Whispers of the Heart

Chapter 7: Alisha

Chapter 7 Alisha

            A loud, pitiful neigh filled night's silence and I knew that neigh anywhere. It was louder, slightly deeper, but it was always Snow's way to say she wanted attention. Very rarely did she ever neigh at night, almost as if she knew we needed to sleep. But not tonight. Now she wouldn't stop. She kept getting louder and needier.

A sigh escaped my lips as pushed myself out of bed. Slipping on my bathrobe and walking out of the room to the downstairs. I stopped in the kitchen to grab a couple apples before stepping out in the dark night. The only light in the distance was the porch light from the main house that casted spooky shadows around the yard.

Tightening my arms around myself, I hurried across the lawn and slipped into the barn. The horses were standing or walking around in their stalls while a few others were nibbling on their food. Snow's head peered out of her stall, her warm brown eyes staring at me, almost pleading me to come closer. With a small laugh, I stepped closer and unlatched the door so that I could walk inside. Her nose shoved its way into my chest before rising to tap my cheek.

"Hey, girl." I whispered as I locked the door behind me. "How are you? Did I spook you today?" Brushing my fingers through her coarse mane, I couldn't help but smile softly at her. Slipping the apple out of my pocket, I held it up for her and she took it within a second. "I'm sorry about today. And acting like I didn't know you."

She nuzzled me softly with a soft neigh and I giggled.

"You forgive me, don't you?" Her head pushed against mine and I took it as a yes. "I missed you, you know. And all of this. But I can't go back to that." My lips pressed against the top of her nose as I inched backwards away from the stall. "Be a good girl, Snow. Mira loves you." I quickly unlocked the stall and slipped out and, with one last look back at Snow, hurried back to bed.

Morning was quiet and peaceful without Lucas harassing me about the past. I thought cheerfully as I slipped the French toast on the platter. Quick to make sure that I turned the stove off and put everything away before placing the food off the table, I found it easy to ignore the unsettling thoughts in my mind. I didn't want to think about Lucas or Snow, I wanted to forget about that past. To forget about the one time that I was happy. I couldn't be happy, not so long as he was out there.

"I'll protect you."

The promise that he made during my attack, it was sweet and heartfelt, but he can't protect me from the inevitable. I knew he couldn't. Lucas might be a great man now, but he can't stop a monster. He can't stop something that was purely evil. And he couldn't save me from it either.

This was my battle and I wouldn't let him or anyone else get close enough to me that they'll get hurt too. That was my promise after the last time. I wouldn't let anyone inside. No one would get that close to me.

Shaking my head to get rid of the bad thoughts, I grabbed the plate of French toast and rushed into the next room with the dining table and placed the plate in the middle. Returning to the kitchen for drinks, I saw the men returning from their morning routine and was thrilled to see that I had finished breakfast in time.

"Well, something smells delicious!" Mr. Stalls chuckled as he walked inside with Lucas and three other men behind them. "Hope you made enough, we found some issues with the fencing last night and I needed the men to come help mend them." He smiled at me as he tossed his hat on the coffee table beside him.

"I made more than enough when I saw the cars." I smiled softly as I lifted the jug of juice out of the fridge. "I also made coffee, I wasn't sure if you wanted any."

"Coffee sounds amazing, ma'am." One of the men bowed his head politely, his hat held above his heart while the top of his bleach-blond hair bounced slightly with the force of the nod.

"For us too, if we can." Another man said, his red hair slicked down to his head, a shy smile on his face.

"Feel free to ignore their awkwardness. They're not good with the ladies." Mr. Stalls winked at me as he stepped around and walked over to the coffee pot.

"Come on, Pa, we all know it's not the ladies they have an issue with." A cheerful, feminine voice called from the dining room and Mrs. Stalls walked in, a teasing glint in her eyes. "They're fine with the ladies, my dear, they're just not able to talk to the pretty ones." She laughed heartedly as she slipped the juice out of my hands and walked back to the dining room.

My fingers rose to my cheeks and I could feel the heat radiating off of them. Lucas grinned knowingly to the side and I huffed, whipping myself around to pull out the mugs from the cupboards. 

I felt as someone walked up behind me, the air changing slightly and my shoulders tensed. Taking a deep breath, I slowly turned around with the mugs held firmly in my hands, to find Lucas standing directly behind me.

"You'll be eating with us, won't you?" He asked, his eyes full of curiosity.

"If I'm able."

"Of course you're able." Mrs. Stalls laughed as she walked in. "You cooked the food; you should be able to eat it too, eh?" Her hands slid around my arm and pulled me towards the dining room, humming a small light-hearted tune. "Plus, the boys have to get used to you so they won't make complete fools out of themselves." She muttered in my ear as we walked into the room. One of the boys, the third one, glanced up when we walked in and started coughing as if he was choking on something. His face grew bright red, under his black hair, with humiliation as he grabbed the glass in front of him and guzzled it down. "Example A." She giggled as she shook her head, leading me to the end of the table and motioning for me to sit next to her.

I passed the mugs to the men and then sat back in my chair, waiting for the dishes to come around. Not even a moment passed before the empty chair beside me was pulled backwards and Lucas plopped down into it. Biting back a sigh, I accepted the dish with the eggs on it and scooped a bit off on my plate before passing it to Lucas. A moment later, he sported the plate of the French Toast and slipped a piece on mine and his mother's plate, giving me a soft smile in the process.

Huffing slightly, I turned to my food and nibbled on it in silence, not exactly sure what I should say. I could feel his eyes studying me and I did my best to ignore him by keeping my attention on the food. A few moments passed before Mr. Stalls cleared his throat and leaned forward.

"The men and I won't make it back for lunch; we still have to do a few things with the fences and then go tend to the cattle." He explained and then stretched backwards, bending his back much like a cat would.

"Well that'll work well." Mrs. Stalls smiled. "Shelly and I need to go to town today anyway, we can stop at the store and you can get the food you need." She turned to me with a smile as she leaned forward, her voice as low as she could have it. "Plus, I would love to show you around. You'll love it here."

"Well, with that all settled, let's enjoy the food." Mr. Stalls lifted his glass in the air as a toast before everything settled back into silence.