She reached out to squeeze her sister’s hand as they neared the house. The road seemed almost endless.

Then finally, they made the turn that brought the house into view.

Yeren was sitting stiff-backed at this point. She had to wonder if he felt the same way she was feeling about the house.

Then the carriage rolled to a stop at the front entrance.

There was barely anyone standing in the yard and those there stopped to gape at their arrival.

No one came to greet them. No one came to welcome them.

Something heavy made her heart sink.

Claire felt cold inside.

The door was opened for them to come down, but neither she or her sister moved. Aurora was deathly pale and a bead of sweat had broken over her brows and forehead.

When she glanced up, Yeren was looking at her with a disturbed look on his face before he quickly masked it.

"Go on, Rory." She said in the most gentle and cajoling voice she had. Slowly, her sister rose from the seat and ambled to the door. The guard lifted her and set her on her feet on the ground.

It looked like it just rained here. The angry gray clouds clustered the sky, obscuring any possible sunlight that might have penetrated through.

Drawing in a deep breath, she went down with the assistance of the guard.

Just then, Arlan rushed out from within the house and pounded down the stairs.

"Aurora!" He ran towards her.

Claire watched her sister transform from a gloomy and wilting flower to one in full bloom.

She was taken aback when he lifted her in his arms and swung her around.

Were they that close? How come she wasn’t aware?

A pang of jealousy stole through her and she cleared her throat.

"Put her down, Arlan. You would make her dizzy if you continue."

Reluctantly, the boy set her down. True to her word, Aurora swayed on her feet for a while before she regained her footing.

And all through the while, Arlan’s hand remained comfortingly at her back.

Someone came up beside her and watched them as well.

She cast him a silent glance only to find him staring intently at the children.

"For a boy who just lost his father, I would say he is rather lively."

She felt herself stiffen. "He and his father never got along. They were as different as night and day."

Yeren shrugged and held out his arm. "Then I would count the boy lucky. But most times, blood is thicker than water. And the Straught family has had an interesting line of despicable things that match what Jarren did - so I believe it a family thing."

She paled and tossed a cautious glance at the children before taking Yeren’s arm and letting him lead her up the steps into the house.

The last thing she wanted to do was to hold his hand and draw strength from him - but that was exactly what she found herself doing.

When they crossed the threshold and entered the elegant hallway, she drew in a deep breath.

"You’re shaking, Lady Stenly. His ghost doesn’t live here."

Well, who knew? She thought grimly.

Two maids were wiping the surface in the grand receiving room.

Both of them looked up from their chores at the same time, their eyes forming wide saucers of surprise. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

They remembered her.

Of course they remembered her - she was the one who had dared to light their Master on fire.

"My lady." The one who was beating dust out of the cushion said in way of greeting, rushing forward.

The woman froze when she saw the King beside her.

"Your Grace." She fell to the floor in fright.

The other one slowly rose from her crouch and came to stand beside the one who had bowed her head to the ground.

"Welcome back, my lady." She gave her a small, sad smile. Then just like the other one, her eyes bulged when she saw the King there.

"Your Grace." She tapped the one on the floor, urging her to rise. "Please do come in."

They hastily cleared a path for the two of them to walk through and lit a few candles to brighten the room since the open windows were of little to no use.

"Shall I get you anything?"

Yeren sank into the seat closest to the door and shook his head.

"I don’t want anything as well. Instead, can you gather all the staff on the grounds? I would like to speak with them."

Aurora and Arlan had still not come inside.

What were they even doing out there? Wasn’t it chilly outside?

Even though the cold no longer bothered her, she was comforted when the maid lit a bright fire in the hearth.

Claire glanced around the room. The memories of the very room.came rushing back. It felt almost as if she had just been in the room the day before. And part of her expected Jarren to burst in, grinning from ear to ear with his infamous lecherous smile.

One by one, the servants trooped into the room. Everyone of them kept their heads bowed, not daring to look up even when spoken to.

By her count, there were only fifteen servants. There had been a lot more the time she had been here last, hadn’t there? There were only two chambermaids which she had already met, the cook and a scullery maid, four stable boys, the groundskeeper, two footmen, the head chambermaid, the butler, the carriage driver and a small boy who claimed to do a few duties here and there.

The number was depressing, but it was better than anything she had when she had lived by herself by Loodswood.

And for one, she was glad that Yeren kept whatever opinions he had to himself.

From the tales of the servants, most of the Deltas and able workers had left the moment they heard uncle Jarren had died. A lot of them had been dying to leave, to explore other work opportunities in the Capital. The women had returned to their long-abandoned families while some had left because they felt guilty for what they did to her.

Those that stayed had mostly grown up in Penbrook and had nowhere else to go to, while a few stayed because they needed the pay desperately.

Each of them had something interesting to say and she found that they were all capable with their duties.

After dismissing them, she sat back in her chair and closed her eyes.

She remembered that when she had asked after Margaret, the two chambermaids exchanged knowing glances, mumbled some rubbish excuses and hurried out of the room.

What really did happen to Margaret?