the delicious wolves

11: lethal and young

1930

Will woke with a start. He was lying on the couch in the living room, the guest room being used by Estella's parents - who refused to leave even after Estella's fever had broken. Will looked around the dark room, not knowing what had woken him up. From the couch he could see down the hall. The door to the master bedroom was open. Was Estella awake?

He crept down the hall, the floorboards creaking under every step. He could hear soft snoring coming from the guest bedroom. He walked past and looked into the room he shared with her, to see nothing. Estella was gone.

Over the past few days Estella had been getting better. Her fever was gone, and there were moments when he would look at her and she had the shimmer of youth and happiness in her her eyes. He knew she wasn't well yet, he couldn't shake her loose of the shadow over her. Seeing her empty bed sent a dagger of ice into his heart.

"Estel?" He asked loudly, not caring if he woke up his in-laws. He stormed back down the hall, looking in the kitchen and dinning room. "Estel?!"

"What's all this noise?" he heard James' voice as he opened his door to see what was happening.

"I can't find Estella," Will raced back into the hall.

James' eyes went wide. He closed the door again and Will could hear him speaking with his wife and shuffling around. A few moments later James opened the door, now fully dressed.

"Don't just stand there, we need to find her!" James gave his son-in-law an accusatory look. Once more Will felt the fear creep into him. What had Estella told her parents? 

But that didn't matter. They had to find Estella first. What if she had gone off to find Pat again? He couldn't stand the idea of Estella hurting him or Pat's family. He'd never loved Diamond, but he hardly wanted to see the woman hurt for his sins.

"You and Rosaline look around the grounds, I'll take the car and go looking on the roads."

"The roads? Why would she be out there?"

"I don't know! Why would she be out of bed in the middle of the night anyway?" Will snapped back. He turned and walked away before James could give an answer. He didn't need to hear what James had to say, he knew the answer to the question well enough. Whatever Estella did now, was his fault.

He ran outside, calling to Estella, hoping to find her in the garden. He went to the shed where he kept his shiny new car, pulling off the tarp covering it, and starting it up. The engine sputtered and roared, and the lights lit up the quiet country road. He drove slowly, calling out the window for her, stopping now and again to get out and check out a path he knew Estella would sometimes walk down.

Will drove all night. He drove to Sparkhill and just sat outside of Pat's home. The house was dark, and quiet. A single light on in the master bedroom let him know someone was home. He waited to see if Estella would show up, anxiety tearing him apart. He was worried if he left she would show up and hurt the Bishop family, but felt just as frightened by the thoughts of staying here, only for Estella to be elsewhere, lost and hurt and needing help.

****

"I don't understand," Diamond finally said. Her face showed no expression. Not the anger or hurt that Pat had expected. Her face betrayed none of the emotions Diamond was feeling towards her husband at that moment.

"I don't understand it myself," Pat finally said, hanging his head down.

"Homosexual..." the word sounded strange coming from Diamond's mouth. She stood up, then sat back down on the bed, then sat up and walked to the door, then turned around and looked at her husband. Throughout it all she kept opening her mouth to speak, but nothing would come out.