Snow melt started the previous day. Soft rain fell all afternoon. Black ice formed overnight. Treacherous. Transparent. Deadly.
The driver took the corner badly. Wheels spun, slewed on the ice. Vehicle out of control. Screech. Impact. Silence.
In the distance a siren wails.
~~~~~~~~
Image credit: Oleksii S @ Unsplash The image shows three orange traffic cones placed on the road. There is ice on the road surface and foot prints can be seen on the ice.
Joey shot across the road and hurtled down the narrow alleyway that divided the terrace of tall buildings ahead of him, the northerly aspect of the dank thoroughfare rarely allowed the sun’s rays to penetrate, and his feet slid on the slippery cobbles.
Hearing a shrill whistle behind him, Joey skidded around a corner into an even narrower passage and then another, losing himself in the maze of Victorian dereliction. Behind him, pounding feet were closing in, their speed more than a match for Joey’s; he swung around the edge of another building only to find himself faced by a huge, crumbling brick wall. He turned to face his pursuers – five unusually short, squat individuals crowded in, filling the width of the alleyway.
Joey spun round and launched himself at the wall, fingers and toes desperately scrabbling for purchase in the missing mortar between the bricks; finally, with a heroic effort, he hauled himself to the top and straddled the wall.
Joey peered down into the yard on the other side, where a bearded man leaned on the edge of an open doorway, smoking an unpretending cigar; the man stared back up at him and slowly raised an eyebrow.
Returning to the steps where first they met, he sits awhile, alone, bereft. Crimson petals like blood red tears scatter on cold, hard stone. His heart bleeds for her, his loss, a future that will never be.
~~~~~~~~
Image credit: Yana Hurskaya @ Unsplash The image shows an earthenware jug filled with red tulips. The jug is sitting on old stone steps.
Ceridwen was clutching her tarot deck so tightly that the edges of the cards dug into her flesh; the air around her reverberated with disharmony as she silently contemplated the brace of cards she’d just dealt – the Tower and the Two of Cups (reversed) – she chewed her lip, her first card reading had spoken of exuberant adventure, but now the cards showed something darker in Joey’s future.
Joey, meanwhile, was teetering on the edge of a roof, in peril of falling, just as the Tower card so dramatically depicted; Patterson was closing in. A movement behind his shoulder caught Joey’s attention: a tawny-coated cat sprung from the overhanging roof and disappeared, greeted by the clank of metal as it landed not far below. The jade camel vibrated in Joey’s pocket and without hesitation, he dodged past Patterson and leapt after the cat.
Joey crashed onto the roof of a low outrigger; only momentarily winded, he let himself down to the ground, ran across the yard and climbed over the back wall, to disappear down the nearest alleyway.
Aurora’s salmon-coloured cheeks turned a vibrant shade of crimson, as her blood boiled; she directed her dismay at Patterson: ‘FIND HIM!’
Bemused, Joey sat on an expensive couch opposite Aurora in the grandest room he had ever encountered, sipping from a fragile cup of sugary tea, while Aurora issued instructions as if she were reeling off ingredients for a complex recipe; her suave companion nodded as he wrote in a small leather-bound notebook with an elegant silver pen.
Aurora paused, studying Joey for a moment; she set her cup down on an onyx and gold side-table, motioning Joey to do the same, ‘Come, Joey, I have something to show you.’
Joey followed her into the red-carpeted hallway through which they’d entered; Aurora glided up one wide staircase, then another, finally leading him out onto a roof terrace where she stood facing him, her steely gaze flicking to his pocket and back to his face. She advanced a step, holding out her hand: ‘I will be your passport to success if you give me that.’
Patterson appeared in the doorway and Aurora took another step towards Joey; the jade camel started to vibrate in his pocket; he retreated, his heart going into overdrive, racing away like his thoughts.
Joey looked over the edge of the building; it was a long way down.
you melted my heart that chill winter’s day when you lured me into the woods
by the flickering fire clothed in candlelight I rapidly fell for your charms
night after night smouldering bright my whole body liquified
but by Dawn’s harsh light my love for you fell like snow on stony ground
~~~~~~~~
Image credit: Sean Boyd @ Unsplash The image shows a rough track leading to a cottage in the woods. The track is bound on both sides with a wooden fence. There is a layer of snow on the ground.
Joey shook the woman’s hand awkwardly, regarding the smartly-dressed pair standing in front of him with a growing sense of unease; he wanted to turn away, but the man’s steady blue-grey gaze forced his feet to remain rooted to the spot. The woman smiled a thin-lipped smile, ‘we are looking for a new assistant, perhaps you might be interested?’ the woman’s smile broadened, although without a trace of warmth, while the grey-suited man moved in, taking Joey by the elbow, ‘Patterson will help you to the car.’
With a swish of her floor-length fur coat, the woman strode off, Patterson propelling a bemused Joey behind her, while the flunky, engaged to handle their luggage, followed in their wake, clutching a collection of leather and canvas bags.
Twenty minutes later, a midnight-blue Silver Shadow, with Patterson at the wheel, glided to a graceful halt outside a grand, several-storied red-brick building; Patterson got out, adjusting his immaculately-tailored jacket, before pacing around to the pavement side of the car and opening the front and rear passenger doors.
The woman stepped out, gesturing for Joey to join her. ‘I am Aurora,’ she threw out her arms in an expansive gesture, ‘welcome to my empire!’
snatching up the tools of her trade gathering together her books, her notes small remnants of her life
eyes wide with fear her flatmate clutches their little dog to her chest
travelling by train, on foot they finally reach the border her skills, at least are portable
~~~~~~~~
inspired by an article from yesterday’s SA Sunday Times in which three SA final year students escaped from Ukraine to Slovakia (their little dog, Mowgli, made it out too) Image credit: Houcine Ncib @ Unsplash The image shows a girl carrying an oversized geometry set in her arms, looking directly at the camera.
Ceridwen regarded her visitor, there was something familiar about her, although she was sure they’d never met.
Cullen jumped up beside Cynthia and started grooming his silver-grey fur; Cynthia’s face lit up, ‘what a beautiful cat, a perfect pedigree, like my own handsome cat, Asmar,’ she smiled at Ceridwen, ‘I feel I already know you, being another of Ms Hall’s characters – we were talking about you when she came around to invite us to her book launch* this Friday,’ Cynthia caught Ceridwen’s puzzled expression, ‘ah, but you would know her by her pen name, Holly Atkins, I suppose.’
A flicker of recognition passed over Ceridwen’s face and Cynthia pressed on, ‘I came to warn you about the potential danger you’re in from the Jade Camel – that little statue that Joey found the other day – you must have felt its aura.’
‘I did sense something, but when Joey went out earlier whatever it was left with him.’
‘Just be careful, I don’t know what Ms Hall has planned for the little series you’re in, but that camel means trouble,’ Cynthia stood up, suddenly feeling rather faint. It was time to get back to the familiar surroundings of her own book.
~~~~~
*The author is indebted to Spira for the promo video
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