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 pocket, 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.
