5 Books For Eveline

11

11

The painkilling injection did its job and she started the anti-inflammatory course as soon as she reached the house, but it was the hot bath that gave her a greater sense of relief. With soothing bubble bath scents drifting into her nostrils, she had laid back, lifting from the seat to float with her eyes closed.

With her eyes drooping, she tried to stay awake, the heat bringing to bear all the exhaustion she felt from the previous day's exertions and the night's lack of sleep. She couldn't allow herself to sleep. Not yet. The pain of the night before and the visit to the doctors had distracted her enough. She needed to read the second 'For Eveline' book and begin working out possible locations for the third book.

She knew it had become something of an obsession, now, and she didn't care. The entire premise of the books and their treasure hunt had become one of the few things she could call her own. A real part of her new life. Up to this point, everything had only continued a past life that she had no connection to. No emotional tether. The books were something that she could relate to her life now, as it was, not an ephemeral thought of a life lived and lost.

Emptying the bath, she opened the little door and wrapped a towel around her, limping to the steamed up mirror above the sink. Her hand wiped down one side and she gazed at the dappled reflection of half her face, the other half looking as though she viewed it through a wall of mist. Diffuse, hazy, not quite there.

Brushing her hair out of the way, she gazed at the scar where no hair would ever grow again, fingers pressing upon the dip in her skin where the doctors had removed part of her skull. A different time. A different person. Though, to hear Doctor Chesterton talk, not a completely different person. She wondered if she did act as though she knew better than everyone else? Did the previous one have that arrogance, or only her?

Taking the stair lift downstairs, she limped into the kitchen and poured herself a cold glass of orange juice, carrying it into the living room. Taking a sip, she placed the glass upon a coaster on the coffee table, beside the second book and her notebook and pen, before turning to the record player as she had before.

Tightening the bath towel around her chest, she flicked through the albums upon the shelf, settling for a soundtrack. The Graduate. She hadn't watched any movies since leaving the hospital and couldn't recall the movie at all. Yet, for some reason, she wanted to listen to that album right now, placing it on the spindle, switching the record player on and lifting the stylus arm onto the black, grooved vinyl.

Sitting down on the sofa, she lifted her damaged leg up onto the seat, laid back against the cushions and pulled the book towards her by her fingertips. Before opening the book, she finished drinking the orange juice, returned it to the coaster and opened to the first page.

Straight away, she could see that this book had moved on by a couple of years. Eveline sounded older and she and Raya spent more time together, away from their parents. This volume had a greater sense of hope and intimacy. The true beginning of the girls' friendship. Purdy could also tell that she would need a better knowledge of the town.

Even in the space of the first chapter, there were mentions of places that Purdy had never heard of. Places given names by the two girls that were of their own making. Names that Purdy doubted she would ever see on a map, by a professional cartographer, or a local amateur. It would take a greater degree of deciphering to find the next likely locations.

As she read, she found her eyes becoming heavier. She jerked herself awake more than once, but, with a quick glance at the heavy analogue clock upon the mantlepiece, it was far too early for her to sleep. Despite the orders of Doctor Chesterton, Purdy could not stay indoors. She needed fresh air and espresso coffee.