Blind Faith (Book 1)

Chapter 32

Ash

He paused at the bottom step and waited, leaning against the hand railing for support, his legs jelly. The crystal burned viciously against his skin, as it had never before, a faint glow through his shirt. He fought the pain and gritted his teeth, clenching his fists to fight it.

"Ashley...brother?" said the monk in a soft voice, climbing to their feet.

Ash was at their side in an instant pulling away the hood to stare at his sister's face, she frowned up at him, uncertain, concern across her features, though her eyes remained closed.

"Y...yes, it's me." He answered, the words caught in his throat. He smiled at her and her face glowed in delight, her wonderful smile reviving his lonely soul.

He picked her up and held her close, never wanting to let her go again. Tears streamed down his face and as he pulled away to get a better look at her, her closed eyes were red around the rims, as tears leaked down her cheeks.

He brushed his hand along her jaw and playfully pinched her nose like old.

They both giggled and hugged again.

He held her tight against his chest until she groaned and started hitting his back softly.

"Ashley, I can't breathe Ashley." She laughed

"Oh, sorry," he replied coyly putting her down.

"I just can't believe it...why...how," he started, but Melissa snatched his hand and pulled him down to the floor to sit next to her. He was glad, his legs had started to wobble again and he couldn't stop crying. He wiped his face on his sleeve, knowing he probably smeared his face with grime. But what did it matter?

"I thought...we thought...oh my God. I just cannot believe my eyes...Is that mum's perfume you're wearing? Is...is she here..." he paused as Melissa raised a hand to his face, her fingers oddly searching his features pausing at his lips to silence him. She opened finally opened her eyes to peer up at him. He stared at her in wonder, drinking in every little feature of her face. Only then did he notice that her eyes had lost their sparkle and had a white sheen to them. Her gaze didn't focus and she stared past him to the ceiling. She sighed and turned away, a shadow falling over her face.

"No brother, she's...mother is gone."

A sad silence fell upon them, as they sat together on the floor.

He fought against another wave of tears as he thought of his Mother. She grabbed him this time, hiding her face in his chest as she became overwhelmed with emotions, her breathing hitching with her tears as she cried.

"I...I...still can't believe it..."she whispered.

He placed a finger under her chin to look her in the eyes. Her face had grubby smears from leaning against him. He began to wipe some of it off, but she snatched her head away and peered to the floor, colour rising in her cheeks.

He tried to catch her gaze, grinning at her, to make her smile, but she stared off in the distance, towards the alter and the font. Ash followed her gaze and shivered as he recalled the eerie feeling wafting from the font.

"So, what happened? I mean, the explosion, you were meant to be..." he could not say the word, the meaning too much to bear. He didn't want to return to that dark place.

He thought he saw her eyes glisten before she pulled out a tissue to wipe them. Ash grinned; she always had a tissue to hand. As she slipped it up her sleeve Ash thought he caught a tiny red stain on the white material.

"Ashley, it isn't easy to explain, as in some ways, I do not know what happened, however, what is important is that I was taken and-" she swallowed and quickly slipped out the tissue again and blew her nose. He couldn't see any stain this time.