Chapter 8 Leaving

Victor awoke, blinking and looking around himself, slightly disoriented. A few cold cigarette butts lay in the ivory ashtray beside him, along with a near-finished glass of vodka and Marina’s pack of Navy Lignites. He’d fallen asleep in the leather armchair and now his back felt twisted, while his left foot was slung over the pouffy arm in a ungentleman fashion.

“A real mess I must look” he grumbled, getting up and stretching. The events of the past night came back to him suddently like a bad dream and he sat back down.

 

For once, Victor didn’t know what to do. Elansa was grounded for the rest of the week, so she most probably hated him. Redrix and Corina on the other hand were most likely outside this very door, waiting for him with his death sentence or something worse. He slumped low in the chair and folded his arms over his ruffled shirt, angry at himself and his foolish behaviour.

 

If Marina were still here, he wouldn’t have to go through all this. She’d have scolded Elansa by herself and taken care of this Carl boy. And he’d never have fallen for Corina or acted so arrogantly stupid around Redrix. But Marina was gone and she wasn’t coming back. He’d have to deal with everything on his own.

 

He got up, passed a hand through his tousled hair and headed to the nearest bathroom, praying he wouldn’t bump into anyone along the way.

 

*

 

Corina placed the last blouse into her suitcase and zipped it up rapidly. She wanted to get as far away from the estate as possible, before Victor did any more things he’d regret. Redrix was busy collecting the boys, while Kassandra helped Pandora clean up their guest room. Even if they were leaving for certain causes, Corina still reminded them that they were guests and that guests should always clean up after themselves.

“Ready to go?” her husband asked, standing by the bed with two duffel bags. Corina nodded, getting her suitcase in one hand and followed him out.

 

The weather was perfect, the sky a pale blue with a slight breeze. Most of the horses had been set out to pasture, grazing amid the fresh grass, gathering in clusters under the massive oak trees for shade. Their taxi had not yet arrived, so the couple sat beside each other on the porch, watching as the kids ran out for one last look at the stables.

“Do you think he knows were leaving?” Corina wondered, pulling on some sunglasses.

“Hmm, maybe. What does he expect us to do? Hang around until Christmas? No, it’s been long enough” Redrix replied knowingly. He took Corina’s hand into his and looked out at the hunters close-by.

 

Horses had never caugtht on to him like they had his daugthers. Those large, deadly hooves and unexpected temperments had kept him suspicious. He didn’t tolerate his kids riding because of past experiences. If a proffesional like Marina Teslo could fall from a highly trained horse and get run over by her very own kinsmen, then his children certainly weren’t any safer. He didn’t want to risk any accidents or deaths on his consience.

 

Their taxi was coming down the gravel road, when the front door opened abruptly. Victor stood there, dressed in a black suit, looking fresh and alive. Redrix didn’t even stop to think. He got up from Corina’s side and shoved Victor back inside the house.

“Stay inside until were gone” he ordered, his hands shaking with anger. “And don’t worry, we won’t be coming back”.

Redrix slammed the door in Victor’s surprised face and headed towards the taxi, where his wife was busy packing their bags into the trunk. She didn’t acknowledge his reaction, but climbed into the car, looking nervous.

 

The kids came running a second later, squeezing into the backseat with their mother. Redrix took a last glance at the eye-catching estate, sighed and got in the taxi’s passenger seat. The driver pressed on the accelerator and sped down the road, Victor watching them leave from the porch, regret filling his mind.

 

*

 

Elansa found the house deserted when she arrived in the kitchen for breakfast. The usual sounds and laugther of Redrix and Corina’s children were gone. Her father, dressed in one of his fancy suits, could be seen observing his horses by the stables. She grabbed a ripe banana from it’s woven basket and headed outside, pausing on the front steps to watch Victor. Unpeeling the fruit, Elansa ate calmly, wondering where everyone was.

 

At a time like this Kassandra and Pandora would be by the foal’s corral, trying to decide wich horse they’d bring home. The boys would be out back, throwing a baseball or begging their father for a ride on his shoulders. Corina would be supervising while reading a good book on the porch. But it was completely silent, apart from a few distant whinnies. Their guests had vanished. Elansa got rid of the banana peel by throwing it in the compost by the garden and went to stand beside her father. He was feeding his dappled gelding, King, some freshly delivered hay.

 

“Where is everyone?” she asked, leaning against the paddock. At first Victor didn’t reply. He finished giving King the hay and slowly turned to his only daugther.

“They left a short while ago” he finally responded, looking weary. There were shadows under his eyes that had never been there before.

“Oh, I guess they were in a hurry to leave, since they left without saying good-bye to me” Elansa said, reaching out to pat the gelding.

“Quite, yes”.

“Did something happen?” she wondered worridly, facing her father again, serious.

He nodded, but didn’t explain.

“Will you tell me what?”.

He shook his head, nudging King’s flank, making the hunter trot off to join the other horses.

“Why? I’d like to know dad, is it that bad?” Elansa pressed on.

Victor gave her a hard look, silencing her prying.

“Shouldn’t you be in your room, I thought I’d grounded you for the rest of the week” he reminded her sharply.

Elansa frowned and left his side hurridly, fuming.

“So much for caring” she muttered, heading for the librairy. She grabbed the phone and dialed Carl’s number, a plan forming in her mind.

 

*

 

A Ups truck arrived at the estate a few minutes past lunchtime. Victor answered the door with a peice of bread in his hand, munching on his last spoonful of rice.

“Good day sir, I have a package here for Elansa Churchill” the Ups man told him in a business-like tone.

“That’s my daugther, I’ll sign” Victor replied curtly, getting rid of his bread and dusting his hands afterwards.

 

He took the pen the man offered him and wrote his signature on the bottom of the form. The man grunted a short “thank-you” and handed him a parcel in a cardboard box. The words Belvedere Academy were stamped in red ink on the top.

 

The Ups truck drove off and Victor went back to the kitchen, dropping the box onto the porcelain counter. He finished the last of his bread, before getting a knife out and slitting the top of the box open. He pulled out two separate packages in tightly closed plastic and deposited them onto the counter.

 

It was a crisp, new Belvedere Academy uniform for his daugther. A pleated, knee-length skirt with a matching white polo for warm weather, along with a navy sweatshirt and dark, stright-legged pants for cooler temperatures. The tags read Royal Marine, a rather expensive brand, but Victor couldn’t have cared less. He’d give Elansa the uniform tonight to prove how serious he was about her going to that school.

 

*

 

The taxi screeched to a stop in front of a cheap looking hotel on the outskirts of Devon. Redrix looked out at the red bricked building, noticing the creaking sign that read Red Rock Palace.

The family got their luggage and trooped into the nearest room, the children unenthusiastic after having lived in a millionaire’s mansion for over a month. The tiny room held two twin beds, a worn sagging sofa, an adjoining bathroom with no bath and a large view of the empty parking lot.

 

“So much for a palace” Kassandra grumbled, heaving her bag onto the nearest bed.

“It’s a place to sleep, not our new home” Redrix reminded her.

“Yeah, but look at those lumpy beds, I’ll never fall asleep” Pandora said with an unhappy look on her young face.

“We won’t be staying long” Corina told them, locking the door behind herself. “Once we get our plane tickets, were going home”.

 

Mikell threw himself onto the other bed and looked up at the ceiling, bored. His younger brother joined him a second later, copying his every move.

“Don’t be so sour, kids, at least we have a roof over our heads” their father reminded them rather sternly.

“I know pop, but at least before we didn’t have a roof that leaked” Mikell pointed out, as a drop from a crack in the ceiling made it’s way onto the scuffed carpet.

“Be grateful at the least. You knew we wouldn’t be staying at Victor’s house forever. It was a nice place, but were not rich” Corina added, heading for the bathroom.

“Still, I’ll sure miss that cook. No one can make cheese omelates like she did” Mikell responded with a sigh.

 

*

 

Victor layed on the gold trimmed couch of the living room, exactly where Corina had once napped only a few short days earlier.

“So many mistakes” he muttered, shaking his head. He thought he caught a whiff of her Crystal perfume, but it was gone a second later. Marina had worn the same perfume so many years ago, a gift from his own mother on their six year anniversary. He remembered the way she’d spray some onto her wrists first and then on the hollow of her pretty neck. She’d smile as he stood in the doorway of their bedroom, enjoying the way she put on her makeup and brushed her long, wavy auburn hair by her silver-framed mirror. She’d worn the same perfume on the day of her Foxhunting Tour, on the day of her tragic accident.

 

“There’s mommy, daddy, there she is!” Elansa shreiked excitedly, pointing to the horses surrounded by barking hounds. It was the fifth official Foxhunting Tour of the year that Marina was conducting herself. It was her second time as the leader, the prized Master of Fox Hounds. Victor nodded at his five year old daugther, watching his wife seated proffesionaly upon her dark hunter Xerses, speaking to her fellow riders with a smile.

 

The early October day was crisp and cool, making the audience bundle up in jackets and shirts, huddling by the fence, watching the hunt with their breath rising slightly.

“When can I ride, daddy?” Elansa asked, tugging on his sleeve. She was dressed in a black suede coat with a high collar and a red scarf wrapped many times around her thin neck.

“When you’re a bit older Buttercup” he replied simply.

“And when will I be older?” she wondered, batting her long eyelashes.

“Next year, I suppose” was his answer.

 

Marina called the English Foxhounds to her side, whistling expertly. They obeyed immediatly, ready for the huntsman’s comands.

“Really? That’s not that far away, I can’t wait daddy. Then I will be like mommy, won’t I? We both will ride in the Foxhunt” Elansa said happily, her cheeks pink in the wind.

“Yes dear, now hush and watch you mother carefully” Victor ordered her.

 

The audience watched in awe as the riders began a slow trot, the hounds encircling them at all sides. The last rider, the Huntsman, held a bullhorn to his lips. He blew and a loud, single note filled the silent air. The Foxhunt was on! The riders began galloping, their dogs leading the way with excitement, their noses pressed to the ground, searching.

 

Marina sped after the hounds, directing the way, her eyes concentrated on her horse and the sniffing dogs. They sped past the spectators, spraying the closest ones with droplets of water and mud. The chrowd cheered encouragingly and Elansa shouted “There’s my mommy!”, while Victor tried to shush her.

 

Marina’s troop galloped away through the dewy forest, jumping broken down logs and thick roots. Victor watched her disapear, the tail of her gelding melting into the autumn canopy and he breathed out a sigh of relief. He had always been slightly hesitant every time his wife had mounted her horse and gone riding in Fox hunting tournaments. She had been riding since a tender age and had been around horses nearly every day of her life, but ever since a trained hunter had kicked her cousin into a coma, he hadn’t been as reassured. Now he would finally have all the proof he neaded to show that she was indeed an excellent rider and that he had nothing to worry about.

 

Elansa stood on her tiptoes, leaning onto the wooden fence which was covered in wild ivy, counting the seconds that passed. In the distance, the dogs began barking and yells of the Whippers-in soon followed.

“They found one daddy” she said, brushing her thick hair back with large eyes. “They found a Tod!”.

“They sure did and now they’ll be chasing it through the forest until the dogs corner it somewhere” Victor nodded, rubbing his cold hands together and peering down the sodden, dirt road.

 

The Windsor Park had always been home to the largest number of Red Foxes in the region. Hundreds made their coverts in earthy dens and dense caves by the hills. It was only a matter of minutes before one was scared out of hiding and hunted during their monthly Foxhunts.

 

The thundering of hooves increased in sound as the Foxhunt drew closer to their awaiting audience. Elansa held her small breath as the hunters appeared down the road, pounding after their hounds, who were chasing a zigzagging, completely hysteric fox. The horses were snorting loudly, foam dripping from their open mouths, the escaping air from their wide nostrils looking like steam in the frosty sunlight.

 

It all happenned in a matter of seconds. The fox bravely spun around to face the upcoming hounds and sprinted towards them, dodging the nearest ones and barreling itself at the rest. Jaws snapped, barks echoed and horses whinnied. The fox escaped death by inches, propelling itself with lightning speed towards Marina’s horse. Her hunter saw the oncoming creature and by instinct, sidestepped once, before rearing, tumbling it’s surprised rider down it’s rump and onto the muddy ground. Marina opened her mouth in horror, her eyes wide with shock before being run over by four sets of freshly oiled hooves.

 

A silence followed, the longest Victor had ever known. He had seen everything; the fox’s courageous double-take, his run across the river of gaping fangs and into the path of a charging horse. Then his wife’s fall, her bewildered features and then the whizzing of horse flesh as the rest of the troop raced by.

 

Now her crumpled body lay where she’d been, Xerses standing by her awkwardly, panting loudly and not quite knowing what to do. A strangled cry escaped Victor’s throat and he left a confused Elansa by herself, slipping down the muddy road towards Marina, thinking to himself “No! No! No! It can’t have happenned!”. He found himself on his knees, shaking her broken body, her blood seeping onto his hands, flecks flying into his face. Her eyes were still open, deathly still, staring up at him and asking him why he hadn’t stopped it? Why he hadn’t saved her? He was shortly joined by Elansa, who stopped by his side and let tears creep down her face.

“What’s wrong with mommy?” she asked, knowing something dreadful had happened. Victor couldn’t reply. His throat felt so raw, as it it had been scraped until it bled.

 

Suddently an ambulance was heard approaching, spooking Marina’s horse, who sprinted away, it’s mane and tail flying in the cold breeze. Victor couldn’t stop shaking Marina, why wouldn’t she wake up? Why was she doing this to him? Such a foolish game, he didn’t like it one bit. But as more warm blood collected onto his hands and jacket, and more tears fell from Elansa’s eyes, he knew she wasn’t coming back. She would of never kept him waiting.

 

Victor brought a hand to his temples and sat up on the couch, tears hiding behind his closed eyelids. He blinked rapidly several times and settled back down, still massaging his forehead. That had been the last day she’d spoken to him, the last time he’d heard her laugh and seen her comb her radiant locks by the mirror of their room. Soon after she’d been buried, the silver framed mirror had been packed up and hidden in the attic so he wouldn’t have to be reminded of all those times he’d watched her sitting in front of it, braiding her hair or smoothing on lipstick. His gut had clenched everytime he’d seen it after her death. It had to go unless he’d wanted those cramps every day of the rest of his own life.

 

*

 

Elansa hurridly saddled Willow, who stood patiently by her mistress’s side.

“We can’t be caught, don’t make a sound” she whispeared into her warmblood’s long ears, checking in back of her afterwards, nervously. She’d found her father asleep on the livingroom couch, snoring slightly, still in his suit. She’d quietly snuck out and ran for her life towards the stables, hoping he wouldn’t be waking up anytime soon and see her crossing the lawn while she was still grounded.

 

She hoisted herself onto Willow’s saddle and directed her mount out of the open stable, cantering towards the hills and cover of the evergreen trees. Willow whinnied happily as they thrudged up the side of the hill, passing through the soft heather and fresh clover. Her horse’s boost in spirit was due to Elansa’s punishment over the past week. She hadn’t been allowed to ride Willow while she had been grounded. One of her father’s instructor’s had replaced her and let her warmblood out to pasture every morning instead.

 

Wheezing slightly, Willow finished climbing the steep hill and they passed through a clump of Evergreens, before coming out onto a wide open grassy area. A figure was watching them by the other side of the hill, looking familiar. It was Carl. He smiled at her from his seat upon a cream Andalucian mare, looking handsome in a new set of jodhpurs and riding boots. He waved as she approached, his hair shiny in the glowing sun, his eyes bright. Elansa swung off and threw herself into Carl’s arms, hugging the daylights out of him. He smelled good and comforting, of leather, hoof oil and hay. They kissed momentarily and Elansa wrapped her arms around his neck, never wanting to let go.

 

“I suppose you missed me” Carl chidded, grinning boyishly. Elansa laughed, reaching up to tousle his golden hair. He looked so nice, so much older and mature.

“Of coarse I did, silly, I cried nearly every night you were away” she admitted sheepishly, sitting down in the grass and pulling him down with her.

“Ahh, the hassle of long distance relationships” he said wisely, nodding. It took Elansa a few seconds to realise he was joking. She giggled and leaned onto his well-muscled arm, letting her hair caress his tanned skin.

 

“I’m surprised your father let you go out after you told me last night that you were still grounded” Carl said, raising his eyebrows to show his amazement.

“Well, he has no clue. He was busy napping on the couch when I left and all I can hope is that he’s still doing just that when I sneak back inside”.

“That could get you in a lot of trouble, you know”.

“I know, Carl, but I frankly don’t care anymore. He can’t control my entire life. If I love someone, then he has nothing to do with it, period” Elansa told him, crossing her arms with finalitly.

Carl laughed and leaned in to kiss her cheek, wrapping an arm around her shoulders afterwards.

“You were always so stubborn, always the one to follow the saying ‘it’s my way or the highway’ ” he agreed affectionately.

“Yes and according to my father, it comes from my mother. So it’s really thanks to her that I’m getting into all this trouble”.

They chuckled and looked out at their grazing steads, watching then flicking flies away with such ease.

 

“Pretty horse, by the way” Elansa added, eying the stunning Andalucian.

“Yeah, it’s nice alright. That’s all they have at my stable, all those Spanish crossed breeds, the best dressage horses in the county”.

“You fitting in ok?”.

“Sure, the people got better the longer I stayed there. I made a few friends with the other stablehands. There’s Josh from Dorshire and Fredrich, his brother and then there’s Peter, who came all the way from Pontypool, in Wales” Carl explained. “We go out on the weekends to play billards and blackjack at the pub by the laundro-mat”.

“Sounds spiffy”.

He broke into his usual grin, pulling Elansa closer to his side.

“Just because we don’t hang out with millionaires doesn’t mean we ain’t cool” he said, tickling her.

“I know, I’m just playing darling”.

She found his lips with her own and they held each other for a long time.

 

When they finally boke apart, Elansa was crying slightly.

“What’s the matter?” Carl demanded, tilting her chin to observe her sad eyes.

“It’s just that I know my father will find out that we met again. I know the way he is, he’s sure to find out. And then he’ll figure out a way to get rid of you and we’ll never be able to see each other again” she muttered, whiping away her tears, hiccoughing.

“You’re not sure of that yet, just don’t mention it to him. After what you said yesterday about his guests leaving under such short notice, he might have his hands too full at the moment to be checking up on your sneakiness” Carl told her.

She nodded, sniffing and rubbing her eyes.

“You’re right, as always”.

He helped her up from the ground and pulled her into a hug.

“Just remember Elansa, true love can never be kept apart”.

He kissed her once more, before climbing onto his pretty horse and riding away.

“What about Romeo and Juliet then?” Elansa said after him, but he didn’t hear a word.