I see a man in my dream with a woman. Today, I realized that you look just like her. Nancy shook with cold or excitement.
And what did you see today? Tonight, I saw them in bed, and he gave her a ring. The room swirled around her. Nancy could not say a word.
Her fingertips burned with fire. A mysterious, complex puzzle began to form in her mind. She looked at Robert.
He was obviously waiting for her to say something. But instead, she moved closer to him. Their eyes met, but she saw more in them now than she had before.
In them was the history of the family, lived through two centuries of misfortune, tragedy, and loss. Nancy knew she had to kiss this guy, or she simply wouldn’t survive. He appeared to be ready for it, for his hand suddenly rested on the back of her neck and drew Nancy closer.
Their lips touched, and at that very moment, all the memory of the past years in the blood that ran through their veins came crashing down on them. Their minds raced with images of the lives of the people who had been involved in their birth, scenes of their last moments, their feelings, their fears, their hopes, their love. Especially vividly, they saw the two who had started the whole story.
Nancy didn’t notice how she found herself lying next to Robert on the uncomfortable orthopedic bed. Something wonderful was happening in that moment, for she could feel his masculine strength-strength, his embrace, and some kind of strong and unbreakable bond between them. Not at all handicapped, a healthy, passionate man lay beside her.
Perhaps they were dreaming. But it was so thrilling, so sweet and incredible that Nancy allowed herself to surrender to the will of her senses. Suddenly the morning, breaking out of its long confinement, reached the room through the tightly curtained windows with a timid ray of sunlight.
Somewhere in the stable horses were roaring, and from the man’s room there was the usual bustle, and a croaking rooster was singing his song just below the girl’s bedroom window. Robert awoke first and feverishly began to pull on the clothes he had thrown on the night before. Nancy, my soul, I must go.
He leaned toward the sleepy girl, who stretched sweetly and wrapped her arms around his neck. For another minute she pressed his face to her chest. Robert noisily inhaled the scent of her hair.
With an effort, he slipped out of her embrace and deftly hopped onto the windowsill. He vanished into the dawn rays. Nancy opened her eyes abruptly and realized that the events of the night were real.
Robert’s heavy male hand rested on her chest. The hair on her temple stirred with his steady breathing. Lying next to him felt comfortable, as if she had found her home after a long wander.
But more importantly, he was beginning to feel something. And even though the entire lower part of his body was shackled by sickness, she seemed to respond to her touch a few times, cautiously climbing out from under his arm, dangling her legs off the bed. Nancy fumbled for her slippers on the floor and stood up, pulling back the blanket slightly.
Robert was still sound asleep, and she began to massage his ankle. She concentrated so hard that waves of wild and powerful energy began to emanate from her. Her fingertips became more sensitive.
It seemed as if she had entered some kind of trance. The universe suddenly shrank and seemed to embrace her, encouraging and helping her. God, I’m awake.
I can feel your touch. Robert’s excited voice brought her out of her stupor. She looked up, but her gaze, past his face, stopped where the woman stood near the curtain.
The sun’s rays were not reaching her. She was safely hidden in the shadows. But her eyes burned, so Nancy couldn’t look away.
She knew this woman had seen her many times and felt her presence. It was she who had been left in bed by the man who had been dreaming of the girl this morning. Suddenly, the uninvited guest raised her hands to her face, and Nancy nearly lost her senses.
They were churred to the elbows. She could even smell the smell of burnt flesh. What was making her sick? What’s wrong with you? Robert grabbed Nancy’s arm, and the figure in the corner melted away as if it hadn’t existed.
There was no blood on the girl’s face. She was paler than chalk. Nothing.
Slowly, she answered and guided her hand up her leg and pressed on the calf muscle. And here, too, he immediately, forgetting everything else, looked happily at the girl. His eyes sparkled.
You know, it is like a miracle. Nancy tried to find the right words. You are a miracle.
But please don’t tell anyone yet. Not until we are sure. Robert looked like a little boy now, ruffled, touching.
Nancy reached out and brushed a knotty, dark strand from his forehead. A lot had changed during that night. There was something for both of them that brought them closer together.
I won’t tell anyone. Now I have to sneak back to my room and tidy myself up. He nodded silently and pulled her to him.
It seemed so natural to Nancy that the girl didn’t think to stop him. She just put her hand on his chest and kissed him on the cheek. Don’t be too long, Robert muttered, reluctantly, letting her out of his arms.
I quickly promised Nancy and slipped out the door. Half an hour later, they were already sitting in the dining room, eating with appetite Kelly had prepared. Miranda chattered on and on, but she could see the change that had taken place between the two young men.
You both look very happy today. As if incidentally, she remarked as she sipped her tea. Robert just smiled and looked at Nancy meaningfully.
After breakfast, they worked out for a long time in the gymnasium, then asked Kelly to make coffee. They went out into the garden. It was sunny, but cool enough.
There were clouds of birds blowing here and there from the river, intoxicated by the scent of meters and flowers, with a merry chirp fluttered just above the ground. Rain was coming. Nancy and Robert took shelter in an ivy-covered pergola, which had already begun to turn leaves and were safely hidden from view.
She carefully covered his legs with the plaid and wrapped her cardigan tightly around him. Come here. The boy called to her.
When she gathered herself was to take a seat on the bench. Sure enough, the girl looked apprehensively at his frail knees. Absolutely serious, Robert said.
I’m not as weak as you think I am. I didn’t say that, said Nancy with a smile, cautiously settling into his lap and wrapping her arms around his neck for about five seconds. They just stared at each other as if they hadn’t seen each other in a long time.
And couldn’t look at each other. Then came a kiss as long and intoxicating as the May variety. It all happened so fast that they hadn’t had time to get used to each other yet.
You do realize that we need to talk, asked Nancy, breaking away from his lids. I agree. The boy smiled and put his arm around her waist tighter.
Obviously, we have a history, a tragic history. And if you know who you are and who your ancestors are, I unfortunately don’t in the place I was before I was adopted. Hardly any information given except that my parents are dead.
Nancy exhaled. Actually, I have some thoughts. Robert took her hand and put it to his lips.
Once upon a time, we had. I mean, my family had neighbors. It was about 200 years ago.
But then the estate and all the buildings burned to the ground. How it happened, I do not know, according to my father, who heard about it from my grandfather. The whole family died in the fire, along with the serfs.
They say it was arson, but no proof has been found. You can look in the archives of the local museum. Suddenly, a picture of a woman with Robert’s hands burnt came to Nancy’s attention.
She looked into his eyes. I had a dream this morning. And then in your bedroom.
The woman from our visions is in my bedroom. What do you mean? The incredulity in his voice seemed offensive to her. You don’t believe me.
I do. I just don’t understand. The woman at the curtain.
It was her ghost. I don’t know. And looking away, the girl asked, have you ever had the feeling that someone or something was present near you? His look confirmed her guess.
Go on. I’m listening to you. Anyway, this morning in your room, by the curtain, I saw a woman with charred hands.
I even smelled something burning. It might be a clue, but I don’t know who she was, if she belonged to the family of those firefighters or if she was just related to them. Perhaps she was burned there or hurt.
Robert thought for a second, then said, in those days, all births and deaths, as you probably know, were recorded in church books, such a kind of wedding and ritual bureau. So these books could still be preserved there. We could try to find some kind of clue.
Are you saying this church is still intact? Nancy’s heart was pounding hard. Well, intact is an understatement. It’s abandoned.
I used to play there as a boy. How are we going to find those books? I’m sure they all decayed a long time ago. And what will they tell us? I think it’s worth a try.
Do you drive? Nancy answered in the affirmative. Jacob had insisted on it once, and now she was grateful to him. An hour later, they loaded the wheelchair into the pickup, put Robert in the passenger seat with the help of a groom, and drove down the dirt road toward where the woods gently turned into a grove.
When asked where they were going, Robert replied that he wanted to show the girl the surrounding countryside. As they drove, he told her everything he knew about the family’s history. At one time, this church had been rich.
Although the entire parish was made up of the inhabitants of only two estates, however, during the revolutionary times, all the property was stolen and destroyed. Icons were burned. Rumor has it that something has survived in the hiding place, but this is most likely just a fantasy of the locals.
And the books, where could they be? Nancy maneuvered deftly over the bumpy ground. I think in the wall matches they used to build in every church. How do you know all this? The girl looked at Robert with surprise.
I studied history at university. Actually, I’m an archaeologist. And I’ve been to a lot of excavations.
Nancy said, Wow, that’s all Nancy could say. Meanwhile, the grove ended and they entered a plain filled with revenants in the center of which there were ruins. A strange feeling took hold of Nancy.
It was as if she had been here before. There was a figure standing near the ruins. She could not tell who it was from afar, but it seemed familiar to Nancy and her palms were sweating.
She drove another 30 meters and stopped the engine where the road ended and the narrow path began. The figure disappeared. There were weeds all around, umbrellas sticking out in some places, brambles and wild bushes stretching their arms, ready to protect the place from uninvited guests.
Nancy and Robert looked at each other. It was pretty clear that a wheelchair didn’t belong here, which was all I could think of. He slapped himself on the knee in anger.
I should have known better. It’s okay. I’ll go myself.
Nancy unbuckled his seat belt. No way. Robert grabbed her hand.
I’m not letting you go in there alone. What could possibly happen to me? The girl tried to laugh, but it was a nervous laugh. I am quick this woman you see.
She scares me. I’m afraid she might hurt you. Nancy’s eyes sparkled.
She won’t hurt me, the girl said confidently. She wants to tell me something. She opened the door of the pickup, but Robert grabbed her by the arm.
You should know that I can’t take it. If anything happens to you, be careful. And I warn you, if you’re not back in half an hour, I’ll crawl after you myself if the stroller doesn’t make it.
Instead of answering, she pressed her lips to his mouth, then jumped out of the cabin. Looking at the retreating figure all the way down the path, Robert exhaled wistfully and mentally crossed his eyes to her. Nancy cautiously made her way through the dry wood through the semi-overgrown path to the remains of the church.
With the back of her head, she felt a presence, that woman from the dream, but she wasn’t scared. The place was strangely comforting to her. As she approached the door, she struggled to open it and immediately found herself in a dull room with empty eye holes, stretched out windows, and rotted floorboards that had almost fallen to the ground.
The desolation was so intense that Nancy was confused. Where to look? She moved cautiously forward to where the lectern would normally have been, now empty. She looked around with her hands at her sides.
A bird had slid noisily out from under the leaky roof, spraying Nancy with cobwebs and dirt. She shook her hair back frantically, for she was terrified of insects. Something fell right into the neckline of her shirt, and she tried to get it out, but accidentally hit the chain with the pendant, which came undone, and the pendant slid down.