A girl appears behind me with a tray in her hands. There is a teapot, teacup, sugar pot, small milk jug and a plate of biscuits on the tray. She looks around and then shrugging her shoulders faintly, she places the tray on the wobbly bedside table.
" Where am I?"
She looks at me unsure. "The attic?"
" Why?"
" Remember? The master found you with that servant boy who was taking advantage of you in the forest."
" No. I leaned in and kissed him. He never ever tried anything. It was all me."
" It is too late now, child, Devlin is gone."
" Where did he go? You must help me to get out of here."
" Oh no child, your da is very, very angry with you. You best stay here until he calms down. Besides Devlin is long gone to Dublin by now."
" Who? Devlin? Dublin?"
" Yes, child. Devlin. He left the day your da locked you in here."
I sit down on the bed. My legs are unable to carry my weight any longer. I say softly, "Devlin and I never even had a chance to say goodbye. It feels as if he died, it is so final."
She puckers her face and nods her head a little. "Probably died. I think you might be right, child."
I look up at her shocked.
She wrings her hands in the white apron tied around her waist. "There is a great sickness on the streets of Dublin. They say people are growing big black lumps on their skin, and their tongues are turning black. They say it is called the Black Plague and people are just falling down dead in the streets. Dreadful business."
I am unable to pull a breath of air into my lungs.
Waking up, I am gasping for breath.
The next night I dream of an elderly lady who opens the door to the dark room I am in.
The woman says, "You may leave the room now."
Sitting on the bed, I look at the door. I have a feeling of dread and I do not want to walk out of the room. It feels as if I have been trapped in the attic for a long time.
Filling my lungs with air, I get up and walk out of the room. Sunlight bounces throughout the rooms. It has been a long time since I have seen the sun or felt its warmth.
I follow my feet down the stairs to a room where the sun is shining in brightly through the windows. The woman, who opened the door for me, is sitting in a rocking chair facing one of the large windows.