What Storms Shake the Oceans of my Sleep

Tuesday dawned bright and early that spring, bringing with it a light dusting of dew and a crisp chill. Raven was busy in the kitchen preparing breakfast for them both. Plates cluttered excitedly awaiting their contents arrival, bacon sizzled happily in the pan spitting fat as if abusing the air with natural bullets occasionally scolding those who passed into no man’s land and B was sat doing some of his work at the old mahogany table on old scratchy paper. Sunlight poured in gloriously through the windows, and Raven basked in its glow. Sighing she looked out of the window from which the yard was visible. A make-shift climbing frame and slide had been created from the remains of the barn, and it stood resilient amidst the haze of dawn. The yard was littered with other objects such as wheelbarrows and shovels but the frame was the eyes main attraction, standing like a majestic fountain in a grand courtyard. Snapping back to reality Raven looked back down at the pans in front of her and carried on working, thinking about nothing in particular. The kitchen hadn’t changed much apart from it seemed on the whole cleaner and the smell of alcohol that usually clung to the house had lifted. Raven and B, on the other hand, had changed. They were both tanned, their skin no longer translucent and ghostly but shone with an all-natural glow, and they were taller but still not able to escape their hereditary stocky figure. Raven’s hair was longer and had regained a little of its shine, it was pulled into a long plait down her back and tied with a small piece of string. Raven’s hair had seemed to get darker but B’s had got lighter, almost auburn and was a lot shorter after being the subject to Raven’s unprofessional hairdressing abilities, a short temper and blunt scissors.

“How are you finding them B?” Raven called over her shoulder. B glanced up from his work- long division. She knew it was a bit hard for a six-year-old but he seemed to enjoy chewing the questions over like a tough piece of meat, and as his tutor, Raven had to make sure he was being taught something. He beamed over at her, not speaking but pointing almost uncontrollably at the paper, one finger jabbing it.

“You’re nearly finished? Well done mate.” She said in answer to her own question, throwing the tea-towel over her shoulder. She smiled passively to herself and hummed a little tune, but as if to stop her there was a sharp tap at the door. She turned confused towards the hall. Nobody ever called, and if they did they would use the back door that led straight into the kitchen. Looking at the back door she saw it was deserted, the only occupants being a lonely line of mud-stained wellington boots. Believing she had imagined it she shrugged and continued cooking, cracking two new eggs into the pan. There was another knock at the door, a longer more urgent one and Raven sighed. Turning the gas down low on the eggs and wiping her hands on the tea towel she left the safety of the warm kitchen for the dingy hall. The door stood at the end of it, the only thing separating her from whoever was on the other side. It seemed to take an age for her to reach it as if it had been stretched to ridiculousness. As she reached it they knocked once again.

“Yeah, yeah I’m here.” She said slightly annoyed, lifting the heavy latch with a shove realising that it hadn’t been used in years, and with the all too familiar feeling of dread pawing at her stomach, she swung the heavy door open with a loud creak.

She didn’t know what she was expecting but this certainly wasn’t it.

Stood on her doorstep was a man- a bedraggled man at that. At first glance, Raven could tell that at one point he would have been handsome but the person in front of her was a shadow of that. Way into his forties, his blond hair was flecked with grey and lines aged the skin around his eyes. His clothes were simplistic and clean but crumpled in many places and Raven wondered if he had slept in them. He had a five o’clock shadow framing his gaunt face which outlined his twinkling eyes underneath thick eyebrows that were too close together and slightly crooked teeth. He was hunched slightly as if attempting to hide his remarkably tall, powerful frame. Despite this, he was still a lot taller than Raven, and she felt herself recoil away from him. She didn’t know why; he didn’t look particularly dangerous or threatening but she had learnt not to trust anyone. Especially if he turns up on your doorstep looking like he’s gone past his sell-by date… she thought ridiculously.

She coughed purposely, crossing her arms and leant against the door frame to try and fill the area with an attempt of a ‘powerful stance’, not unlike the one she used when B had been naughty. The man chuckled slightly scratching his stubble and looking completely at ease which annoyed Raven even more. She shuffled awkwardly on the spot cementing her feet in the rough floorboards- standing her ground- and cocked her eyebrow. She tried to look as comfortable as him but this failed when she realised she had an egg splattered tea towel over her shoulder, severe bed head and was barefoot in front of the stranger. Feeling sudden heat rise to her cheeks she said;

“Can I help you?” Her voice was high, unnatural and noticeably curt. They spent their lives in peace there with no one bothering them and she wanted that to continue. They never had visitors and never received news at all. Any news was bad news after all. There was an awkward pause where no one spoke. He seemed to be thinking about what to say and he became more uncomfortable by the second. He reminded Raven of someone who had a speech prepared but when it came to the moment had completely forgotten it. He was looking around for help as if the answer would be etched into the peeling doorway, never meeting Raven’s eyes. For a second Raven felt a twang of pity for him, he was probably lost and she had practically screeched a welcome to him. She took a second to recollect herself, ready to try again and this time slightly less aggressively.

“Do you need some-“

“It’s happening tonight.” His low smooth voice cut in, highlighted with glimpses of fright. He was determinedly looking at the door frame a couple of inches to Raven’s left and she was stunned into silence by his words. She waited for him elaborate but he didn’t. He just stood stiff as if being held up by puppeteer strings, believing what he had said would be enough information for them. Raven stood there nonplussed and tried again.

“Sir, do you need some help?” her tone this time was measured and she reproached herself on the soft tone she used. She should have been hard, telling him to leave them alone and to not bother them again, but her soft side won. He still stood there, something bizarre twinkling in his clear blue eyes. She thought she saw confusion flash momentarily across his face.

“It’s happening, tonight.” He said once more emphasising the last word.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She said honestly, feeling anger rise again and growl in the pit of her stomach at the idea of someone playing a practical joke on them. That’s the only logical explanation she thought, a joke.

“You don’t? No? Nothing? Oh, right, err.” His voice faltered with every word causing pity to strike in Raven again. He seemed to shuffle on the porch looking at his muddy shoes and muttered inane words to himself. Raven was on the verge of slowly shutting the door on him when he erupted with “Are you, Raven Godfrey?” For the first time he looked directly into her eyes and she realised they were full of fear, for what she didn’t know. Desperate. He looked almost crazy and Raven faltered not knowing what would be the right thing to say. Still confused at the fact this strange man knew her name she was silent and he interrupted the quiet again;

“Raven and Barnabas Godfrey- grandfather Godfrey Mulligan? They should live here.” The name sparked something in her memory but she pushed it aside.

“No sorry I don’t know anyone… erm… of that name…” The light was dwindling in his eyes and she attempted to shut the door again this time she was stopped by a small arm reaching around her. It was B. She attempted to push him out of sight of the man but he forced a book into her hands.

“Not now,” she mumbled to him “Not now.” But something caught her attention. It was the book they had found when clearing the boxes, an old leather bound one with a brown orb jewel set in it. On the back stamped in golden lettering was GODFREY MULLIGAN. She looked down at her brother whose eyebrows were knotted together.

“Actually,” she added deciding on the spot “I am Raven. What do you want?”

Her grandfather. She didn’t know really anything about her grandfather. Just a name and a couple of faded photographs. But this man appeared to know things, or at least know her heritage. So she decided that one way or another she wanted information from him. He froze for a minute staring crazily into Raven’s flushed face then with a flustered look held out a shaking hand. Raven took it grudgingly not attempting to disguise her contempt and shook it briskly, trying to remind herself to withhold judgement on the shattered ruins of the man before her.

“Dimitri Hollas.” He said confidently. The name meant nothing to Raven and she just smiled slightly at him. A beat passed in a silence that Raven couldn’t decide was comfortable or not.

“How do you know me?” Her voice shook slightly and she fought to try and keep it calm. Her fingers tingled and she felt her body on edge. Unfolding her arms Raven placed one hand on the door frame and the other on the rim of the door effectively barring him from entering. B stood behind her peering around her to look at Dimitri his face blank but his eyes glittered with confusion.

“I knew your grandfather. I’m sorry to tell you that he died. I know it must be a shock.”

“Not as much as you think, we never met him.” She signalled to B who was still half hiding behind her. “All we know is his name, this was his house and a couple of papers with his name on.”

“Oh, he was an amazing man.” Dimitri’s voice broke slightly and he seemed to take a few seconds to compose himself again.

“I knew he must be, I had to get it from somewhere.” Raven’s attempt to lighten the mood failed however, Dimitri looked confused for a second and there was silence for a few moments that were unmistakably awkward. Well done Raven… she thought annoyed with herself and she looked down at the chipped nail polish on her toenails. B had painted them, along with the rest of her feet. She remembered that art lesson lovingly, thinking of the proud look on B’s face that made her feel like she could carry a million suns. It took a few seconds but Dimitri eventually broke the silence.

“You deserve to know the truth.” Raven looked up confused. What truth could this man have that would be useful to them? He turned up on their doorstep with the news that a member of their family that they had never met had died then proclaims he has some truth to declare. What the hell is happening this morning…

Dimitri sucked in a deep breath of the air which seemed to leave Raven starving for oxygen and unable to breathe.

“Your grandfather is dead.” Raven scoffed slightly.

“Yeah, you’ve said that.”

“But he didn’t die,” Dimitri interjected barely listening to Raven. He seemed to be trying to pull himself together and pluck up the courage to say each sentence. Raven looked even more confused and her hand flexed white on the door preparing to shut it quickly if the need came.

“He was assassinated.”

There was a silence that reverberated around the space. Raven stood there holding her breath for she didn’t know how long, and everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Her whole world was spinning around her and she couldn’t hold onto anything. “No, I think you’ve got the wrong place. Sorry.” A joke must be a joke, a sick joke… She thought desperately. Her head was spinning uncontrollably and her vision was blurring at the edges. Her chest dipped and rose painfully with each haggard breath and she began to lose her balance. She had to get away from him. She had to sit down, she had to breathe. “No, this is wrong…” She mumbled to no one, in general, looking down at the floor which seemed to be rippling in tides. Slowly she began to close the door, not looking at Dimitri wishing he would disappear, but he stopped her shutting him out.

“Raven please, Godfrey sent me. Tonight, they’re coming tonight. You need to go.” He was pushing on the door to keep it open and Raven fought against it, unshed tears coming to her eyes and her chest tightening agonisingly. A sick, sick joke…

“No, no, no, go. Leave us alone!” She practically screamed through the door, hurling the words at him like bullets hoping it would damage him as much as she seemed to be falling apart, but they seemed to ricochet off him as if he was a human 2.0.

“Raven, please listen, listen. They’re coming tonight. They’ll take you both away. They won’t stop. You have to get away from here now before they come.” His voice was getting higher and higher as he held the door open and became more desperate. Raven shook the tears out of her eyes reprimanding herself for being so vulnerable. Sick, sick joke…

“Raven…”

Sick, sick joke…

“Please, you need to believe me…”

Lies all of it…

“You’re in danger!”

Sick, sick joke…

“RAVEN!”

Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop… The world spun and spun faster and faster like some grotesque teacups, heavy sweat drops formed on Raven’s forehead and her heart attempted to jump out of the hollow auditorium of her chest. Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop… Spinning faster and faster. Her skin acting as a straightjacket. Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop… Her mouth felt dry as if she had eaten sand and her arms felt numb, one eye twitching madly. Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop… Spinning faster and faster. Blood rushed in Raven’s head clouding her vision and turning her stomach in disgust. Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop… Faster and faster. Please stop…

“NO!” Raven didn’t even notice that she had screamed until she realised the piercing sound causing her head to split was coming from her mouth. Dimitri also looked surprised and he stopped for a minute. A spilt-second. A single moment, infinitesimally small but an opportunity nonetheless. Enough time for Raven to push the heavy wooden door. It finally shut and she clicked the latch locking them in. Knees buckling under her, she fell to the floor as the hall went dark around her. B stood for a minute scratching at the door frame nervously, before shuffling off to the living room, grabbing a blanket and walking back to the hallway. He threw the blanket over Raven and after tucking in walked to the kitchen. The eggs in the pan were burnt beyond salvation now and thick smoke was issuing from it. He turned the gas off and sat back down at the table to chew over the questions once more.