Rising Dark (The Darkling Trilogy, Book 2) (5 page)

“
Discipline,” he answered.
“I am sorry your wife had to witness it. It is a very unpleasant
thing for a lady to see.”

“
But she is only a child,”
I said. “What could a child possibly have done to warrant such
punishment?”

“
Niggers don’t feel what
we feel—”

He was interrupted by that sound
again, the sound of what I had thought was leather against leather,
but now knew was a whip lashing torn, bloodied flesh.

I turned toward the barn, but Alden
spoke before I did.

“
Don’t worry, Reverend. I
will let him know she has had enough punishment for
today.”

“
I want your assurance
that nothing like that will ever be done to her again.”

“
Of course,” he replied in
the same oily tone. “You go on back to the house now,
Reverend.”

I watched him walk away and only moved
to go back to the mansion when he looked back at me. In the foyer
of the mansion, I watched from the window as two male Negroes
carried the girl, now wrapped in a blanket, out of the barn. They
were followed by Alden and the man I had seen carry out the
whipping. Alden’s face was dark with anger as he addressed the two
Negroes who were carrying the girl. He turned toward the mansion,
and when he saw me standing at the window, he murmured something to
the other white male before he directed another tight smile in my
direction.

“
She be in your room and
awake now, suh.”

I tore my gaze away from the window to
see the male slave who had half-carried Julia into the house
earlier on. After what I had witnessed, I found it hard to look at
him and instead mumbled a thank you before I went
upstairs.

Julia was pacing back and forth when I
entered the room. Phillis was still with her, watching Julia with
intense pity in her gaze, something quite surprising considering
the life she must have led as a slave. She quickly hid it, assuming
the blank mask all the slaves seemed to wear around us. She got to
her feet.

“
I’s gonna leave you now,”
she said and moved toward the door.

“
Thank you for staying
with me,” Julia gushed.

Phillis managed a small smile but
averted her gaze. Then she glanced up at Julia as if she meant to
speak, but then slid past her and to the door where I stood. She
nodded when I thanked her and left the room.

“
Are you feeling better
now, my dear?” I asked once I closed the door behind me.

“
Me? There is nothing
wrong with me, Avery. But that poor child.”

“
It...it has stopped now.
I saw them carry her away.”

“
But did you see what they
were doing to her? It is wrong. In fact it was...it...it is
torture.”

“
It is just their way of
disciplining. And it has stopped now,” I repeated.

“
It is merely
discipline—is that what you are saying to me, Avery? Would you
discipline Casper and Farrow in that manner?” she asked, referring
to my dogs.

“
Good God, no,” I said,
aghast she would even suggest such a thing to me.

Then the full horror of my words
struck me.

Silence descended on the room as we
stared at each other whilst the colour rose to my cheeks. Julia’s
expression remained angry and determined.

“
No, Julia. I would never
do that to an animal, much less a man or woman, even if they are
merely slaves. You know that, don’t you?” Anxiety marked my
words.

She closed the space between us and
placed her hands on the sides of my head.

“
Of
course I know
you
would never harm a living being, Avery. But how
can we stand by and let them do this? And you know why they were
torturing her, don’t you?”

I pulled her hands away and moved to
stand at the window. When I saw the barn in the distance, I quickly
moved to the fireplace and kept my back to her. But I couldn’t
escape her words.

“
They
did that to her because she tried to warn us,” she continued. “She
tried to warn
you
. But there is one thing I do not
understand, Avery. What could she have meant? ‘She wants you.’ Who
could
she
be? Mrs
Foster?”

“
Somehow I doubt Mrs
Foster has any interest in me,” I said, facing her.

A small smile tugged at her lips.
“That is true. But Minny was so frightened, Avery. She clung to my
arm as if our very lives depended on what she was trying to tell
me. She knew what would happen to her but she warned you anyway. I
do not think we are safe here with the Fosters.”

It was a long moment before I
answered.

“
I know.”

“
Then let us leave
now.”

“
No, Julia. I accept that,
for whatever reason, our hosts cannot be trusted. But I do feel we
are letting ourselves become clouded by the darky’s melodrama. You
have to remember they are not quite like us in mind. They are prone
to superstitions and are extremely excitable. We will heed her
warning, but there is no rush. We can leave tomorrow
morning.”

“
But I know they are
planning on doing something to us,” Julia continued. “The whole
place speaks of evil. The slaves here are well-dressed and fed
compared to some of the others we came across. But it is as if the
devil is riding their backs. I see it in their eyes. Some nameless
fear dogs their every footstep.”

“
I am a man of God,
Julia,” I said. “No harm can come to us so long as we trust in
Him.”

“
But Avery—”

I moved to her and grasped her hands.
“We have nothing to fear if we believe in Him, Julia. Do you
believe that?”

After a few moments, a
resigned smile touched her lips. “Of course, Avery. I believe
in
you
. We will
leave tomorrow after we see the chapel.”

“
Perhaps we can persuade
them to sell Minny to us and take her with us wherever we go. You
do need a new maid, after all. Would you like that?”

Although the thought of owning a slave
wasn’t particularly palatable to me, I knew it was just the thing
to make Julia beam and take her mind away from the awful spectacle
we had witnessed.

“
Would I like that? Oh,
Avery, that would be simply marvellous. You are such a good
man.”

She folded herself into my
arms.

I sighed and pulled her closer to me,
already feeling much better at the prospect of leaving this
plantation, and the unnatural silence that pervaded it,
behind.

It was with some trepidation that I
followed Kato into the woods at dusk in order to view the chapel.
Julia, on the other hand, seemed to have forgotten about her
misgivings and was chattering away about how much she was looking
forward to telling Minny the good news, assuming she would want to
come with us, that is.

As if she has a
choice
, I thought wryly, remembering all
too well how the Fosters had appeared to jump at the idea when we
suggested it at dinner. They refused to accept any kind of payment
in return for the slave and told us we could tell her the news when
we returned from the chapel. I also remembered the derisive smile
Alden quickly hid behind a napkin when the matter was agreed
upon.

The other thing making me uneasy was
Kato. So far he had shown a degree of arrogance and a mild
condescension whenever he was with us, almost as if we were the
trapped slaves instead of him. But when Jothan Foster ordered him
to take us to the chapel after dinner, his manner changed
dramatically. Throughout the walk through the woods, I noted he
became increasingly nervous, his green eyes darting among the trees
as if he expected something to pounce on him at any second. For
someone who appeared to be immune to the heat—apparently the
Negroes had an innate tolerance to it—there were now rivulets of
sweat running down his brow. His breathing was also quite shallow,
although the walk wasn’t particularly taxing. I barely listened to
Julia as a turgid knot of trepidation began to form in my
stomach.

We finally came out of the trees into
a clearing. The chapel sat in the middle. It was a quaint white
building made all the more appealing by the atmospheric setting of
the trees as the sun set, turning the sky a deep, sultry azure with
only the barest hint of gold lining the dark grey clouds. A small
stream cut along the back of the clearing, disappearing into the
trees. But looking at the chapel made chills race down my
spine.

I had spent most of my adult life in
devoted service to the Almighty and I sought, and was rewarded,
with His presence daily. From the moment I entered the clearing, I
knew we had walked into the midst of evil and I found myself in
darkness.

“
Oh my, Avery,” Julia
said. “Isn’t it in the most beautiful setting? Oh, I cannot wait to
see what it is like inside.”

I barely heard her. I was staring at
Kato. He hung back in the trees as if he would burst into flames if
he stepped out of them, his gaze jumping from the chapel to the
trees as if searching for some hidden danger. His eyes only met
mine for a fraction of a second, and the most peculiar thing
occurred. I saw pity in his eyes. Then, without uttering another
word, he turned on his heels and fled.

As I watched him run away, I knew I
had gravely underestimated the danger we were in. I seized Julia by
the arm in a punishing grip, ignoring her soft gasp, my gaze locked
on Kato’s diminishing form.

“
Julia, you have to go.
Quickly, follow him and run as fast as you can away from
here.”

“
But...but—”

“
Do it
now
!”

I pushed her away from me toward the
trees. She stumbled but regained her footing, shock etched on her
features, her lip quivering uncertainly. It was the first time I
had ever raised my voice, let alone manhandled her. But, dutiful to
the last, she began to move away, eventually turning and running
into the woods.

At that moment the sound of laughter,
a woman’s cold, brittle laughter, rang through the clearing,
sending spasms of unparalleled dread through my mind and soul. I
spun toward the sound, turning around in a full circle. But I saw
no one. I was alone in the clearing. As I faced the chapel once
more, the most extraordinary sight greeted my eyes.

There was someone standing on the
roof.

It was a woman, a mulatto of
astonishing appearance. Her skin was so pale she would have passed
for white, were it not for her features: the broad nose, full lips,
and the shock of unruly, woolly ginger hair that had been placed in
two bunches. She was dressed in men’s clothing, emerald green
breeches, coat, and waistcoat, and wore lavish jewels.

At first I was simply confused at how
she had gotten to the top of the roof, when only a moment ago there
had been no one in the clearing with me.

My hands shook as I reached for the
Bible I kept in my coat pocket. But I was struck dumb, unable to
utter a word of prayer as I stared at what could only be an
apparition. Her laughter became more shrill as she straightened and
stepped off the edge of the roof to glide through the air to the
ground. She landed lightly on her feet.

Even more extraordinarily, there were
now two others standing beside her. One was a tall, glacial-looking
blond male, with a strong jaw and dark, heavy eyebrows. He was
dressed in ivory breeches and coat. But it was the one standing
between the two who held my gaze. It was the dark-haired woman I
had seen by the graveyard the last time I had been at my church in
England. Her gold gown glinted in the light of the setting sun
along with the lavish jewels they were all draped in.

Still laughing, the mulatto vanished
right before my eyes. The sudden absence of that laughter was even
more unsettling, but then it burst forth again and she was standing
about four feet from me. She howled at my expression then walked
toward me, assuming a coy, feminine pose and fanning an imaginary
fan. She closed the space between us, grabbed me by the head and
placed a kiss on my lips. She vanished again just inches from
me.

Horror washed over me and my heart
slammed against my chest. I perhaps could have explained away
everything else I had seen up until that point—the effortless leap
from the roof of the chapel, the other two appearing out of thin
air. But those cold lips against mine were proof that all of this
was real. That I was somehow alone here with these three who could
not be human. But then what did that leave me with? Devils? The
gravity of my error in not listening to Minny hung heavily on
me.

The dark-haired one spoke then,
revealing a Spanish accent.

“
Devils? No, my sweet one.
And it would have made no difference if you had left the moment
that stupid girl told you to. I would never have let you
go.”

The fact that she had responded to
thoughts I had not uttered, and what this signified, was
overshadowed by a scream from the direction of the
woods.