THE INVITATION

When Joanne opened the sealed white envelope, she did not expect an invitation from her uncle Philip. First, she could not remember him, and second, she did not even know that he still existed. According to the letter attached, her uncle wanted to know her better after returning from Australia. He also stated that he was the long-lost brother of her late father.

 

Her father had a brother who lived abroad, but he never talked about him, so she assumed there was a good reason and never asked.

 

Well, since it was Tuesday, and the invitation was for any weekend, and she had nothing better to do that week, she accepted the invitation.

 

she  picked  up  her  handbag  which  was  on  a table  in  the  kitchen  and  took  out  her  mobile phone.  she  tapped  the  numbers  which  were printed on the invitation and waited.

 

A woman,s voice answered, and Joanne asked to speak to her uncle, but the woman told her that he  was  away  till  Friday  on  business,  but  they were expecting her call, and she had to make the arrangements  with  her.  Joanne  did  not  think much of it and sorted  out the details with Miss  Blake.  so  everything  was  set  for  Friday evening, and she would return sun-day in plenty of time not to miss her business appointments on Monday morning.

Joanne was a classic blonde of twenty-nine with a  fair  complexion  and  stunning  blue  eyes.  Her thick  golden  hair  tumbled  down  her  back  in shimmering waves.  she  was  tall  and  was  very poised.

 

Although   she  looked  of  an  ordinary woman, she came from a refined family and received  a  very  conventional  education.  when she was young, she travelled extensively and was well-educated;   she   could    match   any   young intellectuals of her generation.

 

On Friday afternoon she packed a small suitcase. she went to her car, a turquoise blue Lotus Elise,  which  incorporated  all  the  modern  and  new  engineering  innovations.  Joanne  loved  her  car  and made full use of its potential speed as she  was an excellent driver.

 

Her destination was Freckenham, a small rural village located in suffolk East Anglia, which had a population of two hundred and seventy people and should take her less than an hour and a half.

 

She was wearing a red jacket in a soft jersey with a high drawstring collar. Her trousers were smooth with a wide ribbed waistband  and  straight legs.

She wore red wedge heel sandals in suede with a metal buckle at the side.

 

She looked at her watch; it was half-past three, time enough to be in the village before tea time. she  started  the   engine  and  drove  away. She stopped  for  a  while  at  Bishop's  stortford,  a historic market town,  and  from there,  she took the  longer  route  to  cambridge  and  finally arrived at her destination ten minutes ahead of schedule. Since Freckenham was a tiny village, it wasn't difficult to find the house of her long lost uncle.

 

The  two-story  house  faced  the  road,  and  the high-pitched roof was covered with black slates. It had a massive wooden front door. She parked her car and rang the doorbell, which looked out of place.

 

After  a  while,  a  woman   eating   a  banana opened the door and stared at Joanne.

 

"Hello, I'm Joanne; my uncle is expecting me." "Yes, I know; please come in."

As  she  entered  through  the  front  door,  she arrived  in  a  spacious  hall.  To  the  right  was  a combined living and dining room. The fireplace was massive. The first storey of the service wing held  the  large  kitchen.  The  hall  held  the  stairs leading to the bedrooms on the second floor; its balustrade was magnificent.

 

"This place is at the end of the world, isn't it?" Miss Blake said, and she closed the door behind them. "Did you get lost coming here? I wouldn't be surprised."

 

“I didn’t”

 

Miss Blake was taller than her, had concise red hair,  and  was  very   good-looking  but   strange.

Even when she spoke, her voice sounded peculiar. “Don,t you think you should tell my uncle?”

“Tell him what?”

 

“That I am here!” replied Joanne, who did not know what to make of her.

 

“Oh,  that!”  Miss  Blake  picked  up  Joanne,s luggage. “Did I not tell you?”

 

“Tell me what?”

 

“He’s not here yet, but he told me to look after you until he returns. Isn’t it that good of him?”

 

“When will he be back?” “Back, who?”

"My  uncle!  who  else"  said  Joanne  losing  her patience.

"Would you like to see your room now?" Miss Blake started going up the stairs."

 

Joanne followed her up,  feeling rather  strange about the situation. "How long have you known him? My uncle, I mean?"

 

"Forever",  she  replied,  "Mummy  and  he  was perfect  lovers! When  she  died,  he  looked  after me. He brought me up, I'm thirty-five, but I don't think it shows. Your uncle is an old dear, a bit dreary, uninteresting and stodgy. You know what I mean."

 

"No, I don't." Joanne was looking all around her, "Magnificent house!"

 

"Is it? I don't know anything about houses at all. Except   that   this   house   is   rather   menacing, especially  at  night!"  she  told  her.  "Are  you scared of the dark?"

 

"No, not at all!"

 

"I love the dark," she exclaimed. It's full of old things that give me the creeps." She opened one of the bedroom doors they entered, and she put the suitcase on a vast bed. "There! It is nice, isn't it?"

“Charming!”

 

Miss  Blake   opened   the  window  wide  while Joanne sat on one side of the bed. “The woods are very creepy, especially at night,” she told her. “Could  be  filled  with  murderers!”  Miss  Blake remarked furtively.

 

Joanne  stood up and went by the window, but Miss  Blake   closed  the  window  at  once.   “It’s rather chilly this evening” .

 

“Where are the rest of the servants?”

 

“Servants?”

 

“It  is  a  huge  house;  surely  you  don,t  run  this place alone?”

 

“It is only Philip and me who live here. Nobody wants to come here, it,s the end of the world out here, and besides, I am not all alone!”

 

“No?” asked curiously the niece.

 

“Well, I have got you. You're here.” She left and slammed the door behind her.

 

Joanne  stood  still, wondering  about the whole  situation, especially about Miss Blake. There was  something about her that she couldn’t understand. Yet surprisingly, Joanne liked her and could not

understand  it  either.  she  sat  on  the  bed   and opened her suitcase to unpack her clothes.

 

Later that evening, after she changed her clothes into more suitable ones, she went downstairs and found Miss Blake in the dining room, also in different clothes, which made her look more attractive.

 

“I was waiting for you, Miss Thompson!”

 

“My name is Joanne, but you can call me Jo.” “OK Jo, and you can call me Miss Blake.”

“Fair enough”, smiled Jo.

 

“Would you like a drink?”

 

“Yes, please, a glass of wine.”

 

“I’m glad you asked for wine because that is all we  have  in  the  house,  the  best  wine,  nothing else.”

 

“Well, I am lucky then!”

 

“Red or white?” Miss Blake asked, pouring red wine into two crystal glasses.

 

“Red, please,”  said  Jo,  amusingly  noticing that she’d already poured the red.

 

“That is another good choice!” and they laughed slightly.

 

They  moved  to  the  lounge  with  their  glasses, where they  sat for  some time, getting to know each  other  until  her  uncle  returned.  An  hour passed,  and  the  elusive  man  did  not return,  so Miss Blake decided that they should eat and not wait  for  him.  By  the  time  they  finished  their dinner, which was truly impressive, Jo wondered how  Miss  Blake  did  manage  to  cook  such  an excellent feast even though she did not appear to be a good cook, but did not bother to ask maybe because she was having such a good evening.

 

Uncle philip phoned later that evening and told Miss Blake that he was held up  somewhere  in Manchester and could not be bothered to travel late that night. The news didn’t seem to disturb Joanne.

 

“There is always tomorrow,” she said, drinking the red wine.  “I think you,re  trying to  get me drunk.   This   bottle   is   the   third   one   you,ve opened.”

 

“Who’s counting?” laughed Miss Blake, topping up Joanne,s glass. They stayed sat drinking and chatting in the dining room for a long time and did  not  seem  to  realise  that  it  was  gone  past midnight.

 

Joanne decided it was past her bedtime, so she got up from the table, but she felt a bit shaky as she did so.

 

“Steady on, Jo, you look like a sinking ship!” “I feel like one too!”

 

Joanne walked to the lounge steady on her feet. She was used to heavy drinking, and surprisingly, so was Miss Blake.

 

Miss Blake switched off the dining room light leaving  all  the   dirty  dishes  on  the  table,   and started to go upstairs.

 

“It’s  past  midnight,  and  I  still  can’t  hear  any  creepy sounds and feel any tingling sensations,” said  Joanne  as  she  stood  in  front  of her  door.  Miss Blake was right behind her.

 

Joanne noticed that Miss Blake was staring at her intensely and felt uncomfortable. Then with one  swift  movement,  Miss  Blake’s  arms  were around her,  and  she’d  covered  her mouth with hers, taking complete possession of her. Instead of pushing her away which Jo should have done found herself   returning   the    kiss   with    enthusiasm. Joanne never kissed a woman before and excited her  beyond  all  rational  thought,  allowing  the mischief in her to take over and twist her arms around her neck. Miss Blake shoved her tongue

between   Joanne’s parted lips, sending a tingling sensation  down  her  spine  while  she  pressed herself hard  against  her,  moving  her  fingertips down  the   long,  exquisite  curve  of  her  spine, rubbing  her  body  on  her.  Joanne  tentatively pushed back,  enjoying  the  feel  of her  softness and heat through the material of her clothing. The flush rising over Miss Blake’s neck and onto her cheeks  enchanted  Joanne  but  left  her   seducer even more possessive. Joanna was hers  for the whole night!

 

The  following  day  when  she  went  down  for breakfast, Miss Blake had her full English talking to a man twice her age. uncle Philip had returned early   that    morning,   but    Joanne   was   more interested in Miss Blake.