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fellowshippers2008-12-11 11:47 pm
cesi-19.livejournal.com) wrote in fellowshippers2008-12-11 11:47 pm
Entry tags:
Whoever You May Be Ch.4
Title: Whoever You May Be
Author: Cesi
Rating: R
Pairing: V/O
Summary: Liv enjoys the power and pleasure of nobility, while Orlando suffers the harsh life of a commoner. The arrival of a Danish Lord may put them in their rightful place. Can you live a life, and keep a love that's destined for someone else? AU. V/O
Feedback: Yes please! I love constructive criticism : ) Thanks to everyone who’s still reading!
Disclaimer: Not mine, they belong to themselves.
Beta: My sister at heart, NJ
Warnings: AU, violence and mpreg in later chapters
Chapter 4- Recollection
“No! Please no more…”
Andy tried his best not to let his frustration with the boy show, but he knew it was a battle he was quickly losing. Orlando turned his face away as Andy brought a cloth to wipe the wounds. The child’s wet hair hanging over his face, covering his tired eyes.
“Orlando,” Andy said firmly, “It would be over if you would just let me get those cuts and bruises. It won’t hurt I promise.” He tried again, but this time Orlando turned his whole body away, his eyes cast down.
Andy sighed wearily as he dabbed the cloth into a small basin of water he placed at the foot of the bed. His eyes glanced at the food which laid untouched on a tiny table by Orlando’s side. Andy felt like an idiot right then. Food was probably the last thing the poor boy needed to see.
“I have to go back,” Orlando spoke, his voice weak and hesitant.
“You can’t go back Orlando, not tonight.” Andy protested in disbelief, unable to conceal his irritation and worry anymore, “I don’t want to hand you over to Bernard…not until he regains some sanity and maybe not even then.”
“But I must go back,” Orlando pleaded, his eyes still cast down, “My m-mother doesn’t know I’m here. She’ll be alone if I’m not home…I was supposed to be there hours ago.”
“Did you forget what just happened to you Orlando?” Andy said irritably. He was trying his best to understand why the boy acted this way. He couldn’t fathom how the boy could care for someone else when he was in desperate need himself.
“Did you forget how Bernard treated you?” Andy said harshly, his anger finding release through his voice. His heart stopped the instant Orlando raised his head. As the lamp’s light flickered Andy could finally see the damage in all its painful reality. What Andy had mistaken for a shadow, he now saw as a dark bruise running from one eye down the cheek. Cuts would appear as the flames blinked, revealing the true brutality of Bernard’s rage.
Andy couldn’t turn away as shame engulfed him. How dare he ask Orlando if he forgot everything that happened? The boy’s single act of meeting his eyes was enough of an answer. At that moment, every bruise, cut, and tear spoke greater than any word. At once, shame gave way to anger. Andy drenched the cloth roughly into the water, and quickly wiped Orlando’s face. Orlando tried to pull away but Andy wouldn’t take no for an answer this time.
“You are not going home. Not until your uncle answers for this!” Andy said firmly. “Until then you are to stay in my house. Orlando, look at me!” The boy slowly turned his eyes towards Andy again. Whatever the man intended to say was forgotten. His heart sank, recalling the same emptiness he felt so many years ago. It was an emptiness that healed slowly healed with time. But now all those years of recovery seemed completely useless as Orlando’s eyes met his.
“Andy?” Orlando asked as the once formidable man stared at him, his words lost somewhere out of his reach.
“I don’t want…”Andy’s voice faltered until it was almost a whisper, searching for the right words, “I don’t want you to end up like they did. I can’t…I won’t... Orlando, I’ve lost so much in my life.” Orlando watched as his brave defender became weak and weary, the walls which stood around his heart for so many years finally caving in.
“I lost the person that meant the most to me. I failed to protect them when I should have. I promised right then that I would not lose another friend. I don’t intend to break that promise. Please Orlando. Don’t make me break my promise.” Orlando couldn’t really understand why Andy seemed so distant, as if he were reliving another life. A sad life. Orlando drew closer to Andy as if it would help him understand, but nothing came.
“That’s why I can’t let this go!” Orlando jumped back in shock as Andy suddenly shot up, his fist dangerously clenched, “I will not stand for this! I have to tell them tonight. Right now.” Andy started towards the door when small, desperate hands grabbed his sleeve.
“Please don’t! Andy, please…don’t tell anyone.” Andy was at a loss for words. After all the child had been through, why wouldn’t he want justice? Bernard deserved to be locked in prison, he deserved to be hurt and humiliated! And here, the damn bastard’s own victim was begging for his forgiveness.
“Orlando,” Andy said as he clasped the tiny hands in his own, “Your uncle has done a horrible, terrible thing…its only right for me to tell someone. He will hurt you again if I don’t do something.”
“But…if you tell someone, Uncle Bernard might get hurt! They might take him away!” Andy couldn’t understand. Why was this boy defending such a vile man?
“Exactly Orlando! That’s exactly what he deserves. I know you can’t understand, but your uncle needs to answer for what he did to you! And if it means that he has to be hurt and taken away, then so be it.” He released the tiny hands and began his determined mission again, and then a timid voice spoke.
“But m-mother will be hurt too…”
Andy stopped. Orlando tried his best not to cry. He felt embarrassed and ashamed of how Andy had found him, how the man brought him home to protect him, tended to him, and tried to comfort him. He had cried almost the entire way through. He wanted to be brave, if not for himself then for his mother.
“If they take him away…I-I don’t know what she’ll do. She’ll be hurt! I-I don’t want her to be hurt Andy!” Orlando ran out of bed and hugged then man’s legs, as if it could actually stop him from leaving.
“Please, please don’t t-tell anyone! My mother…she’ll be…Andy just don’t tell anybody please!”
Andy knelt down to embrace the boy. He understood know, and the knowledge made his hatred for Bernard increase ten fold. The coward would hide behind his own niece if it meant escaping the penalty for his crime! The thought boiled Andy’s blood, he had to tell, he had to protect Orlando.
But in protecting Orlando, he would hurt Miranda. Damn it! Andy thought bitterly. He guarded himself for so long to prevent a dilemma like this again. But the pain seemed inevitable now, regardless of his choice.
“Just stay here Orli,” Andy smiled slightly as he used the child’s nickname, releasing his hold on the boy, “I-I have to think.” With that Andy closed the door, leaving Orlando behind.
For an hour Orlando sat silently on the floor, not really wanting to be there. He felt like an intruder in Andy’s house. Everything was so foreign and unfamiliar. He could still hear faint noises from the street as the drunks and the late workers staggered their way home. He could see dull light illuminating from weary houses across the street from outside the pitiful window. It was different from the usual darkness he faced at home. The noises that greeted him at night were usually the chirps of crickets and the howls of wolves in the far distance, not the slow pace of dragging feet and carts.
He couldn’t sleep. He didn’t want too. Too many thoughts kept him awake. Thoughts about his mother. Where was she right now? Was she okay? Was she at home? Did she stay at the manor? Was she asleep? Or maybe she was awake? Was she wondering about him too? Was she searching for him? Did she know? Orli wondered over and over. He closed his eyes and pictured his mother searching for him, calling his name and finally finding him. She would come through the door, embrace him, and together they would go home. Orlando smiled contently. Dreams were nice.
“Oh no! Dom!” Orlando’s dreams screeched to a halt as he forced himself up, “It’s been hours!” Orlando groaned as he remembered of what became of the food he received from the manor. He looked around and spotted the morsels spread out on the rickety table. Orlando found his way to the meager food Andy had prepared for him. Although it wasn’t as much, it was better than nothing. He carefully wrapped the food in the patchy tablecloth and tied the bundle securely. Orlando apologized to Andy as he closed the door, as if the house could somehow relay the message to him. Without one last tempting glimpse of his sanctuary, he headed into the dim streets.
The night was a welcome friend to Orlando. The darkness kept him safe from discovery, away from the twisted eyes of drunks and less honorable men. It concealed his fear and hastened his steps as the cottage where the Monaghans slept came to sight. It was a plain home that appeared a bit slanted on the right, as if all the weight of the children threatened to capsize it. The roof drooped sadly, as if it knew it was to collapse at any time, and the front door appeared as if a rabbit could go through and knock it down. Orlando never felt so at ease.
He went to the side of the house and to the back, where the would-be kitchen window hung open. He peeked in and saw a tuff of hair beneath a dirty rag on the floor. He tapped the ridiculously thin walls as the figure roused from slumber.
“Dom, it’s me Orli.” Orli whispered as the rag was shoved aside and a very tired, very annoyed, and very upset mop of blonde hair nearly ripped the kitchen door open.
“Orli!” Dom mumbled as he rubbed his eyes, “Where were you? We were worried! Are you alright?”
“Yes,” Orlando answered, quickly lowering his head and thankful that the darkness hid his face. He couldn’t let Dom know, not yet anyway, “Sorry I didn’t come like I said, but I got these. It’s not what I hoped for, but I hope it helps.” Orlando handed the bundle over to Dom, who took it gratefully.
“Thanks Orli.” Dom smiled as he cradled the food like one of his little cousins, “I’ll pay you back one day I promise.”
“You don’t have too. Just don’t eat all of that yourself.” Orlando smiled as Dom let out a sigh of false disappointment.
“Alright, I won’t.” Dom played along as he brought the food possessively closer to his chest.
“Thanks for helping Orli, this really helps us.” Dom said sincerely, “It’s nearly time for them to get up, I better set this out. Why don’t you join? You found this for us after all.”
“I have to get home,” Orlando said quickly, “I'll see you later alright? After I’m done with chores?”
“What’s that?” Dom’s eyes squinted as he pointed to the bruise marking Orlando’s cheek.
“I-I have to get home. I’ll see you in awhile.” Orlando ran out before Dom could stop him. As he headed toward the misplaced shack he called home, he unconsciously pulled his dark hair down his face, concealing the deep, beautiful, brown eyes which cursed him. The eyes that pushed him away from his friends, the eyes that provoked suffering, and the eyes which recalled secrets from the darkest pasts.
*********
“Liv,” Miranda whispered her daughter’s name for the countless time that night. She gazed absent-mindedly as she poured water into the kettle. Most of the servants had drifted off to sleep, finally succumbing to the long hours of the night. Many of them were draped randomly in the manor, on the stairs, in the kitchen, outside Liv’s room…all were determined to keep vigil and everyone of them failed. Miranda, however, felt like she would never need sleep for the rest of her life.
She fumbled with the small tray of food she was preparing. Unsure of what to say when she reached the room. Lady Cate would certainly be awake, speaking with the clandestine doctors. Miranda tried to stay with Liv as long as she possibly could, but when the doctors arrived she reluctantly left. Even when they shut the doors she pressed her ears against wood, hoping to hear for any clue, any sound that her child would survive. But she heard nothing to calm her fears, and now hours later she found herself no better.
“Almost ready,” Miranda said to herself as she poured the last bit of milk into a cup. As she turned to place the empty jar back on the table a pair of dark eyes pierced hers. With a surprised gasp, she lost hold of the jar and it crashed.
Andy didn’t even flinch as glass shattered around their feet. He saw the fear and confusion in her eyes, and the look sent a stab to his heart. He reached out to calm her, but before he came close enough she moved away.
“You’ve been busy,” Andy said, casually noticing the knife Miranda left at the table with cut pieces of bread, “Shouldn’t you be home already?”
“My business is my own” Miranda answered back curtly, “You of all people should know that.”
“Do you know where your son is?” Andy asked as he followed Miranda around the table.
“My son is none of your concern,” Miranda said as she walked around the broken glass, avoiding Andy’s gaze. She took up the tray and prepared to leave when Andy stood steadfast in front of her, blocking her way.
“He should be yours Miranda. You’ve been here since Liv became sick haven’t you? Did you ever once think about Orlando?” Andy blocked her again as she tried to evade him. She took up courage and met his eyes once more, resentment and bitterness mingling a tiny ounce of… sadness.
“You have no right to accuse me of neglecting him,” Miranda snapped, “He is none of your concern! He is not your son!”
“But he is yours! And that alone is enough for me…,” Andy snapped back, his voice threatening to wake the other servants. Miranda dropped the tray back down on the table in frustration, crossing her arms determinedly. She would not loose this fight.
“Andy. Do you think that by showing concern for Orlando you would somehow make up for what you did to me?” Her eyes gleamed with malice, “Do you believe that by using him that I could somehow forgive…and forget how you betrayed my family?”
“I did everything Miranda! Everything! I just wasn’t…I…”
“You were always a horrible liar. If you really did everything you could, my uncle…”
“And now you accuse me for how that damn bastard turned out? He made that choice on his own Miranda! Stop defending him! Do you know what he does to your son? Do you know how much I want to kill him for it?” Andy’s head snapped as Miranda delivered a sharp slap to his face.
“Don’t you dare speak of my uncle that way!” She hissed venomously. Andy slowly turned his head back to face her, blocking another potential hit as he gripped her hands.
“This.” Andy said as he clenched her hands in his, “This is why I want to kill Bernard. I lost you, my dearest friend because of him! I watched him corrupt you until I knew…I knew I had lost you for good...”
Miranda fought free of Andy’s grip as he let her go. But she did not run away. After all the years of silence between them, it had come to this moment. Despite of her anger, a frail part of her wanted to hear his voice again, no matter how angry and upset he was. A part of her, no matter how small, still missed and longed for her old friend.
“Miranda, please… Don’t force me to stand idle while Bernard corrupts your son too. I already watched him destroy you, seeing Orlando suffer…its unbearable! Like watching you suffer all over again only in his image…” Andy pleaded as Miranda watched his strong demeanor crash before her.
“Andy…” she began softly, and then familiar heavy feet sounded their way to the kitchens. Miranda stepped back, fear of a different kind encompassing her. Andy frowned as he saw her back away from him. He turned to the door as the approaching footsteps drew closer, and then a voice broke through as the door swung open.
“Miranda! Liv’s awake…”
Andy’s eyes darkened at the sight of Bernard. Without another thought, Andy’s hands dove for the knife on the table, his fingers twisting dangerously around the lethal blade....
TBC…
Author: Cesi
Rating: R
Pairing: V/O
Summary: Liv enjoys the power and pleasure of nobility, while Orlando suffers the harsh life of a commoner. The arrival of a Danish Lord may put them in their rightful place. Can you live a life, and keep a love that's destined for someone else? AU. V/O
Feedback: Yes please! I love constructive criticism : ) Thanks to everyone who’s still reading!
Disclaimer: Not mine, they belong to themselves.
Beta: My sister at heart, NJ
Warnings: AU, violence and mpreg in later chapters
Chapter 4- Recollection
“No! Please no more…”
Andy tried his best not to let his frustration with the boy show, but he knew it was a battle he was quickly losing. Orlando turned his face away as Andy brought a cloth to wipe the wounds. The child’s wet hair hanging over his face, covering his tired eyes.
“Orlando,” Andy said firmly, “It would be over if you would just let me get those cuts and bruises. It won’t hurt I promise.” He tried again, but this time Orlando turned his whole body away, his eyes cast down.
Andy sighed wearily as he dabbed the cloth into a small basin of water he placed at the foot of the bed. His eyes glanced at the food which laid untouched on a tiny table by Orlando’s side. Andy felt like an idiot right then. Food was probably the last thing the poor boy needed to see.
“I have to go back,” Orlando spoke, his voice weak and hesitant.
“You can’t go back Orlando, not tonight.” Andy protested in disbelief, unable to conceal his irritation and worry anymore, “I don’t want to hand you over to Bernard…not until he regains some sanity and maybe not even then.”
“But I must go back,” Orlando pleaded, his eyes still cast down, “My m-mother doesn’t know I’m here. She’ll be alone if I’m not home…I was supposed to be there hours ago.”
“Did you forget what just happened to you Orlando?” Andy said irritably. He was trying his best to understand why the boy acted this way. He couldn’t fathom how the boy could care for someone else when he was in desperate need himself.
“Did you forget how Bernard treated you?” Andy said harshly, his anger finding release through his voice. His heart stopped the instant Orlando raised his head. As the lamp’s light flickered Andy could finally see the damage in all its painful reality. What Andy had mistaken for a shadow, he now saw as a dark bruise running from one eye down the cheek. Cuts would appear as the flames blinked, revealing the true brutality of Bernard’s rage.
Andy couldn’t turn away as shame engulfed him. How dare he ask Orlando if he forgot everything that happened? The boy’s single act of meeting his eyes was enough of an answer. At that moment, every bruise, cut, and tear spoke greater than any word. At once, shame gave way to anger. Andy drenched the cloth roughly into the water, and quickly wiped Orlando’s face. Orlando tried to pull away but Andy wouldn’t take no for an answer this time.
“You are not going home. Not until your uncle answers for this!” Andy said firmly. “Until then you are to stay in my house. Orlando, look at me!” The boy slowly turned his eyes towards Andy again. Whatever the man intended to say was forgotten. His heart sank, recalling the same emptiness he felt so many years ago. It was an emptiness that healed slowly healed with time. But now all those years of recovery seemed completely useless as Orlando’s eyes met his.
“Andy?” Orlando asked as the once formidable man stared at him, his words lost somewhere out of his reach.
“I don’t want…”Andy’s voice faltered until it was almost a whisper, searching for the right words, “I don’t want you to end up like they did. I can’t…I won’t... Orlando, I’ve lost so much in my life.” Orlando watched as his brave defender became weak and weary, the walls which stood around his heart for so many years finally caving in.
“I lost the person that meant the most to me. I failed to protect them when I should have. I promised right then that I would not lose another friend. I don’t intend to break that promise. Please Orlando. Don’t make me break my promise.” Orlando couldn’t really understand why Andy seemed so distant, as if he were reliving another life. A sad life. Orlando drew closer to Andy as if it would help him understand, but nothing came.
“That’s why I can’t let this go!” Orlando jumped back in shock as Andy suddenly shot up, his fist dangerously clenched, “I will not stand for this! I have to tell them tonight. Right now.” Andy started towards the door when small, desperate hands grabbed his sleeve.
“Please don’t! Andy, please…don’t tell anyone.” Andy was at a loss for words. After all the child had been through, why wouldn’t he want justice? Bernard deserved to be locked in prison, he deserved to be hurt and humiliated! And here, the damn bastard’s own victim was begging for his forgiveness.
“Orlando,” Andy said as he clasped the tiny hands in his own, “Your uncle has done a horrible, terrible thing…its only right for me to tell someone. He will hurt you again if I don’t do something.”
“But…if you tell someone, Uncle Bernard might get hurt! They might take him away!” Andy couldn’t understand. Why was this boy defending such a vile man?
“Exactly Orlando! That’s exactly what he deserves. I know you can’t understand, but your uncle needs to answer for what he did to you! And if it means that he has to be hurt and taken away, then so be it.” He released the tiny hands and began his determined mission again, and then a timid voice spoke.
“But m-mother will be hurt too…”
Andy stopped. Orlando tried his best not to cry. He felt embarrassed and ashamed of how Andy had found him, how the man brought him home to protect him, tended to him, and tried to comfort him. He had cried almost the entire way through. He wanted to be brave, if not for himself then for his mother.
“If they take him away…I-I don’t know what she’ll do. She’ll be hurt! I-I don’t want her to be hurt Andy!” Orlando ran out of bed and hugged then man’s legs, as if it could actually stop him from leaving.
“Please, please don’t t-tell anyone! My mother…she’ll be…Andy just don’t tell anybody please!”
Andy knelt down to embrace the boy. He understood know, and the knowledge made his hatred for Bernard increase ten fold. The coward would hide behind his own niece if it meant escaping the penalty for his crime! The thought boiled Andy’s blood, he had to tell, he had to protect Orlando.
But in protecting Orlando, he would hurt Miranda. Damn it! Andy thought bitterly. He guarded himself for so long to prevent a dilemma like this again. But the pain seemed inevitable now, regardless of his choice.
“Just stay here Orli,” Andy smiled slightly as he used the child’s nickname, releasing his hold on the boy, “I-I have to think.” With that Andy closed the door, leaving Orlando behind.
For an hour Orlando sat silently on the floor, not really wanting to be there. He felt like an intruder in Andy’s house. Everything was so foreign and unfamiliar. He could still hear faint noises from the street as the drunks and the late workers staggered their way home. He could see dull light illuminating from weary houses across the street from outside the pitiful window. It was different from the usual darkness he faced at home. The noises that greeted him at night were usually the chirps of crickets and the howls of wolves in the far distance, not the slow pace of dragging feet and carts.
He couldn’t sleep. He didn’t want too. Too many thoughts kept him awake. Thoughts about his mother. Where was she right now? Was she okay? Was she at home? Did she stay at the manor? Was she asleep? Or maybe she was awake? Was she wondering about him too? Was she searching for him? Did she know? Orli wondered over and over. He closed his eyes and pictured his mother searching for him, calling his name and finally finding him. She would come through the door, embrace him, and together they would go home. Orlando smiled contently. Dreams were nice.
“Oh no! Dom!” Orlando’s dreams screeched to a halt as he forced himself up, “It’s been hours!” Orlando groaned as he remembered of what became of the food he received from the manor. He looked around and spotted the morsels spread out on the rickety table. Orlando found his way to the meager food Andy had prepared for him. Although it wasn’t as much, it was better than nothing. He carefully wrapped the food in the patchy tablecloth and tied the bundle securely. Orlando apologized to Andy as he closed the door, as if the house could somehow relay the message to him. Without one last tempting glimpse of his sanctuary, he headed into the dim streets.
The night was a welcome friend to Orlando. The darkness kept him safe from discovery, away from the twisted eyes of drunks and less honorable men. It concealed his fear and hastened his steps as the cottage where the Monaghans slept came to sight. It was a plain home that appeared a bit slanted on the right, as if all the weight of the children threatened to capsize it. The roof drooped sadly, as if it knew it was to collapse at any time, and the front door appeared as if a rabbit could go through and knock it down. Orlando never felt so at ease.
He went to the side of the house and to the back, where the would-be kitchen window hung open. He peeked in and saw a tuff of hair beneath a dirty rag on the floor. He tapped the ridiculously thin walls as the figure roused from slumber.
“Dom, it’s me Orli.” Orli whispered as the rag was shoved aside and a very tired, very annoyed, and very upset mop of blonde hair nearly ripped the kitchen door open.
“Orli!” Dom mumbled as he rubbed his eyes, “Where were you? We were worried! Are you alright?”
“Yes,” Orlando answered, quickly lowering his head and thankful that the darkness hid his face. He couldn’t let Dom know, not yet anyway, “Sorry I didn’t come like I said, but I got these. It’s not what I hoped for, but I hope it helps.” Orlando handed the bundle over to Dom, who took it gratefully.
“Thanks Orli.” Dom smiled as he cradled the food like one of his little cousins, “I’ll pay you back one day I promise.”
“You don’t have too. Just don’t eat all of that yourself.” Orlando smiled as Dom let out a sigh of false disappointment.
“Alright, I won’t.” Dom played along as he brought the food possessively closer to his chest.
“Thanks for helping Orli, this really helps us.” Dom said sincerely, “It’s nearly time for them to get up, I better set this out. Why don’t you join? You found this for us after all.”
“I have to get home,” Orlando said quickly, “I'll see you later alright? After I’m done with chores?”
“What’s that?” Dom’s eyes squinted as he pointed to the bruise marking Orlando’s cheek.
“I-I have to get home. I’ll see you in awhile.” Orlando ran out before Dom could stop him. As he headed toward the misplaced shack he called home, he unconsciously pulled his dark hair down his face, concealing the deep, beautiful, brown eyes which cursed him. The eyes that pushed him away from his friends, the eyes that provoked suffering, and the eyes which recalled secrets from the darkest pasts.
*********
“Liv,” Miranda whispered her daughter’s name for the countless time that night. She gazed absent-mindedly as she poured water into the kettle. Most of the servants had drifted off to sleep, finally succumbing to the long hours of the night. Many of them were draped randomly in the manor, on the stairs, in the kitchen, outside Liv’s room…all were determined to keep vigil and everyone of them failed. Miranda, however, felt like she would never need sleep for the rest of her life.
She fumbled with the small tray of food she was preparing. Unsure of what to say when she reached the room. Lady Cate would certainly be awake, speaking with the clandestine doctors. Miranda tried to stay with Liv as long as she possibly could, but when the doctors arrived she reluctantly left. Even when they shut the doors she pressed her ears against wood, hoping to hear for any clue, any sound that her child would survive. But she heard nothing to calm her fears, and now hours later she found herself no better.
“Almost ready,” Miranda said to herself as she poured the last bit of milk into a cup. As she turned to place the empty jar back on the table a pair of dark eyes pierced hers. With a surprised gasp, she lost hold of the jar and it crashed.
Andy didn’t even flinch as glass shattered around their feet. He saw the fear and confusion in her eyes, and the look sent a stab to his heart. He reached out to calm her, but before he came close enough she moved away.
“You’ve been busy,” Andy said, casually noticing the knife Miranda left at the table with cut pieces of bread, “Shouldn’t you be home already?”
“My business is my own” Miranda answered back curtly, “You of all people should know that.”
“Do you know where your son is?” Andy asked as he followed Miranda around the table.
“My son is none of your concern,” Miranda said as she walked around the broken glass, avoiding Andy’s gaze. She took up the tray and prepared to leave when Andy stood steadfast in front of her, blocking her way.
“He should be yours Miranda. You’ve been here since Liv became sick haven’t you? Did you ever once think about Orlando?” Andy blocked her again as she tried to evade him. She took up courage and met his eyes once more, resentment and bitterness mingling a tiny ounce of… sadness.
“You have no right to accuse me of neglecting him,” Miranda snapped, “He is none of your concern! He is not your son!”
“But he is yours! And that alone is enough for me…,” Andy snapped back, his voice threatening to wake the other servants. Miranda dropped the tray back down on the table in frustration, crossing her arms determinedly. She would not loose this fight.
“Andy. Do you think that by showing concern for Orlando you would somehow make up for what you did to me?” Her eyes gleamed with malice, “Do you believe that by using him that I could somehow forgive…and forget how you betrayed my family?”
“I did everything Miranda! Everything! I just wasn’t…I…”
“You were always a horrible liar. If you really did everything you could, my uncle…”
“And now you accuse me for how that damn bastard turned out? He made that choice on his own Miranda! Stop defending him! Do you know what he does to your son? Do you know how much I want to kill him for it?” Andy’s head snapped as Miranda delivered a sharp slap to his face.
“Don’t you dare speak of my uncle that way!” She hissed venomously. Andy slowly turned his head back to face her, blocking another potential hit as he gripped her hands.
“This.” Andy said as he clenched her hands in his, “This is why I want to kill Bernard. I lost you, my dearest friend because of him! I watched him corrupt you until I knew…I knew I had lost you for good...”
Miranda fought free of Andy’s grip as he let her go. But she did not run away. After all the years of silence between them, it had come to this moment. Despite of her anger, a frail part of her wanted to hear his voice again, no matter how angry and upset he was. A part of her, no matter how small, still missed and longed for her old friend.
“Miranda, please… Don’t force me to stand idle while Bernard corrupts your son too. I already watched him destroy you, seeing Orlando suffer…its unbearable! Like watching you suffer all over again only in his image…” Andy pleaded as Miranda watched his strong demeanor crash before her.
“Andy…” she began softly, and then familiar heavy feet sounded their way to the kitchens. Miranda stepped back, fear of a different kind encompassing her. Andy frowned as he saw her back away from him. He turned to the door as the approaching footsteps drew closer, and then a voice broke through as the door swung open.
“Miranda! Liv’s awake…”
Andy’s eyes darkened at the sight of Bernard. Without another thought, Andy’s hands dove for the knife on the table, his fingers twisting dangerously around the lethal blade....
TBC…