Chapter 1

“Come closer.” the gravelly voice said from the dark side of the lake.
Barely any sun light reached that side apart from the specks that scattered through the heavy foliage.
Breathing in deep I took a step forward. My foot sinking into the thick mud caused by last nights heavy rain.
“Look into the water.” The voice said smoother this time.
Glancing around I couldn’t see anyone nearby. I shook my head knowing I was imagining the it. The voice sounded familiar though. It was like I had known it my whole life. Taking another step closer I stood on the edge of the lake now.
Looking down I saw my own reflection in its dark water. I looked a mess. Though grief, lack of sleep and a long run could do that to a girl. The early morning glow threw a sepia tone to the world. The crisp air biting my cheeks as the wind blew. My hair hung around my face, no longer tied up in a tight pony tail but clinging to my head with sweat. It had been a hard run this morning. I had ran like I was running from my darkest nightmares. Which if I was honest with myself is exactly what I had been trying to do. Escape the awful thoughts and grief that weighed heavy on my shoulders.
The voice spoke again, more harshly this time with a slight annoyance in its voice. “Gabriella”
The sharpness of its tone caused me to look up. There dressed in his usual jeans and t-shirt combination was my brother. Quickly I pulled my hand up to cover my mouth which was wide open in disbelief. He had been dead for two months. Two whole months. Staring at him I could see his eyes were black coals, deep set on his gaunt face. He looked strange and yet still I knew my own brother anywhere. His skin was like thin parchment stretched over his face, it highlighted every dark vein beneath it. I shuddered.
“Nicholas” I gasped out.
His face seemed to contort at hearing his name. It twisted from an empty expression to disgust. Hate burned from his cold dark eyes. The wind blew my long dark hair across my face momentarily blurring my line of sight. In those brief seconds he had moved closer to the edge on the opposite side of the lake. His face had turned blank yet again. When he spoke this time he spat each word slowly, pronouncing each syllable like they were venom in his mouth.
“You murdered me.”
My eyes widened in horror. I scrambled for the words. I had not killed him. I felt responsible but it had not been me that took his life. “Nicholas, I never-“ I started.
“You can lie to everyone but me little sister.” he spat, interrupting my denial.
I had loved my brother with all my heart. I still did. This was clearly a figment of my imagination. My subconscious was distraught I hadn’t been able to save him because I wasn’t there- I mentally rationalised.
He looked real though. Just those dark eyes which seemed out of place. Like my own they were a golden amber colour. Before he died I corrected myself. He died I repeated in my head.
“There was nothing I could of done.” I said firmly. Reassuring myself as much as this figment of my imagination.
“Come save me little sister, I’m right here. I need you.” He begged, his voice was flat though. “Little sister, please.” He cried, before stepping too far forward with his arm outstretched and tumbling into the deep dark lake.
Pausing only briefly, I leapt in the still water after him. I wouldn’t let him drown. He was so fragile looking there was no way he could swim. He was still my brother whatever he thought. Swimming as hard as I could across the small lake I was breathing in water while I panicked. By the time I had made it to the other side I couldn’t see him. I thrashed around in the water. It was too deep to touch the bottom. Treading water I looked around the lake for ripples or bubbles. Nothing.
I dived under trying to see underwater in the darkness. Nothing. Suddenly a cold bony hand gripped my ankle pulling me under. The fingers were wound tight in an iron grip. Trying to break free, part of my mind wondered if it was Nicholas trying to stop himself from drowning. I opened my eyes to see two dark empty eyes glaring back at me. Nicholas’ mouth was twisted up in a smirk showing white needle teeth like porcupine spines in row after row. He bit my arm as I tried to push him away. My throat felt tight and burned as water flooded my lungs. My vision blurred. All I saw was the smirk and jet black eyes as I drifted out of consciousness. I let the dark seep in around me. I felt myself falling further below the surface. Then I felt nothing.

I awoke on the bank of the lake, a dark figure looming over me. Backing up away from the stranger I found I was still dizzy my arms gave way beneath and I slammed back onto hard ground. Crawling backwards a little I looked up to see the figure staring at me with a puzzled expression. Relief flooded me that it wasn’t black-eyed Nicholas.
He was a tall man. His clothes were wet, his dark jeans clinging to his thighs, his white shirt muddied clung to his broad chest. Raising my eyes to stare back into his, I could see his sharp jawline and high cheek bones. Messy dark hair lay on his head in limp strands. His dark brows were furrowed. That puzzled look hadn’t left his face. I blinked trying to focus my hazy vision.
“Do you always drink lake water like that?” A flash of amusement lighting his face as he spoke.
“I was...” I drifted off. I couldn’t tell a stranger I was trying to rescue my hallucinated dead brother because that’s all it was. A hallucination. Those eyes though. I shuddered without thinking.
“You must be cold.” He said draping a royal blue velvet blanket around me. “So what’s the damsels name?”
Lowering my gaze I played with the gold clasp on the blanket realising it was a cloak not a blanket. Who wore a cloak in this day and age?
“Gabriella.” I replied quietly.
“Well Gabriella it looks like you drank half the lake, do you need an ambulance?”
I shook my head feebly. “No, I’ll be ok. Thank you. Thank you for jumping in after me.”
“I couldn’t just let you drown.” He paused in thought. “I’m Alec, Alec Blake.” He held out a hand to help me up. “My cars not far if you want a lift back into town?” He asked.
Now upright, I could see his soft emerald eyes were flecked with grey, ice blue and amber. He couldn’t be more than twenty six years old. His face still had smooth patches between the short stubble. He was handsome. I passed him his cloak back.
“I’ll be ok, my cars not far either. Just at the back entrance to the woods.” I said trying to sound more stable.
“I’ll walk with you if you don’t mind, I would feel ungentlemanly leaving you just yet.”
Glancing around I noticed the sepia tone still casting in the sky and the dull red glow of the sun behind the sand clouds. I nodded at Alec taking one last look at the lake behind him.
We began walking back down the long dirt track to my car. Walking in silence for almost five minutes he turned to look at me. “So, are you going to tell me why you jumped into a freezing cold lake in early spring?”
It caught me off guard. I relaxed my arms that I had wrapped around me. “I slipped.” I responded quietly. “Why were you out here?” Changing the subjected quickly. That was a good question why was he out here? Given his clothes he was definitely not running.
“I was meeting a friend. They didn’t show.” He spoke with a slightly disappointed voice.
“You were meeting a friend in the woods? Cause that’s not suspicious?” I retorted out loud without thinking. I increased my pace slightly.
He chuckled to himself. “I guess it is a bit. It’s nothing sinister though I promise. It was just an in between point, I was heading back from the coffee shop in the middle of the park when I saw you.”
My body ached and the walk was hard with me struggling to keep focus on putting one foot in front of the other. On more than one occasion Alec had offered to put his arm around me to keep me up. Although I was grateful for the rescue I still didn’t trust this stranger.
Arriving at the car park I felt a sigh of relief wash over me. My little black car looked like a sanctuary from the madness of the morning. “That’s me.” I nodded towards my car.
“Will you be ok driving?” Alec looked concerned.
I nodded again turning away from him and reaching for my keys which I had stuffed down the side of my sports bra. Panic hit me. They weren’t there.
“Is everything ok?”
“My keys. They must of fell out in the lake.”
He motioned toward a large black jeep the opposite side of the car park. “I could give you a lift?” He said clicking his keys and unlocking the car.
Sliding up onto the passenger seat I was thankful for heated seats in my damp cold clothes. My skin stung it was that bitterly cold. Alec turned the heating up.
Looking around the jeep I could tell it wasn’t cheap. It was definitely the top spec. The soft suede seats moulded around me. It was a fifteen minute drive back to town. I knew the winding roads like the back of my hand and began staring out the window.
“So what do you do? You know other than falling in lakes?” He smiled.
“I’m an art teacher at the college.”
“That figures.” he laughed
“What do you mean? What is it you do then?”
“Just you have this creative, carefree feel about you. I’m between things at the moment. I just moved here from Scotland where I owned a bar. I was thinking of opening another.” Alec sighed. “ but I’m not sure whether this place is for me.”
“It’s a lovely town. Just takes some getting used to.”
“If your a teacher shouldn’t you be teaching today? It’s Tuesday?”
Frozen in my seat, I grasped for the right words. “I’m off work due to a family bereavement.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t pry.”
Sitting in silence the rest of the drive other than giving Alec the occasional left or right direction I allowed my mind to wander. Was that really Nicholas? The vision of Nicholas with spiny white teeth was engraved on the back of my eye lids so every time I shut them for longer than a blink I saw him staring at me. What had he meant about me having murdered him. No, I thought, what had my subconscious meant. He wasn’t real. You are struggling with his death I repeated in my head to myself.

We arrived at my house with a halt which snapped me back to reality. Looking out the window again I saw my old cottage beckon me.
“Thank you.” I said with as much gratitude as I could muster as I climbed down.
“Take this.” He said passing a yellow post-it note across. “In case you fancy some swimming lessons or something.” He smiled.
Despite the mornings events I couldn’t help but return the smile with one of my own.