I woke up with an almost perverse craving for a cigarette. I smiled to myself. Yesterday, the urge hadn't crossed my mind even once undoubtedly because I'd been running on pure adrenaline the entire time. The escape from the hospital, the conversation with my sister, the game I'd been forced to play, trying to extract as much information as possible without revealing how little I actually knew.
It hadn't been easy, but I'd learned things that were crucial. I needed time to let them settle in my head. First, breakfast. And then a search for cigarettes somewhere in this house. I didn't know whether my sister smoked, but her maid certainly did or at least I hoped so.
I left the room and headed straight for the kitchen on the first floor. I didn't run into the maid along the way, and she wasn't in the kitchen either. I cursed quietly and opened the fridge. It was empty. That was strange. She must have gone shopping.
I tried the pantry instead. There I found something homemade salamis, sausages, and other smoked meats. I didn't take much, just two sausages and some bread that looked like it was left over from the day before. There was no mustard or ketchup, but I didn't care. I sat down and started eating.
A few minutes later, the maid finally appeared. I'd been right she had been shopping.
"Well then, Mr. Ctibor," she said irritably. "Couldn't you have waited? Just because of you, madam sent me shopping so early in the morning."
"I'm sorry," I apologized. "Believe me, it wasn't possible to endure."
She still looked annoyed, but eventually waved it off.
"Fine. Are you staying for lunch today?"
"Yes," I said. "Don't worry. I won't let your hard work go to waste."
I could tell from her expression that she'd calmed down. That was good.
"By the way," I added, "I still don't know your name. Would you mind telling me?"
"Oh, forgive me for not introducing myself," she said with a smile. "Ivetka."
"A beautiful name," I replied. "Ivetka, may I ask you something else? Do you have cigarettes? In yesterday's chaos, I didn't get a chance to buy any."
"I'm sorry," she shook her head. "I don't smoke."
Inside, I howled like a jackal.
"Do you know where my sister is?" I asked.
"No," she said. "This morning she gave me instructions to go shopping and then left somewhere. Do you need something important from her?"
"Not really," I said. "Can I at least help you unpack the groceries?"
She laughed. "No, that's my job. Go get yourself together for now. And honestly… a bathroom wouldn't hurt."
She burst into laughter. I just shook my head and went to take care of my morning hygiene.
When I left the bathroom, I planned to hurry Ivetka along with the cooking a small payback for how skillfully she'd sent me off to 'get myself together.' But before I turned toward the stairs, I noticed that the door to my sister's study was open.
Something pulled me toward it. My instinct whispered that there was something inside that I urgently needed.
I went in, quietly closed the door behind me, and locked it so Ivetka wouldn't disturb me.
The room looked just as old-fashioned as the rest of the house, yet something about it felt familiar. Like home. My gaze fell on a painting above the fireplace. It was breathtaking depicting a palace at the foot of mountains and a magnificent ship in a harbor city beneath a castle. I couldn't tear my eyes away from it.
Eventually, I forced myself to look elsewhere and began opening the drawers of a small desk. Nothing important just a few documents about accounts that didn't interest me. Until the last drawer.
It had a false bottom.
I discovered it purely by accident. After removing the documents, something fell out and rattled. That immediately struck me as suspicious the drawer had been empty.
I removed the false bottom. Inside were gemstones and rings. The rings caught my attention the most. Some of them looked just like the ones my sister had been wearing the day before.
I picked one up. It was cold to the touch. Something inside me urged me to put it on my index finger. I didn't think twice. As soon as I slid it on, I felt an unexpected sense of contentment as if I'd found a missing piece of myself.
I put the gemstones and rings back, closed the drawer, and quietly left the study.
I continued walking through the house. The next room I entered was the one filled with paintings. There were eleven of them, each depicting a person.
I began examining them and then I froze.
One of the figures looked like me.
That couldn't be possible.
The paintings were old. In some places, the paint was already peeling. In the one where I saw my double, he stood in a harbor, holding a ship's wheel, smiling from ear to ear. He wore clothes similar to the ones I'd bought the day before a white shirt with rolled-up sleeves, brown trousers, and tall brown boots. A sword hung at his waist. On his left index finger was a ring.
I looked down at my own hand.
The ring was on the same finger.
"That's not possible…"
At that moment, my head began to ache again violently. I quickly sat down in a chair, trying to endure the pain.
Another painting hung in front of me. My sister. I knew it instantly.
She was turned slightly to the side, wearing the same dress she'd had on the day before. In her hand was a riding crop, which she was examining thoughtfully.
I stood up and hurried out of the room. The pain was unbearable. I went downstairs with the intention of leaving the house but the maid stopped me.
"Well, you see, you can wait after all," she said. "Come on, lunch has been ready for a while."
"I saw you in the room with the paintings," she added. "I didn't want to disturb you. It looked like you were admiring them. It's obvious you and madam are siblings she sometimes spends hours there too."
She was implying that I'd been staring at the paintings for a long time. From my perspective, it had only been a few minutes. Had the headache distorted my perception of time?
I smiled to myself. Maybe I really was crazy.
The food was excellent. I praised Ivetka, and she seemed genuinely pleased. Then she went off to tend to other duties around the house, while I sat down in the living room.
I rested and replayed everything that had happened over the past two days in my head. It was becoming dangerous. I realized I was afraid for my life. Maybe it would be better to leave.
My thoughts were interrupted by a ringing phone.
I didn't answer right away. I expected the maid to pick it up. When she didn't appear, I stood up and answered it myself.
"Residence of Mrs. Veselá. How may I help you?"
On the other end, a breathless male voice asked, "Who am I speaking with?"
"Astibor," slipped out of my mouth automatically.
There was a brief silence.
"And… is he still alive?" the voice asked.
"Of course he's alive," I snapped. "Who the hell is this?"
"Don't you recognize my voice? It's me. Matúš."
Another sibling. Vedana had hinted yesterday that he stood by my side.
"Sorry, I didn't recognize you," I said. "It's been a long time. Do you need something?"
"I need help. Will you protect me?"
"From whom?"
"It's hard to explain. We need to meet face to face. Will you give me asylum?"
"I'd like to," I said carefully, "but I don't know what Vedana will say about it."
"Will you protect me from her as well?"
Without thinking, I answered, "Yes."
"Thanks, brother. If everything goes well and there are no problems, I'll arrive as soon as possible. It's dangerous right now, but I'll try to take a shortcut."
He hung up.
I stood there holding the phone, then slowly placed it back on its cradle.
From what does he need protection?
And why did he ask if I'd protect him even from Vedana?
Something told me I wasn't as safe as I'd assumed. But that could wait. Trouble was coming my way and I had a feeling I'd started it myself.
And if that was the case, then it was only right that I be the one to end it.