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Waiting- Part 2
As much as Samuel loved her, there were a few things her husband was very peculiar about. Lucy didn't have many 'friends' with whom she could speak to. The one time she had invited women in the mansion, Samuel had turned very upset with her telling how the women would only use her for her status and told her to maintain distance from them.
"How is everyone? It has been quite some time since I heard from Sophie or Markus," said Lucy when they took a seat next to each other in the drawing-room.
"Markus has been busy helping in the court duties with the King, you know how busy things get. And Sophie, she's finished her studies and is now learning ballroom dancing. You would be proud to see that she has turned into a quite remarkable lady," assured Lady Rosamund.
"I am sure she has. She has turned more feminine now. Did you have something to deliver to the magistrate who lives here?" asked Lucy.
"Oh, I did. It was regarding a work that your brother wanted to see it to be finished today and I decided to personally come here," replied Rosamund. At the same time, the maid who had earlier left Lucy's side appeared in the room with a tray in her hand. "I was going to ask you if you will be attending the ball that is going to be held in shortly. The ball of Hallow."
Why did Lucy know that this question would appear in their conversation? She asked in her mind.
"Samuel isn't back yet, and I think I would feel odd to attend the ball without his company," answered Lucy.
She had received the invitation about the ball a week ago, and since then, she had been waiting for Samuel to return sooner, but there had been no news from him. Going to the Hawthrone castle was like opening wounds that she had not closed, which was why her visits to the castle had been very scarce and only for a concise time.
The Hallow ball was arranged by the King, her half-brother, but to her he was her very own brother Calhoun.
Calhoun had appeared late to the castle a few months before she got married to Samuel, but even with the little time she had spent with him, it felt like they were actual siblings. And unlike her parents, he never questioned why and what, giving her the space she needed while replying to her letters on time.
"It has been arranged a month sooner than usual, isn't it," murmured Lucy.
Rosamund raised her hand so that the maid wouldn't add sugar cubes into her cup, and she picked the cup, "The minister and some other person advised Calhoun that this time he needs to involve the local villagers to the ball. Frankly I do not know what they were even thinking when they said that."
"But isn't it good, that we will have commoners who will get a chance to interact with the people whom they usually don't get to speak," stated Lucy. Society was divided into the poor and wealthy people, who often never crossed paths directly.
Rosamund rolled her eyes, "That's going to be a disaster. I am telling you. It isn't some local fair in the town that people can attend," said the older vampiress, and she took a sip from the teacup. "There's a reason why the commoners are prohibited from involving with us and are only ordered."
"I would say otherwise, Aunt Rosamund," responded Lucy. "Brother Calhoun doesn't appear in front of the public eye , and people only have an idea about him. The villagers think he's a phantom and maybe it would be ideal to show himself so that they know how the King is."
The older vampiress wasn't least bit excited about Hallow, except for the fact that her daughter would stay in the King's vicinity to woo him. Years had passed since the throne had slipped right through her fingers and was passed to the illegitimate son of her brother Laurence, and she was still bitter about it.
"How are they making arrangements to accommodate many people in the castle? I don't think it would be wise to have people inside the castle as it would only pack up the place," said Lucy.
"Who knows," Rosamund seemed too tired to speak about it. "I thought it would be lovely to have you during the time of the ball, Lucy. I would personally love to see you there."
"You are too kind, Aunt Rosamund. I will try," Lucy said and then she heard her aunt say,
"Did you give a thought about what I said about Sophie and Calhoun?"
Lucy chuckled, hearing this, "Sophie is too young, and I don't think Calhoun sees her that way. It would be too odd for Calhoun to marry Sophie, their cousin sister."
"This was how we have been preserving the pure blood line of the vampire and vampiress. It would be nice of you if you help Sophie with it by mentioning about it to Calhoun in your next letter," Rosamund patted Lucy's hand and continued to sip her tea.
Lucy didn't know from when and where her aunt got the idea that it would be good to have her daughter married to the King. Though Lucy had not spent lots of time with Calhoun in the castle, she knew how brother Calhoun was and that Sophie was not the right person. She knew about his reputation of killing people for their mistakes and the audacity they showed in front of him.
As more years had passed, he had turned more talkative than the first time he had straight away ignored her existence. But like many other things, he had turned ruthless. Rumours had it that there was quite some clash in opinions between him and some of the High House members.
"I will keep that in my mind," she replied to her aunt with a polite smile on her lips.
After her aunt spent some more time talking to her, the woman finally left the mansion, leaving Lucy all alone again in Greville's mansion with the company of servants.
Away from the land of Devon, Samuel wore a hood to cover his head while he spoke to a man in the dark alley.
"I thought it would make it easy to hunt the person. What's taking you this long to see where the soul is located?" demanded the man who had a short beard.
"Do you think finding the dark angel is that easy?" scoffed Samuel. "The child hasn't shown up."
"The reason why we even killed Greville's boy was so that you could take a lead. You even got married to the fucking princess and work in the royal court yet you have nothing?" spat the man. "It has been nearly two decades and nothing."
"I told you already. The section that deals with the crimes doesn't come under my job, but Chauncey's. The King is a sharp who keeps a look at each and every person's work. I have been doing my best in trying to find the dark angel, but I don't think she has appeared in the living realm yet," explained Samuel.
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Waiting- Part 3
Music Recommendation: Part X- Prequell
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The other person who was with Samuel exhaled a frustrated sigh, "That damn Paschar hid the dark angel somewhere so that no angel or demon finds it. We have been doing a hit and try, but all the hits have been nothing but a faux."
"Don't worry, Greyson. When the dark angel appears, I will make sure to bring her to you. Paschar cannot hide the dark angel forever," assured Samuel.
Both the men left the alley, parting ways as if they had no clue about who the other person was. Samuel then walked into the inn, where they sold alcohol that women served.
The following day in one of the villages in Devon, a young maiden stepped out of a humble house to go to the market as her mother needed some of the items that were out of stock in their home. She walked with a poised posture, her chin up and her lips holding a smile. She returned the bows when people greeted her, men taking a second look because of the beauty that she held.
The young maiden finished buying the things for what she had come to the market when a sudden commotion broke near the centre place of the village, where the scaffold stood. A chatter of questions broke around.
"What's happened?"
"Is it an execution? Did someone commit a crime?" there was a hint of excitement in the voices when the question was asked.
The young girl was curious, and she quickly walked to come and stand near the scaffold to witness men who were guards of the royal castle, and two men were well dressed.
"What is going on?" asked the girl to a woman who was about to leave from there.
"The King has decided to hold the ball of Hallow and he has decided to invite some of the commoners of our village to the celebration," replied the woman. "It looks like a luck of cards where your name might be there or might not be there in the list. Sadly mine isn't there," and the woman left.
"Only some?" whispered the girl, and she heard the guards calling one name after another. Some people were there to receive the invitation, while the others who weren't there, the guards would go to the respective houses to deliver it.
"Mr. and Mrs. Finely, Mr. and Mrs. Radley, Mrs. Thompskin…" the guard called the name before he said, "Mr. and Mrs. Harris-"
The girl's green eyes widened, and she quickly went near the edge of the scaffold, "Mr. and Mrs. Harris's daughter, Elizabeth Harris is here," she informed before bowing her head to the two men.
When the invitation card was handed down to her, she looked at it with excitement, hearing the guard say something about bringing this card along when they were visiting the castle. Excited, she quickly left the place to show her mother and sister what she had in her hand.
The two men who weren't guards stood on the scaffold platform were people from the High House. It was one of the members of the High House who worked for the King.
"How did they even come to pick names of the family on who has to be invited?" asked one of the men.
"They must have made into paper chits before picking the names," proposed the other. "I guess the remaining folks would be invited for next year's ball. I heard the Hallow this time is going to be more grand than last year."
"It might be," replied the first one. "I heard it was Reginald who helped with the invitations."
"But I didn't see him pick up the names in his room. I work with him and most of the things he does are secretly. Do you think he works for someone else?" asked one of the second High House members who were of lower position than the higher positioned people of the High House members who took important decisions with Lady Helena.
They continued to distribute the invitation cards until they had none in their hands before moving to the next village to distribute the next set of invitations.
Far away from the village of East Carswell, a town stood that went by the name of Baudeux.
A man travelled in the carriage before stopping it in front of a church. Getting down, he walked inside the old church that was built with rocks and black stones. The multicoloured glasses that had arts depicted let colourful light inside the church as the sunlight passed through it. He wore a long black cloak that covered his neck with a high collar, and the cloak stopped right above his black shoes. His thin silver hair had been tied in a ponytail.
He walked towards the chapel before stopping and offering his prayers. When he heard a person's footsteps, his eyes opened, and he turned to see a person who wore priest's clothes that were white.
"How are things at the High House?" asked the priest, who took a seat at the front bench.
"The same as usual," answered the silver-haired man. "Do you want to take part in it? I am sure Helena wouldn't mind having another lending hand."
Hearing this, the priest smiled, "I think I am fine with working in the church. It suits me much better. Did you send out the invitations?"
"I did. Though I can only believe that there was something that you wanted to do or you were too bored that you said you would pick the names for the invitation of Hallow," replied the silver-haired man, looking at the priest or his brother as he called him. "What are you upto, Gabriel?"
Gabriel smiled, "Let's assume that I was bored," he paused for a moment and then asked, "Are you still looking for her, Paschar?"
Paschar stared at Gabriel before asking him, "Did Michael or Uriel ask you to check on it?"
"No, I was only curious," replied Gabriel.
Paschar didn't stay in the church for long, and in a blink of an eye, he disappeared from there, leaving Gabriel alone, who sat on the bench. The man got up, walking towards the front and picked up a fresh candle before he lit it, a faint smile upon his lips.
"It will be an interesting Hallow," he murmured to himself. "...to see if you can save each other."
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Questioning the decision- Part 1
Note: Some of the scenes are same but they are written in a different character's perspective. This volume shows the thoughts of Theodore, Lucy and Samuel, putting in more detail about what happened.
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Theodore stared at the invitation card that was in his hand, where a lot of cards had been made and sent to the people across Devon so that they could create a better relationship with each other. The card was smooth to touch along with the writing, and the seal from the royal castle stamped in it.
Hearing the carriages' sound enter one after another through the large gates of the castle from a distance, he turned his head to look at the moving carriages that approached the castle. Guards had taken their position to welcome and serve the guests at the castle that had been decorated as if it was someone's wedding, but then that's how the celebration of Hallow usually took place. The humans celebrated Halloween, but the vampires used the Hallow to mark their own existence to let the other kinds know about them.
It was the day of the Hallow where a ball had been arranged, young women and men, people of significant value, including the common people from the villages had been invited. Putting the invitation card down on the table, Theodore left his room to head to where the King was.
"Good evening, Sir Theodore," the servants of the castle greeted him as he made his way through the corridors.
"Good evening to you," he greeted them with a soft smile on his lips.
Theodore offered them a polite smile even though it was only for show that looked harmless. After Calhoun had turned to the King of Devon, the man hadn't left him behind but instead had raised his status to the advisor in the court, giving him the same position and the status that belonged to Calhoun before he had taken full control of the crown and throne.
There was a murmur of chatter that could be heard around the castle, excitement and eagerness filling up in the air as this time, the ball and Hallow had been combined.
He then caught sight of Calhoun who stood not too far away from where he was, talking to a High House member about a person's body that had been retrieved from a river. On arriving at where the gentlemen stood, Theodore offered his greetings,
"Good evening, King Calhoun. Good evening, Weasley."
"Good evening, Theodore," Weasley chimed in. "It is good to see the castle being decorated so beautifully. It looks absolutely enchanting."
Theodore smiled, "The King has the best taste, doesn't he."
"He does," Weasley agreed with a smile.
King Calhoun didn't pay heed to the compliments. Spending around two decades as the King of Devon, he had been showered with compliments, praises and words of flattery that had numbed the value of it.
"You should stay for at least an hour, Weasley," said King Calhoun while looking straight into the man's eyes. "To come so far and not attend the Hallow, what a sad thing to do. I can only believe that the members of the High House don't know how to enjoy their lives."
Weasley smiled, "Unfortunately that is how it is for us. I don't think Helena would be happy about it. I will cover up the tracks, but please make sure you don't kill someone tonight."
Hearing this, a broad grin started to spread across King Calhoun's lips. "When you tell me like that, it only makes me want to do it more. But I will try."
"Morganna's men have been trying to fill Helena's ears with the information of what you have been doing. You do not want to end up with a trial, King Calhoun," advised Weasley. "Until the case is solved, it would be best to not attract any attention that will lead to any suspicion."
Calhoun offered the man a smile, "Have a drink and leave, Weasley."
The member of the High House bowed his head before leaving the corridor. "One would think Morganna's men would be tired of trying to trace the crime on me. I am surprised that they continue to work for her or must I say for Rosamund."
Theodore, who stood next to Calhoun said, "The guests have started to pour into the castle and the ballroom."
"Indeed they are. Did you get the guards secured and ordered in the castle," questioned Calhoun. Being someone who had killed people in this very castle, Calhoun knew where the blind spots were. "How annoying to be attending the Hallow when I am not even in the mood. To make it worse the minister has added more people in the list."
Hearing Calhoun's words, Theodore smiled, "I also wanted to alert you that Rosamund and Sophie will be attending the ball."
"I did not forget about that," said Calhoun, barely interested if his aunt was coming or not. "Keep an eye on Sophie, it is quite troublesome to have her stirring trouble with other women whom I meet."
"You should have saved Ms. Lipton for later and have Sophie taken off the board," suggested Theodore as they started to walk.
"It would be too soon. Who knows if my dear aunt is using her own daughter as a bait to catch me off guard," said Calhoun before mentioning, "I received a letter from Lucy."
Upon hearing the King mention about the woman's name, Theodore's eyes slightly moved towards Calhoun.
"She said she couldn't make it as Samuel hasn't returned to the mansion yet," stated Calhoun in a nonchalant voice. "I sometimes worry about her because she believes in her husband too much. It makes me wonder what would happen when she finds out the truth."
"The last I heard, he is still working on improving Devon's relation with the trades minister," informed Theodore, and the sides of Calhoun's lips quirked up though he didn't comment anything on it.
"Come it is time to attend the ball and see who is going to be whose prey for the night and the rest of the life," smiled Calhoun, a twinkle in his eyes.
Theodore knew part of why the minister had proposed to invite so many people into the castle so that the castle would look full even if some of the people went missing later. He saw Calhoun wear a silver mask that covered his entire face, while he wore a golden mask that covered his eyes and part of his forehead.
"You seem like you don't want to have any attention tonight," commented Theodore.
"A King doesn't have to show his face to let a person know who he is, Theo," said Calhoun with an evident smile in his voice. "The mere presence that can intimidate someone is enough. And sometimes, mingling in the crowd as a commoner is more thrilling, isn't it?"
"I don't know if I should be worried about it," answered Theodore.
A servant who was carrying a tray of drinks stopped on Calhoun's sign, and the men took hold of the delicate glasses in their hand. Instead of entering the ball through the entrance, Calhoun and Theodore took the stairs from the next room before entering the passage and then the ballrooms' gallery.
Music played in the corner of the room, filling up not just the ballroom but the other nearby rooms and corridors with music. The ballroom had filled itself with people who had shown up at the castle while leaving the dance floor more spacious compared to the rest of the room.
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Questioning the decision- Part 2
Music Recommendation: Timeless- Jorge Mendez
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Theodore took a sip from the glass, wondering what Lucy was doing at this hour. By what he had heard and found out, she had spent more time alone with herself than with her husband, Samuel. And after many years that had passed, somewhere, it made him question if the decision he had taken in the past was wrong.
When a maid arrived to give them another glass of wine who looked like a trembling leaf in the presence of the King, Theodore picked up the glasses and dismissed her. Calhoun was busy looking at the crowd of the people when Theodore asked,
"Are you planning to go down there, Calhoun?" questioned Theodore, dropping the title that he used in front of others. When it was just them, Calhoun and Theodore's spending time in each other's company, the time went back to the way things were between them in the past, only that the King had turned a little more eccentric than he was in the beginning.
"Go ahead. I will join in sometime," said Calhoun as he was still observing the people.
Theodore finished the drink that was in his hand, and he bowed his head before leaving Calhoun's side. He spent some time greeting the people he knew before stepping outside the castle's corridors and in the garden where some of them were enjoying themselves.
Away from the ballroom and the chatter, the music had dulled down on his ears, and he took a seat on the bench. Pulling out the cigar from his pocket, he lit it up before taking a smoke.
"Theodore!" came a minister's voice who seemed slightly drunk.
"Minister Fitzwilliam. Fancy seeing you here," greeted Theodore.
"I should be saying that! I wouldn't peg you to be a smoker, do you have another one of those?" asked the minister before coming to sit next to Theodore.
Theodore had come here to spend some time alone by himself and to have company now, he wanted to chase the man away, but at the same time, he reminded himself that this was a minister. He pulled out his cigar-case before handing a cigar to the man.
"You seem to be enjoying the ball, Fitzwilliam. Found anyone you like?" asked Theodore before taking a deep puff.
Before the minister could even take a puff from the lit cigar in his hand, he gave a sad look at Theodore. "My wife died four years ago. It has been very lonely to enjoy anything without her. Even to drink some good blood in my mouth?" the men then leaned towards Theodore to whisper, "I would have picked a nice person, but I doubt the King would be pleased if he finds it. Especially after receiving instructions to behave."
Though Calhoun had ordered the people not to do something that would cost their head, Theodore doubted Calhoun would hold himself back if he found prey to feed on, and Theodore held the same values. It was an advantage of being the King and being close to the King.
"I loved my wife, she was beautiful," started Minister Fitzwilliam to continue. "She was the apple of my eyes. You know she eloped from her house to marry me. We were lovers."
"What a wonderful story," stated Theodore with little excitement in his voice. Not that the minister minded as he was drunk.
"You should elope with someone too, Theodore!" decided the minister.
A dry chuckle escaped Theodore's lips, "I think the time has passed for it to do such things."
Fitzwilliam turned to look at Theodore and asked, "Why? You shouldn't give up hope!"
"Thank you for cheering me, minister Fitzwilliam, but I think you should stay here until you turn sober," advised Theodore to the man who was loyal to Calhoun when it came to his royal court duties.
"I am fine," the man waved his hand. "Why don't you want to elope? Is the girl not ready?"
It wasn't that, thought Theodore in his mind. It was him who had refused the idea, and it was his fault. Theodore had never spoken about Lucy or his feelings to anyone until now. Though he was aware that Calhoun had come to find out about his feelings for Lucy on her wedding day, he had never openly spoken about it.
Theodore doubted Minister Fitzwilliam would remember what he said in the morning, and he said,
"She's somebody's wife."
All these years, Theodore had no issue in having sexual relationships with married women, but for him, Lucy was different, and it might be because he cared for her. In Theodore's eyes, she was the girl who was still innocent and unaware of the threats in the world, and he wanted to keep her unaffected.
"I thought I did the right thing, but recently I have started to question myself if I let her go without thinking it through and did things in a spur," said Theodore staring at the lit cigar that burned brightly. He tapped it so that the ash that was on the tip fell on the ground. "She loves her husband now," and she despised Theodore, he knew it.
"Hmm, that is a tricky thing to deal with," agreed the minister. "You need to come out as the saviour, to make her see what she's missing."
Theodore smiled at the man's words, "I am sure her brother wouldn't approve it."
"Fuck the brother and the husband! You should always follow your heart. If you want help, I am right here, I will help you in beating both of them up," said the minister and Theodore's lips twitched.
"That would be too troublesome but thank you for your support, minister Fitzwilliam," Theodore wondered how Calhoun would react or the minister himself if he found out that he had told he would beat the King up.
"By the way, where is King Calhoun?" The man looked left and right, trying to have a glimpse if he had missed the King's presence.
"He is in the ballroom," replied Theodore, and the minister nodded his head.
The place where Calhoun and Theodore were earlier standing in the balcony-like gallery was now left empty with just empty glasses resting in the corner.
Calhoun had caught sight of something enticing on the ballroom floor, and he made his way towards the ballroom entrance to notice a few people noticing the silver mask he wore. With his identity completely hidden, it made it easier for him not to be interrupted. He stood in front of the entrance, his red eyes catching sight of the person for whom he had left the gallery.
Her features were delicate, and Calhoun found it hard to look away. He wondered if she would be his prey for the night, to drink blood from so that he could quench his thirst.
He continued to move towards her, seeing how she was trying to get away from the crowd and when their eyes met, he noticed her eyes slightly widen behind her mask, as if she was startled to have someone looking at her. The corner of his lips pulled up in delight.
With every second, he moved closer to her and even with the loud music and people's voice in the room, he could tell she was wary of him.
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Questioning the decision- Part 3
Her beating heart reminded him of a delicate sparrow. When they got closer and were about to cross each other's path, he smelt the scent of sweet roses, and his eyes narrowed. It was familiar and peculiar at the same time, and he wanted to inhale more of it.
Not wanting to see her leave, his hand pulled the handkerchief that was peeking out of her hand, and he turned around.
Calhoun said to the beautiful girl in a beige dress, "Fair lady...I think you dropped your kerchief."
Her eyes were innocent, and her delicate lips parted when he raised the handkerchief for her to see. He doubted she was going to be just prey for him.
After leaving Fitzwilliam, Theodore spent his time talking to the guests, greeting them, while Calhoun decided to spend time in the room without removing the mask from his face. After they had met with a fair share of people, Theodore noticed how Calhoun disappeared, and it made him wonder what the King was up to tonight.
He could only hope that Calhoun wasn't going to murder someone. Even though the High House members weren't here to regulate the event of Hallow, it didn't mean there weren't others who wanted to bring Calhoun down. All these years, there had been several speculations regarding the possibility of Calhoun killing the previous King and Queen, but there was no concrete evidence to prove the baseless speculation.
"Did you see King Calhoun?" Theodore questioned the maids who were walking in the corridor.
"King Calhoun went up to the viewing deck, Sir Theodore," answered one of the maids who had a tray of fried meat in her hand.
The viewing deck?
Theodore walked through the corridors and stairs before he finally saw Calhoun, who stood all alone by himself at the castle's front side of the balcony called the viewing deck. By standing here, one could see the carriages that arrived at the entrance more closely and the people who talked before getting inside the castle.
"I thought you would be speaking with the girl and not standing here by yourself," stated Theodore as he made his way. Calhoun had crouched the front of his body while placing his forearms to rest on the railing.
"I think I spent enough time with her. If I spent a minute more, she would have fainted," murmured Calhoun under his breath.
Hearing this, Theodore smiled, "Did she find your handsomeness too hard to resist?"
"I wouldn't go that far," hummed Calhoun while looking down at the people as if he was waiting for someone.
When Theodore had returned to the ballroom, Calhoun had pulled Theodore to look for 'something', and that something turned out to be a girl who was being humoured by another man. It seemed like the girl had caught Calhoun's attention as he looked rather angry at the sight of the man kissing the back of the girl's hand.
"What did you do?" inquired Theodore in curiosity.
But Calhoun didn't reply to it and was rather busy looking at the people who stood below.
It had taken Calhoun years to be able to tolerate and make use of women and girls for his own benefit, but then sometimes it ended up with the King snapping the women's necks because he would have run out of patience. Calhoun seemed too interested in the human as he had asked him to get her information.
"Have you ever met someone and remembered their scent, Theo?" Calhoun asked him.
"I don't think I have ever done that. The last I remember is of Minister Fitzwilliam because I had to help him get inside the carriage," replied Theodore, and after remembering it, he dusted the front of his clothes.
They continued to look at the people until the girl in the beige gown appeared with her family. When Theodore turned to look at Calhoun, he confirmed that Calhoun had been waiting to see her again.
"Why don't you go down and see her off? I am sure she would be more than delighted by knowing that the King came to see her," commented Theodore, watching the girl with another girl who wore a red dress. "Seems like she has a sister, a mother and a father," he murmured on seeing the family who waited for their carriage to appear in front of the entrance.
Calhoun smiled at Theodore's words. He didn't want to overwhelm her right now because it would happen soon.
"Madeline Harris," said Calhoun.
Calhoun watched Madeline tuck a piece of her hair behind her ear whilst she looked left and right, her eyes anxious as if she was looking for someone. This only brought a grin to his lips. She was thinking about him, and his tongue played with one of his fangs before it pricked, and he tasted blood on his tongue.
Her sister was tugging her arm, and his eyes narrowed, remembering the words spoken by the sister on the dance floor. She was whispering something in Madeline's ear, and Calhoun saw Madeline nod her head. When the carriage arrived, Madeline was quick to get inside like a rabbit that wanted to hide. He had never felt like this, and looking at her brightened his mood like no other thing ever had. Even though she got in to hide, she had chosen to sit next to the window as if wanting to continue to watch while he watched her without her knowledge.
Theodore, who stood next to Calhoun, could see that Calhoun was smitten by the human.
"Looks like the minister did an excellent job by arranging the villagers and townspeople to come attend the ball," stated Calhoun. His eyes followed the carriage until it diminished from their sight, and he said, "Make sure no man goes to the Harris' house to court Madeline."
Theodore smiled hearing this and responded, "Understood, milord."
Back in the Grivelle's mansion, Lucy had decided to clean the things that she had brought from the castle that belonged to her when she was married. She had missed the ball, and most of the balls carried memories. While she was sorting out the books without the maid's help, a parchment slipped out of a book.
Lucy picked it up, taking a deep breath as she stared at the poem that she had written years ago.
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Newsletter- Part 1
The next day after the ball of the Hallow, Theodore stepped outside the castle to gather information about the girl and the man who the King had his eyes on. Wearing a polite smile on his lips, he headed into the village, and he came across some of the people he had seen last night at the castle. Even though they had worn masks on their faces, he could identify them without any trouble.
Walking towards the tailor's shop, he knocked on the door.
A young boy appeared in front of the door, "Is there any order that you need to collect?" he inquired Theodore.
Theodore offered the boy a polite smile, "I was wondering if Mr. Heathcliff is present in the shop so that I could speak to him."
"Mr. Heathcliff? He has gone to his house to have lunch. He will be back in maybe an hour or two," answered the boy. "If you want to look for the sample of materials and designs on how you would want the dress to be stitched, I am sure we can help you with it before Mr. Heathcliff arrives."
Theodore gave it a thought before asking, "Do you stitch wedding gowns?"
"We do, Sir! Like I earlier said, we have different styles and designs that might suit the bride," the boy continued to answer him.
"I think I would love to look at the designs you speak of," said Theodore before getting inside and looking at the place. "Does this place belong solely to Mr. Heathcliff?"
"Yes, it does. Mr. Heathcliff set it up a few years ago. He has the best taste when it comes to clothes and enough knowledge of what suits a man and a woman," praised the boy. "Please take a seat while I go get the designs we have or would you prefer to take a look at the stitched dresses?"
"The design book would do," stated Theodore, his eyes looking at the moderate-sized room where the other workers worked in the backroom, and he could hear the sound of the machine being used to stitch clothes. The place looked decent, and it seemed like James Heathcliff had a decent income of living from the tailoring job that allowed him to own more than an average shop in the village's centre place. "I have heard a lot about Mr. Heathcliff's work and decided to come here. How is he like?"
"Mr. Heathcliff is an amazing person to work with," praised the boy, "He treats us all well and our wages are much better than what the other people have to offer."
Theodore learned the needed information about Mr. Heathcliff before leaving the shop with a bow as if he was going to buy a wedding gown for his fiance. After finding out the girl, Madeline Harris, he didn't head straight back to the castle.
Leaving the village of East Carswell, he travelled two towns from the tailor's village before entering the next village's local market. The place was covered in dirt, and he had chosen to wear a black cloak to cover the clothes that he wore while he left the castle. Walking inside a building filled with noise and chatter of men where alcohol was being served, he looked around to see if the person was there.
"Theodore!" shouted a man from behind him, and he turned around to catch sight of the man he was looking for. "I was expecting to see you here."
Theodore sat down at the table where the man sat, "And I was hoping to catch you here. When did you return, Kruger?"
"Two days ago," answered the man named Kruger. "I heard that the King held the ball quite early. I didn't have time to arrange clothes, else I would have been there," he smiled, showing one of his front teeth to be missing from his mouth.
"Did you find anything of importance?" questioned Theodore.
Kruger nodded his head, "You would be surprised if you come to know what I have found out. But then knowing you, you must already know about it."
"What is it?" asked Theodore, waiting for the man to spill the beans.
"Samuel has been meeting with some people who I have never seen before. I know the people with whom he is dealing with on the King's order, but these particular sets of people don't look like people who exist in the normal world," said Kruger, and at the same time, the server brought two mugs of liquor, placing it on the table.
"What do you mean they do not exist in the normal world?" Theodore narrowed his eyes.
Kruger took large gulps from the mug before the alcohol turned half, and he placed it back on the table with a dull thud. "I tried to track them down, but it is hard to do it. The maximum I could do until now is follow them around was probably two or three hours but after that, they would have disappeared."
"Maybe they are good at leaving the place quickly," stated Theodore, but the man shook his head.
Kruger seemed like he had something stuck in the back of his teeth, and he tried to remove it by making use of his tongue. "I doubt that is so. Those people whom he met, I followed them without looking away from them, but in a blink of an eye, I lost sight of them and I never found them again." He then leaned forward towards Theodore to speak in a hushed tone, "If I didn't know better, I would tell that there are different creatures apart from the humans, vampires, and the weres."
Hearing this, Theodore narrowed his eyes. He knew what Kruger was speaking about, and he wondered if Samuel was involved with the demons.
"How did they look? You should have seen the person closely, isn't it?" asked Theodore, and the man nodded his head.
"I did. I also heard the name. One of them goes by the name Greyson. He has a beard and they often meet up at night. Only rare times in the daylight," replied Kruger.
__________
Newsletter- Part 2
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Theodore didn't know why, but he had decided to keep an eye on Samuel the same way he did with the rest of the ministers who worked in the royal court. Trust was an issue which he didn't depend on and didn't believe in.
With Calhoun, who had taken possession of the throne in dire condition by killing the previous King, the queen, and the lady, many wanted Calhoun to fall from his position.
But Theodore kept a closer watch on Samuel because of his behaviour. It wasn't because it was suspicious, but because his behaviour was spotless in the royal court room and outside the castle. No one ever could have such a clean reputation, and it only made Theodore suspicious and kept an eye on the man.
Calhoun was suspicious about Samuel, too, and it gave Theodore the leverage to find out what Samuel was up to.
"Also, the number of women he has been sleeping with, mm," said Kruger as he took another gulp from the mug, "I would have to say I am surprised that he isn't scared of the King's wrath. Does he know about it? The King?"
Theodore only stared at Kruger for his words, without going to reply to the man if Calhoun was aware or unaware of Samuel's debauchery.
"Did you find anything else? Any murder or body around him?" asked Theodore.
"None that I found. He sleeps with the women, and then cleans up and leaves. Sadly none of those women agree to speak against him. Are you waiting to frame him, Theodore?" asked Kruger with a glint of curiosity in his eyes.
"Samuel Grivelle is hiding something from all of us and I will get to the bottom of it. For someone to have women who are unwilling to speak about him, it makes it much more suspicious even when threatened under the King's name," said Theodore in a thoughtful tone. "I would prefer to catch him red handed but the timing matters."
"Timing?" asked Kruger.
Theodore nodded his head. He and Calhoun were aware of Samuel's affairs, and they would have brought it up in front of Lucy, but with the way he saw it, she blindly trusted her husband, and Samuel was her family now, someone who looked after her.
"Any news from the Grivelle's mansion?" inquired Theodore, and Kruger shook his head.
"Nothing of importance. Even though he has many affairs with the women, the man has been looking after his wife," replied Kruger, and this was what Theodore was worried about. Samuel had a gentleman-like attitude in front of everyone, and he was cheating on Lucy. "You seem to be more interested in the man than the King does. Calhoun is a lucky person to have someone like you have his back."
Theodore smiled at the man's words, "I just like to take care of the things that I care about and are close to me. I would terribly feel guilty if I didn't look through things. Thank you for the information. I will meet you again sometime in the next month. The castle is going to be busy for a few days."
He then fished his hand into his trouser pockets and placed the coins for his and the man's liquor. He then pulled a pouch that had coins, throwing it at the man.
"Shouldn't it be easier with the Hallow celebration over now?" Kruger asked while keeping the pouch safely in his pocket.
Theodore stood up and said, "I would like to think that but Calhoun has his own plans. I believe he wouldn't like to be disturbed in the next few days as his hands are going to be full," he offered the man a smile.
"Hmph, I will see you around," replied the man to see Theodore leave the place.
On his way, Theodore's lips twisted into displeasure that no dirt had been found on Samuel. If he could, he would arrange for Lucy to catch Samuel red-handed, and he knew he was petty about it. It wasn't because he was jealous about Samuel having Lucy next to him, but it was that there was that smug look in the man's eyes whenever he spoke about Lucy, and his eyes often met Theodore's eyes at that time. Somewhere, Theodore felt Samuel had his doubts that there was something between Lucy and him in the past.
He knew it was in the past and he had lost chance. Not that he would be able to do anything. If he got to turn back time, to fix things again, Theodore knew he would do the same things all over again because today was the reflection of what had occurred in the past, and every step they took had been necessary.
Not to forget, out of all the suitors, Lucy had picked Samuel when she could pick someone else, thought Theodore to himself.
Theodore started to head back to the castle to inform Calhoun about James Heathcliff and Madeline Harris. He would have never thought that yesterday was the day where Calhoun would be smitten by a human. He wondered how well the family would take in the information because he knew Calhoun didn't like to waste any time and did things quickly.
Back in Grivelle's mansion, Lucy was in the midst of the garden looking at the flowers that had bloomed this morning when the maid came running near her.
"Milady, the newsletter for the ball has published a new scroll. Would you like to read it?" one of the maids asked Lucy.
"Did it get written so fast?" asked Lucy, surprise in her voice. "Yes, bring one of it here. I wonder what has been written today. The ball must have been mentioned, even though it is mostly the same things."
"Yes!" The maid quickly hurried herself to leave the garden and run past the gates before she returned with a rolled paper in her hand. "Here it is, milady."
__________
Newsletter- Part 3
Lucy could see the excitement in the maid's eyes when speaking about the newsletter. The other servants, especially the maids, were curious to know about the news written down there. Since the servants couldn't read it themselves, they depended on the lady of the mansion, who was kind enough to read it for them.
On seeing their eagerness, Lucy chuckled. She asked, "How about we all go inside the mansion and have some tea while we read it?"
"Yes, milady!" The maid smiled and quickly headed inside the mansion before going to the kitchen while calling the others. They started to prepare the tea not just for Lady Lucy but also for them.
Since Lady Lucy had come to live in the mansion after marrying Samuel, some of the rules had been changed in the Grivelle's mansion, where the lady had showered her kindness to the people around her. Senior Mr. and Mrs. Grivelle had passed away somewhere in the middle of the last two decades, leaving the mansion in Lucy's in charge as Samuel was mostly away from the mansion because of work.
Lucy treated them with care, and it only made them love and respect her more, unable to imagine that the former princess was kind and sweet.
After the maids had prepared the tea, Lucy was informed about it, and she went to the kitchen. Lucy had grown up in a restricted family with rules and restrictions that had to be followed and not to be broken. Though everyone behaved differently when Samuel was home as he didn't like giving the servants leniency, it didn't mean Lucy followed it when he wasn't around.
Lucy didn't love Samuel, at least not the way she had fallen in love with the first person she had given her heart to. It wasn't that she didn't respect him, she did respect Samuel, but it was only that Lucy didn't believe in the divide of the status.
She walked towards the wooden table that was in the kitchen and sat down on the chair that wasn't plush but hard. The maids and other servants had paused their work so that they could hear what the newsletter had to offer about yesterday's grand Hallow. With teacups in most of the servant's hands, they watched Lucy unroll the rolled parchment, and she cleared her throat.
"Devon broke the tradition by not only celebrating Hallow earlier than the usual time but also by inviting commoners to join the royal castle's ball that has been reserved only to the elite until now. I would like to commend and praise the King for this, for allowing some of us commoners to visit the castle and be part of the celebration," Lucy read the paper.
"I didn't know commoners were also invited," whispered one of the maids who was sitting on the ground.
"Maybe it is finally time to break traditions," said another.
"Sshh," shushed the servant who was standing and waiting to hear the rest of what was written.
Lucy then continued to read, "The ball that was arranged for the invitees was extravagant, better than last year as word has it that the King had personalized it according to his own taste. There were dukes and other high status people, but the same cannot be told about the High House as none of the members had been spotted in there. It makes us wonder if the High House doesn't like the balls or they have something against King Calhoun."
"The clothes were vibrant and rich with colours, and the theme of the masks never fades away. Though we must let you know that it was hard to spot the King," Lucy gave a pause, wondering what it was about. "With the masks not being pulled away, it seemed like the King had decided to mingle with the people and if you are someone who was in the ball, you might have spoken to him or stood next to him. The thought leaves an intrigue in the mind. But it also puts a question, did the King attend the ball? What if he didn't?"
"Do you think he missed attending the ball, Lady Lucy?" one of the maids asked in curiosity.
Lucy shook her head, "I don't think so. As much as the King would tell that he doesn't like it, he still attends it."
Some of the maids quickly nodded their heads.
"What else is written in there, Lady Lucy?"
Lucy continued to read to them as they didn't have any other source of entertainment, "...out of the many red and dark clothes that twirled and moved in the ballroom, the girls who wore lighter colored clothes had many people's heads turn," she read some more before she came to read the lines, "King Calhoun's sister, Lucy Greville was not seen at the Eve of Hallow, and we wonder if everything is well. This is the second time she had missed it. Since the previous King and Queen passed away, it has been noticed that she keeps her to herself and doesn't talk to anyone…"
The maid named Jamie said, "I think that was a lot of information. We must get back to work now."
"Yes, time to finish cleaning," said another maid who looked at Lucy with concerned eyes. "Don't pay heed to the lines written in there, Lady Lucy, it is just a silly newsletter."
Lucy looked up from the paper, putting a smile, and she said, "I know. You should continue with your work. Also, I might have my dinner earlier than usual."
"Yes, Lady Lucy."
The servants left without mentioning the newsletter, and Lucy looked down at the paper. The smile didn't fade away because she knew something like this would come up, and she placed the paper on the table.
She was only glad that nothing more had been written, not that the people who wrote these newsletters would live to see the next day if they crossed the line because Calhoun would bury them alive, and the thought made her smile.
_____________
Distance in the bed- Part 1
Few days passed, and Samuel Greville made his way to the village of Cossington in his carriage. He was returning from Tyrell's kingdom, and instead of going to meet his wife, he went to meet one of his acquaintances.
His carriage came to a halt, and the carriage door was left open. After two minutes, a woman wearing a hood over her head entered the carriage, and she smiled, looking at Samuel.
"Seems like you spent quite some time in the land of Tyrill. You look as good as new," commented the woman with a smug look on her face.
"Did you get the information, Lilith?" Samuel directly asked her. "Greyson is turning impatient."
"Greyson is always impatient," said Lilith while leaning against the seat of the carriage. "I had to go to every soothsayer because the priests rarely leave church, and they aren't as well informed about the dark angel as the soothsayers."
"Is the dark angel out?" inquired Samuel, his eyes narrowed when he saw Lilith smile at him.
"No," she replied with a bright smile, and Samuel turned annoyed. "Frankly, I have my doubts on Greyson if the dark angel will ever come out or not. We don't know where, when or what it will manifest into. The soothsayers have no information about it."
"Then keep looking instead of wasting my time," said Samuel.
Lilith then leaned towards Samuel and whispered, "You should be careful with how you speak to me, Sammy," she brought her hand forward so that she could run it across his jaw. "If the King ever finds out that his dear brother-in-law is meeting up with a High House member behind his back or worse fucking women when you're married to his sweet sister, I wonder how he would react," she smiled, looking at him with a coy expression.
"Get off my carriage, or I will report it to Greyson on how you aren't bringing any fruitful results," threatened Samuel, and the woman's eyes this time narrowed.
"You shouldn't think so little of me. You know I am your senior while you are lower in position than me, Greyson would listen to me and not to you. Also, I met a demoness who goes by the name Jennine. She told me she had caught sight of the dark angel, and I have sent the same information to Greyson. I wouldn't want someone taking credit for what I have found. I will see you later," she offered him a smirk before getting down from the carriage.
The calm demeanour that Samuel held until now slowly started to dissolve, and his face contoured with anger and he gritted his teeth.
"That little bitch!" he cursed Lilith. He decided to deal with her later.
Unlike Lilith who had come from the place where demons were born, Samuel was a demon who was born in this living world. The demons from the underworld were gifted with abilities while people like him had very little or no abilities.
He was already a few days late in reporting back to the King and Samuel decided to head to the Hawthrone castle. When he entered the castle, the guards were quick to recognize him and they bowed their heads in respect.
Samuel continued to walk in the Hawthrone castle corridors and on the way he found a young woman standing in the corridor whilst she looked up at the evening sky. Because of the different shades in the sky, the woman's hair looked golden blonde. Her features were delicate and soft. His eyes then scanned her from top to down before his gaze moved back up.
He took a deep scent and his lips quirked up. An elite human in the castle, how interesting. He wondered if he could take a bite from her.
The young woman sighed, looking at the birds in the sky chirping and flying away, and he decided to talk to her,
"They are going back to their nests."
Hearing him speak, the young woman turned startled, and she looked at him. Samuel had never seen someone so beautiful where he wanted to sink his teeth in her neck and drink the very last drop of blood from her. He bowed his head, "I am Samuel Grivelle. I work for the King," he introduced himself to her.
The girl looked apprehensive but bowed her head, "Madeline Harris."
He took a few steps towards her and said, "If you enjoy the sight of birds, the King has his own collection of them in the backside of the castle. I have some of them back at my mansion too." He brought his hand to his ear as if to play with the silver ring that was in his ear.
Samuel had never seen or met the young woman before, and he wondered if it was possible to woo her to leave the castle and spend time with him.
"I will keep that in mind," the young woman answered politely.
Samuel took a step closer to her, his eyes fixing on her as there was no one around to watch them, but before he could say something to her, he heard footsteps approaching towards them from one of the corridor's ends.
An emotion of annoyance passed Samuel's eyes while he tried to keep the same expression on his face. The King's dog was here.
Theodore had finished writing the letter that Calhoun had told him to write and send it to the King of Warring. He was on his way to the royal court room to meet Calhoun when he caught sight of the leech that stood near Madeline.
Madeline appeared to be one her guard, and Theodore wondered if Samuel had said something to her that he was not supposed to. Calhoun kept Madeline close to him, and if he found out that a male was eyeing his woman, there would be another head rolling in the court, and Theodore doubted Madeline would be able to digest that many deaths in such a short period of time.
___________
Distance in the bed- Part 2
Theodore knew Calhoun was madly in love with the girl, but he didn't know how to court the girl.
Theodore wondered if this was the phase between the transition of how Calhoun was and what he was going to turn into because of the girl's influence on him.
Theodore walked to the place where Madeline and Samuel stood, catching sight of the relieved look in Madeline's eyes. He looked at Samuel and said,
"You are late with your report."
There was a crackle of sparks between the two men who tried to stay calm and not get into a physical fight as it would be unlike the characters they portrayed in front of the people.
Samuel didn't like Theodore, and he knew Theodore didn't like him either. He put up a false smile on his lips, "I was speaking to this lovely lady here about the birds." He wanted to know who she was so that he could better acquaint himself with her once he finished his work with the King.
Theodore wondered if Samuel possessed a bit of shame in him for eyeing a woman when he was married to Lucy.
"She's the King's woman," responded Theodore, a light warning in his tone to let Samuel know to not to get involved with Madeline as she was off-limits.
Samuel turned to look at Madeline, taking a better look at her and asked, "What kind?"
Theodore noticed how Madeline felt uncomfortable hearing this. He said, "The kind where he wouldn't want you to ask any questions related to her. The King is waiting for you in the royal court room."
Before the lady could leave, he informed her, "Lady Madeline, the King wishes to see you."
The three people walked together and entered the court, and Samuel got down on one of his knees before bowing his head and greeting King Calhoun,
"Long live the King of Devon. My apologies for returning late as I had an issue with the carriage's wheel that took time to repair. I have brought the signed documents from the Flemings' house." Samuel pulled out a scroll from his coat and handed it to Theodore, who gave it to Calhoun.
"Three days is too long to fix a carriage unless you dismantled the carriage and decided to rebuild it," Calhoun's eyes glowed as they stared at Samuel.
Theodore sensed the subtle taunt in Calhoun's words, and so did Samuel, knowing exactly what the King meant when he said those words.
Samuel smiled at the King, spewing a lie that he had already prepared, "We were stuck in the middle of the forest that had no civilization-"
"What a pity that even being a vampire one can end up helpless," commented Calhoun, "Looks like they have complied sooner than the last time without any demands," he hummed, letting the parchment roll back and handed it to Theodore, "The document needs to be sent to the North Kingdom. Though I must say I was waiting for you to return back nearly a week ago. I thought you would be able to make it to the ball. It is why I even picked those dates."
"The carriage-" Samuel began only to be interrupted by Calhoun.
"Yes, the broken carriage. Three days to fix it," stated Calhoun, "I wonder what you did the remaining days. Hopefully you have been a good man and not having fun there. But then I am sure you know how important the work you had been assigned with was," his lips twisted in amusement.
Samuel didn't know why he had ended up with this person being his wife's brother. The previous King of Devon was an idiot who would have agreed to the lies he fed without any questions, but with Calhoun on the throne, it was hard to do anything without being watched.
Calhoun was smart, his intelligent eyes looking down at him from where he sat. Samuel wondered if the King had found out about his debauchery, but that was impossible. He had made sure to use his abilities on the women so that they would never speak against him.
Samuel replied to Calhoun, "I went on work, my King. I wouldn't betray my wife."
Theodore's hands clenched at the man's blatant lie before his hand released itself from the fists.
Calhoun stared at Samuel as if assessing his brother-in-law.
"That is good to hear. I wouldn't want to hear any complaints from Lucy on how her dear husband is fucking another woman. Because I for sure would not be pleased if you broke her heart," said Calhoun, as one side of his lips pulled up, "Well, good job on getting it signed. I will see you tomorrow."
"I won't disappoint you, my King," said Samuel.
"Let's hope for both of our sake you don't," Calhoun's dark red eyes then leisurely shifted to look at the young woman who had been silently standing in the room. Calhoun's eyes softened, "What are you doing by standing there, my sweet, come here."
Samuel's eyes fell on Madeline again, staring at her with intrigue in his eyes as he wondered if Theodore was serious when he had told that this one was the King's woman?
Calhoun's eyes snapped at Samuel and the King said, "If that is all you came here for, you can take your leave."
Samuel offered Calhoun a false smile even though he didn't like the King nor his pet servant. But there were benefits from being close to the King, which was the only reason he was polite to the people in here.
Bowing his head, Samuel left the room and the castle to head towards his mansion.
When the familiar carriage arrived through the gates of the Grivelle's mansion, the maid who caught sight of it was quick to convey the news to Lady Lucy, who had been waiting for her husband to return home.
"Lady Lucy! Lady Lucy! Master Samuel has returned!" informed the maid.
Lucy was in the kitchen talking to the maids when the maid came running, and she quickly washed her hands before heading to the front entrance to greet her husband.
"Welcome back home, Samuel," said Lucy with a smile and Samuel returned it with his own smile.
"I am back," responded Samuel while his coat was removed by a servant and some other servants unloaded the luggage from the carriage.
Lucy was ready to hug him when he would open his arms as it had been more than three months since they had last seen each other, but instead of that, he took off his hat and started to walk towards their room, "How are things in the mansion? Have you been doing well while I was gone?"
Without showing the hurt appear on her face, Lucy put up a smile and she nodded, "It has been the same as you left it. I was worried about you when I didn't receive any reply to my letters," she confessed, her voice sweet as the servants left them alone.
Samuel and Lucy stepped inside their room. Samuel said, "I must have missed the letter as I had to go to Barlow. It is another town."
"Oh, that must be the reason," hummed Lucy.
"Of course, I would never lose the opportunity to not write back to you," replied Samuel with a chuckle on his lips. "Did you think that I am lying?" he asked, turning to Lucy as she was quiet.
"I never said that," Lucy smiled, "I heard from brother Calhoun through the letter that you were supposed to come earlier and that was why he had hoped we could attend the ball together."
Samuel stared at Lucy, "Letter?"
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