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and, in the far distance, the wooded slopes of Peckforton, and the ragged
outlines of the two castles, dark sentinels standing above the green and
fertile Plain of Cheshire. Closer to, the willows dipped gracefully into the
water, picking up jewels to gleam and glint with the gentle sway of the
branches, and the incredible tints of autumn coated the woods with yellows
and browns and rusts which blended deftly with the rich deep greens of
conifer and fir.
This was how she wanted to remember it, and as she gazed up at the clear
sky she breathed a sigh of thankfulness that she had managed to choose a
fine day for this, her last visit to Dene Royal.
Moving on the soft springy moss, she took the path through the woods to
where the trees thinned and the house became visible across the wide lawns.
Smoke coming from the chimney in the playroom.. ..
Janis sat down and took off her shoes and coat and, leaving them on the bank
of the stream where it meandered by the path, she stepped gingerly into the
water. Engrossed in her progress downstream, she suddenly realized she had
not been listening for the church clock. The bus ...! She must leave at three
or shortly afterwards. She heard it, holding her breath. One ... two ... surely it
would stop there. Janis gasped with relief. Still an hour. .. .
Proceeding to the bank, she sat down, dangling her feet in the water. The
leaves were already beginning to fall. She had come in the spring - she was
leaving in the autumn. What was the rest of the year like at Dene Royal ?
The woods must be a fairyland of wonder when they were blanketed with
snow. ... And the house? A little cold and forbidding from the outside, but
within . .. snug and warm with log fires showering the panelled walls with a
rosy glow and filling the air with a pine- scented fragrance. Home....
Bravely she blinked away the tears. This was never meant for her; it had
been a dream, nightmarish for the most part, but there had been wonderful
moments, too. Moments like the one, when, not so far from here, Perry had
stood beside her, and had spoken to her so softly, so tenderly. ...
The chimes echoed in the distance and making her way to where she had left
her coat and shoes she stood for a long time gazing over to the house. Then,
with a despairing little sob, she reluctantly put on her coat. She held her
shoes as, stepping again into the water, she moved towards the barbed wire
fence. The stones were slippery, covered with slimy feather-grass, but she
had done this many times and with confidence she continued on her way
until arriving safely at the curve by the 'no trespassers' sign. Here she turned
for one last look in the direction of the house, hidden now by the trees.
Bebby would be preparing tea; soon Perry would come striding across the
fields With a sudden catch of physical pain in her heart, she recalled the
way she had so often been forced to trot in order to keep pace with him.
She turned again and, without warning, slipped on the slimy water-weed,
catching her foot on something that felt as sharp as glass. In an instant she
had toppled headlong into the stream, her shoes jeiking from her grasp.
Raising"herself, she was just in time to see them caught in the swirling
current of the bend and go sailing swiftly downstream, towards the thickest
part of the woods.
With a desperate effort she dragged herself to the bank and ran after them,
flinging off her coat as she went along. Thorns began to cut mercilessly into
her feet, but she ploughed on, through the tangled undergrowth heedless of
her drenched clothing. After searching frantically for what seemed to be an
eternity, Janis was forced to admit she had lost them, and at last, breathless
and tired, she sat down and wept with the abandonment of despair.
What could she do now? Impossible to go to the house. 'I don't care if I die
here,' she sobbed, but instantly pulled herself together. That was silly and
childish. Nevertheless, she would not ask Perry to help her; he should never
know she had been here today.
Only one thing to do; wait for darkness and then creep round to the back of
the house and ask Bebby for help. Her tears ran faster as she realized she had
missed her bus and in all probability lost her job.
The sun, already low in the sky, had lost its warmth; Janis shivered and
rubbed her legs to restore the circulation, noticing as she did so that her dress
was torn and frayed by her dash through the undergrowth.
For a long while she sat there as the dusk gathered with frightening speed.
She must find a spot nearer the house, while she could still see her way.
Within reasonable distance of the drive she rested again. It was still too light
to venture-out and, leaning against the wide trunk of a tree, she waited for
complete darkness to come down....
Shivering violently, Janis awoke to an eerie blackness and as memory
flooded over her she struggled to her feet, stiff and still drenched to the skin.
She tried to move in the darkness, to pick her way to the drive, but even
when her eyes had become accustomed to the gloom she realized that
everything was shrouded in a grey, damp mist, and she had no idea which
way to go.
Terrified, she stood there, listening to the flow of the stream and the distant
hoot of an owl. Then something soft and furry scuttled across her feet and
with a muffled scream she started forward, making for the tiny pin-points of
light that had appeared between the dim shapes of the trees.
Several times she caught her foot in trailing brambles or roots, and fell, but
she was up again instantly, and stumbling on, aware of the deepening mist
which was fast developing into a yellow, choking fog. The air seemed filled
with terrifying whispers; the gnarled oaks took on spectral shapes, and to
Janis's imagination the ghost of every Caton who ever lived surrounded her -
barring her way to safety.
The gash in her foot bled profusely now, but she had her bearings and knew
she was nearing the drive where it curved past the shrubbery; with one last
effort she reached it.
Breathless and sobbing, she sank on to the verge, intending to rest awhile
before going on to the house.
The sound came to her, muffled at first, and then she heard the soft footsteps
approaching. Panic-stricken, she jerked herself to her feet, but even as she
started to run a hand shot out and grabbed her firmly by the wrist. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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