My Shadow

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

It was a few days since Lizzy had returned to her old home and she was sliding into a routine. Her parents had set her a small list of chores to do. She had to collect the eggs from the hens and milk the cow before she would go off into the meadow to pick flowers and sell them at market. Thomas promised he would get her a bow and arrows so she could shoot food for her family too.

Her father, George managed to get his job back at the mill and her mother did the rest of the chores. Although Lizzy was settling back into this sort of life she still didn’t remember much and she felt like she didn’t really fit in.

People she didn’t know would come up to her and start conversations with her which she wriggled out of. Everyone in the village seemed to know everyone and she felt like the odd one out. She learnt that a man named William owned the village stables and he was looking for more people to work for him. There was the bakers run by a family but Lizzy didn’t know their names. They always bought purple flowers for their shop. There was a butcher that bought yellow and orange flowers from her.

It was after she just sold the last of her flowers about a week after she had arrived back here when she had a visitor that wasn’t from the village. “Thomas!” she exclaimed, hugging him. Thomas hugged her back and handed her two things. A package and a letter.

“Open them at home.” He said and walked off. With her being finished for the day, Lizzy returned home and set the basket on the table like she did every day. She then went into her room and opened the package. It was a bow and a quiver of arrows. She smiled, Thomas had kept his promise. She opened the letter and began to read what was written.

Dear Lizzy,

I hope this has been delivered to you by Thomas. I miss you dreadfully and things are absolutely awful without you being here. Mother or Catherine to you has made me start on my part of the guest list for mine and Anne’s wedding. Of course, I have not written one name down. One day I hope to escape and maybe I can join you. If I cannot then I shall live in the woods and only you shall know where I will be. Father is somehow on my side. He thinks that the guest list is a waste of time and that I should do it all last minute. Mother keeps trying to corner me so I keep going on hunts but I never seem to see you at all.

My greyhound still does not have a name and I was wondering if you were able to name it for me. Since you left it has taken to following me everywhere like a shadow. Luckily it is fast enough for no one to know where I have gone as all they would have to do is follow the greyhound. Matilda has gone home to Francis which makes things even worse.

Anne is as unhappy about our marriage as I am so we cannot talk to each other as we are both thinking the same thing. I was hoping that we could talk to each other often by letter or messages. I could send my greyhound with a message to you as it knows who you are and seems to know your name also.

I hope you have settled back into your life and that you have maybe remembered some more things. I hope to hear from you as soon as you can write back. I shall send Thomas to the village every day until you have a reply.

I love you very much,

Edward.

Lizzy read the letter in silence. She would have to ask for some parchment and a quill to write back. She doubted that her parents would have one so she would probably have to go and buy some from somewhere.

Her mother announced that their supper was ready and she left her room. She would ask them over their supper. “Mother, Father, do we have any parchment and a quill?” she asked.

“Why would we have any of that? We have no one to write letters to as we can just go around to their house. Why?”

“I got a letter that I need to reply to.” Lizzy replied.

“You will have to go and buy some then with your own money; which means we need to sell something else.”

“No, you do not!” Lizzy cried. “I mean, I have a bow and arrow. I can shoot things and sell them, as well as the flowers. The meat will get more money.” Her parents looked at her.

“I believe we can work with that, do you not think, George?” Mary said. George nodded.

“That sound all right to me.” he said. Lizzy smiled.

~*~

The meat she had hunted was selling well and the flowers had already gone. She had earned a lot more than she usually would as people bought the meat which was more expensive. Lizzy was saving some of the meat for the butcher to collect when he walked past for him to buy.

When she had sold everything she went to look around the village to buy some parchment and a quill. She found some and bought it. When she returned home she set to writing the reply to Eddy’s letter.

Dear Eddy,

Maybe you should call you greyhound Shadow as it follows you around like one. I have settled in here as best as I can but I still feel that I do not belong. I feel sorry for you doing the guest list but I would like you to do as your mother says. Marry Anne and then you can run away if you still feel the need to. Or you could pretend to get married and then you could run away but I would advise against it. There is no need for you to run away. You have a perfectly wonderful place to live in your castle. You do not want to live in the village: you would not fit in.

Love you always,

Lizzy

She folded the letter and went outside again. There seemed to be no one about but Thomas melted out of the shadows. “This is to Edward, I take it?” Lizzy nodded. “I shall see you soon.” And he left her standing outside her house.

~*~

Eddy received the letter shortly after Lizzy had sent it. He read it in his room. He wanted to run away from here, he wanted to so he could be with her. Why was she warding him away from running off unless she had someone in the village she loved more than him? It wouldn’t surprise him if there was. He agreed with her that the greyhound’s name was Shadow. He hastily scrawled a reply on a fresh piece of parchment and tied it onto Shadow’s collar.

He watched Shadow leaving the castle’s grounds, hopefully Shadow would find Lizzy and he would soon get a reply. But, Shadow was only a dog after all and Eddy didn’t have too much expectations of her.

He had made no progress in his guest list at all and his mother had gone even far enough to place the list in his room for him to do whenever he was in there. Of course, he had no intention of filling any of it. He was planning on running away as before.

Anne had figured out his plan and had confronted him about it. She, too, had told him to stay. She had said that he needed to stay here and that he wouldn’t fit in with the life of the village or the life of living in the woods. He was better off here. That made Eddy think that maybe Anne knew something about Lizzy at the village.

Eddy was beginning to wonder why he didn’t run away now and end everyone telling him not to. It would get him away from here and away from the wedding at any rate. That was all he wanted to do. The most obvious thing would be for him to tell his parents but there was a slight problem. His parents would never ever listen to him. They were ignoring him now as it was.

He would run away. He would. No matter what anybody said. Or he would find a way to stop the wedding. He had to. He needed to.