Suzanna

Far South/Eastern Australia 1908 Ordinarily Suzanna had never slept well, but in these past few weeks it had began to come with more ease, so when she was abruptly startled awake, with the distinct visions of Thomas and Judith's faces again in the forefront of her mind, she felt that familiar cold shiver go through to her bones. In sheer panic she rushed from her bed, towards the door of her son's room, she staggered and fumbled whilst her hands shook so violently, as she became totally overwhelmed with dread and fear. She could barely turn the door handle as that well known pain and debilitating anxiety rose abruptly, causing her to experience breathing difficulties as her chest began to pound, and she struggled to control her rising anguish. Her son's room was slightly lit and instantly she could see the outline of his face as he peacefully slept. With the moonlight filtering through the partially open curtains, Suzanna's heart began to slow as she ran her hand gently down the side of the young boys face, his skin as olive as his fathers. Tears began to well in her eyes, but her lips began to curl upward into a slight smile, as the tension within her body began to wane, not only from sheer relief, but from the happiness that the past weeks had brought, she was extremely thankful for the fact that her son was here with her and that they were both finally safe. She pulled the door behind her, but left it partially ajar, then as she slipped back under the covers of her own bed her anxious feelings began to totally abate, as the relief she felt continued to sooth her damaged and troubled psyche. As she curled beneath her blankets, she found it difficult to refrain from letting her mind wonder back through the many years when a night like this had seemed an eternity away, totally impossible in fact, for to be now living in peace finally, after more than a decade of having to fight, for not only her own life, but for the lives of those she loved and held most dear. Suzanna had been forced to cope with the loss of those closest to her and to live in constant dread and fear, but now it appeared that she could finally relax. For the first time since the tragic murder of her father and to have then learnt not long after, that her mother had met the same fate, was terribly devastating and had continued to created horrendous ongoing heart ache and cruel circumstances throughout her entire young life. She now felt more at ease than she had ever felt before, as if justice had finally been delivered. Although the circumstances had been tragic, Judith was finally out of her life, but in many ways her Aunt, who was also her step mother, had succeeded in her quest, successfully destroying many parts of Suzanna's life, and she knew all too well that she would be forced to continually carry those memories, and that the deep seeded scars that remained, would rest within her for the remainder of her days. To retell Suzanna's story, there is the need to begin this tale well before she was even born. To the time when her parents, as young teenagers themselves, embarked on the life changing journey of leaving behind their wealthy life styles of prestige and high society, just beyond the city limits of London, England, bound to begin a new life far removed from all they had known, in the distant great southern lands of Australia.