Page 26 of Haunted Hearts

“Stop it, Serena. You are just scaring yourself,” said Lillith, feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders. “Robert and Father were not cursed by anyone. I’m sure their deaths were purely accidental.”

“How can you say that?” asked Posy. “Your brother went mad and jumped off a cliff because of Lord Blaze’s mother.”

“We don’t know that,” said Lillith. “It could just all be rumors.”

“He’s dead” said Serena. “That must mean something to you.”

“No one ever found his body,” said Lillith, part of her wanting to protect the Paynes, though right now she wasn’t sure why.

“There were eye witnesses that heard him making odd noises atop that cliff, just before he disappeared,” said Posy. “You know as well as anyone that not even his body survived the curse. They only found his hat floating in the sea.”

“Lillith, I want to go home right now.” Serena’s entire body started shaking.

“Stop it, Posy. Stop it, both of you.” Lillith walked over to the bed and sat down and put her arm around her sister. “You are both scaring yourselves. I don’t believe any of these stories are true. Blaze has always been like part of our family.”

“He might have been acting that way just to get close to us to kill us,” said Serena. “We can’t trust him.”

The shutter from the window blew opened and banged against the wall, and then slammed shut, causing them all to jump and scream. Lillith’s heart lodged in her throat. All this talk was making her confused about Blaze and his family and scaring her as well, although she wouldn’t admit it to her sister and handmaid.

“Lady Lillith, I have to agree with your sister on this one,” said Posy slamming shut the trunk and putting her hands on her hips. “After all, you heard Minerva telling Blaze something about those devil cards she reads. There is no telling what these people are capable of doing. I suggest we all sleep with one eye open.”

“This place is scary,” said Serena slowly taking in their surroundings.

Lillith had to agree with her on that. The room was dark and cold. Everything was covered with cobwebs. It looked like no one had occupied this room in a very long time. The rushes on the floor were dirty, and smelled like dust. The room was stark of furniture. Besides the bed, there was a small table and chairs but that was it, except for their trunks stacked up against the wall.

“I keep thinking some ghost is going to jump out at me, coming from inside the wall.” Serena clung tighter to Lillith.

“That’s nonsense. The manor just needs a woman’s touch. And a little cleaning.” Lillith forced a smile. “Blaze’s mother was gone for five years so I’m sure that is why this place isn’t better kept.”

“He has servants for that, doesn’t he?” asked Posy.

“Well, mayhap he needs better ones,” she mumbled, for lack of a better answer. “The manor might be a little dark and dingy, but I’m sure all it needs is some fresh air and sunshine.” Lillith walked over to the window and opened the shutters, glancing down into the courtyard. There, she saw Blaze and his mother walking together, heading toward the front gate.

“What are you looking at?” asked Posy, coming up behind her. “Oh, good. The witches are leaving the manor.”

“At least we can relax now,” said Serena with a deep sigh, falling on her back again and throwing her arm over her face once more.

“Relax? I think we should look for that dagger Milo said he saw on the ground next to your father,” said Posy. “If we find it here at the manor, we’ll know it was Blaze’s. That will prove Milo really did see him at the site of your father’s death.”

“What?” asked Lillith. “That wouldn’t mean a thing. You two are acting like Father was murdered. You heard what Uncle Arthur said. Father was drunk and went hunting and fell off his horse onto his own blade.”

“Uh huh,” said Posy in a tone that said she thought Lillith was a fool.

“Posy’s right, Lillith.” Serena sat up and hurriedly scooted off the bed. “We need answers. You know this manor better than anyone since you came here to play when you were a child. Go now. Sneak into Blaze’s solar and see what you can find out. If nothing else, I’m sure there will be evidence of them being witches and warlocks. If you find something, we might be able to convince Uncle Arthur to break the betrothal after all.”

“And then we can get out of here and go back home.” Posy sat down on the bed next to Serena, putting her arm around the girl’s shoulders.

“I’ll do no such thing,” Lillith retorted. “We have no right to go through Lord Blaze’s things.” The biggest reason she fought this suggestion was because she knew damned well that dagger was his but didn’t want the others to know.

“Aren’t you even a little curious about Blaze possibly being a warlock?” asked Posy.

“He’s not,” Lillith answered quickly, shaking her head. Her heart went out to Blaze. It seemed like everyone was against him, and she wanted to be that one person who would defend him. Even if she was a little skeptical and angrier than hell that he’d lied to her about the warlock issue, part of her still loved him. She had been listening for too many years to her father and his opinions about the Paynes. Blaze was right. She did carry her late father’s attitudes and beliefs and that didn’t sit right with her. She had never let anyone sway her decisions. What was happening to her? She didn’t want to see anything bad happen to Blaze or his family.

“Sister, his mother is a witch and everyone knows it,” said Serena. “You heard her talking about those cards she reads. Didn’t you ever know about it?”

“Me?” Lillith didn’t want to admit that she had known about the cards. She also didn’t want to be part of this conversation any longer. Just needing to get away from Posy and Serena, she agreed to the task after all.

“Sister?” asked Serena, waiting for her answer.