Unknown cruelty

Chapter three

Hello my dear sweet readers! I'm back, and I brought you a new chapter. Enjoy!

Erik's POV

I don't know what made me do it. I have absolutely no idea what caused it. All I know is that I couldn't just let her stand there. I was convinced to let Madame Giry handle it, like she always does. We didn't need a new maid, especially not a young one. Had she been older, it would have been different, but she was not. I went to the hall as soon as I heard the knocking, although I kept myself hidden in the shadows that covered the grand staircase. When Madame Giry opened the door, the form of a small, underfed, young girl was revealed. I heard her stammer and I heard the desperation in her voice, the pleading… The first thought that crossed my mind was: she must have been desperate to come here. As I was watching her, an until that moment unknown feeling spread through my heart. It was not pity, for I know that felling very well. It had been directed at me for as long as I can remember, along with disgust, hate and fear and I have felt it myself as I saw the caged and maltreated animals at the shah's court. No, It was something else: compassion. And the need to protect her small, shivering form, dressed in rags, from the cold and uncaring cruelty of the world that was no longer a stranger to this blue-eyed child.

Therefore, before Madame Giry could finish her sentence and turn away this lost child, I directed my voice to her ear. I must admit that it was a bit… disappointing that my ventriloquism no longer had the power to startle her, not that she ever showed it, but perhaps it was for the best in this situation.

"Don't. You will let her stay and offer her a place in the household. Make sure she gets a room and washes", I whispered in her ear.

If she was at all surprised by this, she didn't let it show. I swear that woman shows about as much emotions as a rock. One look on her face told me that she would not let this matter rest, oh well, the relief on the girl's face made it all worth it. Even Angélique's pestering could not ruin the rare joy that filled the place where my heart should have been. I watched as she followed Madame Giry through the hall and, when I was sure she was gone, left my place in the shadows and made my way to the kitchen, all the time telling myself that I simply wanted to find out what kind of person I had granted a place in my house. The voice in my head acted as a spoilsport though.

If that is the real reason, you could just wait and see what Madame Giry has to say. But no, you want to see for yourself. Why does it bother you anyway? It's not as if you will ever talk to her…

I silenced it and slid into the hidden passageway in the wall. As I neared the kitchen I heard the talking.

"…this place. Now don't keep standing there! Come sit by the fire and I'll get you some hot stew and fresh bread. We need to get some flesh on those bones, we do. There you go sweetheart!"

Ah, apparently she has met Clémaine. As I listened to their conversation, my suspicions were confirmed: the girl had not seen any decent food in a long time. Christine. The name suited her, for the innocence in her big blue eyes spoke volumes. How she had been able to contain it after what she might have gone through, I had no idea, but for some unknown reason, it touched me.

What the hell are you doing?! When Clémaine left and the girl started to nod off, I wanted to cover her tiny body with one of the blankets that lay in a large basket in the corner of the room next to the pile of fire wood, but before I could act upon my outrageous impulse, Giry's daughter entered the room. The surprise on Christine's face as she listened to the waterfall of words was quite amusing and caused one the corners of my mouth to curl upwards ever so slightly before I forced t back downwards. Bathing time, time to leave.

The fact that I had learned some things about her, did not quell my curiosity. New questions arose and plagued my disturbed mind. Where did she come from? Not from France, there is a slight accent to her voice. Moved as a child? Where is her family? Does she have any family left? Probably not, she wouldn't be here if she did. How long had she wandered around before knocking at my door? Would she be ready with bathing and be brought to her room? What room did Madame Giry give her? What did she think of the house? And of the other servants?

I groaned and set aside the thick Russian tome that I had been trying to read for more than an hour in the safety of my library. I loosened the ties of my mask and started to massage my temples. What had I gotten myself into? I was interrupted by the loud knocking on my door that was impossible to ignore. Fantastic, just what I needed: a lecture by no one else than the unforgiving Madame Giry. As if the day had not been hard enough already. I quickly readjusted my mask and sighed.

"Enter."

She did not storm into the room as I expected, but rather calmly made her way towards me.

"I thought you said you did not have one", she said.

I was too tired to play the game and simply asked: "Did not have what?"

"A heart", she stated.

Trying to hide my surprise, I simply said that I had no idea what she was talking about. Her eyes narrowed and she snorted. She actually snorted! She placed her hands on her hips and I could already tell that I would not get out of it the easy way.

"Of course you do not have one, that's the reason why you took a girl, a CHILD, under your wing even though you have no idea who she is or where she comes from, that's the reason why you gave her a place in this household! You simply cannot bear the thought of sending her out there again and you know it!", she fumed. After calming down a bit, she continued: "It's natural you know, most people have the urge to help others, just not complete strangers and that's where you are different. I entered this household when you were still a child and that's why you will never convince me that you are heartless. I have seen too much prove of one over the years. It's the reason why my Meg is the only young girl around here, after you sent the others away with a new home to go to and a large sum of money."

She sighed, "I do not blame you for what you did today, but I fear that you will have to send her away eventually. You know I'll do what I can to protect her. However, we both know that I cannot keep an eye on her all the time and while it is safe for her to be here now, it won't be when he returns. Just try not to get involved to deeply." She looked at me and waited for an answer.

"I wish I could, but I fear that I am already in too deep," I answered.

She shook her head and a sad expression overtook her features. "It appears you are. I always knew it would happen one day, but I could not help but hope that by then the circumstances would have changed."

Her statement confused me and I was unable to let it pass. At my question what she meant, she simply turned back to the door and before she left and closed it behind her, she told me that I'd find it out soon enough.

I kept staring at the door after her departure. finding distraction was definitely out of the question now. I turned my gaze to the book that I had put aside and made up my mind. A book would not help, but some music could help me find peace. Playing the organ would have helped the most, but that would probably wake up the whole household and it's new inhabitant. If she slept in the quarters where Giry and her daughter lived, she would most definitely be able to hear it. Some violin perhaps? I wondered if she was sleeping well. Her underfed image came to my mind and it made me doubt that any sweet dreams would be hers at night. That simply would not do, now would it? And so I started to play a lullaby. I composed it as I played and it was the epitome of loveliness. While the music made its way to the ears of the girl, I tried to ignore the voice in my head.

You never wrote a lullaby before, so why are you writing one now?

Well, my dear readers, this is where I leave you. I would love to hear your thoughts on this chapter and reviews are very welcome. I hope you all enjoyed it! Until the next chapter and with all my love,

LoreLoreley