She loved the innocence in his eyes; she loved children a lot though she never really got closed them.
"The mind of a child is like an open fire in the field. Your words might ignite this fire or quench it forever", Catherine's words rang in her mind.
It was the reason she never got close to children but it seemed that she had misinterpreted the parable.
"Why do you always get lost in thoughts?"he queried as she smiled at him;he was really a sweet child.
"Who is ..."her voice trailed off when she heard footsteps from her rear.
"Dinner is ready",Leonard said as he joined them while she turned to look at him.
"Who were you talking to?" he queried, raising his brows as she looked at him in confusion.
"Anyways, let's go and have some food!",he added before she could say anything. He turned around and headed inside.
Annie trailed her gaze to the young child and when she averted her gaze,the strange man was gone.
It seemed he was a fast walker because he disappeared whenever she wanted to steal a second look.
She wondered if he could not see the young child or if he was just playing a trick on her.
"What is your name?",she asked as she held his wrist and they walked inside.
"Bryan",he answered almost immediately with a big smile on his face.
Annie looked at him and averted her gaze as soon as their gaze met. She wondered if he was related to the strange man.
"Where are your parents?",she asked again as they approached the house.
"I don't know,I don't have parents",he retorted and then closed his eyes tightly.
He opened his eyes when he heard footsteps;they were already inside the house and Leonard was serving dinner on the table.
Annie took her time as she looked around, nothing changed. It was just as her great grand mother wanted to be .
The house had a touch of aesthetic pleasure because Catherine wanted it to be. Old, artistic pictures hung on the walls of the living room.
"Won't you sit and eat,you can have a proper look at the house later", Leonard smiled at her as he pointed at the dinning seat.
Annie sighed as her thoughts raced;she did have lots of questions to ask herself.
"How did she wake up in Catherine's house? .....her meditation room to be precise?Some where she was forbidden to enter !"
"Who was this strange man? Why was he occupying the house? Why was he being so nice to her?"
"Who was the little child? Why was he....."
"I promise to answer all of your questions but only if you have something to eat", Leonard snapped,disrupting her thoughts.
"Beautiful lady ", Bryan called out as he nudged her.
"Yes,dear ",she retorted as she bent over while Leonard stared on with a confused facial expression.
"Who are you talking to?"he queried before Annie or Bryan could say any other thing.
"What do you mean?",she asked as she stood erect and looked him in the eyes.
"Who have you been talking to?"he asked again as their eyes locked.
"Annie,come save me!" Sandra called out as Annie staggered almost falling but he caught her in his arms;she was having a terrible head ache.
He led her to the couch and helped her sit. Bryan sat next to her,he never left her hand;his little grip was still tight and firm.
She looked around as she swallowed hard. She was very sure that she heard Sandra's voice so she had to leave.
She tried to get up but Leonard pinned her to the seat.He was far more stronger than she was.She would have persisted but she was very weak.
"I know you saw something but you can't just leave!" he said as he slowly let go of her body and stood erect.
"What...",her voice trailed off as she tried to wrap her head around what he was trying to say.
"You are in danger and this is the only safe place for you to stay",he added, trying as much as he could to avoid her eyes.
"Who are you to tell me what to do? I have to go save my friend!"she snapped back in retort while he just smiled at her.
"You want to go save your friend...?....on an empty stomach!" he scoffed as he laughed aloud.
His laughter sent chills down Annie's spine but for a reason she did not know,she was not afraid
"He's right, beautiful one....."Bryan chipped in as their eyes met and locked. She was not sure if he could trust the innocence in them.
"You must have something to eat!",Leonard said as she broke her's and Bryan's gaze to look at him.
She watched him walk to the dinning room and brought the food for her. He was acting kind or maybe he was putting up an act.
"If he wanted to hurt her,he would have done that when I was unconscious!" she muttered
"Did you say something?" he queried as he placed the tray of food on the table. She shook her head in negation and smiled at him.
"I have no intentions of hurting you. I just want to help you!" he said as he sat beside her,his eyes fixed on her.
She swallowed hard,....he could read her thoughts;she was marvelled.
"I have had the special gift of reading thoughts since I was seven!"
"That's interesting ",she commented as she nodded her head slowly. She turned to look at Bryan and realized that he was fast asleep but his grip on her hand was still tight.
"Where can I lay the child? He's fast asleep!" she snapped as she turned to look at him.
"What child are you talking about?",he asked,his eyes filled with intense curiosity.
"I..don't you...don't you see the child that has been with me?"she stuttered as she trailed her gaze to Bryan and then back to him.
"I...I don't see any child",he retorted, shaking his head in negation as he looked away immediately.
She was in a state of dilemma. Was Bryan a ghost? Was Leonard trying to pull her legs?
"Annie, you have been with a ghost!"
"Gho....ghost!"she snapped in retort as she swallowed hard. She tried to get up but Leonard held her back.
"He's just a child,he won't hurt you",he assured her with a smile.
".....how sure are you?" she queried, trying hard to hide the fear in her voice.
"I am very sure that your great grand mother had thought you that a child's mind is like an open fire",he said, letting go of her.
He was right;she nodded at him as she looked at Bryan and then at Leonard. There was a reassuring smile on his face and for a split second,she had a horrible sense of deja Vu....!