“Are you out of your mind? You could have died – again!” he growls at me, pushing back my wet hair.
“No, I couldn’t, I’m tougher than you think,” I whisper, my throat burning. He gazes into my eyes, then his mouth devours mine. Finally Randolph awkwardly clears his throat beside us.
“That was remarkable, Livia,” he tells me in a grave voice. “You’ll make a good Arash.” I smirk up at him and vow that I’ll never tell anybody that I nearly let go of Ruth’s hand.
Oh, Ruth, is she still alive? I let go of her when Cassius grabbed me, noticing that Will and Rupert were taking over. Now she’s lying on the grass, surrounded by the others. “Livia, she wants to talk to you!” Rupert shouts. Right, obviously she’s not dead. I’m really not in the mood, I’d rather have a hot bath, a huge glass of wine and make love to Cassius, but my friends are staring at me, waiting. So I scramble up and walk over to them.
“Why?” she whispers, looking haggard and white as a sheet. I roll my eyes at her, guessing her full question.
“Because I’m not like you.” I bend down very close to her. “And don’t think I wasn’t tempted to leave you down there. Now you owe me and if you ever try to tell on me, block or harm me again, I’ll kill you with my own hands,” I whisper very quietly so nobody else hears my words. I know that’s not very charitable in her bedraggled state but I’m not feeling exactly great either. I take one last look into her face and seeing the fear in her eyes, I know she believes me, although I’m still human.
“Now let’s go back to the camera obscura and have a look at Livia’s shadow again!” Natalie urges us anxiously. “Ruth won’t dare to oppose it, after all she owes her life to Livia!” Yes, I’m nearly there! What a relief it’ll be when I’m finally changed into an Arash. But Randolph’s next words put an end to my dream.
“I’m sorry, but it won’t work tonight.” What? After all I went through I think I deserve it! “Livia and Ruth are both weakened from the ordeals they went through tonight, so their shadows certainly won’t be very clear,” Randolph explains. “We’ll have to wait for the next lunar eclipse.” What the hell? I have to wait? I open my mouth in protest, but Cassius beats me to it.
“Why do we need Ruth at all for the changing process? I assume she’s no longer a member of this family after her attack,” he snaps angrily. I hold my breath, looking from Randolph to Will and Rupert. Randolph gazes from one to the next. Finally his eyes hold mine. Oh no, he surely can’t shift this responsibility to me! Although it would be the ideal solution, Ruth not dead but removed from the family! I can’t take the responsibility for breaking up this family but he certainly can, being my father and all.
“Everybody should get a second chance, don’t you think? Mind you, Cassius, you went on the attack tonight as well.” What? I can’t have heard him right! He’s my father, why’s he rooting for Ruth? Cassius glares at him too, wrapping me protectively in his arms. “I’ll talk to her, make sure that she never attacks Livia again. Only when I’m convinced of her remorse and sincerity will I allow her to stay in the family. Livia’s change into an Arash will take place at the next eclipse of the moon, I’m sorry.” I’m really pissed off now. She’ll be allowed to stay, and I have to wait.
“When’s the next eclipse?” I whisper to Cassius, trying to steady my shaky voice.
Chapter 46
I’m sitting outside the castle walls, with Ruth of all people. Randolph has urged us to talk even if neither of us wanted to. Now we’re here, not talking, but soaking up the sun. I’m still not comfortable around her, and since I know that the next eclipse of the moon won’t be until June 15th 2011, I’m really pissed off. My last encounter with Randolph wasn’t very satisfying either. When I asked him what would happen to Ruth now, he just stared at me in surprise. “What should happen to her?” he replied totally innocently.
“She tried to kill me!” I hissed at him, enraged by his sangfroid. He was my father after all, I’d have expected a little bit more parental concern! But he just shrugged.
“Arash become outcasts when they kill another Arash. You’re not one yet.” What? Surely the fact that I’m already half-Arash is enough! I glared at him.
“Do you mean she could kill me just like that and wouldn’t be punished?” He looked at me, his eyes cool and without any emotion.
“That’s our law, I can’t go against it.”
“So she could kill me although I’m your daughter?” I was too angry to lower my voice.
“Then what about Cassius?” he shouted back, ignoring my question. “He tried to kill another Arash. If anyone is to become an outcast it should be him!”
“But he only wanted to save me!” I shrieked, but he interrupted me.
“You have to respect our laws, otherwise you can’t become one of us!” he scolded me. “I won’t cast Cassius out, but Ruth will stay in our family as well. She’s sorry for what she did, and you two will just have to get along.” I stomped away, really mad at him. The only apology I had from Ruth was ‘Randolph wants us to get reconciled’, which is no apology at all. I’m convinced she’s not sorry and already regret having jumped into the lake, to be honest. I don’t trust the bitch and she has a whole year at her disposal to undermine me.
Ruth has her eyes closed now, no doubt feigning sleep so as not to have to talk to me. That’s OK with me. “There she is!” I suddenly hear a voice I know very well. I jump up and stare at my father, my human father that is, Walter Forner, who is approaching me. He’s about the last person I expected to see. A second man whom I don’t know, is following him.
“Dad! What on earth are you doing here?” I walk towards him, mistrustful of the serious expression on his face.
“I’ve come to take you home,” he answers in a low voice, stepping close to me. That sounds really great! It dawns on me that I’ll have to put up with this overpowering, nagging man for one more year. I resist pulling a face and force myself to smile.
“I don’t understand why! I told you I was on holiday and would call you when I return!” Wait a minute! “How did you find me, by the way?” My father clears his throat, he seems nervous somehow.
“Your phone. I overheard you mentioning Blackmoore Castle before you cut the connection.” How could I have been so careless? I roll my eyes at my own stupidity. But that still doesn’t explain why he came looking for me. “Livia, we have to go home now. I should have recognised the symptoms much earlier, you’re ill.” What the hell is he talking about? He tries to take my arm but I shrink back. The second man is stepping forward now.
“Who’s he?” I ask, my voice shrill and alarmed.
“He’s a doctor. We only want your very best, Livia.” Finally it dawns on me what he’s talking about. He obviously thinks I’m crazy like my mum was. Frantically I rack my brains how to persuade him otherwise. Right, there is a solution: I have to introduce Cassius, Natalie and the others to him so he realises that they really exist.
“Ruth, this is my father!” I shout, turning around. She’ll have to call the others and all will be resolved. But the spot where the two of us were sitting a minute ago, is empty now. “Ruth!” I shout again at the top of my voice. Where the hell is she? Gone or just invisible? My breath hitches when I realise what she’s doing. She must have heard every word and now she’s betraying me! “Cassius, Randolph, Natalie!” I scream hysterically, my voice breaking.