The Monocle's Eye

Chapter 3

 I awoke to the bumbling interior of a large carriage. The deep red drapes were drawn tightly shut and the leather black seats were comfortable, but I felt strangely. I had taken that pill, and now, although I had rested better that I had imagined I ever could, I found a strange sense of timelessness all about me. I felt I had surely slept more than a simple night, and had obviously slept soundly enough to be transferred to this carriage, yet to me I could have slept half a day or a year, and knew nothing of which. On the opposite seat lay someone in a blue cloak, which I then realized was the Princess, as it was the same cloak as earlier. She was limp and obviously sleeping, so I was quiet about shifting over to the corner to peer out the cracks of the curtain.

It struck me at once that we were no longer in Britain, yet I remembered nothing of leaving London nor a boat that might of carried us across to mainland Europe. The stone paved roads bumped along below us, and we spend by quickly, past the well wooded edged of the road. I turned back to the dimly lit carriage and for the first time saw that beside me on the bench lay two golden cuffs, connected by a gold chain. I realized instantly that it was the twin's chain, but they were nowhere to be found, but their chain couldn't come off. I was sent instantly into a panic and leaped up to cease the chain, but my hand ran into a warm body on the way. I stepped back with a shriek upon touching it, but then crept forward again.

I leaned forward and pressed my finger to the warm solid that lay invisible next to the golden cuffs, and watched breathlessly as a pink finger-pad seemed to form under my touch, slowly a brown hand was revealed from the air and an arm began to telescope off of it slowly, like it was forming in the air. I reached forward cautiously and ran into a soft silk fabric, and watched, almost forgetting to breath with astonishment. Before me formed the twins out of thin air, sleeping soundly in their pajamas. I stepped back in shock and watched their presents go out like a light as I lost contact, and jabbed softly into the air again to ensure they were still there. If I had been uneasy previously, my suspicions had now increased ten-fold, and I thought I must still be dreaming, even as it felt so real. If not I must be mad.

I turned to the blue cloak that sat opposite from me, yet she seemed just as soundly asleep, although it was mid-day at this time from what I saw outside. But what day was it? I thought, and stepped closer to the Princess to see if she was really asleep. I couldn't hear her breath, and even as I placed myself inches from her head, no breath was to be felt. It shocked me and I pulled her wrist from the sleeve of her cloak. It was deadly cold and almost rubbery as that of a corpse, but I had felt this before while she was awake, and then it was already ghastly pale, I endeavored to take it's pulse. I sat for at least a minute, but no beat came from her heart, which began to worry me greatly, so I displace the cloak's hood and pulled it back so I might glimpse her face.

I let out a bloodcurdling scream, so loud in fact, that the carriage driver must have heard it, because as I stared with horror and screamed with all my might, I felt the carriage shift swiftly to the right and screech to a halt. There was no question about it, she was stark dead. Her mouth lay dry and open, her lips white, and her hair even seemed to have lost it's shine, and dulled to a matted black. Her eyes were open limply to reveal to faded pupils of red and purple, that looked themselves like the eyes of death. In rushed a grayish silver man who's hair seemed almost the same color as his skin, and was cut short and messy. His deep silver eyes were disheveled and serious, although his skin was smooth and youthful.

"What?" He asked frantically, searching the carriage for some intruder. He was accompanied by the jingle of metal and I saw at his feet were a pair of glassy silver cuffs that chained them together, each embedded with large and small diamonds. Around his neck too I could see a diamond necklace hanging into his black driving jacket. There was no question who I was dealing with.