Death is Only the Beginning, Chapter 8.2 from the Irish Fiction Novel: We Come Back: Vol. 1
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Death is Only the Beginning
He had piqued my interest further.
By the time we had reached the fountain, it had stopped raining and the sunset was breaking across the sky. I felt stronger now that the storm had passed, but I still asked if we could pause for a moments rest. As we sat down, Jack wrapped his hand in mine, rubbing the top of it with his thumb.
When Beathan and Hoss saw Jack and what looked like Miss Astraea coming across the grass to the fountain they all sighed in relief, and then hearing each other, laughed out loud and clapped each other on the back. The rain had stopped and the sunset created a perfectly decadent evening. Jack continued his story, grateful that the sun had cleared the rain away.
“It was a woman, an angel. She lies on a cloud,
her hair swept by the wind, her wings lying across her. A dark sky filled with glimmering stars of all shapes and sizes lied behind her and yet she was looking at me, with beautiful deep sea green eyes. She was looking at me,” he turned his face from the sky to me, “just the way you are looking at me now.”
I blushed and smiled, wanting to look away for fear I couldn’t stand the energy leaping between us, but was unable to do so.
“That angel on my ceiling is you.
I don’t know how that is possible, but it absolutely is you. I guess whoever painted my ceiling before I was ever under it, must have seen you, known you, and loved you. And how could they not? How could I not love you? How could I hope for anything more than exactly who you are?”
He reached his hand up and laid it against my cheek. I placed my hand on his, closing my eyes and feeling the love radiating from his hand. He leaned over while my eyes were still closed, and gently placed his lips on mine. I could feel his breath as he reached them. I felt my heart pound so hard that I lost my breath for a minute. It was a kiss like no other. In my head I could see him standing there bare-chested, holding a paintbrush, staring at me, holding his hand out for me to take; it was like a dream… a dream I could not leave.
I fell loosely on to his shoulder. I was draining.
The rain had started again, and a cold, brutal breeze had begun to blow.
“Astraea? Rae!”
Beathan was the first to hear him yell, and the first to see me limply fall onto him. He bolted down the outside steps, yelling to Hoss and Mason, “Something’s wrong!”
When he reached the fountain, Jack was shivering from the cold, “I I don’t knnnoow what happppened. Help me carrrrry her inside.”
Beathan carried me up the stairs, while Jack half lost his mind holding my head in his hands.
“Stoke the fire!” Jack directed Hoss.
Miss Lilly immediately rang for Fareus, and directed him to bring hot tea, and dry blankets urgently. When the blankets and warmth of the fire brought back some color to my face, he thought I would become conscious, but the longer I didn’t, the more he worried. He looked up at Hoss, and for the first time, Hoss could see that Jack was completely distraught. He had never before seen this behavior of panic, and tears from Jack, and it broke his heart to see it now. He got up and pulled Fareus aside.
“Fareus, you are to send for the doctor immediately. We are going to carry Miss Astraea upstairs and lay her down in the room you provided for her yesterday. As soon as the doctor arrives, bring him up. Also, have fresh tea sent up there, and ask Darren to lay out dry clothing for Mr. Staun.”
“Yes, of course Prince Cahil,” Fareus was also worried, not just for Miss Astraea, but Mr. Staun and was gone to complete his tasks in a blink of an eye.
Hoss looked at the three worried ladies huddled on a sofa near the fire, watching the others. Miss Lilly was the closest in body type, so he beckoned her. She saw him and quickly got up and crossed the room to him.
“Yes, what is it?” she asked with a hesitant voice.
“I need you to get a nightgown of yours, and once we have Miss Astraea upstairs, I’ll need you three girls to dry her, and change her into it. She will only get sicker if she stays in those sopping wet clothes.”
She nodded, and went to tell the girls. He walked over to Beathan and Mason and told them of the plan. He reached down and placed his hand on Jack’s shoulder. When Jack looked up at him, he whispered, “Come on. Beathan is going to carry her to her room upstairs, the one she had the other night. Fareus is sending for the doctor, and the girls are heading upstairs to change her into dry clothes. You and I will go upstairs and do the same for you.”
When Jack started to argue, he quickly added, “Afterwards, we can go to her room, and sit with her,” Jack nodded, and allowed Hoss to help him up.
“I’d prefer if you put her in my room, Hoss,”
he looked at Hoss firmly.
“So be it. Beathan, take Miss Astraea to Jack’s bed please.”
The girls went up first, Mason, Beathan and Astraea second, and Jack and Hoss brought up the end. As he watched me carried into his room, he felt a tear fall down his cheek, ‘why hadn’t she woken up yet?’
When they walked into his dressing room, Hoss told Darren he could go, and Jack dried himself off and changed into his dry clothes. They were both silent for minutes, hours it felt like. Jack was the first to speak.
“Well this evening didn’t go quite as we planned did it?”
Hoss smiled, he knew he was feeling better if he was trying to lighten the mood.
“No, not quite.”
Though Jack had tried, he couldn’t seem to shake his fear.
“I am afraid, Hoss. There is so much more I know about her now, yet I have never known less on how to help her,” Hoss crossed the room to him.
“That is why we sent for the doctor, because he will know more on how to help her.”
Jack nodded solemnly, whilst thinking I surely hope so, but somehow I doubt it. They caught the doctor leaving his room, and stopped to find out what he had to say.
“Mr. Staun, to be honest, I can only attribute the cold, wet weather to so many of her symptoms. It appears to me that she might have been ill before that occurred. Her pulse is weak, I gave her something to warm her, but I am afraid I cannot be much more help than that, just yet.”
Jack nodded, and shook his hand, as did Hoss, who thanked him as well.
“I’ll come back later tonight and see how things are going, but you should prepare yourself for the worst Mr. Staun, as it appears her heart is giving out. I don’t know what, if anything can help at this point.”
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very nice
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