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PHYSIENTS WILL ALWAYS OFFER BEST STORIES AND LIVE STREAMING ALL TIME
ALLURE OF THE NIGHT
Chapter 41
Eve wondered why the buff man at the inn door wasn’t letting her in even though she had offered the silver coin for him to take. It made her wonder if it was because of the clothes she wore. But then it was pretty decent.
So what was the reason?
Deciding to ask the man directly, she asked him, “Is it because I am not dressed for this place? Is this why you are turning me away, Mr. Guard?”
The buff man finally turned to meet Eve’s blue eyes with a blankness as if he was done waiting at the door and opening it for every customer who came to spend time in the inn. He finally replied to her in a gruff voice,
“Only men and women. Twenty-one years above age.”
Eve blinked, an imaginary crow flying above her head when she realised what had happened. Gathering herself, she said, “No, no! I am not below twenty-one, but a twenty-four years old woman. I am not a child. It is just that I look very, very young. I have been blessed with good skin.”
But the buff man stared at her for a second more, as if used to hearing young men and women try to get into the inn by giving false information. He looked at the almost deserted street, except for a few carriages that passed on the street.
Eve put her silver coin back in her pocket and tied her hair with the ribbon into a ponytail. She then said, “See, I am old. In fact, I am a governess for one of the high standing families in Skellington. You would be shocked if you found where and whom I teach. I finished my job, which is why I look like this, do you think if I didn’t have time to change, I wo—”
Suddenly the man placed his hand forward.
Eve slightly raised her eyebrows, and she asked, “Will a shilling do?” She quickly placed a shilling in the palm of his hand. “I promise to pay you more—” the buff man put his hand on the doorknob and opened the door for her to get in, “—once I earn more. Thank you, you are a kind man.”
Thankfully, Eve appeared to be just like the humans—from the scent of her blood to her heartbeat and how she breathed.
And like many people who had come across her, the buff man had deduced her to be a young human, which is why he had earlier stopped her. But now that they had settled the matter of her age, she finally stepped through the ‘Little Teeth’s Inn’ door.
The inside part of the inn had green and orange lights burning in the lanterns. The beginning passage was long and narrow, which finally led to an open space, where men and women were seated at the tables. There was a certain hint of darkness that went beyond the amount of light present here because of the night creatures and humans who occupied the tables.
“Milady,” a man waiting on the customers appeared in front of Eve, blocking her view. He was slightly taller than her, dressed in a black trouser, vest and a plain white shirt with a bow around his long neck.
Eve offered a slight nod.
“Good evening, milady,” the man’s words were smooth and just above a whisper over the sound of music, and Eve tried to make sure to listen to him carefully. “Is someone waiting for you here?”
“No,” answered Eve, and the man nodded without looking at her oddly.
“Do you have any preference of where you would like to sit? Near the music or away from it?” inquired the man with a smile, waiting for her to reply.
Eve’s eyes subtly moved around the large room, trying to find the one man. When she spotted Mr. Morris, she answered the person’s question, “Away from the music. A little quieter side, please.”
“Of course, milady. Would you like me to take your belonging and hang it here,” he moved his hand in the direction of the stand, which had coats and hats hung on it.
“I would like to keep it with me. I have a bad back,” she added, and the man offered her a bow.
“Let me lead you to your table,” replied the steward, and Eve followed him while looking around at the people who were immersed in their own company.
The person led her four tables away from Mr. Morris, which Eve was perfectly fine with. The first step was to observe this person. To know what he did and didn’t, gather information on where he lived and his family. Once she would have enough details, she would then think of her next step.
She had waited for years to avenge her mother’s death, and now that she found the person, she could wait a few more weeks or even months.
Mr. Morris wasn’t alone, he was in the company of a woman, sitting very next to him, while the man had his hand around the woman’s waist. He was saying something in the woman’s ears, and the woman coyly smiled as she leaned closer to him.
“Why don’t I let you settle down for a few minutes and have someone sent here to you?” Said the person before leaving her table to attend to other customers at the front part of the passage.
A couple of minutes passed, by which time Eve’s drink had appeared at her table. The drink was for humans, something she had verified before taking a sip from it. Mr. Morris seemed to enjoy the woman’s company, whom Eve believed not to be his wife.
When her eyes left Mr. Morris’s side to look at the steward of the inn, her eyes turned wide. The drink that she had been having went in the wrong pipe, and she coughed before trying to hide her face with her handkerchief.
It was Noah Sullivan, who was being led by the steward and another man accompanying him. Thankfully the steward had them sit on the opposite side of the large room, where Noah couldn’t catch sight of her.
She didn’t want him to see her here, where most of the vampires were directly drinking blood from humans or the people were having affairs with more than one woman at their tables. Not to mention, she was here all by herself. But then again, she thought, he was here too.
“Hello, there,” a man came to block her view of Noah’s table, and he placed his hand on the chair. “May I join you, I saw that you have been sitting here all lonely by yourself.”
Eve noticed the intruding man hadn’t bothered to button the top three buttons of his shirt, and she heard him ask, “Anything you like?” His eyes trailed from her face to look at her bosom, which was perfectly covered by her dress.
But Eve raised the glass of drink in her hand, “I am fine. Thank you.”
“If you don’t mind, I can give you my company—”
Having sat there for more than forty minutes, listening to the sad music going in the corner, Eve placed the coins on the table.
“I was actually leaving. My children are waiting for me back home,” Eve lied to the man, and cautiously got up while having her back facing Noah’s table.
The man knew that Eve was lying. He followed her with a glass full of drink in his hand, which he had picked up from the tray of a passing servant. He said,
“You must be a lonely woman, and it must be difficult for a woman like yourself when you have children. How about I take you home, safely? The night is not safe for such a beautiful woman as yourself.”
Eve held the umbrella upside down in a hurry, where the handle faced the ground.
“Very kind of you, mister, but I have a carriage of my own,” replied Eve without turning to look at him and taking a few steps forward.
The pestering man moved closer to Eve, his hand reaching for her slender waist so that he could turn her back to him.
But when the pestering stranger took another step towards Eve, the hook of her umbrella caught his leg, something he hadn’t expected.
When Eve continued to walk in haste, she felt her umbrella being pulled, while on the other hand, the man lost his balance.
Trying to get his balance back, the man didn’t pay attention to the glass of drink in his hand, which fell on someone at the table right next to them.
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ALLURE OF THE NIGHT
Chapter 42
Most of the drink from the glass had splashed on the woman, who was sitting next to Mr. Morris, while some drops fell on the man. The woman gasped in shock, not expecting someone’s drink to fall on her, and she looked down. The drink dripped down her neck, seeping into the front of her dress.
On the other hand, Eve had come to notice her umbrella stuck around the pestering man’s leg. She quickly unhooked it and brought the umbrella to her side.
“My specially designed silk dress!” The woman exclaimed in a hysteric tone.
With the annoying man still holding the glass, both the woman and Mr. Morris’s eyes fell on him, believing it was his fault and ignoring the rest.
The man’s mouth fell open on seeing the accident caused by him, and he quickly but nervously apologised, “My apologies, milady. I tripped by mistake.”
“You ruined my expensive dress that cost me twenty-five gold coins!” The woman scolded, while dabbing the wet side of the dress with her kerchief. “How dare you!” The woman picked the half-filled glass of her drink and threw it right at the man’s face in anger.
Mr. Morris, who was going to accuse and demand the man apologise to the woman properly. His mouth slightly fell open before he closed it at the woman’s action.
“You ill mannered woman,” the pestering man’s white shirt had turned pinkish-red because of the wine.
“Maybe next time you will know to walk properly,” the woman criticized him, and harrumphed in the end.
Eve was about to leave, but when she turned to look in the direction of the passage, she noticed Noah had got up and was standing near the passage, talking to someone there. She bit the inside of her cheek.
The steward was attending one of the customers not too far from the bickering taking place, and quickly arrived at the place. So far, the voices from the table had been drowned thanks to the music, not catching many customers’ attention.
“Ladies and gentlemen, is everything alright?” the steward inquired them with a polite smile.
“No,” the woman glared at the pestering man with an unforgiving expression, while the pestering man’s pride was hurt after the drink was thrown at him. “This man here decided to interrupt our time. He even dared to call me ill-mannered.”
The steward, who was experienced in handling situations like this, tried to calm the lady,
“How about I lead you to the powder room, milady?”
“Hmph,” the woman turned her head before following the steward.
Mr. Morris turned to look at the pestering man with a more composed expression than the woman and lightly warned him, “I think it would be best for you to leave this place, instead of creating an unpleasant atmosphere after what you did.”
On hearing Mr. Morris, a small frown appeared on Eve’s face.
“And why should I leave? I have paid more than you have Morris,” spat the man, who seemed to be acquainted with Mr. Morris.
“Do not prolong the scene, when you were wrong,” stated Mr. Morris with a glare. Like his companion, he had turned annoyed by the interruption. Mr. Morris’s eyes finally fell on Eve who was standing two steps away, and he said, “I have seen you before.”
The pestering man, who hadn’t had his fill of humiliation for the night, noticed Mr. Morris’s attention fall on Eve. He came close to Eve and put his hand around her waist without notice,
“She’s with me. I have a more beautiful woman next to me than you.”
Eve’s eyes turned wide on feeling the man grab her and his words. She pushed his hand and exclaimed, “No, I am not!”
And when he tried to put his hand around her again, she was left with no other choice but to jab her umbrella’s handle right into his stomach.
“Ugh!” The pestering man clutched his stomach and supported himself by placing his other hand on the chair.
Eve sent a glare at him. She quickly turned to look in the direction of the passage, and noticed Noah had left to go sit back with his company. This was her time to leave.
Feeling Mr. Morris’s eyes on her, Eve turned and met his gaze. The expression on his face said that he was trying to remember where he saw her and there was a frown. She quickly left the place, making her way towards the passage, which was when the person who was sitting next to Noah commented,
“Looks like Gage is at it again in trying to woo an unwilling woman.”
“Mm, it is only time when he will be thrown out of the inn to never be let inside ever again. But then he has money,” Noah smiled before correcting himself. “Sorry, his father has the money.”
“True, but it looks like the night is different today. Seems like he got hit by the woman.”
Noah turned to look at the direction of the table where the two men stood, and Gage looked like he was in pain. His eyes then searched for the woman. But before he could have a look at her, he only saw a part of her hair from the side and the woman disappeared into the passage towards the exit of the inn.
Because of the adrenaline rush, Eve had hit the man with her umbrella. And as she got out of the place, she realised she would have to leave this place quickly just in case the man decided to come after her.
She offered a short bow to the buff man, who only stared at her with a speck of suspicion, and she quickly left the front of the inn.
As Eve headed in the direction of where she had placed her lunchbox earlier, a deep frown etched on her forehead. It was because something didn’t sit well with her.
‘Turn into a mermaid!’
‘It is unfortunate that we have to part ways like this.’
When Eve’s mother was killed, she was too shocked by the loss of her mother. She didn’t recollect the murderer’s name or where her mother worked. All she remembered was the man’s voice.
And Mr. Morris’s voice didn’t match the man’s voice that was in her memory.
Eve wondered if the number of years that had passed by, had modified the voice in her memory, little by little, that didn’t match it now because her mother had hurt the man’s face.
What if the person she was following… was not the one she was looking for?
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ALLURE OF THE NIGHT
Chapter 43
In the living room of the Dawson’s residence, the fire crackled in the fireplace. In front of it sat Lady Aubrey on a chair, holding a book and reading it. The evening had passed, and the chatter of the people and sound of the carriage on the streets had decreased with the night that had come to fall upon them.
She heard a slight sound of scrunch near the entrance of the house, where the house’s main door was left open. Eugene stood outside with a worried look, craning his neck every once in a while to check if he could see Eve. The lantern that hung outside their house burned brightly.
“You should get back inside,” Lady Aubrey suggested to Eugene from the living room, her voice reaching the man, who stepped back inside the house.
“This is the first time she’s been late since she started to work,” came the concerned voice of Eugene, whose eyebrows were closely knitted. “What if Miss Eve is in trouble?”
“She will be just fine,” replied the older woman, and she flipped the page of the book that she was reading. “It isn’t the first time she has returned home late. If you keep worrying about her, you will grow older and die sooner than me, Eugene.”
But Eugene couldn’t help but take another peek outside the door.
“Are you not worried that someone must have turned her into a fish and ate her, milady?” Asked Eugene, wondering how it was possible for Lady Aubrey to not worry about the young miss.
Lady Aubrey looked up from her book, meeting Eugene’s worried eyes, she said, “I am. Or it would be more right to say that she worried me to death when she was young,” pausing to exhale, “Especially knowing who she is, but I have gotten used to it.”
Her words only stressed Eugene further, “Lady Aubrey, Miss Eve, she
Lady Aubrey smiled at the concern shown by Eugene. She said, “Eve might be clumsy and a little hasty about certain things, but that doesn’t mean that she is unaware of the matters of the world. After all, she grew up through the pain, and not away from it.”
A child who was forced to see the dark and dangerous world that they lived in as it was, without any protection. Lady Aubrey didn’t know what Eve went through, but she was there next to small Eve, who had recurring nightmares of the night when she had lost her mother.
Lady Aubrey’s thoughts went back to the time of the initial days when Eve fell sick before she rarely fell sick as if her immunity had increased. And during those initial days, she was the one who had stayed next to Eve, placing a wet cloth on the little one’s forehead to bring down the fever.
Back then, one day, Lady Aubrey had just woken up from her afternoon nap, and she opened the windows of her room for air to pass through. When she noticed the little girl trying to climb one of the trees in their backyard with persistent efforts. The little girl climbed to only return to the ground.
‘What are you looking at, Lady Aubrey?’ questioned Eugene, who had only stepped into the room.
‘The fish trying to be a monkey,’ Lady Aubrey replied grimly.
The woman wasn’t pleased with Eve’s behaviour because it was as if all her teachings on the etiquette of how to behave in the society had been tossed right into the well.
‘Huh?’ A confused Eugene came to stand next to the lady and took a peek before his eyes went wide, ‘Miss Eve is going to fall! Is she trying to pluck out the fruits? Let me go and help her—’
‘You won’t do anything,’ Lady Aubrey stopped him. She didn’t want the little girl to grow thinking that help would be readily offered. ‘She will fall once, but after a few more times she will learn not to do things which aren’t good for her.’
Eugene, who had already grown attached to the little one, bit his tongue and watched the little one, who had successfully climbed the tree now. He wanted to help little Eve with anything he could do, but Lady Aubrey was the owner of the house, and he had to oblige. Both of them continued to look at the little girl, who didn’t dare to stand on the branch, but crawl.
‘Oh! It wasn’t the fruit,’ Eugene commented with a chuckle, ‘It is a cat. Milady, do you think cats are attracted to fish?’
But Lady Aubrey didn’t answer Eugene as her eyes continued to watch Eve. She knew if the girl fell, they would be tending to her injury, but pain was what made one understand things faster.
Little Eve continued to crawl on the branch and inch closer to the cat, which sat almost at the end of the branch.
‘Here, kitty kitty kitty,’ came Eve’s soft voice, and Eugene felt his heart melt. ‘Kitty kitty kitty.’
Little Eve quickly grabbed the cat that loudly meowed. But her quickness only made her lose balance on the branch.
‘Miss Eve!’ Eugene quickly ran outside the house while Lady Aubrey stood there staring at Eve dangling on the branch upside-down. One of the little girl’s legs was caught by the thick creeper of the tree. ‘Are you alright? Let me help you out!’ Eugene exclaimed in panic.
‘Eugene! I caught a cat!’ The little girl exclaimed with a bright smile, to only end up getting scratched by the cat.
‘You nearly gave me a heart attack there,’ Eugene laughed while helping the little girl.
Lady Aubrey, who had lost herself in the past, returned to the present. She shook her head and smiled. She said,
“We knew that Eve would one day step into the world of vampires or werewolves. Let us give her the benefit of doubt that she will be home soon. Believe in her and her destiny will be different than the fate most of her kind experience. Why don’t you come and sit next to me?”
Eugene sighed, and he nodded. He walked towards the older woman and took a seat on the floor next to her chair. If he didn’t know Lady Aubrey better, he would have thought that the woman didn’t care for Eve. Lady Aubrey cared for Eve, and she had tried to teach about the world as much as she could. But then, at the same time, the older woman was right.
Though Lady Aubrey’s eyes were fixed on the pages of the book, she wondered what was taking Eve this long.
Back in the Hollow Valley, Eve went to fetch her lunch box when she noticed it was missing. Her eyebrows deeply furrowed, and she looked front and back before looking at the street, which was pretty much deserted.
Did someone steal her lunch box?
Feeling something move from the corner of her eyes, Eve quickly turned to catch sight of… was that her lunch box moving by itself? There was no way her lunchbox could walk on its own, which came to the question of what was going on?
But when she took a closer look, she saw no one near it, which brought goosebumps to her skin. Was this place haunted?
With her lunch box moving farther and farther away from her, Eve ran towards it, but the lunch box only moved that much away from her. And this continued for the next two minutes until it finally stopped. Most of the lanterns had grown dim on the side she walked.
Eve quickly ran towards her lunch box, and making sure no one was around, she picked it up.
“Last carriage to the towns of Skellington, Meadow, Lockwood, and Thresk Hills! Last carriage!” Shouted a man who stood next to his carriage. A couple, who were standing outside, paid the coachman the travel fare and got inside to sit.
“Last carriage for the night! Leaving in two minutes!” the coachman repeated. On noticing Eve alone on the street, the coachman asked, “Miss? Do you need a ride?”
Eve looked around the place, slightly worried on what just happened before she nodded to the man, “Yes. To Meadow.”
Not too far from where Eve had picked up her lunch box, a shadow moved away further into the darkness.
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ALLURE OF THE NIGHT
Chapter 44
The following day, Eve slept a little longer than she usually did. Tired from the little trip she had taken to the town of Hollow Valley the previous evening.
When the curtains of her room were suddenly pushed aside, Eve frowned and squinted through her eyelashes and saw Eugene tying the ends of the curtain and opening the windows of her room.
“Good morning, Miss Eve. Did you sleep well?” he asked her.
“Mm, I think. What time is it?” Eve asked him while wanting to stay in bed a little longer today.
“I would say you have a good thirty minutes left before you head out to leave for Skellington,” replied Eugene, and Eve’s eyes snapped to look at the clock on the wall.
“Oh no!” She quickly pushed the blanket away from her and placed her feet on the ground. She started to pick up her things from the cupboard. “Why didn’t you wake me sooner?”
“I didn’t know that you hadn’t woken up yet and were still sleeping,” Eugene promptly answered and then said, “I have prepared your breakfast. Would you want me to pack your breakfast too?”
“Yes, that would be great! Thank you, Eugene! You are an angel!” Eve praised him and quickly picked up her clothes and disappeared into the bathing room.
At Eve’s words, Eugene waved his hands while at the same time taking her compliment, he closed the door behind him as he left.
The previous night the young miss had worried him, and when she had returned, he was finally relieved, and his shoulders relaxed. But the young miss looked as if something occupied her mind.
‘We were worried about you, Miss Eve! Did the vampires make you work more?’ were the first words that flew out of Eugene.
‘Forgive me for making you worry, I am feeling better than morning,’ responded Eve.
Lady Aubrey closed the book that she had been reading, and she got up from her seat, ‘That is good. Eugene’s hair almost turned entirely gray.’
Eve bowed her head at the older woman. Though Lady Aubrey appeared to look relaxed and not worried, unlike Eugene, who was ready to camp outside the house, the woman hadn’t moved from her chair until she saw Eve enter the house.
‘I went to visit the town of Hollow Valley,’ said Eve, and the woman nodded.
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‘Did you like it?’ Lady Aubrey asked her.
‘So far, not much I think,’ answered Eve, and Lady Aubrey nodded before walking past them and going to her room to sleep for the night.
Coming back to the present, Eugene stepped into the kitchen to pack Eve’s food so that she could save time. When he went to tie the lunchbox in the cloth, he noticed something.
“Eh, is the cloth torn?”
He raised the piece of cloth in front of him, took a close look at it and noticed two holes. And the material around it looked stained as if someone had tried to drag it.
When it was time for Eve to leave the house, Eugene handed her the lunchbox which also had her breakfast. She noticed the change of cloth in which he had wrapped.
“The earlier cloth will need some mending. I will have it done before you come back from work,” informed Eugene.
Mend? “Was there a tear?” Asked Eve.
“Just two tiny holes,” replied Eugene and Eve frowned at the information. Perhaps it was not a ghost but something else that she couldn’t see? But then, there was nothing that had caught her eyes. “Have a good day at work today, Miss Eve,” Eugene bowed, and Eve bowed back.
Leaving the house behind, Eve quickly made her way to where the local carriage was as she didn’t want to be late. Especially with yesterday’s events with Lady Annalise. Once she took a seat in the carriage, she opened her lunch box and ate the breakfast that Eugene had prepared. With only two passengers, she didn’t stop herself from finishing her breakfast in the carriage.
Just until evening, and then she would be free to do what she wanted tomorrow as she was off from work.
Once the carriage stopped at Skellington town, Eve stepped down and started to walk in the direction of Moriarty’s mansion. On her way, she couldn’t help but keep an eye to make sure to not cross paths with Mr. and Mrs. Walsh.
Reaching the Moriarty mansion, Eve walked past the servants, who were busy watering and trimming the plants there. Two maids were at the front of the mansion’s entrance, quickly wiping the floor spotless.
Later that day, she spent half of her day with Allie until the little girl was summoned for lunch in the dining room. Eve finished her lunch and visited the powder room to wash her hands.
Someone caught hold of her arm on her way back and harshly pulled her inside an empty room and closed the door.
Before she could make out what was going on, Mr. Morris curled his fingers around her neck and pushed her against the wall.
“Have you told anyone that you saw me last night there?” Demanded Mr. Morris, his eyes glaring at her while there was a hint of nervousness.
“No,” Eve tried to shake her head, but the man’s fingers had tightly curled around her neck, ready to choke her. “I did not say anything to anyone.” She tried to unwrap his fingers.
Eve’s eyes were fixed on the man’s scar. There had been blood in the past… a lot of blood on the face, she thought to herself.
“Was it my wife who sent you?!” He questioned her in a low, threatening voice.
“I have never met your wife, I don’t know her,” Eve tried to speak.
Mr. Morris continued glaring at her, making sure she was telling the truth. Then he said, “You better keep your mouth shut about seeing me in ‘Little Teeth’s Inn’, else I will make sure to disappear you from here.”
No… this wasn’t the man, thought Eve to herself.
“Do you understand?”
Eve head-butted with him, making both of them wince, while the man released his hands around her neck.
She quickly kneed him between his legs, which made the man wince harder, and he fell to the ground.
“You bitch!” Mr. Morris cursed her while groaning on the ground.
Eve shook her head as her head had turned disoriented because of head butting with the man. This couldn’t be the person, who had killed her mother, thought Eve to herself. She questioned him,
“How many people have you murdered?”
“What?!” Mr. Morris held a bewildered expression. “How dare you accuse me of murder?”
“Tell me?” asked Eve, while the man was still waiting for the pain between his legs to leave.
“I will fucking ruin you for this!”
When Mr. Morris tried to grab her leg, and have her shut up, Eve punched him. It wasn’t just the man who winced in pain. She replied back to him, “Try to come near me again and I will scream that you tried to molest me!”
It wouldn’t be her losing the reputation but him. After all, he did come from a higher family.
Before Eve could leave the room, the room’s door burst open.
“What do we have here? I didn’t know you were planning to steal our governess for your children, Mr. Morris. How rude,” Vincent remarked with a worried look on his face. He said, “I hope you didn’t agree to it, Ms. Barlow, Allie would be very sad.”
Eve gritted her teeth and replied, “I think more than his children, Mr. Morris is in need of a governess for himself, and it would be better if he hired one quickly.” Turning to Mr. Morris, she said, “I have nothing to do with your wife,” and muttered under her breath, “There are barely any decent men in the society,” her words included Vincent in it, which had him raise his eyebrows.
Eve noticed Vincent had a cup of tea in his hand while he looked at her and his eyes then shifted to look at Mr. Morris.
“Mm, having fun in ‘Little Teeth’s Inn’. Was it with the busty lady?” Vincent offered a cheeky smile to the man, “Don’t worry, Lennon, your secret is safe,” he made a zipping action.
How long was Vincent listening to their conversation for him to have picked the Inn’s name? Asked Eve.
…and he was sipping tea.
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ALLURE OF THE NIGHT
Chapter 45
Mr. Morris tried to save his face and tried to convince Vincent,
“It wasn’t I who tried to sway this woman’s mind.” He jerked his head towards Eve and said, “She was the one who tried to attack me out of nowhere, asking me if I murdered someone. You psychotic woman!”
Eve defended herself, “I was heading back to the piano room when you dragged me into this room and threatened to kill me. It was the only reason why I even asked you that question, you barbaric man!” If Vincent had heard their conversation, she would have to make sure that he wasn’t going to be suspicious of her earlier words. “You dare to put your hands on me,” she blamed it back on Mr. Morris.
Vincent’s eyes moved to have a look at Eve’s neck, where it held redness in lines around it.
“I think Ms. Barlow is incorrect, don’t you think, Mr. Morris?” Questioned Vincent, his eyes shifting back to look at the man, who finally stood up, but hunched his back as he was still in pain.
“Of course, she is!” Mr. Morris was quick to agree.
Eve’s eyes held shock, and her eyes met Vincent’s, who offered her a slight smile. Without looking away from her, Vincent said,
“It is not right to call you a molester, but your obsessive wife wouldn’t be happy if she found out that you not only tried to spend some time with another woman in Hollow Valley, but also attempted to touch our governess.Especially I don’t like the idea of you trying to harass our governess,” Vincent turned to look at Mr. Morris, whose mouth fell open.
“You must be joking, Vincent. You favor this woman and—”
“Mr. Morris, where are your manners,” Vincent held a disapproving look on his face.
Mr. Morris now glared both at Vincent and Eve. He said, “You dare to threaten an Earl?”
Vincent softly chuckled, and the chuckle turned louder as he was amused. The chuckle of laughter finally died down, and he turned serious, “Oh, Morris. You speak as if you are the King of these lands.”
“I might not be the King but my position is higher than your very own family,” Mr. Morris reminded him. “While you are not even a Viscount yet,” he huffed while looking down at Vincent. “You are in fact nothing, but an ordinary person.”
When Vincent took a step toward Mr. Morris, the man immediately took a cautious step backwards.
“I am not an Earl or a Viscount like my father because I aim for something higher than that. My ambition is something that you can only dream of,” Vincent calmly stated and his hand shot up to Mr. Morris’s face, “Looks like Miss Barlow did quite a number on you. To be hit by a woman, I think that will be more than enough for me to talk about you.”
“I will cut all profitable relations with your family and then you will pay for your words. For looking down at me, you spoilt—”
Vincent flicked his finger on Mr. Morris’s forehead. And the flick held the force similar to a heavy stone thrown at the man’s head. Mr. Morris fell on the floor with a thud, and in pain he groaned louder than before.
“Tsk, I thought the Earl would be stronger and not weaker like a commoner like me,” Vincent mocked Mr. Morris, and his lips curled in mirth. “I will have Alfie send you home. Always a pleasure to do business with men like you.”
When Vincent turned to look at where Eve was standing. The woman had disappeared.
Mr. Morris continued groaning, this time unable to stand up on his own and Vincent warned him, “Don’t even think about retaliating. Like good men of our society, let us drop the matter here.” He turned, ready to leave the room,but before that he said to the man, “You might have a higher position by name, but don’t forget that we are the ones who control this place.”
Eve, who had left the room, quickly walked in the corridor, making her way toward the piano room. Before things could worsen, she had left the room, while both men were dealing with each other. The Moriarty mansion was a hot pot that never stopped boiling, and she was in it.
Though this time, she was the one to be blamed, as Mr. Morris had seen her in the inn. But then people often came across other people they knew in different places, which was why she had considered her presence in the inn to be less suspicious. What she didn’t expect was for Mr. Morris to try strangling her.
Eve closed her eyes, remembering what she knew of her past, and tried to match it with the present. Mr. Morris couldn’t be that person. The man had an affair with a woman, but he wasn’t strong, and this one seemed scared of his wife.
“You really are something.”
Eve’s eyes flew open. She turned and saw it was Vincent, who walked towards her. Gathering herself, she responded,
“It wasn’t I but Mr. Morris who caught me. I wouldn’t have broken his nose if he—”
“I don’t care if you broke his nose or his balls,” came Vincent’s crude reply. His eyes held curiosity in them as he looked at her. “I didn’t know little girls were allowed in ‘Little Teeth’s Inn’. Didn’t take you to be someone who enjoyed nights there. You surprise me.”
“It was my first time there,” said Eve, and suddenly she felt as if she was under interrogation.
“I see,” Vincent’s words drawled, and then he said, “What a coincidental world we live in. For you to end up in the same place where Mr. Morris visited.”
Eve and Vincent stared at each other without breaking eye contact between them. She asked him, “Is that all you wanted to talk about, Sir? I should get going, Miss Allie must be waiting for me.”
“Don’t fret about it. Allie is still in the dining room having her lunch, and you have plenty of time,” he stopped her from escaping into the piano room.
Vincent’s eyes slightly narrowed before he offered her a pleasant smile that only turned Eve worried.
Eve pursed her lips and replied, “I have to arrange the books and pick the next subject for Miss Allie.”
“Are you trying to escape, Miss Barlow?” Vincent stopped a maid walking by and handed his empty tea cup, and dismissed her.
“Why would I do that? I take my job very seriously and wouldn’t want Lady Annalise to have any complaint on how unproductive I am,” Eve stated while taking a deep breath to keep her heart beating at the same pace.
Vincent nodded, “Mm, that is true. I am curious though… Your questions to Morris caught my interest. Do you know him?”
Eve shook her head and frowned, “You heard everything… he could have killed me.”
Vincent stared into the young human’s blue eyes. She looked taken aback by his unresponsiveness when she could have died at the hands of Mr. Morris.
“You seemed fairly capable of handling the matter and I didn’t hear you scream for help. If you weren’t capable, you wouldn’t have been hired and if it was a mistake, I would buy flowers for your grave,” Vincent replied with a straight face that left Eve speechless.
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