The cold ones. Part 1, In two worlds

Chapter 11 - Warmth behind the cold.

I woke up the next morning and stretched out across the warm, cosy bed, forgetting at first where I was. I quickly stopped and bolted upright, listening for anything outside my door. It was quiet, nothing but the chirping of birds outside my big bay window and no Lyra bashing into my room.

I got up and tiptoed to the door and quietly twisted the handle, opening the door with a quiet squeak and poking my head around to see if anyone was out there. Then I saw Lord Talon sitting in his chair already looking at me and I froze.

“Good morning. Did you sleep well?” He asked with a softness in his voice.

I cleared my throat and opened the door a bit wider as I stood in front of it, willing myself to appear less afraid, but my rapid heartbeat was telling me different. “Yes,” I answered simply.

“I had food brought up”. He said as he pointed to the trays sitting on one of the side tables against the wall. “I thought you may be hungry, please help yourself!”. He gestured as he waved his hand for me to come in.

My feet moved slowly along the cold floor, my trousers dragging behind my soles. I sat in the creaky wooden chair and picked a piece of buttery toast. As soon as that delicious golden heaven hit my taste buds, my body suddenly relaxed and my stomach gurgled so loud like it had a voice of its own that echoed through the room. Lord Talon grinned, then his expression changed to one of concern.

“When was the last time you ate?”

“I ate a little last night”. I replied in a nervous whisper.

“Have you eaten often? The amount a human of your age should eat?”

I chose to stay quiet and just shrugged, preferring not to relay that Lyra didn’t exactly approve of me eating.

“How long have you been here, young Ellie?”

“Two weeks…. I think, I’m not too sure”.

“Hmm”. He mumbled with a frown. “I’m curious as to know how I have not seen you until last night. I may spend a lot of my time in this room, but I’m not a hermit. I haven’t seen so much as a glimpse of you around! Have you been hiding?”

I shook my head as I swallowed a mouthful of toast. “No, I’ve just been busy helping Lyra”.

“Helping Lyra? Well, that’s new. Apart from Zekan, she doesn’t tend to have anyone close to her. So, tell me exactly what you have been helping her with?”

“Just cleaning their room and her shoes, bringing their meals, just those sort of things”.

“Well, we have maids for that”.

I just shrugged again, I didn’t want to sit here and say, Of course I know you have maids! But she’s a b***h and has it in for me and humiliates me on a daily basis! No, as much as I hate her and would love to vent right now, if she found out I’d spoken like that against her, it would only spur her on more to hate me.

His eyes studied me as they looked me up and down and I felt my body squirming on the inside from his gaze, the worst thoughts going through my head. What if he’s changed his mind and does want to have my blood?

“I hate to say this but…. Is that the only set of clothes you brought with you?”

I looked at him in surprise. Obviously, I read his gaze completely wrong as I looked from him and down at my clothes, the top still stained from everything that had been thrown at it.

“Oh, no, this isn’t mine”. I finally answered, “I was asked to wear this”.

“By Lyra?”

“Mmmhmm, yes”. I nodded.

“Do you have any of your own things here?”

“Yes, just a bag with a few things in, it’s still in my room.”

“You mean the cupboard with the bed?”

“Yes”. I replied, feeling a tinge of embarrassment. I must come across so dumb and naïve. Like I didn’t know it was a cupboard and was ridiculous to be sleeping in it.

He nodded, seemingly piecing together the situation I had been in. “I’ll have your things brought to you, but for now, I have something I must take care of”. He said as he got up from his chair and picked up his cane. “But eat as much as you like and perhaps take a bath, I can see by your fingernails, you might need one. I’ll be back shortly”. He strolled out of the room, looking as though he didn’t even need that cane and when the door was shut behind him, I looked at my nails.

He was right by all means, there were dark lines of dirt encrusted in them and my once cared for nails were chipped and jagged. But with another gurgle of my stomach, I didn’t give a crap about my nails and started picking up loads of different foods and shoving them into my mouth now that I was alone and could finally feed my hunger.

After the maid brought my bag by…. One of the other humans I hadn’t seen until now, left it in my room after making my bed and heading into Lord Talon’s room. Apart from giving me a bright smile, she didn’t say anything, and I didn’t bother to make conversation, with headphones in her ears, I doubt she’d hear me or perhaps she didn’t want to talk.

I headed into my room and smiled at my freshly made bed, one I couldn’t wait to sleep in again tonight…. That’s if I’m still in here by then! The lord might just hand me back over to Lyra!

I turned on the taps for the bath and began sniffing and pouring bubble bath and salts from all the pretty little bottles and pots dotted along a glass shelf. The room began to steam from the hot water and the smell of lavender, jasmine and peach floated from the bubbles.

I took off my dirty, ugly clothes and as soon as my toes hit the hot water, my whole body eased, and I finally felt like I could breathe and relax for a moment. I sunk my whole body up to my shoulders beneath the popping bubbles and hot water and did a long exhale at the bliss of the warmth and comfort from just this one bathtub in the silence of my room.

After sitting in the water until it had become lukewarm, I finally decided to move from my peace and washed my hair with one of the bubble bath pots. It wasn’t great for my hair, but at least it would be clean and smell incredible instead of smelling like I’d just come out of a butcher shop or a fishing boat!

After combing my hair and drying myself off, I decided to let my locks dry naturally and hopefully be able to have my waves back and leave them flowing down. I got dressed into my jeans and a top and put on some nice warm socks… Ohh socks, how I have missed you! I could never fit my feet into those blasted daps with socks on, it just made the squeeze even tighter, but without the socks in those thin shoes, my feet were always cold, and the tips of my toes were numb. I happily wiggled my toes in my socks before heading over to the door.

Just as I creaked it open, I could hear voices in the other room. I stopped and tried to listen when a certain voice caught my attention…. Kyan!

“Father, you know I’ll always come back for you and Zekan, whenever you need me, but as soon as we find out what’s going on, I will be leaving again!”

“I understand my son, but you must see my dilemma. I always envisioned you taking over once it’s time for me to step down. “

“You have Zekan, he can take over”.

“I trust your brother, I do, but it’s that woman I don’t trust! You know she doesn’t agree with the treaty. How can I be sure that Zekan won’t be controlled by her? She’s been sinking her nails into him long enough as it is”.

“Father, I will support him anyway I can, but you said yourself, once you step down, you want to travel to all the places mother spoke of and Zekan will have Lyra and I’ll have no real reason to stay. There’s nothing else for me here. I can’t just stay and be miserable until I can finally pass the title onto him and what then? What if he’s still with Lyra? I won’t have a life here, I can’t stay!”

Lord Talon sighed. “Forgive me, my son. I do not wish to burden you, I just don’t want everything we’ve worked for and all we’ve lost to be forgotten and turned over”.

There was a silence between them, just the sound of shuffling footsteps and the clanking of Talon’s cane being placed in its stand.

“What is it son? Something still on your mind?”

“No.. No, it’s just this…”

“What?”

“Just this smell, just seems to be lingering”.

“A smell? What sort of smell?”

“I could sense it as soon as I came home, but it’s even stronger in here… I can sense it coming from over there! What’s in that room father?” Kyan asked and I could hear heavy footsteps coming closer toward my direction and I quickly moved away from the door.

“You’re not to go in there Kyan!” Talon reprimanded. “She’s entitled to her privacy and from now on that’s her room”.

“Who? Who are you talking about?”

“That new human girl that is here, the one brought here for Zekan”.

“Oh, yes, I saw her briefly the night I got back. Lyra was being a bit harsh to her”.

“Now that doesn’t surprise me, you know they had her sleeping in the cupboard next to their room?”

“A cupboard? That’s not like Zekan!”

“No, I have a feeling it was more down to Lyra, but it’s been dealt with. I spoke to him this morning and I’ve made it clear. The girl will be under my watch from now on. When she returns home, I want her to go in one piece, not battered and bruised or looking like the state I found her in last night.”

“That may have something to do with the food Lyra kept chucking at her!”

“Food? Well, from the purple bruise I noticed on her arm this morning, it seems Lyra has probably been tormenting the poor girl”.

“Look, father, don’t get me wrong, I can’t stand Lyra as much as you, but apparently that human owes a debt, and it is just a human, they’re not exactly saints themselves”.

“Actually, from the conversation I had with Zekan, it’s in fact her father’s debt that needs to be repaid. That poor girl has been brought here by his doing, not hers! She is an unwilling guest, so we will treat her with some grace, do you understand?”

“Yes, father, of course I understand. Lyra said it was the girl’s debt. I didn’t know otherwise”.

“Yes, but we all know the lies Lyra spouts, so next time don’t make assumptions, and for damn sakes Kyan, stop staring at that bloody door! It’s off bounds to you and anyone else!”.



I stepped back further into my room and quickly hid in the bathroom, when I heard he was still fixated on who was in here. But a smell? What smell? I’d already put my dirty clothes down the laundry chute, I couldn’t possibly still smell like gone off meat!