"Im sorry, Sir, but we cannot find your daughter,"
The farmiliar red haze fell over my eyes. I felt as though I was the murderous phantom again, though I had not been for almost 6 years.
i"What do you mean,"/i I hissed. I could not see anything but I knew where I was going. I pushed the small woman aside with such force that she hit the wall and fell. I entered the room and though I could not see, I could feel the presance of her friends. I bent down and cought her friend, Dylan by his coat.
Where. Is. She?" I asked angrily.
"I...I Dont know! She c-came out-s-side and a man took her a-a-away!" he studdered, beginning to cry. His tears restored my sanity and the haze fell away. I saw what I was doing to the child, and I quickly let him go.
"I...Im sorry, Dylan. I don't know what got over me," I said, mentally slapping myself for getting so angry at a 5 year old child. I walked away from him, and saw a sight that I was hoping not to see. Lilly, Donata's best friend whom had been to our home so many times, was sitting in the corner, crying.
"What happened, Lilly?" I asked her, bending down to her level, still slapping myself mentally for what I had done.
"Its the worst d-day of m-m-my life!" She cried, crying on my arm. I picked her up, and asked her,
"Whats wrong?"
"Do-na-t-ta is g-gone! And m-m-my mommy..." She cut off, with fresh tears. I then remembered that Lilly had no father, just her mother, and asked
"What happened to your mother, Lilly?"
"Sh-she wa-was in an accident" She choked out tearfully. "Sh-She isn't coming back."
With that, I hugged my daughter's friend close, picking her up and leaving the schoolhouse. I got not a murmur of protest that She was not my daughter and that she could not come with me. I brought her out to my carrage and sat her down. I ordered the driver home, and we set off.

Donata's POV

I woke with a jolt. I heard crying, and looked over to see Solito was gone 'Where is he?' I thought, and looked around the room. It was unusually empty, but I felt a pair of hands close around my mouth.
"Quick! Shh, he might find us!" Said a familar voice. I turned my head slightly to see Adrianne. She helped me up and pulled me quickly to one wall. She opened the grate to the vent and shoved me in, just before following herself, closing the grate behind her.
"Adrianne, whats going-"
"Shhh. We are hiding from him! He is closing in, Im afraid he might find us!" she said in a low wisper, and and she shoved me to the back of the vent, before following and pulling in close. She explained about the ventilation system and how they hid in the vents from Raoul when they heard his horse and that, he had been in this secret place before. I had been wondering why there were so many vents and nooks and crannys just big enough to hide one or two children in each. Now I knew. These were places to hide, when someone came close to descovering them, and now, me.