The Lovers of Life

CHAPTER XIV - THE VISIT OF THE VENGEFUL ONE

"This is for all the lonely people
Thinking that life has passed them by
Don't give up
Until you drink from the silver cup
And ride that highway in the sky...
You never know until you try"

Lonely People – The Complete Greatest Hits – America

I sat up in my bed. A deep howling in the distance. The wolves were back. It was full moon again. And she would come out of the darkness. But who was she? I glanced around my room. My candle was still burning in its bracket. What a fool I was to have forgotten to blow it out! I could have set the place ablaze – ah, but no matter, my father did not know I'd almost set the castle ablaze. His mind was always busy when the moon grew and he never spared a thought for me in these times.

The moonlight flooded my room. I had wide doors giving to a balcony. Through them I could see my father standing alone on the lawn. I slid out of my bed. The floor was cool, but I ignored it as I quickly slipped into a plain worn-out dress. I glanced outside. My father was still alone on the lawn. I smiled and hurried to my chest. I pulled out a grubby woollen coat I had knitted myself with my father's aunt's help. I hurried back to my window.

There she was, walking out of the forest towards my father. I knew he was smiling as he hurried towards her. He took her in his arms and kissed her – this mysterious mistress as I liked to call her – but I couldn't quite figure out who she was or what she looked like. I opened the door to my balcony quietly even though they couldn't hear me in the distance. I sneaked outside and ducked down on my balcony. Between the bars of the carved banister, I could easily spy down on my father and this lady.

I stared as the two figures down on the lawn walked together, holding hands and occasionally pausing to kiss or hug. I didn't care that my father was seeing someone – after all, he'd been alone since my birth. I only wanted to know why she came once a month and in the night. Why couldn't I meet her? I strained my ears to try to catch bribes of their conversation, but I couldn't. Ah, well!

"Why don't you go down to them?" asked someone from beside me.

I jumped and turned around. Helena, my father's aunt, was standing there. She was an extremely beautiful woman with long golden hair. My father often said she was a star. I thought him a fool – but which teenager doesn't believe their parents to be foolish?

"I've never thought about going down," I confessed, "I thought this was a secret. My father probably doesn't want me to know about her – whoever she might be," I said after reflection.

"Oh, because you honestly think that he doesn't know you know about this? If he wanted to keep this secret, do you really believe he'd meet her under your window?" said Helena laughing slightly as she strolled towards the banister and looked down on the lawns. "Oh, Myrrha!"

"Who is she?" I asked sharply.

I was irritated by Helena's attitude. Her face hardened and she stared at me. She sighed, shook her head and vanished. I glared at the spot where she had been moments before. I turned back towards the lawn. There was nobody there. My father and his mysterious mistress had vanished. Presumably, they had entered the castle.

I was angry with Helena for having turned up when I least expected her to. I sat down on the cold balcony, leaned my forehead on the banister and stared down on my father's lands. Far in the distance, I could see lights in the village. How I wished I was down there with friends, singing and dancing. I'd be warm there at least.

Annoying, the lot of them, aren't they? asked a voice.

I nodded and glared up at the shining moon. I could still hear the wolves howling to the night's light. I yawned – how tired I was!