What You Wish For

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Mrs Thornton was surprised to see Carrie climbing into a cab as she and Dr Donaldson arrived at the mill but she had more important things to worry about right now.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she entered the house to see John sitting on the sofa, awake though he held his head in his hands.

"John?" she called from the doorway.

He looked over at her and smiled slightly. Though he didn't think he needed a doctor, he let himself be examined since it would put his mothers mind at rest. Unlike Carrie's extensive and strange questions, the doctor just looked at him, took his pulse and said that it looked worse than it was.

He wondered at the strange things Carrie had been doing and saying. She was such an enigma, speaking riddles and nonsense but whatever she was talking about, she seemed certain. What did she mean by sterilising her cut with whisky? Making it barren? Barren from what? Bacteria? What was a bacteria?

She had spoken of this time, as if it wasn't her time. Didn't everyone share time thought? It seemed pretty universal to him.

He was vaguely aware of his sister relating the shocking series of events to his mother, but he paid her no heed.

He thought he remembered Carrie saying that she loved him and yet she kept saying that she was not the one for him. What did that even mean?

He tried not to think about it but the idea that she might be insane kept plaguing him. He didn't want to believe it, for she was so efficient and logical and yet she was also highly emotional, more so than most women he knew, and she kept talking rubbish as though he should understand what she meant.

His head was beginning to throb and he sighed deeply.

"How are you?" His mother asked him.

"I'm fine, Mother, just..." he didn't know what he was.

Well, that wasn't strictly true, he did know that he was in love, or at least he was as certain as a man can be who had never been in love before. What he didn't know was if the woman he loved was a lunatic or a prophet.

He stood up.

"Where are you going?" Mrs Thornton asked.

"To see if Miss Preston is well."

"She looked well enough when I saw her leave."

"She was injured. I heard Fanny tell you that she cut her arm."

"She is such a reckless young woman." Mrs Thornton rolled her eyes.

John headed towards the door.

"I am sure she is well," His mother called. "It's you I am more concerned about."

"I'm fine, mother."

"John!"

He stopped and turned back to her.

"I'm asking you not to go."

John looked at her for a long while. She was his mother after all, he owed her a lot.

"You have my word," he said, but he still needed to get out of the house for a while. He turned and left.

III

When Carrie arrived back at the Hales she went straight to her bedroom and removed her dress. She examined her arm and was pleased to note that while some blood had seeped through the lint and bandage, it wasn't much, the bleeding was stopping. Her sleeve was badly damaged but she might be able to do something to hide the repair. She got a similar dress out of her wardrobe but she wasn't ready to get dressed again yet. She hung the dress on the wardrobe door and went over to her bed.