224 Returning home
When Vincent and Eve returned to the Moriarty mansion, Vincent was the first to unmount from the horse and Eve was next.
Seeing the horses arrive, Alfie quickly stepped out of the mansion and ordered the servant to take the horses back to the stable. When he noticed his master’s ripped clothes on his back, the butler’s gaze moved to look at the governess. He ran back inside the mansion and returned with an overcoat that belonged to Vincent.
Once the butler helped Vincent wear his coat, he asked, “Shall I ask Briggs to pull the carriage to the front, Master Vincent?” Receiving a nod, he left.
“Thank you for confirming that my mother’s body has been dug out today. I will be able to be at ease after burying her,” Eve thanked him, while they stood near the pillar. “Have you ever used the witch’s finding skills before?”
“I don’t lose things that easily, and what I want to find cannot be found with what I have,” Vincent spoke in vagueness, but Eve wondered if it was vague. He said, “It is important to have blood to find the person and name. Dead or alive.”
“Then why did you earlier ask for my hair?” Eve’s curious eyes questioned him, and his lips twisted.
“Just for fun,” responded Vincent, staring at her. “Also, it isn’t every day a witch complies to your words. We were lucky that she located your mother, most of them attempt another spell that backfires. When we were kidnapped, my father had sent men to look for witches to locate me and Marceline, but the witches killed all of his men, and it caused a delay in the search.”
Eve noticed how nonchalant Vincent was about the incident that had occurred in the past. The sky had turned dark, and clouds clashed against each other, containing lightning within themselves.
When Vincent continued to stare at her, Eve couldn’t look at him anymore without taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. At the same time, a carriage entered through the gates of Moriarty mansion, and he remarked,
“Looks like you can use this carriage, while I use mine.”
The carriage paused, and before the coachman could get to the door to open it, a furious-looking Marceline opened the door with a thud. The coachman, who was about to open the door, got smacked by it. He held his nose and stumbled back.
Marceline didn’t see Vincent or Eve standing at the side and stormed right inside the mansion.
“Now that, that is my sister Marceline,” the smile on Vincent’s lips turned wicked as if he picked the scent of wolves on Marceline. He wondered what had got her in such a mood.
Vincent whistled to receive the attention of Marceline’s coachman, who bowed at him with his hand still covering his nose.
“What did you do to make Marceline angry?” Vincent demanded, his coppery-red eyes subtly narrowing. The coachman felt the air around him turn heavy and thick.
The condition wasn’t any less for the other servants who worked for the Moriarty family, being stuck between the two siblings. As he was Marceline’s coachman, he couldn’t reveal the entire truth. But at the same time, it was hard for anyone to deal with Vincent Moriarty; a lie could get him in trouble.
“I didn’t do anything, Master Vincent. I was only waiting for her to return,” the coachman attempted to wiggle out of the situation.
“And?” Eve heard Vincent push the servant to continue to speak.
The coachman slightly lifted his head, looking at the mansion’s entrance where the vampiress had stepped into and saw she was out of sight. He then quickly said,
“We were in Woodlock. I saw Lady Marceline step inside the local carriage and leave the town. She returned after a few minutes, sweaty and in a foul mood… She was scolding about the local carriage being dirty and the coachman not having ears. I don’t know why she got on the local carriage…”
“My my. How rare for my sister to use a carriage beneath her taste,” Vincent sounded more than pleased and his eyes shined in pure evilness. He ordered the coachman, “Take Ms. Barlow to Meadow and drop her at her home.”
The coachman bowed, obliging to Vincent’s words, and while he turned the carriage around, Eve said to Vincent,
“I will see you tomorrow.”
Vincent tilted his head, offering her a bright smile, “Is it my imagination or do I sense a touch of sorrow in the tone of your words. Want me to drop by your home tonight to wish you a good night?”
“No,” Eve’s quick refusal just made Vincent want to annoy her that much more. “Once I reach home I will be sleeping soon.”
“Mm,” Vincent’s eyes glowed, and he said, “It does seem like something is different in you today than yesterday, isn’t it?” Though the mermaid’s eyes were often soft on everyone, with him in particular, Eve had always seen him with a look of suspicion and a glare next to it, which had mellowed. “I didn’t take you to be someone who is easily swayed by my words,” he taunted her.
“I think you are imagining things now. If possible, you should probably get some rest too.”
“How thoughtful. More than rest, I am thirsty,” the smile on Vincent’s lips turned into something unreadable, and he said, “Let us hope it is what you say.”
The carriage halted, and the coachman pulled the carriage door for Eve to step in. Before she could get inside, Vincent wished her,
“It was good to ride together and hunt down a witch, wasn’t it? Sweet dreams, Eve.”
The way he wished her, Eve was worried about him appearing in her dream. She wished him back, “Goodnight, Vincent.”
Stepping inside the carriage, Eve sat down, while the coachman closed the door and walked to the front of the vehicle to take his seat. Their eyes met as if they wouldn’t see each other again, but the night was long and it had only begun.
Soon the carriage was pulled away from the Moriarty mansion and on the road, while Vincent got on his own carriage to travel to Darthmore.