Soul Snatcher (21 page)

“
Any other questions, Annie?” He asked, pushing past
the discomfort. In an effort to rein in his affection for her, he
opted to keep the word ‘precious’ out of his sentence. She shook
her head avoiding looking at his eyes. “Then we shall start our
lesson once you have changed.” She gave him a grateful smile and
went to get dressed.

When she was
out of the room he went over to the letter on the desk and read it
again. If his brother found out about Annie, Eli had no idea what
he would do. All he knew was that he would protect Annie at any
cost, even if it came down to his own life.

CHAPTER
18

As Annie
slept, Baden made his way into her room.
Without disturbing her he laid down on the mattress
beside her and just watched her chest rise and fall with every
steady breath. He lightly touched her hair as he wondered what she
was dreaming of, hoping it was something beautiful. Her soul felt
at ease and it made his feel lighter because of it.

He slipped
his arm around her and she stirred from his touch. He paused a
moment to try and give her time to fall back to sleep but she woke
up nevertheless. Her eyes fluttered opened and it took a moment for
them to adjust to the dark. When she felt Baden’s arm around her
she smiled contentedly.

“
Where have you been, Baden?” She asked drowsily as she
snuggled up next to him. He smiled at how she made him
feel.

“
What do you mean, my Annie?” He whispered into her
ear. Her smile widened at the sweet way he said her name, she loved
how he called her, ‘
my
Annie’.

“
The past few nights you have not come to visit.” Her
eyes were closed because she was still half asleep but she was
grateful that he was near.

“
I have come every night but you have slept through my
visits.” He laughed a little whilst he explained. Her eyes shot
open in surprise at his words. She looked up at him but could
barely see through the dark.

“
I have been asleep each time?” She asked, horrified
that she might have done something ridiculously embarrassing in her
sleep. “Please agree to wake me when you arrive. Or at the very
least, stay until I am awake,” she negotiated, pretending to be
indignant. He smiled at her fun and pulled her closer.

“
I will do whatever you say,” he said with more meaning
than she knew.

She took a
deep breath to take in his smell. She never knew someone could
smell so good
, or that a
smell would become something important in her life but somehow it
had and it made everything seem better.

“
I must tell you that I will be away for a few days.”
She told him in hopes that he would offer to visit.

“
Where will you be going?” He asked with particular
interest.

“
Somewhere…was it the Weston estate?” She pondered
aloud.

“
Westwood,” Baden corrected.

“
Yes, how did you know?” Annie wasn’t suspicious at all
in her sleepy state. Even if she had been completely awake she
still wouldn’t doubt Baden.

“
It was owned by one of the richest families in this
town and after they left I believe, was it the Brighton family who
added it to their extensive list of estates?” He rattled off the
information easily.

“Yes, it was.
You know your history,” she
commented. “So I will be there because Eli’s brother is coming to
town and Eli arranged for me to stay there.” She thought how lovely
it was to have Baden close.

“
Did he say why you had to stay there?” Baden asked
curiously.

“
No, he avoided telling me. No matter, there is no harm
in me staying there. It would be rather lovely to have a secret
visitor…” She hinted nervously. Baden had no issues with going
there, the only problem was that he had never been invited in or
resided there before he had been changed. Before Annie could feel
too worried about his delayed response he spoke.

“
That could be arranged.” He tickled along her back and
she felt relieved that he would follow her. She drifted off to
sleep, more content by knowing Baden was there.

“
Annie, there is something I need to tell you.” Baden
waited for her to say something. When she didn’t respond he looked
down and saw she was asleep. He kissed her forehead softly so as
not to wake her. “I love you,” he whispered to her and she smiled
in her sleep. He stayed until she woke the next day, just as he had
promised he would.

Soon the day
came for Annie to leave for the Westwood estate. The carriage was
loaded with provisions for her stay and some of her belongings. Eli
and Annie stood outside under the warmth of the morning sun before
she had to leave.

“
By the look of it you expect your brother to be
staying for at least a century,” Annie joked as she took in the
sight of the carriage and Eli couldn’t help but laugh.

“
Let us hope it does not come to that,” he said as he
helped her into the carriage. She peeked her head out of the window
when the door was closed. Garrick was escorting her on her trip so
he stood off to the side fixing the horses whilst they said their
goodbyes.

As Annie and
Eli were
speaking, a rider
came hurrying into the gates and approached them. As they trotted
closer Annie could see it was Micah. He purposely avoided looking
at her and it hurt to have him act so cold, no matter how much she
prepared herself for it. Micah didn’t bother to dismount because it
was only going to be a short visit.

“
Mr. Brighton, Miss Danes would like to invite you to
dinner upon her return in a month’s time. She referred to it as an
armistice.” After Micah delivered the message orally he handed a
piece of paper to Eli, who took it graciously. Annie was shocked
that it was still going to be that long before Miss Danes would
return, what on earth could she be doing?

“
Unfortunately that is an invitation I must decline,”
Eli refused politely without reading the letter.

“
With all due respect, Mr. Brighton Miss Danes stressed
in her correspondence to not take ‘no’ for an answer.” Annie
watched Micah as he spoke and she saw his jaw clench in anger. Why
was he so upset? He looked different to what she remembered, he had
always been so gentle and sweet. Now he seemed hard and angry. He
glanced over at her but averted his gaze when he saw she was
looking at him.

“
Whether you accept the answer or not, it remains a
definite no. I suggest you best leave before you take on more
trouble than it is worth, Micah.” Eli tried to keep his tone civil
but failed.

“
Very well, I shall pass on your response accordingly,”
Micah said and left before another word could be spoken. Eli turned
to Garrick when Micah was out of sight.

“
Pay close attention whilst you travel,” he advised
meaningfully. Garrick nodded and jumped into the driver’s seat of
the carriage. Eli turned to Annie and smiled as if nothing had
happened.

“
Is there something I should know?” Annie asked hoping
Eli would be honest with her.

“
Nothing that cannot wait until you return. Now tell
me, what must you be sure to do?” He asked as if he was addressing
a child.

She rolled
her eyes and sat back in the seat, hiding herself from his view. He
jumped up on the footstool below the carriage door and leaned his
head in through the window, looking at her expectantly.

“
I must not invite anyone in under any circumstance.
You will come for me when your brother has left and if there is
cause I must ride on the horse provided and come straight back to
the manor. That is only if it is necessary. Necessary being; if the
house is on fire and is burning down, if you have come for me and
you are in my sight or there is an intruder,” Annie repeated the
spiel she had been taught. Eli smiled at her expressionless
rendition.

“
You, my dear are wonderful.” He leaned in and kissed
her on the cheek.

She couldn’t
help but cheer up from his actions. She felt a little like a
prisoner but none of it mattered because she would still be able to
see Baden. Eli jumped off the carriage and waved them out of the
gate. He hoped after his brother’s visit it would all be
over.

Annie sat in
the carriage for what felt like no time at all before they
approached the house. The structure sat alone at the top of a hill
that was completely surrounded by trees. Garrick helped her out of
the carriage once they had stopped and started to collect her
things.

“
Garrick, was this a more humble abode for the Westwood
family?” She asked, inspecting the modest looking house from afar.
It was not run down but it did not seem to suit the title of
‘wealthy’.

“
Yes. This was one of their more private properties.
They came here when they needed space. How did you know?” Garrick
asked confused. Annie realised her slip when she remembered that
Baden had been the one to tell her about the family.

“
Living in such a small town makes it difficult to keep
secrets,” she said quickly trying to fix her mistake. Garrick was
under the impression that the Westwood’s were a private family and
only a few select families knew them well, but it must not have
been the case. Without a second thought he went back to unloading
everything and forgot about their conversation.

Soon enough
all of Annie’s clothes and provisions were in the house. It may
have been a modest house but it was neat and charming none the
less. The light blue paint and white trimmings were not faded or
scuffed. There were no cobwebs and it was clean of dust. The
furniture was simple, most if it was ivory coloured, and the feel
of the house was welcoming. There were three bedrooms, a kitchen, a
parlour, a reading room and a study. So it may have been a little
further from the definition of modest than she once thought but
compared to the extravagant lifestyle of the wealthy it could fall
under that category. After everything was packed away and Garrick
had double checked the house, Annie stood at the door with Garrick
to say goodbye.

“
You have your daggers?” He checked.

“
Yes, I do,” she assured him. She was very much ready
for some time alone. Not that she was irritated by Garrick, she was
just someone who valued her own space.

“
I shall reassure Mr. Brighton. The horse is tied up at
the side of the house if you need. We will be back to fetch you in
no time, Miss Belle,” he promised.

“
Thank you, Garrick. Have a safe trip home.” He gave
her a smile as he left and she returned the gesture.

Annie closed
the door and locked it. She went straight for the books she had
packed. She picked the one she most felt like reading, went to the
parlour and started a fire. Soon she was settled in for a peaceful
night.

CHAPTER
19

Annie had
been at the house for two days and she hadn’t heard from anyone.
The most disappointing part was that she hadn’t heard from Baden.
She had entertained herself by reading books, writing and going
over the things Eli had taught her
during their lessons.

One night
when she had finished cleaning up from dinner and was headed to the
parlour with a book, there was a knock at the door. She paused and
stood at the end of the hall, staring at the front door. Should she
answer it? When she hadn’t decided, whoever it was knocked again.
It had to be someone she knew…didn’t it? The small doubt that is
was a stranger at the door made her hesitate.

As silently
as she could, she quickly raced and grabbed the dagger that went in
her hair. It was the only one she was able to find. She left the
book in her room and crept up to the door. Trying to hold back her
fear she clenched the dagger in her fist. Who could it be? She
stood at the door in indecision. She looked down and realised that
she was only wearing a nightdress, which was white and very
revealing. She was about to run and get something to cover herself
when the visitor spoke.

“
Annie, it is Baden,” he called out to her. She let out
the breath she had been holding and moved to open the door. As she
did she realised she still had the dagger in her hand. To conceal
it she wrapped it up in her hair and opened the door, smile
ready.

“
Baden, you almost frightened me to death!” She said,
relief obvious in her voice.

He tilted his
head just a little and smiled at her in such a way that it chased
away all of her previous fear. He was looking absolutely delicious
as always, in a simple ivory slip-shirt and casual black pants. She
loved how he flouted society’s social conventions and dressed
however he pleased. She moved to him happily and he enfolded her in
his arms. As she rested her face on his chest she couldn’t help but
think about how he had come to mean so much to her in such a short
amount of time. In her rush to touch him she hadn’t realised that
she stepped outside of the house when she went to him.