Betrayed: Dark beginnings

Betrayed

Dark beginnings

Rebecca Weeks

All characters in this book are fictitious and any resemblance

To real persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidenta
l

By Rebecca Weeks

Copyright © 201
4

For Kevin

My soul mate, my fiancé and my best friend.

aCKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to say thank you to my step dad John, who has helped me, proofread, edit and believed in me. Also to my best friend Kayla, who has stayed up with me and helped me edit to which I appreciate greatly. And my sister, Sammie, who has listened to my constant talk about Elizabeth and the other characters. And to Kevin, who puts up with my crazy ideas and inspires me to carry them through. My best friend Sophie, who has read my book and given feedback, she is also a huge inspiration for Elizabeth. To Mo and Preeya, my old work colleagues who persuaded me to finish my book and publish it. I am very grateful.

I also want to say a huge thank you to the rest of my
family, my dad, mum, Simon, sisters, brothers, aunties, uncles and cousins. You have all been very supportive and it is greatly appreciated. I am grateful to have such a big and caring family.

Last but not least, my stepdad Mark who sadly passed away in May 2013. He taught me
a great deal about life and was very wise and ambitious; I hope to honor your memory.

This is why I am giving twenty percent of my earnings from this book to the British heart foundation.

CHAPTER one

London 1666             

One evening, Elizabeth sneaked out of her house, curious to meet the man her father had spoken about.  Richard, he was called. He even indicated that this man might be a potential suitor. 

He was the only man that would prompt her to wander the plague-riddled streets alone after dark.  Compared to the other obnoxious pigs she had met, her father's description made her want to see this man.

She made her way towards the centre of town.  The coolness of the evening air penetrated her fur coat.  She burrowed deeper into the garment in search of warmth, but it had little to spare.  Stark echoes of her footsteps on the cobbled streets and the occasional murmur of people talking behind closed doors were the only sounds she could hear.

The streets were dirty with the days rubbish and the smell of sewage hung in the air.  She hurried past a peasant man who was coughing into his doublet. Elizabeth stared at his tired sagging face as he collapsed to the ground; she knew it best not to help him and hurried off towards Pudding Lane.

The stench of the sewage stung at her eyes, the smell making her retch. She buried her face into her coat, welcoming the smell of fresh berries and rose-water from the perfume that her father had imported for her. She finally reached the path next to the bakery and waited patiently for Richard.

She stared up at the black sky and gazed at the stars. She was staring for some time before she lowered her eyes to the window of the bakery. A candle flickered in the window, with the silhouette of a woman kneading dough on the table.

An echo of loud screams broke Elizabeth’s gaze. She could hear footsteps to her right hurrying towards her and knew it was probably Richard, but didn’t wait to find out.

She ran down the narrow path getting closer to the screams and jeering, as she turned the corner she could see a fire burning out of control at the old oak tree. She saw two women tied to a tree; shrieking in agony as they burned.

They have been caught doing witchcraft and are now paying the price; serves them right for causing the plague that has killed my cousins, she thought. Demons! Witches! The men shouted at the now lifeless women that were engulfed in the flames.

Elizabeth stared at the men as they danced with joy. They looked quite noble. They wore waistcoats, long jackets and a couple of them wore white wigs.

This surprised Elizabeth as usually such noblemen would not be out this late, especially witch hunting. She watched as the flames grew larger. She listened to the crackling of the fire as she stood silently. The smell soon got unbearable, worse than the usual sewage stench. She took two steps back.

A large branch slowly broke off and landed on the roof of the bakery. All too quickly the entire building was on fire, the woman she had seen in the window earlier was screaming for help as she desperately attempted to escape.

Elizabeth ran to help her, she muscled her way through the crowd of panicked men as they attempted to flee; all she could think was what cowards they must be. One of the men was trying to help. He was also running towards the screaming woman.

Elizabeth felt the heat blister at her skin. She stopped running upon hearing a loud terrifying scream behind her, but this time the scream came from a man. She turned around and saw that the men who had attempted to escape were all dead on the ground.

She looked around confused, wondering where the source of the scream came from. She saw a man with dark grey eyes; he stood only
meters from her, tears spilling down his cheeks, fury upon his face. He was handsome, tall and older than Elizabeth. He looked hurt and angry. He stared at her curiously, but his expression quickly shifted into one of hatred.

She stood still not knowing if she should run for help. She could see in the corner of her eye that the man who had run to help the woman was dead on the floor too. The screams from the woman had stopped. The fire had spread consuming the wooden houses.

She knew she needed to warn everyone, but the man shouted something she had never heard before (-another language perhaps-). Her body immediately went rigid; her temperature flared, she felt as if she too was on fire. She fell to the floor; her head hit the ground with a loud thud. Her heart took its last beat, the fire still dancing in her cold dead eyes.

CHAPTER TWO

Present day – Cumbria

Elizabeth could tell that the young girl was dreaming, as the girl wriggled her body, disturbing the silk sheets beneath her. She groaned softly, as she lay under Elizabeth’s fur throw. She could not be more than twenty years old, with her flawless skin and shiny blonde hair.

Elizabeth listened to the steady thumping of her heart for a few minutes, before standing up. She knew she could have done it at the
docks; it would have been much easier. But she couldn’t help it. It was much more exhilarating this way. Giving the girl a sense of security, as she would wake up in unfamiliar surroundings, wondering what had happened, confused, dazed, and scared.

Elizabeth swept gracefully down the stairs, and waited patiently for the girl to wake up. She walked into the living room, where Cecile was sleeping on a large brown armchair; she was sleeping more than usual these days.

Elizabeth caught herself looking at her reflection in the mirror; she knew that even though most found her mesmerizing, she just did not look anything like her old self. Not anymore.

Her bright green eyes shone like emeralds, her skin flawless and soft, but it had always been her blood red lips that had drawn people to her. Long and curled, her hair tumbled down her chest. She grabbed several strands and subconsciously twirled it around her finger.

She stared down, to the old black and white photo, which stood proudly on the fireplace; a good memory, yes, but also a constant reminder to Elizabeth. The photograph was encased beautifully in a silver and gold frame; encrusted with small emerald stones.

It showed Elizabeth, in her white dress and silk gloves, holding up her lace parasol, as it shielded her from the heavy snowfall. Matthias was laughing as the snow fell on him, she remembered how fun and full of life he was.

She thought back to that time and how he had tilted her face up, letting the snow fall on her, and how he looked into her eyes, smiling. She knew at that moment that he was all she wanted.

Cecile was snoring quietly, bringing Elizabeth out of her daze; she could hear movement from upstairs, the girl was panicking, rushing around the bedroom, panting heavily. Elizabeth heard the unmistakable creaking of her bedroom door as the girl walked down the hall.

She could hear her heart pound loudly, her breaths quickening, as she tiptoed down the stairs. She let the girl get to the door, yes she gave her hope. Elizabeth could sense the girl’s fear as she placed her hand on the handle to the front door. She pulled down the handle; the girl breathed a sigh of relief as the door slowly opened. She is getting away, she thinks!

Elizabeth sped in, slamming the door shut, she could see the panicked expression on the girls face, but this only made it more exciting for Elizabeth, Sadistic, yes, but she had become addicted to the thrill of the chase.

Elizabeth smirked at the girl, tilting her head slightly to the left. She examined the girl’s face as she whimpered a small cry like a child. She turned to run, tears streaming down her cheeks, her legs shaking.

Elizabeth grabbed her shoulder.

The girl could not run; Elizabeth was too strong. The girl opened her mouth, but before she could speak, Elizabeth plunged a shard of broken glass into the side of the girl’s neck, (laughing); she could hear her gurgled screams echo through the hall. She locked her mouth onto the gaping hole in the girl’s neck, draining her blood. She could feel the thirst and hunger ease as the hot thick blood trickled down her throat, the girl’s body went limp; the screaming had stopped. Elizabeth held her lifeless body up as she drained the last of her blood.

“Was that necessary?” Cecile sounded exasperated. Elizabeth turned to face her, dropping the girl’s body carelessly to the floor, with a loud thud. Elizabeth smiled at Cecile and shrugged, she wiped the blood off her chin with her sleeve.

“I know what you’re going to say, but you can save it, I have not fed for weeks and was growing weak!” Elizabeth said sternly. Cecile looked sorrowfully at the lifeless girl. She walked over to the corpse, staring at Elizabeth horrified; she bent down and closed the girl’s eyes sighing.

Surely Cecile had not grown to believe that Elizabeth was any less of a monster, just because of recent events?

“You think I’d be used to this by now.” Cecile looked tired “You get rid of the body; I’ll go get a cloth and clean this up!” She walked off into the kitchen, without saying another word. Cecile did not usually give in so easily, but the fight in her was disappearing, Elizabeth could see it in her sunken eyes.

It was one of the things Elizabeth had always liked most about Cecile; she was one of few people who had the nerve to stand up to her. She thought back to when she first met Cecile, a poor refugee from Spain, only sixteen years old. She could speak no English. Cecile was covered in cuts and bruises, and was weak and thin. She knew that the young girl would not survive in that city alone.

Elizabeth wanted to kill her that day, but could see that even though the girl had obviously been through some horrific things, she was still fighting, no matter how weak she was. Cecile was a survivor, just like herself. Elizabeth knew she needed someone to serve and help her, someone who was loyal. She could see that this girl would be a good choice, and she was right.

After fifty years of serving Elizabeth, Cecile’s loyalty had never wavered. She had always helped Elizabeth and stayed true to her word. In return, Elizabeth had always protected Cecile, as well as clothed and fed her, given her money and somewhere to live.

Over the years, they had become friends. A strange friendship yes, but they cared about each other, and that was all that mattered. Cecile is the only person alive that Elizabeth can trust.

Elizabeth knew she cares about Cecile, but would never let anyone see this, for showing you care and love someone shows weakness, and your enemies will always exploit those weaknesses.

It was better for Elizabeth to show she cares for no one, then that way no one would get hurt; unfortunately she had learned this lesson the hard way.

CHAPTER THREE

Jordan had just come back from the police station with his mother.

His sister went missing last week; they were still giving more information. The police told Jordan and his mother to expect the worst, but Jordan wasn’t having any of it. Do they not realize how strong Chloe is? He thought.

He knew he needed to carry on as normal. Chloe had been talking about running to Edinburgh or London for months now, where her friends are. She had been talking about it more and more since their mother had an argument with their father, making her more depressed and angry.

His mother hadn’t properly accepted that he would not be coming home, he left her years ago, and she is still in denial.

Jordan never particularly liked his dad. He pretended to have time for them, but he was always more interested in going on nights out. And now because of him, their mother had become depressed and had taken it out on Chloe. He found it strange why she always took her own problems out on Chloe. She had never taken anything out on him. He had always been their
mother’s favorite, which is horrible to say, but it’s the truth.

He knew all he has to do is to go back to college, and just wait for Chloe to come back when she is ready. To be honest, he was looking forward to spending some time with the guys after the drama of this week.

He pulled on his blue shorts and sports hoodie, picked up his backpack and threw it over his shoulder. He hurried down the stairs and walked into the kitchen. His mum was sobbing on the table.

“She’ll be back, don’t worry.” Jordan sighed; he could feel himself losing patience, he had been repeating this every day since Chloe went missing.

“I hope so,” His mum wiped her tears on her sleeve and looked at his clothes. “Are you going to college?” She said surprised.

“Yeah, why shouldn’t I?” Jordan said raising his eyebrows. She did not say anything and walked over to the kettle.

“See you later then.” Jordan walked out of the house and onto the street.

He walked on the grass with his headphones in, just listening to rock music. He did not want to think about anything at the moment. He pulled his phone out from his pocket; there were no new messages. Jordan decided to text Chloe another message before walking any further.
Just want to check that you’re ok, just text me back, please! Xx
He checked his delivery reports and it had been delivered, which meant her phone was still on, which was good. He walked towards the college and sat on the wall by the gate.

A couple of girls walked past him, giggling and nudging each other

“Go and talk to him,” the taller girl whispered to her friend.

“No, you do it,” she whispered back. Jordan had enough; he got up and walked towards the doors. He could not be dealing with childish girls anymore; Jodie was a good example of that.  He walked through the corridor and spotted his friends huddled in a group by the lockers.

“Hey man, how are things going with your sister?” Mike said sympathetically

“Still missing but she will be back soon, everyone needs to stop worrying, and the police haven’t found anything. She has always been ambitious. She probably ran to London or something and will be back when she runs out of money.” He said jokingly, hoping none of the guys could see his worry, thankfully they dropped it.

“Cool man. Jodie has been looking for you by the way.” Joey said smirking as he nudged Jordan’s ribs. Jordan laughed and grabbed him in a headlock, messing up his hair.

“Not cool bro.”  He said laughing. Great everything’s back to normal, except now he had to face his ex-girlfriend, Jodie, who is extremely clingy, and will not let go.

They broke up three months ago, and she was everywhere he went, asking if he’s got anyone new. They were only together for a couple of months.

After basketball Jordan was walking the familiar route home, he was exhausted. Not from basketball practice, but from avoiding Jodie all day. He looked around at the trees, he did like living here,
and it was quite peaceful and very scenic. The sun beat down on his back; he avoided an ant hill and dragged his hand across a fence as he walked.

He reached the familiar corner by his house and stopped. He didn’t want to go into his mother crying, again. He opened the front door, and a police officer leading the investigati
on into Chloe’s disappearance was standing in the hallway, PC Carlson.

“Anything new?” Jordan asked casually
.

“No, unfortunately not, but I will keep you and your mother updated
,  the reason I have come round is to ask if you have any recent pictures of your sister, your mother said you might have a few?” he looked at Jordan expressionless.

“Yeah, I have a couple on my phone from last week, when we all went down to the lake.” He looked back at PC Carlson unconcerned.

“Can you send them by email; if possible, we need them for the posters. I have left my email address with your mother.” He said gesturing to Jordan’s mother.

“Yeah sure, I’ll do it later.” Jordan said shrugging

“Ok Jordan, thank you for your time Miss Webb; we will keep you updated on any news.” The officer said kindly to the weeping woman.

“Thank you, officer.” Jordan’s mother said quietly and saw him to the door.

“I don’t know why you’re worried and going through the fuss of posters. I told you before, she will come back; you know what she’s like. Just give her some space.” He said it as kindly as he could, but the tone of exasperation in his voice was apparent.             

“Your sister is missing Jordan. You could try taking this a bit more seriously.” She said angrily as she stormed into the kitchen.

He sighed and walked up the stairs, throwing his bag down by the door. He pulled on his joggers, white t-shirt and put his headphones in; it was time for his evening jog. He ran down the stairs.

“I’m off out” He said loudly. With no reply he turned his volume up and ran out the door.

It was raining slightly. He ran up the road, under
the lampposts. It was quiet, and the only person who was out was Mr. Smith, he was putting his bins out.               Jordan didn’t look his way, Mr. Smith was nosey and was always asking questions and he was not in the mood to answer any questions. It was dark now, the best time to go for a run in his opinion. There was no one around to stop you and give you sympathy.

All he had all week was
neighbor’s stopping and telling him how sorry they were to hear about Chloe.

The pumped up music got his adrenaline going, and he found himself putting all his emotions into running, seeing how long and far he could run for. He ran through the field to the edge of the lake, then towards the woods.