Compared to the last few days, Madeline and Calhoun’s relationship had improved, something the King was looking forward to, and something Madeline had not realized that everything around her was subtly changing that included the way she was looking at things.
The need to accept was what Madeline was working on now. She heard Lady Lucy speak so fondly of the King; it was hard to match the qualities. But then Lady Lucy was too kind. Madeline had a feeling that if someone brought a giant spider in front of the vampiress, the lady would sit down to pat it and say how good it was.
Though she didn’t forget the icy demeanour of Lady Lucy in the presence of Theodore.
“After the ball, the King wrote me a letter. It is not often that he writes a letter. I didn’t get the opportunity to attend the ball for Hallow. He mentioned how he had found the girl he was looking for,” Lady Lucy informed, in such a way as if two girls gossiping about others which weren’t ill but in good mind. Madeline’s face turned red by hearing this, and Lady Lucy only smiled, “Since then, I have been very eager to meet you. You are very beautiful, Lady Madeline. My apologies for my excitement when I met you.”
“That’s alright,” replied Madeline. Lady Lucy was pleasant to speak to, and Madeline was more than happy to have her company, “Pardon me, but I thought all this while all the vampiress are very uptight.”
Lady Lucy chuckled hearing this, “I share the same sentiments. I would blame the upbringing. I guess as I grew up in the castle where my parents were busy with work and parties, I just happened to grow away from them.”
Madeline remembered that Lady Lucy and Calhoun’s parents were dead. But then they were half-siblings and each of them had one different parent. She wondered how their parents were. The way Calhoun acted, it was hard to say that they were kind, she didn’t know why, but it was a strong feeling that they weren’t like Lady Lucy.
“It is why I am familiar with the King’s wolves. I have spent more time around the average things,” so that was the reason, thought Madeline to herself and she nodded her head, “If you ever feel bored here in the closed walls of the castle, you should go meet them.”
“I don’t think they like me much,” answered Madeline, sipping her tea and then putting it back on the saucer to hear Lady Lucy say,
“It is just in the beginning,” the vampiress waved her hand like they were harmless creatures, “Once they know who you are and that you mean no harm towards the King, they are really friendly. The wolves are friendly only to Calhoun and me,” she said thoughtfully.
Madeline wondered how old Calhoun was. The humans believed that the night creatures were someone who came from the devils as a gift or were devil themselves. The gift of years with youth that would prolong, unlike the humans who came and went in a short period. And considering that Calhoun had wings, it only made the rumours that much more believable.
Years had passed since Lucy was married, and it made Madeline question next if Lucy had any children. She wouldn’t be surprised if she did, “Who is there in your family?” asked Lady Lucy.
“My parents and my older sister, Elizabeth. They live in East Carswell,” replied Madeline and Lucy nodded, acknowledging it before asking,
“Is your sister married?”
“No, she is looking at the suitors. She will get married after that,” Madeline wished that Beth would allow the King to look for someone for her, but she had refused it. And as polite as the letter was, it only made Madeline worry that she was possibly angry at her. Was Beth still upset about Calhoun not picking her?
Lucy had a look of curiosity on her face, “She must be very popular if she’s the one who is deciding whom she is going to marry. Very lucky,” said the lady and Madeline agree. Beth could pick the man she wanted from the people who were trying to court her.
While Madeline was pondering over it, the vampiress couldn’t stop and wonder on why Calhoun had picked the younger sister. If the older sister was beautiful too, especially considering the way Madeline said, it seemed that she was fairly a popular maiden.
When the time of noon started to pass, Lucy didn’t stay for another tea, and she excused herself from the human’s presence to go and meet Calhoun who was in the study, working through the papers that he had received from Hancock.
Lucy knocked on the door and entered the room. Calhoun raised his head to look at her.
“Leaving?” questioned Calhoun. He dropped the papers down and got up from the chair.
Lucy nodded her head, “I thought to see you again before I left,” when they reached halfway together, Lucy hugged Calhoun. He patted on her back before she pulled away from him, “It was good to see you. Feels like it has been more than months.”
“The gates and doors of the castle are always open for you, I don’t remember forbidding you from entering it,” said Calhoun, his lips adorning a smile and Lucy smiled back.
“Yes, I know that. Thank you for giving Samuel duties in the city,” she thanked him. The last two months she had barely seen her husband who had been out on work, while she was alone in the mansion, “I was going to write a letter to you, but you wrote one first.”
“Thought you would start crying if you didn’t see your husband soon, and I think stationed work in the city is much more viable to Samuel than sending him far away to another kingdom. It is easier for both of us,” Lucy didn’t understand what he meant, and her eyes blinked on what it meant, “Don’t stay too late out in the cemetery. There have been reports of robbery and other things that would not be considered morally well.”
“I will keep that in mind,” she said and noticed how Calhoun stepped away from her, “I wanted to speak about something.”
Calhoun raised his eyebrows at Lucy, “What is it?”
Lucy pursed her lips and then said, “It is about the girl. Madeline,” hearing Madeline’s words, Calhoun’s interest piqued. Both Madeline and Lucy had spent time together today, and Calhoun had left them alone while attending the court and people, “Have you planned to visit her parents with her?”
“Not anytime soon, why?” asked Calhoun. His eyes were calm as they waited for his half-sister to speak.
“I think she needs people of her own. She’s come into a world that is unknown to her; you need to help her ease with it. Everyone needs family, Calhoun,” stated Lucy, her eyebrows drawing together as she looked at him.
Calhoun laughed, “Are you talking about yourself, Lucy?”
“Mine and her situation is different, but if you want to win her heart, you need to win the people whom she cares for,” said Lucy.
“And what if I said that her mother didn’t mind Madeline running away from the castle, even if it meant them getting killed?” Calhoun asked, he turned around, walking towards the desk and turning back again to face her while leaning his back against the wooden desk.
“No one would do that,” Lucy shook her head.
“Trust me, it did. You know how families are,” said Calhoun, “First it’s care then comes poison in mind. With her here, there will be no need to associate with the life she once had. She is doing well so far. She will be fine. Madeline is a strong girl, and she will grow stronger.
Lucy sighed.
She knew Calhoun, and once he made up his mind, there was no turning back, “I hope it goes well. She is a lovely person.”
“Don’t worry. She has me. Travel back home safe, Lucy.” Lucy bowed her head and then left him in the room.
Before she could reach the stairs, she saw Theodore, who was coming from the opposite direction. By noticing her, out of respect to who she was, the man stopped walking and bowed his head. Lucy would have walked away, but the hate she had for this man for what he had done, she would never forgive him.
“Have a good day, milady,” offered Theodore.
“I wonder how you sleep soundly at night,” Lucy’s words were even as she spoke to him.
She didn’t stay another second and walked away from there. The vampiress stepped into the carriage which pulled away from the castle. When the carriage stopped near the cemetery, Lucy Greville entered the graveyard that was deserted and lonely where her parents and others were buried.
Her steps turned slower as she reached their graves. The tombstones had lost their colour to turn dark and dull because of the weather that came to wash on them over the years.
Lucy placed the bouquet of flowers on her parent’s graves. Standing there for a few more minutes thinking about how the years had come to pass and change. Bringing her hand forward to place it on one of the graves, she whispered,
“I am so sorry.”
Compared to the time of noon, the weather had changed from being pleasant to one where it started to drizzle. One drop after another and soon it started to pour down in Devon.
