Immortal Prophecy (The Immortal Prophecy Saga) (6 page)

Adele shook her head and smiled, “So I will take that as a yes then?”

“Yes, I will be there.”

“Good. There is someone I want you to meet.” Adele moved back to the table and sat down.

“Who?” Ally asked curiously.

“You met him once.” Adele said as she looked at her granddaughter with a wicked twinkle in her eye.

Alessandra’s breath arrested in her chest as her mind whispered his name. Could it be James? She wondered with a hope that bordered on desperation.

Adele couldn’t hide the wide smile that crept over her face as she delivered the news. “James Carlisle.”

Ally froze in part fear part excitement. The man she had been dreaming of for five years was coming to the masquerade ball tonight.

“I think I remember him. He was here the morning that…well that morning.” Ally tried to play it down like he was nothing but a vague recollection which was so far from the truth.

“He is back in town so I thought it would be nice to catch up with him. The last time he was here…” her voice started to break. It was still hard for either of them to talk about her parents, the pain still fresh in their minds.

“I know Gran. I miss them too.” Her eyes started to water at the memory of that day.

“And you know I invited Kathryn,” Adele smiled changing the subject. “You girls haven’t seen each other in far too long.”

“Yeah it has been a while.” For a reason, she thought to herself.

Kathryn had been at that fateful reading and knew she would lose two special people and that she would meet James, not to mention Vincent. It wasn’t entirely Kathryn’s fault but Ally had felt uncomfortable around her ever since. Maybe it was time to see her again, put the past behind them, but then she realised that James was coming.

Would Kat remember the name? She had never told her that she met him that morning. It was something that she wanted to keep to herself.

“Well I had better get myself something to wear.” Alessandra stood up and started to head for her room. Then stopped dead in her tracks at the full realisation of what she had just thought.

“Vincent,” she whispered.

Pure terror started in her toes then shot straight to the tips of her hair. She looked up at her grandmother. Adele had stopped still and was looking straight at Ally with terror reflecting back at her.

“Who is Vincent?” Adele asked, her voice trembling slightly as she spoke.

Ally looked to the ground, trying to understand why she felt so scared. “I don’t know,” she whispered then paused and bit her lower lip. “All I know is that he terrifies me.” She looked up at her grandmother. “But I don’t know who he is.”

Ally started to tremble, she couldn’t remember last night and she was scared of some guy called Vincent even though she had never met someone called Vincent before, or at least she thought she hadn’t…

Adele rushed over to hug her granddaughter. “I think you need to go back upstairs and spend the day relaxing.”

“Yeah” she said, recovering slightly. “I must be overtired or something.” Turning to go back upstairs, she suddenly stopped. “No, wait, I can’t.” She cried as she realised something of great importance about tonight. “I don’t have a dress. I need to go buy one.”

Adele laughed softly. “Well I was going to surprise you a bit later but I have taken care of that for you. Go on upstairs and I will bring it up.”

Ally walked up the stairs and went into her bedroom. She went out onto the balcony for a breath of crisp fresh air. Maybe that will jog my memory she thought. How strange that I can’t remember last night and now I’m scared of some guy I have never met. She leaned on the balcony railing and lost herself in thoughts while she waited for Adele to bring the dress up.

It was very sweet of her grandmother to organise a dress for her and to try and rekindle her friendship with Kat. They had been so close that she had considered her the sister she never had.

As for James, if he had been an old family friend that was so important, he would have been spoken of at least once in the last five years. Then there was the gleam in her eye. Gran was up to something and she was clearly very proud of herself. It made Ally a little nervous.

The thought of James did strange things to her body that she had never experienced before. He had been in her presence for all of five minutes and he still haunted her to this day. Madame Isabella had been right about her parents and she had met James, maybe there was something between them that was written in the stars. Oh god, she thought to herself, I sound like Kat and she isn’t even here yet.

Just then there was a knock at her bedroom door. “It’s just me darling. Are you ready to see your dress?” Gran asked as she sauntered into the room.

Ally smiled and nodded coming back inside.

Adele held the dress up before Ally.

It was the most beautiful dress she had ever seen in her life. It had a stunning simple elegance about it, made of deep scarlet satin that fell to the floor with a low square neckline and a slight gathering at the back. She knew she would feel like a princess in this dress.

“It was mine and then your mother’s,” Adele proudly stated to Ally who was still staring at the dress in awe. “And now it is yours.”

Ally was rendered speechless by the dress and the beautiful sentiment behind it. She felt her eyes well with tears of happiness, one escaped and rolled down her cheek.

Adele wiped it away with her thumb, “She would have loved nothing more than for you to have it and wear it tonight.”

“Thank you Gran,” she said with heartfelt sincerity.

“I have accessories too,” Adele said, as she pulled a pair of matching stilettos and a half mask with a scarlet feather, from behind her back. “These are all new though.”

“Oh my!” Ally sighed with contentment. “They are beautiful as well. Thank you so much,” she said slightly shaking her head in disbelief.

“You deserve it Ally.” She smiled and drew her into a hug. “Besides you need something bold to catch his eye,” she winked.

“Who’s eye?” Ally asked feigning innocence.

“The man of your dreams,” Adele looked her square in the eye “you are destined to be together Ally.”

Ally was stunned. “What?” she asked. That was the second time she had been told that.

“I have decided you need someone like him and he needs someone like you.” Adele laughed.

“Doesn’t he get some say in this?”

“Yes and no.”

What a strange answer, Ally thought. “Let’s just see what happens. I might think he is a total jerk.”

Adele laughed. “You won’t.”

Ally focused her attention back on the dress and took it from her grandmother as if it was sacred. “This dress…” she let the words hang in the air.

“Was made for you darling. He won’t be able to resist you.”

“I don’t know, Gran. You are still beautiful, he might lavish his attentions on you,” she joked.

In all seriousness, Ally thought her grandmother was one of the most beautiful women she had ever seen. Even though she was into her mid-sixties, if Ally didn’t know better she would say that Adele wasn’t a day over forty. Her long brown locks still reached half way down her back. She refused to cut it saying, “Women are supposed to have long hair.” Her grandmother could be very old school sometimes. With bright violet eyes that still shined as if they belonged to a newborn babe but with the intelligence of Einstein. Her ivory skin had very few wrinkles and appeared to be almost as smooth as Ally’s was. Given the age difference it was remarkable. Ally hoped she had inherited whatever gene was responsible for that.

“Oh pish posh girl!” Adele giggled, “I’m far too young for him.”

“Young? Don’t you mean old?” Ally asked a bit confused.

Adele looked at her mysteriously and then answered, “Young at heart, my girl. Besides he is too serious for me.”

“He isn’t too serious is he?” Ally asked suddenly concerned. Perfect, he is a bore she thought.

“No I just like my man to have an inner goof ball.” Adele laughed.

“Hmm…Grandpa definitely fitted the bill then.”

“Yeah Grandpa,” she answered distractedly.

Not noticing her grandmother’s mental departure from the room Ally remarked, “It has been so long since I wore a dress,” as she was hugging the dress over her figure in front of the full length mirror getting an idea of what the dress would look like on.

“Far too long if you ask me,” Adele huffed, “but tonight we shall change that.”

Ally looked at her grandmother and rolled her eyes but Adele was taken aback by what she saw. Happiness, excitement and nervousness were shining through Ally’s eyes. It had been so long since Adele had seen anything but sorrow, loneliness and confusion reflected back at her. James is already working his magic and he doesn’t even know it yet, she thought smiling to herself.

“Now run along and relax before tonight. Go lose yourself in that book you have been dying to read.”

“Thanks Gran.”

“You’re very welcome sweetie. Go relax. I will bring up another coffee soon.”

Ally picked up the latest historical romance she had acquired. She had found that there was nothing more relaxing than losing herself in a good book. Alessandra had a weakness for historical romances. Some days she was convinced she had been born in the wrong century, she would have been more suited to the days when men were chivalrous, women wore beautiful dresses and everybody rode horses everywhere. It sounded magical to Ally who just happened to love all those things.

It was one of the reasons she had loved her grandmother’s annual masquerade balls. She always felt like she was transported back to another century for the evening. Adele shared Ally’s love of all things historical. She used to tell her the most romantic stories about a warrior and his love in Scotland. They were so real that if she didn’t know better she would swear her Gran was telling her about something she had personally experienced.

“Hmm reading in bed or the armchair?” Ally pondered aloud.

She lit the fireplace in her room and got snuggled into the armchair with a blanket just as her grandmother brought her a cup of coffee and a melting moment.

Ally beamed at her Gran. “Aw thanks Gran! Melting moment and all.”

“Enjoy sweetie.”

She got stuck into her book, coffee and biscuit.

A few hours later, Ally was feeling so relaxed she was in a state of bliss and decided to move over to the bed to stretch out for a bit. Before she knew what had happened, she was sound asleep, dreaming of far off lands, chivalrous men on horses, ball gowns and parties.

Adele crept into the room a couple of hours later and was sitting beside her on the bed. It was tempting to leave her sleeping. Ally looked so peaceful and content, something she didn’t see very often in her granddaughter these days, but she knew Ally would want time to get ready.

The fact that Ally also remembered Vincent’s name troubled her. Maybe James was right and this was a bad idea, but what’s done is done and she’s finding out the truth tonight anyway, Adele thought.

She gently nudged Ally, “Time to wake up sweetheart.”

Ally opened her eyes slowly and stretched, “Gran?”

“Time to get up.”

“Oh, what time is it?”

“It’s just on four so you have plenty of time.”

“Thanks,” Ally said still trying to fight of the fogginess of sleep.

“Go have a bath and take your time getting ready.”

“Thanks.” Ally paused, “When is Kat getting here?”

“She will be here in about an hour so you girls have time to catch up before the party.”

Ally nodded and got up out of bed.

Adele was about to leave the room, when she turned around saying, “I have invited someone here tonight who I think Kat may be interested in. They would make a wonderful couple. Her life might even cease to exist as she knows it.”

Ally stopped dead in her tracks and looked right at her grandmother, “What did you say?”

“That I invited someone for Kat.”

“No you said that her life might cease to exist as she knows it.”

Adele moved back towards Ally. “Is everything alright sweetie?”

“Oh god, it’s happening again.”

“What’s happening again?”

“The predictions,” Ally said as she sank down onto the bed. “The predictions are starting again.”

“Predictions?” Adele’s eyes lit up as she realised Ally was talking about Madame Isabella’s predictions all those years ago.

“Yeah,” Ally answered distractedly.

“You never did tell me what was said.”

“To be honest, I just wanted to forget about it and pretend it never happened.” Ally could feel the panic swelling within, threatening to consume her.

“If you want to tell me I will listen but if not I won’t push it.” She paused, “If there was something that I needed to know you would tell me though, wouldn’t you?”

Ally snapped out of herself, aware that she was probably freaking her grandmother out. “Yeah of course, I’m sorry Gran. I didn’t mean to worry you I was just caught off guard.”