Thanks to ColeAndPhoebeForever for helping me with the grammar and the tenses in this chapter! Thank you! :-)
Dont forget to review!
Creature and the Maiden ch 28
Laura was sitting on her bed, waiting for her food. Her bare legs were folded underneath her simple nightgown while her eyes were strained on the door expectantly.
The room she was kept in was small and simple, the walls were beautiful, painted in a light blue color. Her bed was small and the bedcover spread over it was white with small flowers on it. But despite the decoration, Laura was blind to its beauty. When her injury was healed and only left a small scar and just as soon as she was capable of moving around the room without any help, the guards had suddenly come and fetched her.
She'd been dragged away blindfolded, and suddenly she was in that terrible room. The room had no windows or barely any light and Laura had been forced to sit on a very small chair in the middle, surrounded by the judge, the local priest, Mr. Rochester, his son Pierre, and several other important people who looked to her like a pack of wolves. The Judge had been sitting with a long table in front of him, wearing the black robe and white wig that defined his status. Their faces had been almost obscured by the lack of light, but Laura could see Mr. Rochester and his son very clearly. Their similar eyes were watching her with a distracted sneer in them.
They had asked her many questions, many uncomfortable questions. About herself, her grandmothers background, and especially about…John.
The judge had asked about Pierre's injury, was it her intention to kill him or was it the monster all alone? How did she meet the monster? When did it happen and how long had he been staying in her cottage? Despite the harsh questions, the judge was less prejudiced compared with the Priests view on Laura.
His questions made her cheeks blush several times. Not in embarrassment, but in anger.
In his view of her, he saw a sinful woman who had never followed Gods rules or even been a regular visitor to his church. On her deathbed, Isabella refused to be buried in the graveyard; she'd wished to be buried under the oak tree not so far away from her cottage and Laura and the Bovary family had fulfilled her last request, despite his protests. That enraged the priest, and because he was so narrowly prim and over lordly stupid, he could see only the worst in people. Especially women who didn't suit in his very small frame of what a woman should be; calm, quiet and obedient.
In his eyes, Laura was not only a heretic, but she had invited a demon into her cottage and had been acting like, from what Laura heard him whispering to his comrades; "The whore of Babylon."
What a hypocrite!
His talk of hell and damnation was ridiculous and Laura had blushed in anger of his persecutions. She have absolutely nothing to be ashamed off, instead, she thought, he should be careful of his slippery tongue on what kind of perverted thoughts HE was imagining about her.
But what will they do to her?
With Mayor Rochester's power, he could do many cruel, unimaginable things to Laura and John if he wanted, it would not take much effort on his part and neither the judge nor the priest would ever care or dare to question it.
Tired of waiting, she stood up from the bed and pulled back the curtain-covered window again to look at the large tree outside her bedroom. It was pouring outside and the tree was moving wildly from side to side.
When she was bedridden, Laura had formed an escape plan; when her wound was healed, she would simply open the window, jump out and catch one of the branches and climb down. But when the day came when she could stand up from the bed without getting dizzy, she discovered that her room lay on the second floor and the tree was too far away to reach. She would probably break both her legs if she ever dared.
But looking down through the window, Laura was tempted to do so anyway. Her prison was suffocating and after what happened in that awful room, it might be worth it.
Suddenly, the sound of muffled voices and footsteps outside caused Laura to move back from the window and back to the present. They were coming downstairs but the voices talked in such high tone with such irritation and desperation no one would miss them. She recognized one of the servants but couldn't place the other one. It wasn't the voice of the servants, her nurse or Rochester's, but somehow it sounded very familiar in her ears.
Curiously, she placed her ear to the door to listen more clearly. Then, Laura felt the blood draining from her face as she finally recognized him. She didn't believe it at first, but it was indeed he, who Laura had feared for years, he whom she swore grievance against and prayed to God and Grandmother that she would never have to meet this man again.
Mr. Crottington.
Rochester growled. Everyone in the mansion knew that he was not to be bothered when he'd retired for the evening. But one of his servants had dared to interrupt his peace and was now knocking very carefully on his door. He marched to the door, flung it open and spat "What!" whilst glaring at the butler in the most irritated tiresome face that he could muster.
"Sire, a man has just arrived from Marseille, expecting to see you." He said stiffly, holding up a tray so Rochester could take up the small piece of card on which it innocently was placed.
As he quickly scanned the card, Mayor Rochester's face was completely red.
"And he can't wait until tomorrow?"
"I told him but he said it was urgent!"
It's funny, how one small piece of paper could change someone's plans so dramatically! Schedules and complicated plans all left his mind after seeing the signature and hearing that the owner of this card was waiting downstairs.
"Bring him to my office."
Minutes later, he greeted a very fat, soaking wet man in his office. His suit was damp from the rain and very old fashioned. On the waistcoat, one of his buttons looked like it was ready to escape from its comrades any minute by Mr. Crottingtons hard breathing.
"Mayor Rochester, I`m so happy to meet you. I have heard so much about you!"
Mayor Rochester simply gestured for him to sit in the chair opposite of his own. They sat down, and for a moment, an awkward silence filled the room. Mr. Crottington felt slightly nervous of Mayor Rochester's cold demeanor against him.
"I assume that you're here for your ward." Mayor Rochester said simply.
"Yes, of course, she's my responsibility and I want to help her from the great misfortune that has been cast over her."
"And now you're here, trying to take her back to Marseille?"
"Yes."
Mayor Rochester smirked. "My son tried to convince me of your ward's potentials. Seeing you here, I see Laura's reputation growing stronger." He stated as he moved up and turned his back to Mr. Crottington. He spoke again with authority, with a tone that would let anyone know he was not going to back down or change his mind. "As the Mayor, I must inform you what has happened during these past couple of weeks, or perhaps you already heard it in the Inn or at the markets?"
Mr. Crottington gave a slight nod to confirm it. "Some parts of it."
Mayor Rochester walked to the big window behind his desk. Looking out, he could see grey clouds beginning to turn into pitch black.
"The first signs of the monster started last autumn. People who were out picking berries or hunting spotted It far away. First they believed it was their imaginations, but when they shared the same description of the Creature; Gigantic with broad shoulders, dirty clothes, black hair and leather-like skin, the people began to worry and started to avoid the woods. Then one night my son was attacked and we discovered that the Creature was real and living in the old small cottage Miss Dubois owns, or rather owned. We managed to capture It and even found out that Miss Dubois was his accomplice. I don't know what's true, but there are several rumors circling around about what your ward was doing with this monster."
"I have heard the rumors" Mr. Crottington murmured as he shook his head. "Scandalous, utterly scandalous! But is it really true about his…appearance?"
"He's ugly." Rochester said as he moved to a small table with a bottle of wine and two glasses on it, without thinking to offer any wine to , he poured one for himself. "His face is all twisted and looks like it's been dead for a long time."
"I wonder how she ever met him?"
"I don't wish to know and I don't care."
"You're right!" Mr. Crottington said very clearly. "It's her reputation that's most important. She must be taken away from these horrible accusations and come back to Marseille with me."
A wicked grin began to tug at Mayor Rochester's thin lips at his words. "Perhaps, or perhaps not, but this is not a good excuse for why you were so uncaring for her welfare until now."
"It's because I didn't knew where she was until your son, Pierre, told me." Mr. Crottington explained. "We searched everywhere for her; in Marseille, the country, the harbors and our neighboring villages. We never imagined that she, barely a child back then, would possibly travel all the way up here to Germany!"
"Well, she did and now she's in my custody until the trial is over."
"Your son also said that he and Laura are engaged, which as she's my ward, I can't approve of."
"Because of her father's possible fortune?" Mayor Rochester said, before moving his glass up to his smug lips.
Mr. Crottington clapped his hands and tried to hide his laughter. "She doesn't have any fortune, I assure you, where is the proof that Laura really has a fortune?"
I've got connections in Marseille and from my investigations, it's not you who owns the company." the Mayor said coldly. "Half of the company, including the stocks, belongs to Miss Dubois."
Mr. Crottington's face paled. A sudden feeling of stress and panic began to grip around his thick throat.
Mayor Rochester knew that even if he was her guardian; Mr. Crottington couldn't touch her because James Dubois had made sure, with a trustful lawyer, unbreakable contracts, and loyal witnesses, that no one touched Lauras inheritance without her or the lawyer's permission. When she reached 18, all the money would be hers. He was responsible for taking care of the company, but it wasn't much of an inheritance. In the past few years, Mr. Crottington's business had been making less and less each season, resulting in him taking on many debts – most of which he couldn't pay, but these debts were on his name and responsibility, not Laura's.
The stocks were the real gold mine! They were changeable depending on the market, but they had never switched owners. The stock was stuck in Laura Dubois's name. Mr. Crottington's eyes grew cold, and he turned away from Mayor Rochester's staring look. He could already tell where this conversation was going, he wasn't a fool.
"You seem to know a lot, but I don't think you know the most important thing. Your son can't possibly marry her without my permission, she's still underage and under my protection by law."
"So you or your son will marry her instead, correct?!"
"It's not as simple as you think it is! Miss Dubois turns eighteen next month and unfortunately, these affairs are limited to succeed without some help from each of our sides."
"What do you mean?" Mr. Crottingon moved forward and let his fat arms rest impatiently against the black table, with his hands clenched together, he stared at Mayor Rochester very seriously.
"No matter if I, my son or your son or the damned creature itself marries her there is a "fine line" in her father's testament no one can change."
"What kind of "fine line"? Mayor Rochester said curiously.
"A fine line that's hard to break, but luckily for us, I believe she doesn't know about it. And I have an idea that's perfect for both of us." After telling the reason and then the plan, Mayor Rochester was silent for a minute, allowing that to sink in.
"It's… not entirely impossible to use this trick."
"She has always been rather stubborn, but...this might be her Achilles heel." Mr. Crottington said.
"Very well." Mayor Rochester said with a slight nod. "Let us check if it is!"
She thought she was prepared, ready to face any danger or physical torture, but seeing her old guardian walking in to her bedroom, Laura's cheeks went pale. Her hand was turning white while clutching her muslin very hard as Mr. Crottington cheerfully greeted her, she didn't move or make a single sound. When she made no response to his greeting, he slowly walked over to Laura, "Miss Dubois?"
He had been prepared to meet a lovely young woman, but when he saw her after so many years, her features shocked him.
Her nurse hadn't managed to set up her hair because of it shortness, but it curled softly and reached just beneath her ears. She was wearing a dark blue dress with simple long sleeves and a low neckline, whilst not revealing too much skin with the help of white muslin over her shoulders. But the biggest change was her eyes. Dark circles covered her white tired skin and the green eyes showed him a person who had turned very old in just a couple of weeks. But despite the simple dress and the hair, her beauty still sustained.
"Miss Laura, do you remember me?" He said and carefully moved his arms up to hug her, which caused Laura to get out of her trance of shock as she saw his fat hands reaching to touch her.
Quickly she backed away and dared to look into his eyes; eyes which now held the spark of fire and anger. "What are you doing here?!"
"My dear, what have they done with your hair?!"
"Why are you here?" She repeated, slight shakiness in her voice.
"I hope you are comfortable here. You have been staying here for quite some time." Mr. Crottington said, ignoring her question.
Laura glared coldly back at him. "Oh sure, I'll be perfectly comfortable with my kidnappers!" she snapped sarcastically.
"I can help you out of this mess. I'm still your guardian." He said with a slow low voice.
She clenched her fingers hard against her chest, holding them together so they would not make any attempt to rip out his eyes.
"My Guardian?! You are not my guardian, you have never been and you never will. You treated me like dirt, sent me to that awful boarding school and never, ever cared to make a search for me when I was gone, which I`m grateful you never did, because I been living here very happy until a couple a weeks ago."
"I heard that Mayor Rochester accidently shot you, and only that is nothing compared to what is his son is doing with your…friend. Horrible things I`m afraid to say, but perhaps if for the right reason, I have heard terrible stories about this creature, not to mention what you two were doing in the forest."
Hearing this, Laura felt her cheeks blossom red. "You don't need to tell me the details, I know everything what the judges, Rochester and the priest think about me and you certainly believe in that too, that mind of yours can easily imagine it." She rasped and fought back a rising sickness in her stomach.
Mr. Crottington's fat face quickly turned red at the last sentence and Laura could clearly see the small drops of sweat sliding slowly down from his forehead.
"It's not that simple, Laura. These are not only rumors. People are saying that you really are a Witch. Luckily, we are not living in the Middle Ages, or else they would have burned you and that…creature on a pire. But be sure that Mayor Rochester is not a forgiving character. The creature has hurt his son and spied and stalked you and…"
"Pierre deserved it and John is innocent!" She hissed.
"John?...Is that its name?"
Laura's eyes looked like she was going to spit fire. "Yes he has a name and he is a HUMAN being!" She shouted.
"Doesn't matter if Its name is John or not. Mayor Rochester and the judge are friends and they can still send you into prison or to be hanged."
"For what cause?"
"For any cause, he has the power but I have a solution for this problem. If you move back to Marseille, claim you were forced by this creature to obey his orders or else he would have killed or raped you. You have not reached 18 and I'm still your guardian and everything you have done, I'm will take full responsibility and take care of it."
Laura stood firm. "No, I refuse to let you interfere with my life again. Why are you here? You never cared for me except for one thing I would ever dare to say it aloud."
"Like I said before, I`m here to help you!"
"You're lying!"
"If a doctor proclaim you fragile and weak because of the way you have been living; alone, poor and starving, the judges will not proclaim you guilty of any charges and set you free on the condition that I will take care of you."
Hearing these words, Lauras temper was racing. "Set me free! What about John!?"
"We can tell that you were his victim, you didn't have any choice but to obey him."
Laura looked at the man before her. "How dare you!" Laura hissed. How dare this man accuse John of these awful lies. Did he really think that she would sink that low to save her own skin? "I will never do such a thing."
Mr. Crottington just looked like he had been expecting this answer. "Very well, the other alternative is simply to proclaim you insane."
"Insane?" Laura looked confused.
His gentle manner was immediately gone and now he looked cold and grimly at Laura. "You don't have a choice. If you don't go through with it, you will end at the asylum and that creature will be executed."
"What evidence do you have for locking me in an asylum?" She screamed.
"You have been living like animal. You have forgotten to act as a moral Christian woman."
She tried to compose herself, taking in several deep breaths to control her bitter anger. "Haven't you got any self-respect? What's the difference is to proclaim me fragile or insane when it all will ends in the same way?"
"If you say that you were weak and scared and ask for mercy, I will do my best to help to spare …John's life."
Glancing over to her, he noticed that she staring at him in wide eyed…fear, desperation, hope?
"How?" She asked suspiciously.
Licking his lower lip at the taste of victory, Mr. Crottington knew that he had played his cards right by mentioning that Creature. Reaching into his sleeve he pulled out a white envelope.
And tenderly, he moved closer, placing his sweaty hand over her shoulder. Laura controlled herself not to twitch or scream out loudly as she looked at his oily face so near hers.
"All you have to do is to sign this letter and give me the necklace! As proof that you're willing confess and tell the whole "truth"." He showed the letter near her face.
"What necklace?"
"The necklace that your father gave to you, the one with the turquoise stone. Give it to me as proof that you're willing to save you and your…friend's life."
Laura shook her head. "…I don't have it."
"Was it in your cottage when it got burned down?" Mr. Crottington said, now his face was slightly worried.
"No, I gave…" Laura bit her tongue when she suddenly realized who she was talking to. She stepped back from him and his grasp. "Why do you wish to have it?"
"As a guarantee that you agree with our conditions. You don't really have much of a choice if you wish to save yourself and that…man from a living hell."
Why her necklace? Of all things, why the necklace? Something inside Laura told her not to tell where it was, so her lips were tightly shut and she refused to answer him.
"Don't be such a fool, it`s no use. If you don't say where it is, you'll never be free from Rochester's clutches."
No, this wasn't right! If she "confessed", John might believe that she had deserted him to save her own skin and blame him for every despiteful thing the townspeople, the judges, the priest and the Rochesters were accusing them of. She couldn't do this to John, not him! Remembering his kind blue eyes in front of her, so kind and innocent, sudden pang of pain echoed in Lauras heart and without thinking, she gave Mr. Crottington one simple answer.
To show her regards for this arrangement, she spit in his face as a consequence.
This daring response chocked Mr. Crottington extremely he backed away several steps from her. Swearing quietly, he wiped her spit out of his face, and then walked towards the door. With one hand on the doorknob, before the door closed behind him, Mr Crottington looked over his shoulder.
Laura was standing in the middle of the room, her arms were stretched down as her fists were clutching on each side of her hips. Her body and her bright green eyes were trembling with rage and hatred. Even her short hair seemed to stand up, looking like a burning flame.
"I,ll let you think before you accept my offer, the only chance that might save you from a worse fate than this." His lips curled into an evil smirk, a smirk that showed his victory. "But good luck though if you have another idea of how to save yourself and the creature."
And just like that, the conversation was over and he was gone. Laura, now understood what she have done and too mentally exhausted to do anything, she moved down and curled into a ball on the floor and lay there, and started sobbing.
What sort of god wanted her to be joined to that horrible man? She was at the mercy of Mayor Rochester and she may had not been engaged either to him or Pierre, but what prevented them from using her without any marriage contracts? Laura's fate might to be Mayor Rochester's plaything and when their marriage was finalized and he took all her inner strength, she would be left in the mud; abused and raped and forever broken.
There was one solution, but it would cost her a great price. The only one who could save them was Mr. Crottington and he... he was the last person she ever wanted to be in debt to. But that was nothing compared with the idea of sacrificing John to the wolves in order to save his life!
And even if she "confessed", there was no guaranty that this might save him!
It was better to put her into the mad house or one of Rochester's beds than "confess" and let John believe that she betrayed him.
She grabbed a silk sheet from the bed, curled up under it like a child and closed her eyes.
Oh god, she missed her grandmother, wished she were here to comfort her. She missed Esther and even Toby. She wanted to go back to the cottage, go on the road together with John with the glowing spring around them, and fall asleep in his warm embrace.
To love and be loved in return.
