Guarding Grace

Chapter Three

 Grace walked slowly back to Dark Annie's, deep in thought of why Dark Annie would know so much about those who lived in the shadows. She thought back to her encounter with The Deer Lady, the flash of anger in the woman's eyes when Grace had mentioned her apprenticeship. Had Dark Annie had a run in with The Deer Lady?

Grace shook her head and tried to put the ideas out of her mind. Trudging up the short staircase to Dark Annie's residence, Grace noticed a small flower off to the side. She bent down to get a better look at the flower, blood red petals sat upon a thorny stem. She carefully picked up the flower and walked inside.

"Annie, I'm back!" She continued inside looking for Dark Annie. Not seeing her in the living space, Grace assumed that she was in the commercial partition.

"Annie, I found a flower! I've never seen it before." Holding the flower in front of her, she walked into the apothecary Dark Annie had.

Dark Annie was bent over her mortar, as was usual, grinding herbs down for another customer. Without looking up, she held her hand out to Grace. "Give it here." Grace handed the flower over, "Careful, thorns."

Annie looked at the flower, "It's a rose. They used to be a symbol of love, carefully grown in hothouses. Rare these days, no longer used to show love. Now a symbol of death. Where did you find it?"

Grace looked at Annie, "It was beside the stoop. Laying on the rail edge."

Annie threw the flower into the small fire beside the table with disgust. Turning, she looked at Grace. "What are you not telling me, child?"

Grace swallowed, a nervous habit she had yet to get rid of, "I saw The Deer Lady. Coming out of 5H. She spoke to me."

Annie laughed, "The Deer Lady? Is that what she is called now? Though it doesn't surprise me. Elizabeth was always the dramatic one." Grace was puzzled, so Annie did know The Deer Lady. "She knows you."

"Of course she knows me!" Annie said sharply, she looked down at her mortar. Setting down the pestle Annie sighed, "One would hope she would know her own sister."

Looking at Grace, "Do not speak with her again. If you see her, cross the other way. She will say honeyed words, do not give her a chance to speak them."

Grace nodded. Annie had gone back to grinding her herbs. "She had a very big man with her. She called him Garon. Who is he?" Annie stopped, pestle poised inside the mortar.

"Garon? I have never heard that name." Annie went back to grinding. "You need to clean the living spaces."

Grace walked back into the living spaces to tidy up, more questions than answers swirled in her mind. Annie and The Deer Lady- no Elizabeth- were sisters. But why had Elizabeth seemed so angry when Grace had mentioned Annie?

As Grace cleared the last of the rubbish out of the living space, she heard the familiar twinkling of the front door. Quietly, she crept to the beaded partition hoping to overhear whatever conversation Dark Annie would have with the customer.

A tight small voice spoke, "You have to understand, it's not enough. I can't control it any longer. You have to help."

A sharp laugh came from Annie, "Help? Why would I help? You chose to use that mess, you. Not me. There is no help from me."

The small tight voice wavered, "You said you'd help!" Grace took a small breath, curiosity overriding her common sense; she slipped her head through the beads to see who could be begging for help. As she looked at the counter, she gasped, standing in front of Dark Annie was a tall young man, dark hair hung limply around his face, his eyes seemed sunken but still blazed a bright green.

Grace recognized this young man, she had seen him walking out of the back of Red Light in the Entertainment Slums. An errand boy for Madam Genesis; he had never seemed so... dead before. Grace jumped as Dark Annie sharply called her name; "Child!"

Hanging her head, Grace walked towards the counter and Dark Annie. "Child, take this boy to Building 8–He can sweat it out there." Grace nodded and turned to escort the young man out. He looked at her, "Child, stay with him through the worst of it. Regan will bring you what you need."

She grimaced as she thought of what the next few days would bring helping a drug sick man.