The House

Chapter 45 - Day 5: Grandma's Soup

One moment I'm standing safe and snug under David's protective arm, and the next, I'm standing alone, surprised to see him grab the loudly ticking nautical clock by two of the steering wheel's protruding spokes at the end closest to the wall.

Grunting, he wrestles the heavy clock from the ground, pushing the end up until it is standing on its side, leaning against the Bannister. It doesn't look very steady; it is in danger of toppling over and falling on top of him.

I'm about to offer him my help to get the unwieldy clock to wherever it is he plans on taking it when he suddenly takes a step back and gives it a hard kick, the sole of his shoe smashing into it near the top of the clock, shattering some of the calcareous coral skeletons. It's the kind of kick that would make any kickboxing professional green with envy, and I wonder if David ever had some martial arts training.

No clock on this planet stands a chance against his skills.

I'm not wondering that out loud because I'm watching in shock, horror and amazement as he jumps back, getting out of the way as the bottom rises and with a gut-tearing grinding shriek, the clock flips over the railing unhindered.

"David!" I shout, rushing to the railing. "What if it... breaks... the... floor...?"

I reach the bannister in time to witness the old ship's wheel's impact with the floor near the bathroom door downstairs; shells, coral and hardened sea weed scatter spectacularly in all directions, some disappearing under the neatly sorted furniture near the crash site. What's left of the clock mechanism has come apart and scattered too, but I can still hear the clock ticking overly loud, undeterred by the fact that it is now only a broken ship's wheel with shattered decorations and not a clock at all.

I take a few steps back when David turns to look at me, breathing hard from the exertion and the emotions behind it. Until the moment I saw him smashing the clock with a hammer, I did not think that he was capable of violence. After seeing what he'd just done, I now know that he is, and I'm afraid.

I remember the broiling rage I felt this morning. The kind of anger I've never experienced in my entire life, and I wonder if David is caught in that rage now. Can he snap out of it? Can he control it?

Is he going to hurt me?

The ticking is growing louder and louder, rather than dying down, and it is not only the nautical clock I'm hearing; it is also the grandfather clock and the clock in the study. All of them are ticking to their own time and rhythm, and my heart is beating frantically, trying to keep pace with them. The only clock not adding its voice to the noise is the cuckoo David disposed of.

I warily look at him when he takes a step in my direction. Is he going to pitch me over the bannister too?

"I love this house!" he yells, his voice thick with anger and frustration. "I have always loved it! I want to restore it and build a home here!"

I know that. I'm not the one stopping him. Is he blaming me for all the garbage that's been going on here?

He stops walking towards me, his face twisted in the kind of anger I've never seen there before, and I involuntarily back away from that anger, fear curling like fingers in my gut.

"But I swear!" he growls in a voice very unlike his usual warm, soothing tones. "I will burn this whole bloody place to the ground if I have to, just to save you, Belle!"

My name echoes in the deathly silence that follows his passionate words, and I can see the anger leave David's face, the gentleness returning, spurring me to close the gap between us and wrap my arms around him.

For a long time, we just stand on the landing, holding onto each other, while the echo fades and the unnatural silence seeps away as the sounds of rain and thunder once again return. Nothing is ticking anymore now. My heart is still beating fast, but David's embrace is warm and gentle, chasing away my fear.