Chapter 10
I had saved the Chloe in the book.
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09:51 Thu, May 7
Chapter 9 The Seer’s Astrolabe
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It was not until well past midday that Lilith returned to the manor and hastened to Brielle’s door. She knocked, but when no answer came, she pushed the door open herself.
A flicker of gladness still lingered upon Lilith’s features. Yet the moment she caught sight of Brielle on the bed, her expression shifted to alarm.
“Lady Brielle! Rouse yourself!” Lilith was badly frightened. She shook Brielle with considerable vigor until at last the woman stirred.
Brielle’s eyes flew open. She drew in air in great, heaving gasps, as though she had only just clawed her way back from the grave. Her breathing was swift and ragged.
Her face had gone as pale as fresh milk. Her entire shift was soaked through with icy sweat, and damp strands of hair clung to her brow.
“Good heavens, Lady Brielle, what has come over you?” Lilith hastily produced a kerchief and dabbed at the sweat upon her forehead.
Brielle shook her head, still dazed. She attempted to push herself upright and only then noticed that her fingers were still locked in a rigid grip around the front of her gown. Her hand had grown numb; when she finally pried her fingers open, they ached with a dull throb. With Lilith’s assistance, she managed to sit up properly.
Something tumbled free from the folds of her clothing. The Seer’s Astrolabe-the very object she had defended so fiercely within her nightmare-landed upon the coverlet. Brielle simply stared at it for a long, speechless moment. When at last she reached out and touched it, her heart swelled with a fierce, unexpected joy. She gathered it into her hands, trembling with excitement.
The Seer’s Astrolabe! It was truly the Seer’s Astrolabe!
How could she have dreamed of it and then awakened to find it resting in her very palms?
This instrument had been passed down through her family for generations. Countless souls had sought to wrest it from her while she yet lived. She had long assumed it must have fallen into another’s hands by now. Yet here it lay, returned to her keeping.
Surely her forebears were watching over her still.
“Lady Brielle?” Lilith’s voice betrayed her unease at the strange expression upon Brielle’s face.
Brielle collected herself. She tucked the astrolabe away with an air of practiced indifference, rose from the bed, and crossed to the washstand to splash water upon her cheeks. “When did you get back? How fares your mother?”
Lilith’s countenance brightened at once. “I did exactly as you instructed. My mother took the remedy you prescribed, and she is already mostly recovered. I even summoned the physician to examine her. He said there is no cause for any concern. He remarked that I must have found a true healer of uncommon skill.”
Lilith’s voice brimmed with grateful excitement. She came over eagerly to assist Brielle in tidying her hair. “I cannot thank you enough, my lady.”
Brielle inclined her head. “That is good to hear. Only ensure she remains cautious.”
As she spoke, she happened to glance upward. And there in the looking glass, she saw that half of Lilith’s face was covered over with a pattern of glistening green scales.
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Chapter 10 The Green Shadow
The reflection in the mirror prattled on with excessive cheer. “Yes, yes, I shall remember it well. I do not know how I could ever repay you, Lady Brielle. Please, allow me to attend to you from this moment forward. I only pray you will not mind that these withered hands of mine are clumsy.”
Lilith lifted a silver hairpin and reached out to secure a lock of Brielle’s hair.
Brielle’s gaze turned icy. She seized Lilith’s wrist, rising abruptly to confront her.
Lilith flinched, staring at Brielle in bewilderment. “Brielle? Whatever is the matter?”
Brielle tightened her grip. The sharp pain forced Lilith to relinquish the hairpin; it clattered onto the floorboards.
The entity inhabiting Lilith recognized Brielle’s intent.gleam of malevolent cunning flickered within its eyes. It snatched up the remaining pins scattered across the vanity and lunged at Brielle.
The impact was overwhelming for Brielle’s physical form. She was shoved violently backward, collapsing onto the floor. The pointed tip of the hairpin hovered menacingly, like a dagger, directly above her eye.
Lilith gritted her teeth, straining to drive the metal straight into Brielle’s eye socket.
A seer requires her eyes above all else to discern the esoteric energies of the void. Brielle perceived the verdant glow radiating from Lilith’s eyes and understood precisely what manner of foe she faced.
“Wretched creature, you seek your own demise.” She released Lilith’s wrist.
The sharp pin descended with brutal force. Brielle snapped her head to the side, narrowly evading the blow. Simultaneously, she drove a fist into Lilith’s abdomen and kicked her away.
She rolled swiftly, pinning Lilith to the floor. She bit her own finger, drawing blood, and swiftly inscribed a runic symbol upon Lilith’s brow.
The instant the glyph was completed, a plume of black smoke erupted from Lilith’s forehead. She thrashed in agony, her features contorting into a grotesque mask as she shrieked in pain.
The servants stationed outside heard the horrendous shriek. The hair on their arms stood on end.
They huddled together, whispering frantically. “What in heaven’s name is wrong with Lilith? Why is she screaming so?”
“Is Lady Brielle beating her?”
“Sounding like that? Most certainly.”
*****
As the black smoke dissipated, a verdant shadow darted beneath the table and slipped out through the gap beneath the door.
Brielle frowned, glancing down at Lilith, who lay motionless upon the floorboards. She had not anticipated the entity Lilith had harbored to possess such potency. She had assumed it was merely a minor spirit, easily banished.
However, upon reflection, a wealthy family using actual banknotes to honor their dead-that was peculiar in
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Chapter 10 The Green Shadow
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Lilith stirred, slowly regaining consciousness. She pushed herself up from the floor, looking about in confusion. “Brielle, how… how did I come to be here?”
Brielle wiped the blood from her finger with a linen handkerchief. “What is the last thing you recall?”
“Last night, I departed the manor as you instructed. I procured the tonic and administered it to my mother. However, it was too late to visit the cemetery, so I went this morning. I burned the banknotes. Then I hastened back to the manor. But now, I find myself waking here, and I know not how I came inside…”
Lilith was thoroughly disoriented. She felt a dampness upon her forehead. She touched it and pulled her hand away, finding it stained with blood. Terror seized her.
Brielle spoke with a detached calmness. “Do not panic. Your family’s tribulation is far from concluded.
“Some entities seek to tread a forbidden path to attain humanity. Yet everything in this realm adheres to the laws of Providence and destiny. Wickedness returns to its source. They shall meet a bitter end.”
She seated herself at the table and inscribed two additional runes.
Lilith listened attentively. Brielle’s tone was so arcane and cryptic that it sent a shiver down Lilith’s spine.
Just as she opened her mouth to inquire, Brielle spoke once more, “If you desire to walk the righteous path, perhaps I can be of assistance. Our meeting may well be a blessing in disguise for you.”
Lilith comprehended little of this, yet she nodded vigorously. “The righteous path! I wish to walk the righteous path.”
Brielle cast a meaningful glance toward the wooden ceiling beam. The green shadow immediately concealed itself, vanishing from sight.
She then handed both talismans to Lilith. “Affix one to your mother’s bedpost and the other to your own. Erect a shrine to an unknown spirit in a side chamber and present offerings. Merely three tapers of incense each day. That shall ensure your household’s safety. Perhaps good fortune shall blossom from it.”
Lilith nodded repeatedly. She accepted the talismans and tucked them securely into her bodice. “Shall I return home and perform these rites now?”
“Go. Complete the task before the housekeeper, Pamela returns.” If Pamela returned, Lilith would find it nigh impossible to depart the manor again.
“Very well, I am leaving at once.” Lilith departed immediately. She had already placed her absolute faith in Brielle’s words.
Scarcely had Lilith departed when Brielle looked up at the ceiling beam once more. “Return now.”
A flash of green skimmed across the chamber and vanished through the window.
Lilith was still ruminating on the bizarre events that had just transpired. A chill ran down her spine, raising gooseflesh upon her skin. Consequently, she remained oblivious to the fact that her head was still caked in blood. She strode straight out of Brielle’s courtyard in such a state, prompting the servants to whisper all the more fervently in her wake.
“Oh heavens, her head is covered in blood.”
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Chapter 10 The Green Shadow
“That Brielle is a savage. It is absolutely terrifying.”
Finished
Soon, news spread through the inner quarters that Lady Brielle was cruel and abused her servants.
Lilith was so consumed by the tasks Brielle had entrusted to her that she remained entirely oblivious of the gossip. She simply quit the manor grounds.
The other servants believed she was wandering about in a stupor, as if she had been beaten senseless.
“Hark, who was tasked with delivering Brielle’s midday meal? Has anyone attended to it yet?” inquired one curious voice.
“Goodness, I had forgotten.” Clara was aghast. But then, the image of Lilith walking out with blood streaming down her face flashed through her mind, and panic set in. She shoved Violet, who stood beside her, and adopted a commanding tone. “You go.”
Violet stumbled, nearly losing her balance. She wished refuse but lacked the courage. Thus, she nodded timidly.
*****
Brielle had just withdrawn her astrolabe when she heard a tentative rap at the door accompanied by a trembling voice. “Lady Brielle, I have brought your luncheon.”
Hearing this, she concealed the astrolabe. She was mildly surprised; none of the maids in the manor truly treated her with the respect due a lady. They were rarely this courteous when delivering her belongings.
“Enter.”
A young maid ventured inside. She appeared to be fifteen or sixteen years of age, slight and fragile. She kept her eyes lowered, appearing visibly intimidated by Brielle. She placed the food upon the table. “Lady Brielle, I have brought your meal late. Please, impose whatever punishment you see fit.”
Violet’s mind was filled with the image of Lilith’s bloodied head. She was so terrified that she fell to her
knees.
Brielle found this amusing. “Are you new to the manor?
Violet nodded. “I have been here for a fortnight. I was performing odd chores in the rear courtyard. Today is my first day in the inner quarters. I am assigned to cleansing.”
Brielle could discern from the maid’s voice that her life force was feeble. She regarded her with heightened
interest. “Look at me.”
Violet timidly raised her head but dared not meet Brielle’s gaze directly.
Brielle perceived a milky haze over Violet’s eyes and a volet discoloration around her cheekbones. It was an omen of sickness and misfortune. She had less than a year to live.
Brielle grasped Violet’s wrist to check her pulse. Violet froze in terror.
The pulse surprised Brielle. It was a case of extreme wasting sickness.
Just then, Violet’s stomach emitted a loud rumble. Brielle was slightly taken aback. She proceeded to ask the maid several questions regarding her background.
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Chapter 10 The Green Shadow
She was a pitiable child indeed.
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Brielle fingered the astrolabe concealed within her sleeve and smiled. This maid’s fate was sealed, yet she took pleasure in rewriting the destinies of others.
Some might argue that such acts defied the natural order. However, the fact that this maid had crossed paths with her was, in itself, a component of her destiny And Brielle was the wildcard in that fate.
“I require a personal maid to attend to my needs. From this day forward, you shall remain by my side.”
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Fate Binds Me to Lord Clarke
