisible force field surrounding our entire beings.  As he rested his head against mine, I took his hand in my own.  The slender fingers and long glass-like nails fascinated me. I had never seen hands like his.  They were beyond perfect, with not a blemish or mark of any kind. 

             
The evening wore on and we sat unmoving, making small talk about the house and garden. All the while, I wished that this evening would never end, I wanted him to stay. I began to tell him about my day and how I had found the strange door, and felt the faintest reaction in him. I lifted my head, but his expression was unreadable. 

             
“What is it Darius?”  I turned so that his eyes met mine.

             
“There is nothing behind that door,” he said sharply.

             
“How do you know that?” I asked a little bewildered by his reaction.

             
“I too, found that door when I was a child.  It is what remained of an entrance to the part of the house that burned down.  It was bricked up years ago and the door locked for good.” I was about to tell him of the hollow wall I had found, but thought better of it.  For some reason when I mentioned that door, it disturbed him.  I wasn’t sure what to make of it.  Instead, I told him about my day, and the discovery of another dead sheep.

             
“Who owns the farm?” I said at last.

             
“The farmhouse is derelict, no-one has lived there for many years. Those sheep live in fields that are rented by some distant farm.  Sometimes a rogue wild dog will kill them.”

             
“There are wild dogs here?” I asked shocked. “I have never heard that before.”

             
“Animals die, Madeline, it is part of the world we live in. What else did you do today?”  I was a bit put out at his sharpness, he seemed deliberately trying to change the subject, and I sensed that it would be unwise to pursue the topic any further. 

             
“Well . . .  I went into the village,” I began cautiously. “I discovered that Samuel Dunklin died.  Do you remember the man I told you about?” I continued without waiting for his reply, “I couldn’t believe it, I only spoke to him a couple of days ago and they are burying him already without an inquest!” Darius suddenly turned and regarded me with the strangest expression.

             
“They are burying him?” he asked pointedly as his eyes narrowed briefly.

             
“Yes I know, can you believe it?”  Seeing the look on this face I suddenly was aware he was not listening to me. “What is it?”  Darius regained his former composure.

             
“They normally cremate people here,” he said, distracted for a moment.

             
“Oh yes,” I said casually, “that’s what I meant.” Darius seemed more relaxed. “Why don’t they bury them then?” I asked, realizing I was missing the point.

             
“Probably local superstition,” he replied, completely back to his former self now.

             
“But what’s the significance?”

             
“You don’t need to hear more superstitious stories, otherwise you will have another bad night,” he answered a little dismissively, but then he smiled at me.

             
“You are probably right,” I agreed with him. The atmosphere had completely lightened, although I felt it would be wise to change the subject.  “How was your day? Did you work today?”  He considered for a moment.

             
“Yes, I have been researching something.”

             
“Are you working on anything interesting right now?” I asked.

             
“A piece of Egyptian jewellery that I acquired recently,”  he replied, “believed to be over two thousand years old.  In fact, I will need to leave for the city tonight.  I will be away for two nights.”  A strange feeling of panic swept through me, two nights without Darius was more than I could bear.  “Surely, you don’t need to be away that long?”

             
“London is a great distance from here,” he replied, amusement glimmering in his eyes.

             
“London?  I thought you worked in a local city.” Darius smiled.

             
“Why would you think that?  London is the best city for research, the libraries stay open late into the evening and I have connections in the city that allow me access after dark to search archives and records,” he concluded.

             
“How do you get there?”  It had suddenly struck me, as to how he actually got

anywhere
. But as if expecting this question, he readily replied.

             
“There is a shortcut to Beaconmayes from here and I have a car in the village. I know you think that I am behind the times out here in this remote place, but even I have learned to do modern things -- like learn to drive.”  There was definite sarcasm in his tone. 

             
“I’m sorry Darius I don’t think that at all.  I have an inquisitive mind, I was just curious that’s all.”  He pulled me closer to him.

             
“Don’t worry Madeline, I will be back before you know it.”

Chapter Ten - A Bitter Chill

             
Later that evening as I reached the top of the staircase, I felt the full impact of the fact that Darius had left Exmoor. I felt inexplicably alone and unhappy. A sudden loud snap from the vicinity of the kitchen halted my progress and in alarm I turned and ran back down the stairs.              One of the mousetraps had sprung.  I stared at it in complete horror. 

             
I put those traps away earlier. Didn’t’t I?

             
Was I losing my mind?  Or now that Darius was gone, was the ghost playing tricks on me? Darius’s previous words came back to me now:

             
“
Now you are here, I will be forever watchful for your safety.” 

             
But Darius wasn’t here, I was alone.  Maybe the ghost, presence or whatever entity that shared this house with me realized that.  I tried to calm down and think rationally.  

             
“It’s not real,” I reassured myself.

             
I could have taken those mousetraps out of the cupboard and not remembered doing so.
 

             
I felt tearful.

             
What it because Darius had left?  Was his nearness really having so much of an effect on me, so much so, that it was slowly driving me insane? Darius will be back soon and we will be together once more.

             
I was comforted by that thought. I left the mousetraps on the floor and went up to bed.

             
Let the ghost have its fun!

             
Ravens Deep seemed emptier and quieter, the stone walls colder and the darkness outside more foreboding.  The following two evenings were endless and I counted the hours until Darius came back.  During this time the presence in my bedroom was not apparent, but the entity in the kitchen seemed more agitated than usual. It was no longer content with opening and closing the pantry door, for other cupboards had taken to opening and closing by themselves. The kitchen tap had managed to turn itself on and the mousetraps continued to spring even when they hadn’t been set.  I should have been deeply disturbed by these events, but in truth, I had grown accustomed to these strange happenings, and it was somewhat reassuring that I wasn’t entirely alone in my world right now.

             
True to his word Darius did return after two nights and I was ecstatic at his presence once more. And so began the curious relationship between us. Over the days and weeks that followed I would see him nightly. Our embraces were but the lightest of kisses, the briefest of moments. I felt like he understood me completely, and in turn I was absorbed by his every word and action.