A/N: Another week, another chapter. To moon-queen: ...thanks? Lol. Fairchilde: I doubt any Victorian woman would believe them anyway. Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing!
Suspicions Cast
Seras nearly began to weep after Walter had uttered those few words, burying her face in her hands to hide her sorrow. She had only just recovered from her illness, with the many days laying in bed, and now she had succumbed once more. The patience and following of the medications were all for naught. She should not have traveled the grounds nor left her bed.
"How did I get here?" Seras asked quietly, slightly lifting her head above her hands.
"We found you upon your bed early this morning, barely a heart beat in your chest" Integra explained. "You had apparently fainted, for we could not wake you until this evening."
Seras stared at her in disbelief, then quickly turned her head toward the windows. She could see the light of the sun fading behind the heavy curtains, showing the truth in the doctor's words. With the obvious time, the young heiress realized she had slept for over half a day. Strangely, she had no wish to partake in food or water, though the last time of eating had been at the supper meal the previous afternoon.
"Why am I feeling worse than the last time?" she asked, turning back to the doctor and her assistant. "Has the illness become worse than before? And so quickly?"
Integra nodded absently, not positively answering any of her questions, her attention now belonging to her black bag situated on the bed stand. She rummaged through the large clutch for a few moments before bringing her hands back into view. Seras noted with some amazement the object laying in her hands, her eyes turning from sadness to confusion. A large rosary was in the young doctor's hand, the beads shining in the lamplight.
"Why do you keep such strange articles in your medical bag?" Seras asked, lifting her head for a closer look. "I assumed the rosary was used only for religious purposes."
"I have found many great uses for these beads" Integra answered, looking at the young woman laying before her. She slowly held her hand out, the rosary coming within arms length of Seras.
Seras looked at her for a moment, a questioning expression on her face. When Integra merely moved the religious object closer, she tentatively lifted her hand to take the beads. However, when the young heiress touched the smooth marbles, she felt a burning sensation and roughly pulled back. She cradled her hand against her chest and gave the doctor a harsh glare, the stinging still echoing on her skin.
"What have you placed on those beads?" Seras asked sharply. She had an instinct to hiss at the treacherous doctor, but held the need in check merely out of confusion for her wanted action.
"I have done nothing to the beads" Integra calmly replied, setting the rosary back in her bag. "Now" she continued, turning her eyes back on the invalid woman "Are you able to explain to us what happened last evening?"
"I had heard strange sounds from below" Seras began, looking at the bedspread and fidgeting with a loose thread. "And traveled downstairs to investigate." Then her eyes widened as her memories recounted the event in the kitchen. "There was an intruder!" Seras exclaimed, rising from her bed only to be held in the sitting position. "Someone was in the house, hiding in the pantry! They turned around-"
Seras clutched the sheets beneath her as a wave of dizziness passed over her vision, caused by her sudden excitement. She felt the hands upon her shoulders attempt to push her down but refused to be brought upon the bed, attempting to shove the uncomfortable limbs away. What had the intruder done to her? She could feel no bodily harm, though her throat was quite sore.
"Miss Victoria!" Walter shouted, tightening his grip to a painful hold.
Seras suddenly stilled, the hurt forcing her senses to gather together on one point. Bringing control of her wits, Seras breathed slowly and forcefully relaxed her body. She could feel the retainer's hold loosen as he noticed the change, the dizziness washing away as quickly as the spell had come. Shaking the now gentle hands from herself, she slowly began to inspect herself.
Nothing could be found in the search until Seras reached up and tentatively rubbed her neck. She flinched when her hands brushed against two small indents in her skin, both barely more than a needle prick in diameter.
"You have merely wounded yourself, Miss Victoria" Walter said, answering her questioning eyes. He took her hands in his own and slowly set them back upon the covers, the gesture similar to caring for a child.
Seras doubted she had, remembering nothing for which to have done such, but did not argue. She lay back down on the down pillows, her body exhausted though unwilling to succumb to the sleep she desperately needed. Turning her head away from the two other occupants of the room, she let her eyes rest on the growing shadows of the room. The room now held more lamps than she remembered, probably those brought by the doctor, and even the corner shadows were now being obliterated with light as she watched them being lit one by one.
"Are you able to remember more?" Walter asked, stepping back to reveal Integra.
Seras shook her head in the negative, her memory becoming foggy as she tried to remember beyond finding the person in the pantry. Try as she might, the events would not come and she received a headache for her attempts. However, the young woman found the failed recall to bring a sense of comfort to her being, as if she had kept a secret for a dear friend.
"Walter will stay with you for the evening, Miss Victoria" Integra said. "I have errands to attend which cannot be waited upon. If you will both excuse me." She left the room rather quickly, leaving the young heiress once more with the kindly retainer.
After leaving the room for Seras to change into a new outfit, the one she was clothed in having been worn the previous evening, he returned to find her laying comfortably beneath the blankets. Realizing the young woman had not eaten since before her excursion the previous evening, Walter was prepared to fix a simple meal for the food deprived woman.
"There really isn't any need" Seras said, politely refusing his offer. "I am not hungry at the moment." The worried look he gave her caused a wave of guilt to wash over her conscious. "Possibly later I will have a small snack" she tried to comfort, though his expression showed little change.
Seras thought she saw a small light in the distance, the beacon traveling along the borders of her lands. She raised her head to gain a better view and possibly discern the figure who held the lamp, but the disapproving sigh from Walter forced her to lay back once again. From her now limited vantage point, the floating light searched over the area numerous times and was finally extinguished some time after two o'clock.
Seras did not sleep for the first night, whether from the uncomfortable sight outside or her rest during the day she did not know. The following morning found the young heiress exhausted and the beginnings of hunger at the edge of her mind. Walter, who had also not slept, gladly retrieved a very small breakfast of meal and fresh milk. Then Integra arrived a few hours later, nodding her approval at the food but frowning from the lack of sleep.
Seras noticed the young doctor's eyes also showed fatigue, possibly from a late night out, and idly wondered what the business was she had spoken of. She then patiently allowed Integra to inspect her, feeling her pulse and carefully examining her pale skin.
Much to Seras' dismay, by order of the doctor the following days saw the return of her previous routine. Walter watched her in the usual chair, his eyes open when she drifted off to sleep and wide awake when she awoke. Integra would make afternoon visits, checking her heart beat and breathing. Her inspections would often include the examination of her neck, always an uncomfortable and nerve inducing state for the young heiress.
The strange 'prescriptions' for her room were changed during those days, new garlic being hung and scrubbed continuously on the walls. For the first day she could hardly stand the smell of the horrible herb, tossing and turning during the following night. The covers would give some relief to her strange suffering but she still found the small bulbs a terrible nuisance. Thankfully those phases passed with the return of her health.
The light also returned, always wandering the outer edge of the woods only to move out of her sight and come back. Seras never left the bed to go to the windows, Walter stopping her curiosity with a simple cough or sigh.
After a week of the stressful, though health inducing, routine, Seras was finally allowed to leave her room and travel around the mansion. However, she was not given permission to commence her duties for the lands and taxes, leaving her with little to do during the day. Her hours were filled with staring out the windows and waiting for Integra's daily examines, the boredom nearly forcing her to disobey the orders to remain indoors.
Seras now sat in her bedroom, the curtains drawn and the sun shining into the room. The light now longer bothered her and though the remedies were still unpleasant, she no longer loathed the smell of garlic. She touched the side of her neck and noticed the pricks had grown smaller, barely felt over her hand. She was grateful for the healing wounds, the marks strangely bothering her more than the illness.
Seras rose from her bed and walked over to the large windows, her eyes still blinking from bright sun. She looked out the window, enjoying the warm sun on her cool skin. Looking over the vast grounds visible in her sight, the lush green moors in the distance calling to her sense of exploration. Shaking her head and turning her eyes to the walk along the side of the house, she focused on the pair below her window. Integra stood below, speaking with the gardener as the elderly gentleman pointed out several areas in the distance.
Seras watched the two for several minutes until they separated, the gardener returning to his work while Integra strolled to the outer edges of the lawn. The young heiress was startled to notice the path taken by the doctor, the way being an exact replica to the midnight light she had seen the past few nights.
Stepping back from the window, Seras left her bedroom and proceeded down the stairs. She did not want to be accused of spying on their conversation, no matter how accidental the reality was, and distanced herself from the confusing sight. Deciding to enter the study and once more look over the papers in her uncle's desk, she walked across the spacious room and seated herself in the large chair.
Looking over the heavy wooden desk, Seras' brows crashed together in confusion as she looked at the top drawer to her left. She could see the compartment was slightly open, the shadows in view of her sight. Opening the wooden container, a gasp escaped her lips as she saw the contents. The papers in her desk had obviously been rifled through, a quick but poor attempt at hiding the act clearly seen. Bending down to inspect the drawer beneath for signs of search, Seras' arm hit the still open container and the wood crashed to the floor.
"Blast" she swore under her breath, pushing the seat back and settling her knees to the ground.
Rifling through the many papers now scattered around the area, her hand brushed against the bottom of the drawer lying on its side from the crash. Seras stopped her cleaning as she felt loose velvet touch her skin, taking the drawer in hand to examine the underside. The bottom was covered in a soft velvet fabric and there appeared to be a torn edge along the far corner, unnoticed unless someone were to entirely remove the drawer and flip the wood over. She ran her hand over the damaged area, her curiosity aroused as she noticed a scrap of paper hanging from beneath the torn velvet cover.
Seras stood and settled back in her chair, staring puzzled at what she had found in her uncle's desk. Catching more of the velvet between her fingers, she gently pulled back the covering and watched the mysterious paper fall to the ground at her feet. She slowly took the parchment in her hands and carefully read the contents.
"The master requires another, but the inmates grow restless. Must contact the warden to gain more by any means necessary" she quietly spoke aloud, her voice barely above a whisper. Seras recognized the handwriting as belonging to her uncle, the hours of inspecting the estate records coming to use.
There were several more entries as the first, each stating the person referred to as 'the Master' required something of her uncle. She could only suppose the mentioned 'inmates' were those of the insane asylum alluded to by Mr. Morley, but the person repeatedly spoken of was unfamiliar to her.
Flipping the paper over, Seras noticed a small map drawn clumsily on the back side. She was able to recognize the house and a number of the out buildings, but one she did not recall having visited. By the layout of the drawing, she supposed the structure to be deep within the surrounding woods which ran along the edge of the moors.
Suddenly hearing the front door open and the voices of Walter and Sir Integra enter the hall, Seras quickly hid the paper in the pocket of her dress. She stood and smiled as the two entered the room, both pausing as they noticed the papers scattered about the desk and visible floor.
"Do you require assistance, Miss Victoria?" Walter asked, coming over to help with the task of collecting the papers.
Integra merely stood and watched the two, her eyes boring into the figure of the young heiress. Seras keenly felt the almost rude watch by her doctor, fidgeting nervously and quickly finishing the task of cleaning the papers. After placing the last parchments back within the repositioned drawer, she excused herself from their presence with the semblance of fatigue.
Nearly rushing to her room, Seras quickly closed the door behind her and listened to hear if they had followed. Sensing no one in the hall, she took the paper from her pocket and once more parsed over the contents. The map intrigued her, catching her curiosity enough for her to schedule a visit to the area tomorrow. Her caretakers were to be away for the evening, both having matters to attend in the village, and she would have the perfect opportunity to inspect the mysterious structure.
After what she had seen from the window and the strange gaze in the study, Seras had little reason to trust the intentions of the two. Also, she still recalled the differing diagnosis given to her by both Walter and Integra, each sounding as unlikely as the other.
Possibly now she would find some answers.