Lost Souls

5

Katie had slept pitifully, and as she descended the stairs to the ground floor, her whole body felt stiff and achy, however as she approached the kitchen, the smell of bacon cooking lifted her spirits slightly and she quickened her dragging feet as she closed in on the delicious smell.

​Already sitting at the table were her dad, Alex and Amber, while her mother busily turned eggs in a huge frying pan. Sizzling beside these were sausages, rashers of bacon, and some tomatoes for Alex, as no one else in the family liked fried tomatoes.  Amber had once told a very posh family Auntie that eating fried tomatoes was a bit like eating a squashed snail, and she should know as she'd eaten quite a few. Everyone had laughed as their Aunt had made a hurried dash to the bathroom to recompose herself.

​"Did you sleep well Katie?" her father asked, as he poured himself a mug of coffee from a new percolator.

​"It was okay dad," she lied, not wanting to bring up the previous nights events unless she had too.

​"I slept like the dead," Alex informed them proudly.

​"Dead people don't sleep Alex. They're dead already," Amber pointed out.

​"It's a saying clever clogs," Alex replied sarcastically.

​"Well, it's a silly one," Amber giggled loudly, pulling a face at Alex as she did so.

​Their father coughed and then said, "Right you lot. I don't want any arguments today. We're all going into Auchdermuir village to pick up supplies for the weekend, and when we return we'll have a bite for lunch and go explore the grounds together. Everybody happy with that plan?"

​All the children nodded. They all understood it hadn't really been a question, more of an instruction they'd best agree with or risk putting their father in a bad mood so early on in the day.

​Mrs. Rusk brought over the frying pan and started to dish up breakfast. "Someone butter the bread please," she asked, as she dropped two turned eggs onto Alex's plate. "Think I might have made too much here," she laughed.

​"Oh I'm sure these gannets will eat the lot," Mr. Rusk joked.

​Katie nodded as she put a mouthful of too hot bacon into her mouth and started to blow out immediately.

​Alex laughed. "Teach you for being a greedy pig," he scoffed.

​"Alex!" both his parents shouted at the same time.

​"Sorry," he replied, not really meaning it.

​The rest of breakfast passed without incident and soon everyone was climbing into the car for the short drive down to the village. The sun was shining, but the morning breeze felt cool and everyone had dressed warmly.

As the narrow country lanes were negotiated at a slower speed than the previous day, Mr. Rusk having been warned he would risk everyone being sick if he drove too quickly, the children sat quietly looking out the windows and trying to get a feel for their new surroundings.
​Katie had already changed her mind about living in the countryside, as she loved the fresh air and views that stretched as far as her eye could see. She just wasn't sure about Dovecott Manor House, and had a strange feeling something was wrong with the place. She wasn't one for drama and the unexplained, but something about the old house didn't feel right to her.

​Their journey took less than ten minutes, and soon they were driving into the small quaint village of Auchdermuir. The main street was only about a quarter of a mile long. A grocery store, butcher shop and a hairdresser seemed to be the only shops available. A small hotel, named The Priory, took centre stage and at the end of the street stood a ruin of what looked like a small medieval church.