Never before had the young woman been allowed to see the family she'd left behind. All she wanted was to let them know she was safe and being well cared for. Today was going to be her first contact. She walked down the aisle of the near empty church...
There was the deep, protracted breaths of a man deep in sleep. Through the window, outside in the beautifully tended garden, a young man in a grey trilby hat admired the craftsmanship in a pergola, which covered a short stone slab walkway and was adorned with hanging baskets containing colourful Autumn flowers. In the living room, near the sleeping man's feet which were resting on a foot stool, was a bookshelf stacked mainly with gardening and history books. On the top of the bookshelf was a small trophy depicting a figure playing bowls.
The man's breathing became laboured, rasping slightly. On a table by the man's side was an ornate pewter candlestick with the residue of a candle burning in it. The candle flame flickered as it began to die. The flame went out, releasing a delicate wisp of smoke from the glowing wick. The smoke carried gently towards the man's face. James.
A pair of woman's arms rested soothingly on James's shoulders, willing him to rouse from his fitful sleep. Halfway between sleep and awake, James sensed those arms, they were familiar to him. He somehow knew they were the same arms that had comforted him as a boy as he looked on in shock at the smouldering tomb of his newly dead parents.
A wisp of smoke entered James's nose, and his eyes opened. James spluttered and coughed, whilst watching the last traces of smoke emanating from his parents' candlestick. The arms around his shoulders gently pulled away. James leaned forward, gathering himself. He looked at his watch, then got up from his armchair. James entered his hallway and put on his coat to leave the house.
Unseen by James, through the living room window, outside in his garden, Sarah appeared leaving the house, sobbing. She walked straight to the open arms of the man in the grey trilby hat and they embraced. Sarah then walked to the far end of the garden and disappeared, leaving James's house for the last time.
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