Corey Chapter 1

This is the first chapter of my book. If you want to read more than visit my other blog:
http://irisgowan.blogspot.com/

I opened my eyes. Grey clouds were passing by fast. I felt the icy raindrops touch my face, which was a nice change to the burning of my skin. My bare skin. I realized I was naked. Sitting up straight I noticed a man watching me. His forging green eyes were widened in surprise. Trying to get up I noticed my legs refused to move, getting me aware of a tingling feeling that started in my toes and worked its way up to my waist. I sighed, laid back and closed my eyes, still enjoying the icy drops on my overheated body. The man tried to approach silently, but his footsteps sounded very loud in my head, like marching elephants. Opening my eyes again I saw his face just inches away from mine, startling him so he moved back quickly. My legs felt less tingly and I sat up, not losing eye contact. The man looked at me frightened. I reached out one hand and took a hold of his; they felt cold compared to mine. His expression calmed down, looking down at my hands now. When he broke the silence it made me shiver. The sound of his voice was warm, but with a rough edge.


“Are you ok?” I just smiled. He took of his long overcoat and put it around my shoulders. His eyes looked friendly as they gazed into mine. Without another word he lifted me of the ground and carried me away, leaving me in the dark on where he would be taking me. A voice in the back of my head told me to be careful, but I ignored it. He glanced down at me and I gave him another smile. His skin was worn, rough, just like his voice, though he didn´t look tired. A certain glow came from his face, like an aura. My hands rested lightly around his neck and I could feel his hair, it was soft. There were some light streaks in it, he was probably somewhere in his forties. Still his face looked very handsome. He continued walking for about fifteen minutes, still holding me, before I saw a light in the distance. A window. It gave me a bright and welcome feeling. As we approached I could see the outlines of a large house. It was wrapped around by a porch. When we were nearly at the house the front door opened and a woman stepped out onto the porch. Her long yellow blonde hair was held together in a braid and while she walked her dress made a rustling sound, a familiar sound somehow. She smiled at the man before she shot a worried look in my direction.
“Found her in the meadow in the woods,” the man told her, “she seems to be fine, apart from the fever.”

The woman eyed back at me, still looking worried, even though I gave her a blinding smile.
“You better come in quickly,” she said, looking at the darkening sky, “there´s a snowstorm on the way.” And while she mentioned this, little, white, fluffy cottons started falling from the sky. The man saw my amazed look and he couldn´t help but smile a little before he carried me inside. The room we entered was widely lit with candles and a few petroleum lamps. The atmosphere was welcoming and warm; it gave me a feeling of serenity, a feeling that I belonged here. The furniture was scarce, just the bare necessities. My attention got drawn to a very large and sturdy dining room table, the legs of the table were finely engraved, it looked like it didn´t belong here. The other reason why the table caught my attention was because there was a young man sitting at the table. He was quite attractive, dark hair that fell down around his face in curls. They were in nice contrast with his blue eyes; they seemed like ponds, clear enough to see right through them, but also reflecting everything that came into sight. Even though I looked at him with curiosity, he ignored me, his eyes stayed fixed on the piece of wood in his hands. His forehead was creased by the intensity with which he concentrated on his carving.

“Will you put the girl down on the bed, Joseph?” the woman asked the man, whose name evidently was Joseph. I looked up at him and he saw the question in my eyes. Gently he put me down on the large bed that was standing at the far end of the room.

“You better come here fast Meg, she´s burning up with a fever,” Joseph´s voice was soft and he had a slight look of worry on his face. Meg came hurrying up toward the bed and put one of her cool hands on my forehead. “I feel fine,” I said, surprisingly listening to the sweet sound of my own voice. Meg looked at me suspicious, as if she was trying to decide whether my answer was truthful or not. It took another blinding smile from my side to soften the lines in her face.

“Perhaps you would like something to eat and drink and..,” she hesitated, “something suitable to wear?” looking at Joseph´s long overcoat that was still around my shoulders.

Before I even replied she got up and started shuffling around the room, again under the familiar sound of her rustling dress. While she was busy collecting food and clothes my eyes wandered through the room, they locked themselves onto the deep blue ponds that I had been admiring before. The wood and knife were loosely in his hands and he was openly staring at me. When our eyes met for the first time I felt a rush of adrenaline flow through my body. It pumped through my veins and gave my already heated body an extra rush. I could feel the extra heat reach my face and looked down, tearing my eyes away from his. At that moment Meg came walking up to me with a lavender colored dress. When I took the dress I noticed her hands were worn, they´ve had a hard life. The lines in her face were less visible, but gave me the same impression. None of that seemed to matter next to the kind smile that was visible in her hazel eyes. Her eyes gave her away, told that she´d be completely trustworthy.

“Do you need any help with that?” She asked when she saw the puzzled look on my face. I gave her a sheepish smile. She closed the drapes around the bed and I handed her the dress. There was a long line of buttons on the back, which she patiently unbuttoned. Next thing I knew she threw the dress over my head. After struggling with the sleeves for a few seconds I came up for air again. Meg sat down behind me, “I’ve put some food out on the table for you,” She said while she slowly buttoned the back of my dress, “it´s not much, just some bread and a small slice of meat.” I looked around at her and simply smiled. “You don´t speak much, do you?” even though it was a question I knew she didn´t need an answer. I felt grateful for that, mostly because I didn´t have the answers myself. She finished the buttons, got up and drew back the drapes around the bed. I tried to follow her lead and stood up, noticing my legs weren´t fully cooperating and I fell; before I hit the ground two strong arms caught me, they were not Josephs. A bright light surrounded us as our eyes met again, him holding me close, like I was a treasure. Feeling a long way from reality, it was just us. His eyes penetrated into mine, I could see the recognition and the questions in his eyes. “Iris?” he asked. It wasn´t until he said it that I knew this was my name. Yes Iris, but how could he know that? Where would we have met before? Lying in his arms I felt save and so I smiled at him.

“How do you know my name?” I asked curiously, still slightly amazed by the sound of my own voice.