- Created By erupanda
Chapter One: Unedited
Dark Hues and Fueled Revenge:
1.He leaves you at day, but follows you at night.
An unfortunate peasant stirs a pot filled with chicken broth; her tattered burgundy dress and apron, brittle bones, and knee length, disheveled, black hair are enough frightening features to keep even the rats from the kitchen. Having finished quite a few pots of food with the help of other servants working in the kitchen, she wipes the sweat off her forehead. Chopping several vegetables on top of a wooden plank with a sharp knife, she accidentally pierces her finger in the process. Wincing, her first instinct was to wrap it with a rag. Yet, she panicked when she heard the thunderous steps of her master near the door. The door flung open and slammed against the wall with an immense explosion. Quickly, the girl and all the others scattered in front of their master. The girl tried to keep her pale face up, but was immediately met by a rough, rigid hand thrashing it, leaving a five finger mark permanent to her cheek. She did not touch it, only because she feared if she did, it would either sting or there would be another one following after.
“Hurry up with the food, peasants. My guests will be here shortly. I do not want to keep them waiting because of your foolish insubordination around the kitchen.” The master stood stiff, his short brown hair lay on his neck, his clothing tight enough to show his muscular feature. He pauses, and seizes the girl’s bloody hand, disgusted by the great incision that was made. “See the result of your idiocy, Adrian?” He pushes her hand back to her and rams her body backwards. “Get back to work you simple-minded swine!”
The girl nodded and parted her lips to speak. “Yes Master Emil.” Her voice was faint, low and weak. It was more a subtle whisper than a response. Master Emil grunted and walked out of the kitchen, his footsteps trailed towards the front door of the castle.
A young woman moans in the corner of the kitchen; Leslie, they call her the nit-picker. “I hope we get some of the food prepared tonight. I’m starving.” She dropped to the floor and pouted, holding her rumbling stomach.
“Get up from the floor nit-picker; you might get caught by Master Emil or any of the other high-statuses around here.” A young man with dirty choppy blonde hair explained while waving his spoon around. His expression was lazy, his eyes wanted to close but he fought back.
“As long as I don’t end up like new lad over here, I’ll be fine Darien.” Leslie pointed to Adrian, who was still gripping her bleeding hand.
“I’ve been here for quite some time. I’d appreciate it if you’d cease the term of ‘new lad.’” Adrian mumbled, trying to not seem proud that she was trapped in this mansion. Hulling her body over the large sink, she let her blood drip, turning the knob of the cold water with her uninjured hand. She watched the blood and water swirl, almost as if they were dancing with each other.
Adrian has been at the Emil Winchester palace for five years, to be precise. Taken in, no, forced to live as a servant after her mother, the only family she possessed, passed away. Adrian had no knowledge of her father’s existence, since he had abandoned her and her mother even before Adrian was born. A living hell, this place was. This castle consisted of three large floors. The ground floor included the living room, kitchen, dining hall and bathrooms for guests. The second floor integrated four private studies for each of the four children; Emma of six years, Julian of eight years, Natalie of nine years and Kingsley of eleven years. Along with bedrooms and a play room, it’s where the children spent most of their time, if not in the music room, art room, or backyard in the garden fountain. The first floor was where Master Emil and his mistresses, meaning he was engaged to a different woman every other month, studied and had their bedrooms and private bathrooms. The third floor was an attic where Adrian and the other servants were placed. Limited pleasurable options were allowed in the attic. There was only one bathroom, that wasn’t very stable, and the bathtub malfunctioned numerous times. There were ten twin sized metal frame beds, five in two separate rooms for women and men. Yet, there were twelve servants. Adrian was one of the lucky servants who didn’t have to share a bed with another. Though the beds were rather uncomfortable, Adrian was grateful that they received a bed to sleep on at all.
Adrian heard the metal gate screech open through the kitchen window. Curious enough, she rushed for a pile of wood planks behind the cabinet, dragged it over to the window, and stepped on it carefully. Short for her age of fifteen years, she was about 5’3”. It was a frustration for her, especially when her labor consisted of cleaning out of reach objects such as a chimney.
As the other servants rummaged to complete the cuisines, Adrian reached the height of the windows, pressing her face against the crystal clear glass. She was careful not to plant her fingers on the glossy part and mark it. Her sapphire eyes searched the field of green grass and group of vibrant flowers, and halted when she saw a troupe of regal people. They wore expensive clothing that shimmered once it was hit with the sun. She counted hastily, pointing to each person. There were at least five of them. One elderly man, one young woman and one young man, about twenty years, she guessed, and finally a two small female twins. They were the most prestigious looking people she’d seen in her five years here. Their noses were propped upwards, each of their right hands were greeted by the lips of Master Emil.
“They must be the royalty from south of England Master Emil is consistently speaking of.” Darien pulled his long blonde hair into a pony tail, tying it with a piece of thread he stored in his apron pocket.
Adrian tilted her head in a questioning look. “How would you know?”
“The walls aren’t sound proof, Adrian. Besides, I’m one of the main servants who aids the master almost every second of the damn day.” Darien said this grimly, irritated.
Adrian shrugged her shoulders and returned to the window.
Wait; there was one more person, a boy that looked about her age, hidden behind the feathery dress and towering height of the young woman. He carelessly whipped around the elderly men; his hands were stuffed into the pockets of his cashmere trousers and his white button shirt un-tucked and free, a chocolate colored vest over. He tapped his foot, which was covered by a black penny loafer. Unusual, he appeared. White, ashen hair rested perfectly on the nape of his neck, choppy layers surrounded his head. His eyes were deep and curved downwards, and the top was a perfect arch. His eyebrows were covered by his swept bangs, but Adrian wasn’t even sure he had any. This boy was abnormal...but completely captivating.
“Adrian! Come! We must set up the dining table!” Leslie tugged Adrian’s apron and opened the maple wood cabinets, pressing on the white plaster plates against Adrian’s chest. Once Leslie let go, Adrian shook her head, and caught the plates before they dropped to the floor.
Adrian scurried away to the dining hall, waiting as two other servants draped over the russet colored table cloth over the glass table, smoothing out the wrinkles and pulling the lace at the bottom. As they set flowers as the center piece, she began to stack a large plate, a medium plate, and a small plate on top of each other in front of eight chairs. The table was quite large, but since she had enough practice, it only took her two minutes to get all of the plates down and organized.
Moments passed and the table was finally set. Master Emil led the guests to the living room, as they asked questions about the art that hung around the walls and above the ceiling. He explained that they were memories of their traveling years. Once they’d seen all of the paintings and other art, Master Emil peeked over to the dining hall to make sure everyone was in place. He guided the family into the hall, the servants bowing as they were told to. Darien seated the women first to their liking and then the men. He offered wine to the elders and drinks to the rest. Clattering of loud heels was heard throughout the hall. Master Emil’s newest fiancée, mistress Juliani, gave a curtsy and a smiled brightly; her caked make-up surely hid the fact that she wasn’t too confident about her looks. She sat near Master Emil, and crossed her legs, picking up a glass of white wine with two fingers, and scrunching her elongated nose with distaste.
“This is my fiancé, Leandra Amelia Juliani.” He introduced her shortly, explaining her descendant of a high class Italian family, but ignoring her winking gesture. Master Emil then signaled one of the servants, and spoke quietly in his ear. More wine, he demanded. Quickly but calmly, the servant rushed to the kitchen and came back with a fresh bottle of the finest red wine. Master Emil tipped his cup for more, and sent him back into the line of servants standing near the kitchen.
“What an honor it is to have you here, the great family Eckhart.” Mistress Juliani rose her glass and eyed everybody that sat around her.
Adrian couldn’t move her eyes from the unusual boy…her eyes were completely glued to him.
“Excuse me, but if it isn’t too much of a burden, would you mind serving me a glass of water please?” The boy twirled his white hair around his lanky finger. His face stood expressionless since he arrived.
Master Emil nodded. “Of course young sir,” He snapped at Adrian. “Girl! Come and serve young Nate a glass of fresh water.” He gestured her to go, the back of his hand moving away.
“Ah, yes sir.” Adrian stumbled over to the kitchen, and poured unsullied water into a clear jug. She sighed harshly, and pushed the door open again, a forced smile on her face. Walking around the table to the unusual boy Nate, she bent over, her body inching near him. Adrian began to pour the water into his glass, his breath tickled her neck. She shivered, and tension built in her stomach. Her eyes averted over to Master Emil, and his eyes pierced her skin. Red, intimidating; her body shut down and her hands gave up on her. She let her mind race; thoughts that she didn’t want, events that she didn’t want to repeat in her head. The whole jug shattered in her hands, the force of her fingers was the cause. Freezing water dripped down Nate’s expensive trousers, and once again, Adrian’s hand bled uncontrollably. Red stained the rare expensive, Egyptian carpet as she dropped to the floor. Nate caught a glimpse of Adrian’s scarlet blood, and held his hand over his face, covering his nose and mouth. He immediately stood, and sprinted to the kitchen. The Eckhart family gasped at the sight of her blood, as if they’d never seen the natural fluid before. Their voices were muffled as they spoke amongst each other; they sounded more nervous than frightened.
Master Emil rose from his seat, and pulled Adrian’s thinning hair, yet he made sure no one else was witnessing it. “You, you’re such a ditsy girl! Go get a rag now and clean up the mess!” he promptly said, his voice very aggressive.
Adrian swiftly picked up the remains of the glass off the floor. She quivered more than she did before. Her lip trembled, she bit it hard, tasting metallic liquid dripping down her throat. Cupping the remnants of the sharp glass in her frail, unstable hands, she was shoved into the kitchen by Mistress Juliani. Quite a few servants were hovering over Nate’s body as he sat in the corner near the counter.
“Please, let me help you clean up Master Nate.” Leslie tried to help him up, but was pushed back forcefully by his body. His hands still covered his mouth, but his eyes were completely sinister. They widened every time they peered over to Adrian’s bleeding hand. He felt a burning sensation; it was as if acid were dripping into his stomach and filling up, overloading and spilling everywhere else in his body. It was an intense, smoldering, nip in his rigid body.
Darien called for help, his foot at the opening of the kitchen door to keep it open. Other servants opened windows to let fresh air in, but Adrian still held her hand. She steadily pulled the glass out of her hand, and cringed at every piece that came out.
The Eckhart family departed immediately after Nate came from the kitchen. He hadn’t calmed down. Elder Eckhart thanked Master Emil for treating them.
“I’m very sorry you had to go through this Elder Eckhart.” Master Emil shook hands with the aged man. He seemed eager to leave, almost jumpy.
“No, I should be sorry. Young Nate is particularly squeamish. It is normal, so it was bound the happen. Shall we push the dinner towards another date? On the 8th of July?” Elder Eckhart was already stepping out the door. Master Emil nodded.
“Yes, and this time I’ll make sure all servants are mentally stable.” He gave a quick smirk. Finally closing the door, yet still watching them climb into their carriages, Master Emil’s expression changed. The servants beside him scurried up the stairs; they knew what was going to come about next.
“ADRIAN! Front and center NOW!” Steam was practically visible through his ears. His fists were clenched forcefully, turning whiter than before.
Adrian took small steps toward Master Emil, which made him even more furious. “I’m s-sorry Master~”
A firm hold of her petite arm was enough to make her grimace. He twisted it, burning the skin underneath his ferocious, hostile hand. “You are to GO upstairs, scrub every little room floor with your hands, and come straight downstairs to the restrain room.” Master Emil vehemently pressed her chest, making her tumble over the table and knock down several plates to the floor. He then pulled up her dress to her thighs. A lone finger traveled upwards, touching the hem of her underwear.
“Your real punishment comes later.” He added decisively, a vile grin appeared on his repulsive lips.
Mistress Juliani immediately turned her cheek, and shooed the servants back into the kitchen to clean.
Adrian felt a merge of disappointment, shame, and distress hovering over her existence. “Yes…Master Emil.” Her voice was broken; it turned to a slur...
Blackness clouded her mind.
“I know her mother was the only one who can sense us...our kind. We have to find her soon before she reveals the truth…”
“Reveal the truth? Are you and idiot, David? How will she have proof of our existence?”
“She has the Book of Prohibits, she can easily break the curse and our souls will escape these bodies in an instant.”
“Then I suppose you send Emily to kill her then.”
“No, I prefer this job.”
“She will never let you steal this opportunity to shed blood, especially her biggest rival!”
“Then in return, I will grant Emily a new body.”
“But you know new bodies are hard to attain!”
“I’ll give her the body of the woman I carry dead in my hands.”
“…”
“It will be done…”
End
