The Forgotten Keepsake

Chapter 16

XVI

"What's this Sir Guy?" Mina gently slid her fingers over the inside of his wrist, ghosting her thumbs over a mark there. They were sitting by the river in the usual spot underneath the oak tree, things had been stressful in Nottingham of late and so he hadn't been able to resist riding out to visit her this morning. A good decision he decided as he closed his eyes to savour her touch.

"Hmmm?" he snapped out of it to look where she indicated "Oh that... that's an old scar."

It was once a tattoo. I liked it.

"How did you get it?" She continued to hold his wrist in her soft grip and the way she was touching him was driving him mad; he longed to pull her close.

"I err... it was... well, it's a burn."

...caused by my sadist boss.

"A burn?" she fixed him with a questioning look making him nervous

"Yes err I was..."

How do you explain something like this?

"...ah... careless..."

That's one way of putting it.

"Hmmm..." she was frowning but the corners of her lips quirked upwards, her eyes amused "... and are you often careless Sir Guy?"

"I told you, there's no need to call me Sir, just call me Guy"

"I know but I keep forgetting." The mischievous grin on her face said otherwise; she didn't keep forgetting, she merely enjoyed winding him up.

One of these days, I'm going to kiss that grin right off your face.

"Have you got a few of these?" she held his wrist up, her eyes flitting from the scar to his face, a raised eyebrow accompanying the grin. He squirmed.

"I... it's...you could say it... well... it happens sometimes... in my line of work."

You can say that again.

Mina had a way of smiling and frowning at the same time - Guy never knew what to make of it, and now was no exception. An uneasy silence followed.

"... like in Castlebrook?"

He froze.

He had known at some point that they would talk about this; the terrible thing he had done but knowing it did not make it any easier. He felt a wave of shame wash over him.

"Yes..." His voice was so quiet she could hardly hear him. He bowed his head finding he could not look at her. "... yes, I... there is... that is to say that I..."

"It's alright. You don't have to explain..."

"I do!" he snapped, his voice loud and impatient, his brow creased in a severe frown. He then immediately took her hands in his to soothe her alarm at his sharp tone of voice, he bit his lip nervously before raising his eyes to hers; he looked utterly miserable

"I'm so sorry Mina..." she knew he was not referring to having interrupted her, "I didn't want to..."

"I know." Her voice was soft with no hint of reproach, she squeezed his hands gently, he looked at her in wonder.

"You do?"

"You are a good man. You would never do such a thing willingly."

Oh but I would... and I have...

"No. I'm not a good man..." she was about to interrupt but he looked at her with such urgency "...and I have done many bad things... Oh Mina... you have no idea..." his voice was so desperate now, as if to tell her but also plead with her at the same time

God you will hate me. I know it.

"What things?" She tilted her head, her eyes full of concern. Now it was becoming too much for him. He pulled away and scrambled to his feet and she just as quickly sprang up from the spot and stepped towards him "Please... Don't go - I'm sorry, I didn't want to upset you... Please Guy..."

She placed a hand on his shoulder; she wanted to pull him into her arms but thought the better of it not wanting to overstep the mark. He began shaking his head

"You are too good... after all that I have done - how can you be so good to me? I couldn't believe it then and I still can't believe it now..."

'I love you' is what she wanted to say but knew that she could not. He would think her mad - this was his third visit, she barely knew him.... and yet she knew her own heart.

It was perhaps the strangest thing to love the man that burned your home to the ground and yet it was so. Many would pity her, for how bereft of love could her life be for her to love a man who did such things? And perhaps they were right but it could never be that simple – nothing ever was. The boy she had known had not wanted to do it - that much she had always known; he had been her friend, he had been good and kind to her, he had had no reason to. And although she had never known exactly why he had done it, she knew enough to see that his life was not his own and the things he did were not of his own free will.

Something she knew a lot about herself.

"Please... I cannot tell you why – I never was very good when it comes to the whys of the things I do. All I know is that I should very much like to sit with you a while longer, no matter what you have done, for it is much better than going back to Mary and doing the washing!"

He burst into laughter, so loud his body was shaking with it; his eyes were wide in surprise, not quite believing the cheek of the woman. She sighed in relief and then the loveliest cheekiest grin lit up her whole face

"Aha! So that's it is it? I am preferable to doing the washing am I?" the grin on his face was positively wicked.

Her answer was a grin as wicked as his own.