Valerian Empire

Chapter 45: Teasing- Part 2

On their way back Alexander didn’t question her anything regarding the matter and changed the topic to a lighter conversation until she reached her room. Wishing a goodnight, she got into the room, directly heading towards the bath and turning on the tap while she sitting under it. After a while, she turned it off siting there looking into space.

She didn’t know for how long she sat there until the Lord’s cat came in view, meowing his way towards her.

“Hey,” she cooed as the cat nudged its black paw on her hand, “I know I need to get up now,” she said getting up and picking the towel from the shelf. She ran a hot water while putting the cat out of the bath, “You’ll have to wait,” she said closing the door. She wasn’t comfortable having the cat while she was taking a bath.

Once she got into bed, she pulled out the chain she wore to play with its pendant inertly looking at the blue crystal at the center of it.

Surely not just a single witch was involved here, there must have been many of them to pull such a massacre on an entire town. Ralph where are you? she asked it in her mind worried.

Days passed by, and Katie immersed herself with work. That was one way she kept her mind busy, other was she liked to knit. She often walked across the paintings that were kept on the far end of the ground floor and she often found herself mesmerized by it. If only she had talent as such she would have earned herself enough money to buy a house near the border of the empire.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like living here; she felt privileged by the hospitality the elites had provided her but she wasn’t part of it. She couldn’t stay here forever.

A guest is no longer a guest when he or she overstays their welcome.

She knew Lord Alexander and Elliot didn’t want her to leave, she remembered one time in a conversation with Lord Alexander how he had said that he would take her to a place next year to show her a place during fall. It was subtle.

They weren’t friends, nor did they have a relationship of a Lord and a servant. Yet the rapport they shared was unique. The Lord read her like an open book when she didn’t even need to utter a word.

But these days it seemed like both of them spoke more in silence without the need of words. The eyes spoke volumes, sometimes saying something through it or other times stealing glances.

The butler and the house keeper had noticed this as they were around one of them in a day’s time. They found the Lord and the girl playing a cat and a mouse’s game. They ignored it though, it wasn’t their business to meddle in their Lord’s personal life.

One fine morning when Katie was watering the plants in the mansion’s garden, humming a folklore and tapping her toes in a rhythm, she heard Dorthy call for her excitedly holding a piece of envelope in her hand.

“What’s got you excited this early in the morning birdie?” Katie asked her friend.

“Birdie is here to deliver a letter to Ms Katherine,” Dorthy grinned giving the envelope to her.

“Who is it from?” she asked as Dorthy had already begun walking back.

“Tell me about it later. I need to deliver few items in the town today,” she heard her say and turned around the plain envelope. She wondered who could have sent it.

Tearing it open at the side, she pulled the letter that was inside and once she was done reading it, it put a smile on her face.

Dear Katherine,

There is a new theatrical music that I have been invited to go tomorrow evening. I would be delighted if you could join me as Elliot and Sylvia are both occupied with work this time. If yes, then wave the envelope once you are done reading. If you are busy you can leave it as it is.

Below it was a sign from Lord Alexander.

Turning around she saw the Lord standing there in one of the room patio as he sipped his tea from the white cup while looking at her. Raising her hand she waved the envelope making him smile and continued her work.

She needed a dress for it. As Dorthy was going to the town she accompanied her. Out of all the dress shops, the Weaver’s was the best. Maybe she could find something suitable for the evening. Last time she had borrowed Matilda’s dress which was returned back torn due to the incident that took place during the tea party. Even though she paid the damage with the money she couldn’t stop feeling guilty about it.

While Dorthy went to make rounds Katie headed towards Mr. Weaver’s shop. As she pushed the door, the bell above made a noise to alert the customer’s visit.

She looked around the shop and found a dress that looked suitable enough to wear for the theater.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Weaver,” she wished seeing him enter from the backdoor.

“Good afternoon, Miss. I see you’ve already picked your dress,” he noted seeing the dress in her hand.

“I was searching for something simple and not over the top. This seems perfect,” she said glancing at the dress before looking back at Mr. Weaver with a smile and he looked around her.

“I see the gentleman you visited last time with isn’t here,” he said.

“He’s busy with work,” she replied making the man smile. She did think about asking Elliot but Lord Alexander had already mentioned that he was caught up with work.

“Would you like to try it? To make sure it fits well. I can alter it right away,” he offered and she went to try the dress.

She turned in front of the mirror and saw that everything was perfect except for the sleeves as they were quite long. She got out of the changing room and called for Mr. Weaver but he wasn’t there like last time ready to suggest on the alterations.

As she called out his name she felt something heavy hit her head and felt her ears ring before she lost consciousness, falling on the ground.

After five hours, Katie woke up gaining back her conscious to find herself in a familiar room she had stepped into on the day of Hallows. It was the same abandoned house she and the others had been to while their way back home. The question was what was she doing here?

The room was now brightly lit with candles all around the room and the large sized dolls that sat on the floor scared her. They looked too real to be called as a doll.

“Ah, you are awake,” she heard the voice at the entrance of the door.

In the mansion, Alexander stared at Dorthy as she trembled in fear.

“What do you mean by she disappeared?” he asked the maid with gritted teeth.

“K-Katie said she was going to buy the dress from a shop she had last visited and we had decided to meet at the c-checkpoint. I waited for her and when she d-didn’t come I decided to go look for her but she was nowhere to be found,” Dorthy stuttered in fear, Lord Alexander could be terrifying.

Elliot, Sylvia and Oliver were also present in the room with them.

“Did she say about going to the Weaver’s shop?” Elliot asked her and the maid nodded her head. Something clicked in the Lord’s mind and he said,

“Oliver find the name of the Weaver’s daughter.”

“I already made some background details on him,” Elliot said sending the maid out of the room, “The story is short. Wife died, daughter caught influenza and died too leaving the man alone. The interesting thing is the town folks think he casts an evil spell on the dresses. I checked the shop but it’s closed, there’s nothing there,” Elliot said with a sigh.

They didn’t know what happened to Katie and in what condition she would be in.

“And what was his daughters name?”

“It was Hannah Weaver,” Elliot replied making Alexander frown,

“Sorry,” she apologized sheepishly bringing her hands together to keep it still, “I just saw a familiar name on it and got curious.”

“Is that so,” he responded taking the paper she had placed on the desk in his hand.

“Yes, Mr. Weaver’s daughter also shared the same name as Juliet. He looked really down when I met him in the graveyard today,” he heard her say.

Rummaging through the desk papers he pulled one of it out and took out the registry file to compare the names. The girl named Juliet had died two days ago. Why did the man tell his daughter’s name wrong? Unless he was trying to hide something.

And then it clicked.

“Send someone to dig Juliet Benedict’s grave right now,” he ordered and Oliver left the very instance not wasting time, “I think we just found our corpse stealing thief.”

“What about Katie?” Sylvia asked worried.

“I’ll find her,” Alexander said taking out his chain, “I promised to keep her safe.”