The Birth Of The Beta

18. CORNELIUS’ CONDITION

Aoife guided the horses through the gate of Heaton House. They were exhausted from their travels, so were the wolves they were carrying. Instantly, both Aoife and Pepin could tell something was wrong. The courtyard was empty, and the mood was as grey as the gravel on the ground. The horses’ hooves disturbed the silence, but the hollow sound only perpetuated the unsettled feeling that both Aoife and Neve were sensing. Laughter had died and misery was mourning at its grave.

Deciding to leave the horses and cart, keeping them settled with the feeding bag, the trio opened the door of the house. A shrill cackle could be heard coming from the balcony, which Aoife easily identified as Antonia’s voice. The sound was misplaced and jarred against the sombre silence. Pepin held her hand and led her to the kitchen, with a confused Madla following. Madla had asked what his new home would be like, and he had been promised laughter, joy and respect. This house wasn’t what he had been promised, but the reaction from his saviours satisfied him that this was unexpected for them too.

Winnifred was sitting at the kitchen work top. She had the tip of her knife in the middle of a tomato and was cutting a zig zag pattern around the circumference. Her hand was shaking, and her eyes were squinting.

“What are you doing, Winnie?” Aoife asked.

Taking a sharp intake of breath, Winnifred turned around to look at her friend, and all the emotion she had been holding inside and fending off for the past week came pelting down, like a painful hailstone storm. Shocked, Aoife ran over, hugging her tightly as her shoulders heaved up and down.

“It’s been horrendous while you’ve been gone. The day after you both left, Cornelius became really poorly and collapsed after breakfast. He’s only been able to drink since then, even when I make his favourite stews and soups,” Winnifred explained.

“I have to go and see him!” Aoife exclaimed, but was shocked when her friend forcefully grabbed her hand.

“Wait. You need to know something before you go,” Winnifred warned her cautiously, “Magnus and Antonia started running the Ludus when Cornelius took to his bed. They insist we call them Domina and Dominus. They have parties every evening and visitors during the day. The Domina comes down to collect Cornelius’ food. No-one but her and the doctor has seen him since it happened. I think Magnus has only visited once,” Winnifred summarised, as Aoife and Neve snarled in undiluted vehemence.

“Do not call them Dominus or Domina, we are not slaves, and Cornelius would be outraged. I will go and see him. Pepin, please take Madla to his room. Madla, if you need anything, ask any of us, we will all help. I’m sorry that the welcome was not what we had promised,” Aoife apologised.

“What were you doing with that tomato, Winnifred?” Pepin asked again, in a bid to elevate the tension.

Oh…The Domin…I mean Antonia is having guests come round tomorrow, and she wants the tomatoes to look like flowers”. Winnifred pulled them apart to demonstrate. There’s one hundred more to do, but we were all so tired that I said I’d carry on,” She expanded on her explanation.

Aoife’s eyes deluged into the black of Neve’s. Wolf and woman walked to the chopping board and took the knife. With rapid skill she halved each tomato, until they were all done.

“f**k her, she can have slices! Go to bed, Winnie,” she ordered, and her friend did so without protest.

Pouring some water from the staff’s jug, and taking the honey pot under her arm, Aoife ascended the stairs and crossed the atrium, heading directly towards Cornelius’ room. She was less than a meter away when she was intercepted by Antonia.

“Where are you going?” Antonia barked, standing in front of her.

“I am going to go through the door, you are currently blocking,” She quipped back sarcastically.

“You discourteous dog! How dare you be so flippant towards your Domina?” Antonia squawked as anger gripped her voice.

“Antonia, I am a free employee, I have no Domina, and I will be visiting my friend. You have neither the remit nor the capability to stop me,” Aoife replied, with an achromatic tone. She walked around the stupefied human, but couldn’t resist leaving the final insult at her feet.

“Also, it is impractical to cut tomatoes into flowers, unless you plan on hiring more staff. I’ve already cut them into slices for you. I can assure you they will taste just as good,” Aoife let the smirk linger on her face, before turning to Cornelius’ room, leaving Antonia in the debris of her own misplaced authority.

When entering Cornelius’ room she found the doctor sitting on a stool frantically scratching notes on to his parchment. He looked exhausted and unkempt. Aoife wondered how long he had sat there. Surprisingly, Cornelius was sitting on his bed propped up with some pillows, his eyes were open slightly, but he was still in sleep’s embrace. His body was thinner with his collar bones barely blanketed by his grey skin. His hair was dry and knotted, not thick and lustrous as he usually presented himself. Most alarming of all was Cornelius’ facial features. It looked as if invisible strings had been attached to his eye lids, his ears, the corners of his mouth and they were pulling them towards his chest as if he was too drained to employ his muscles to hold them up.

“What’s happening to him?” Aoife asked the doctor.

“I don’t know, I’ve never seen anything like this before, he is refusing to eat and can only take infrequent sips of water. Are you Aoife?” he questioned.

“Yes”

“The last time he was coherent, he told me I should discuss his options with you. If he stays here, he will die. I think the sand and the stress of the Ludus is having a negative impact on him. I discussed this with Antonia, but she refused to follow my advice,” The doctor blamed the apathetic lady of the house.

A tremble ran through Aoife’s hands as she listened to the doctor’s account of what had happened. Although it was obvious that Antonia was a malevolent person, it was more than clear now that she was using Cornelius’ condition as a fortuitous opportunity to rid herself of him. She was determined to clear her path to the future.

“Doctor, please go to the kitchen and get some food and water, ask Winnifred to pack a day’s worth of supplies. Cornelius owns a villa by the coast, and you will accompany him there for his recuperation. By the way, it isn’t the Ludus causing him stress, it’s his son and soon to be wife,” The doctor nodded in partial agreement, before making his way to the kitchen for a long-overdue meal.

Using the cloth nearby, Aoife poured water from the jug she brought him and proceeded to clean Cornelius’ face with gentle wipes. The cool sensation interrupted his slumber, and the recognition in his eyes caused his smile to radiate through his poorly pallor.

“Everything will be alright, you’re going to the villa with the doctor to get better,” She said soothingly.

After she replaced his bed garments with a clean tunic and washed his arms, neck, legs and back with care and diligence, she brought a goblet of water to his lips, coaxing him to take some. He was hesitant with the first sip, but to her surprise, soon began to gulp the rest of the water. Deciding this was a good thing, she refilled the cup and watched him, once again, tip it down his throat, absorbing it like the land sucks in the rain after a drought. She then took a little of the honey and dripped it onto his tongue in the hope it would boost his energy a little. It was a trick he had done to her when she felt ill as a child. His magic cure for all ills.

“He’s not drunk so much in days, this is the best I have seen him. You have a positive effect on him, will you come with us?” The doctor asked, staring at his patient’s sudden turnaround in amazement.

“I’ve just freshened him up a little. It's nothing that anyone here couldn’t have done if they actually gave a s**t about him. I can’t come with you anyway, I’m needed here. Watch him. I’ll arrange to get him moved to the cart,” She left the room, attempting to hold in the sorrow she was feeling by focussing on being productive.

Twenty minutes of efficiency resulted in Cornelius being lifted by Caius, Pepin, Aoife and the doctor, in a cradle they made from his blanket, to the back of the cart where he was swaddled like a new born in pillows and blankets. She kissed his hand before stepping back and watching him leave. Praying she had made the right choice. Pepin wrapped his arms around her, and was shocked when she turned into his chest letting the tears flow. This was the first time she had shared her anguish with him so openly.

Glaring from the first floor window, Antonia smouldered at the scene in the courtyard. The open defiance of the she-wolf was intolerable. She thwarted her instructions by having Cornelius removed, and now she could only hope that the old fool would die on the way, so she could throw the blame at Aoife’s feet. Antonia knew that no matter what the outcome, she would get her revenge for this slight.