The screen of the console shone out brightly in the night, illuminating the surrounding area in a ghostly while glow.
No-one was to be seen.
The printer tray was as empty as the rest of the room.
Gently the whirr ceased and the room fell quiet, as though the room’s inhabitants, the books were holding their collective breath.
Displayed on the screen was the login screen for an online messaging provider.
David’s first instinct was to press the icon for the previous page with an illogical hope that it would allow him to see who had been online.
You have successfully logged out.
Please log in to see your messages.
Typing in his own username and password, David sat himself down in the old fashioned, brown leather office chair, as his account welcomed him, informing him that he had been inundated by emails during his absence.  Selecting the command to filter his business messages into the appropriate locations, he was able to determine that he had three new personal messages, that weren’t spam or junk mail.  One from Ella Cox, one from Aurora Faileas, and one from a username that he didn’t at first recognise; tenaciousjf@onlinemail.com.
The message’s title read; ‘Port Side Observation Deck’.
By the time David brought himself to absorb the realisation of who the sender was and blink, several minutes had ticked slowly by.
The initial lust for her words, for any words, was marred by a fear of what those words would say.
After an indefinable amount of time had rolled by, a sense of reality was regained, and , moving slowly, he selected the message, opening it so that it filled the whole screen.

David,
Love,

Know that this message bares no ill tidings, although it may not be entirely coherent as I am having difficulty fully comprehending everything that has happened within the past few days.
I need you to know that I haven’t a single regret concerning all that transpired between you and I, I treasure every moment that was spent in your company.
Unfortunately, for the time being, our paths must separate.  The truth must out and I fear that I am the one to discover it, alone.  I respect that you would do all within your power to aid me if I asked, however I respect your family and station more, and I will not allow you to turn your duties and situation aside.  After all, I need you to keep a keen watch on my brother and sister in my absence, as there are precious few others that I can trust.
For your peace of mind, I can inform you that I am under admirable employ and that, after two weeks work, I will have ample support to see that I can get where I need to be in order to begin to figure out what happened to my mother, as I can now divulge that the situation was, by no small means, simple.  It will be likely that at this time that I will lose access to this account and it will become much more difficult for me to reach you, and impossible for you to reach me.
Please do not be worried for my, I am able enough to look after myself, I need you to be my strength.

Peace of mind be with you, my love
Jessica

Sitting back in his chair, David stared at the screen in front of him.  He tried to re-read the words that were displayed there, but found that his eyes would not focus.  And yet he continued to stare as the words were already imprinted in his memory.
Jabbing at the print icon he waited for the whirr of the printer to start.
No noise was forthcoming.
On the screen was the message;
Your documents have been added to the queue.
The previous print out had only been paused.
Holding his breath and selecting the ‘resume printing’ command, David waited for the whirr of the printer.

It had taken a lot of patience and slow, even breathing to make it out of the library undetected, but Jessica somehow managed it.  Thank goodness he had called out before reaching the console, giving her a small window of opportunity to cancel the printouts of the responses and get out of sight in the direction of the library’s nearest exit.
Before the interruption, she had only glanced briefly at each of the replies that had reached the account, having decided to print them out so as to give them individual and undivided attention.
However, now sat in her room without anything, save a brief idea, of what the messages said, Jessica couldn’t help but feel uplifted by what she had read.  Those messages had been filled with love and support and feigned understanding.
If there were any opportunity to return to her family and friends in the future, it was gratifying to know that she would be welcomed with open arms.  Although the lack of anything from Anthony was a little dispiriting, she just assumed that he hadn’t read his messages yet.
Sighing deeply, she released the feeling of comfort and, sliding down into the rough embrace of the bed sheets, succumbed to the dark restlessness of her dreams.
In the darkness, many images and sensations were presented to her subconscious mind, however, upon waking, the only scenario that she could recall was one which was part of the future.
David stood with Ella in front of an audience.  Aurora was seated near to them, though Anthony was nowhere to been seen, although it became apparent that her siblings were the reason behind David and Ella’s public address.  Something important was happening and Jessica was absent.  If only she had gotten home sooner, there would have been no need for such proceedings to have ever even been contemplated.
Before she could discern what it was that was taking place, the glimpse of the scene faded back into the confusion and evil nature of her subconscious dream.
Lying awake, Jessica had yet to open her eyes, allowing her mind to skim across the surface of the dreams that could not be recalled. 
The sunlight shone softly through the open window, warming her face, the sound of distant bird song and leaves rustling in the breeze filtered through the net curtain.
A noise came from within the room, the sound of someone shifting in their place, sat opposite, on the second bed.
Even as Jessica wrenched body into a sitting position and her eyes flung open, she already knew who it was that was sat there.
She met his eyes, her face frozen, her heart dancing to a dangerous and confusing beat, mixing together shock, fear, anger, joy and even relief.
David’s face was calm, no trace of either smile or frown were evident to her.
He simply held her eyes with his.
Outside, although the birds continued to sing, the leaves to rustle and the net curtain to billow, none of this reach the ears of either person.  The entire world had fallen away.
Jessica gently pulled back the blanket covering her lower body and slipped her legs smoothly over the edge of the bed so as to be in a sitting position, facing him.
A few seconds barely scraped past as both tried to think of what to say, or who was to be the first to break the silence.
Jessica opened her mouth, drawing a slight breath, before…
Without warning, David leant forward, swiftly closing the distance between them.  His had slid behind her ear, and gently, but firmly, pulled her toward him.  Their mouths met with a fiery fervour that betrayed the longing that had been pent up since they had last been together.  A sudden hunger coursed between them, driving their arms to pull one another closer.
After an undeterminable amount of time their lips separated, and David move his head to her shoulder, pulling them both into an intimate embrace.  At some point he had brought his body onto her bed and was now sitting beside her.
“This isn’t a dream,” he murmured into her hair, “I was afraid that I’d wake up to find you weren’t real.”
Fighting off the urge to let her emotions loose right then and there, Jessica leant her head back so that they were face to face.
“David,” she whispered, stroking the patch of hair behind his ear, “I need to…”
Her apology was cut short by another kiss, this time, quick but sweet.  “No, you don’t,” he said, calmly stroking her earlobe, “I won’t pretend to know what it is that’s driving you to do what you’ve done, what your doing, but…” her eyes flinched and her head bow slightly, he stopped.
For that spilt second, her mind whirled.  What was it exactly that she thought she was doing?  Why was it so very important to continue on down this road?  There was no time to contemplate it now, in any case.
David’s hand was beneath her chin, gently trying to bring her eyes back up to meet his.  Her heart yearned to simply look up, to meet his gaze and lose her heart.  Would it really be so bad if she just allowed herself to fall into the safety and surety of his love and embrace, a normal life, or at least as normal as a life being with David would offer her.  Happiness may be ensured, but at the cost of their peace of mind, as surely he would sense her unease, which could very well affect him.
No, to ask for happiness that meant suffering, on any level, for the man, or people that she loved, for it would most likely influence Anthony, Aurora and Ella, not to mention all of the members of staff at Cridhefield.
Turning her head to the side and avoiding his gaze, Jessica said, “I need to get dressed.”
The pressure of his hand under her chin eased off but stayed where it was.  “Idiot,” he thought to himself, “slow down.”  Out loud he said, “Of course,” he kissed her on the forehead and stood up, “meet me for breakfast?”
She nodded her head, what else could be done?  With tremendous effort she managed to keep her eyes turned away until he had left the room, at which point they couldn’t be torn away from the door, almost sensing his presence on the other side, which wavered for a few moments before moving off.
Out of the corner of her eye she could see two sheets of printed paper, two letters from loved ones.

As he paused in the hallway, David found himself smiling.  The manor in which they had been reunited had been promising, so much so, that he had been able to keep her close until he had gone too far.  He would have been completely dispirited, had it not been for the look on her face, which she hadn’t quite hidden from him. 
Despite the downfall, the memory of their mouths intertwined, the feel of her body pressed against his, her scent still lingered in his nostrils and the taste of her in his mouth.  From her reaction, it may be a while before such intimacy would be re-established, meaning that space and delicacy would have to be employed at breakfast.
A thought flitted through his mind, causing his smile, which had been so gratifying only moments ago, to falter, and dissolve slightly.  Her tactic thus far had been to stay secret, unknown to him. 
With this in mind, would she even show up for breakfast?  Would she, instead, take this small opportunity to pack her bags and disappear before he’d even had a chance to talk to her properly.  He didn’t believe it of her, but still…
Jennifer was still waiting in the kitchen, her fingers drumming agitatedly against the table and her face so expectant.  She opened her mouth to say something, when she saw him reappear alone, but he cut her off.
“Jen, it’s unlikely that she will, but if she decides to leave, could you try and convince her to just wait until after breakfast, thanks.”  He headed straight out of the door in the direction of his own rooms, having realised he was still wearing last night’s clothes.