Page 73 of Ever After

I heard the noise again, and in the distance, I caught the dim light of another’s candle. I froze for a second and then recollected myself and turned and ran to my bedroom window which offers a view of the grounds. It took a while, but eventually I saw him—Jowan. He is a new servant to me but one who was apparently very close to my father. He is a small man with a scar down his face and a quick quiet way about him.

Standing unnoticed, I watched him leave the house by the secret exit and make his way into the grounds. He looked back once but did not see me, and then from out of the shadows, Branok stepped. He was wearing a cape with the hood thrown back and the moonlight clung to the sharp lines of his face.

The two men stood talking for a long time, the smaller man’s hands moving quickly as he spoke, and Branok saying very little as far as I could see. At one point he looked up. I thought he could not see me positioned as I was behind the thick curtain. However, his gaze seemed to sear through the distance and light on me. Then he raised his fingers to his forehead in a mocking salute, and I leant on the windowsill, letting him see me as I was seeing him.

For a long moment, we looked at each other and then he turned and vanished. I waited a while in the quiet room, hearing my breaths loud on the air. Then taking my candle I went down to the kitchen. There I found on the table a barrel of brandy, the wood still wet with rain, and an envelope on my breakfast tray addressed to me. When I opened it, I found an invitation to take supper with Branok Richmond at the cottage he apparently rents from the estate. In the corner of the page, he had drawn me as a prince with my hair loose and a crown perched drunkenly on the waves.

I am smiling as I write this and I do not doubt I will be smiling when I fall asleep. The future once so staid and full of dullness, now suddenly seems limitless.

Levi closes the diary. “I can smell pipe smoke.”

As soon as he says it, I can too. I groan. “Time to clock in. Capitalism is a cruel mistress.”

He kisses me. “Shower together?”

“Well, it does save time.”

It doesn’t actually save any time, but giving my husband a blowjob seems far more important than anything else, and I pat myself on the back as he drifts downstairs in a cloud of cologne and happy endorphins.

I follow him into the kitchen, and we find Branok in his usual chair. The fire is roaring and Dog is lying curled up on the rug. I wonder if ghost dogs feel the cold.

“Nice of you to finally venture downstairs,” Branok observes.

I roll my eyes. “Save the commentary for the director’s cut, mate.”

“Well, words are certainly better than all that inarticulate moaning and groaning.”

Levi flushes bright red, and I laugh. “Shut up,” I advise Branok.

He puffs on his pipe, his keen eyes examining Levi. “How are you feeling?” he asks, his voice gentler than I’ve heard it so far.

Levi settles down at the table. “I’m better than I was last night. A bit more steady.”

“He’s worried he might get possessed again,” I say.

“Is nothing secret?” Levi asks.

“Not in this cottage apparently.”

Branok clears his throat. “I may have something to assuage that fear.” He nods at the counter, and I see an object wrapped in newspaper that wasn’t there last night.

“What’s that?” I ask. I think my cautious tone is well warranted the way this honeymoon is going.

“Mayhap you should try opening it rather than talking. You are a walking commentary on life.”

Levi laughs, and I smile at him, so grateful to hear that familiar sound again.

I touch the newspaper cautiously. It’s a local paper that’s delivered in the area and the rest of the paper has been set to the side of the object. I peel back the layer and blink when there’s a gleam of gold. I lift the parcel and something slithers out and lands on the counter. “A necklace?” I say, looking over at Branok.

He points his pipe at me. “Not just any necklace. A protection amulet.”

I look down with interest. I’ve heard of these things from Tom. It’s some sort of small black stone that’s been strung on a thin gold chain. The stone has been intricately carved into the shape of a rose.

“That’s pretty,” Levi offers, getting up and looking over my shoulder.

“It is for you, Levi,” Branok says.

“For me?” he says, startled.