The Demon’s Bride

Elise stared at Ian after her question. His handsome face was colored with shadows and the yellow light which came from the flame in the candlestick placed on the desk. His long hair was kept untamed and freely fell over his face, giving him a casual look.

While watching him, Elise saw how Ian's smile turned broadened his eyes crinkling with amusement as of wanting to praise her but suddenly a frown appeared on his brows which she noticed. "I smell blood, did you hurt yourself?" asked Ian to her.

Elise wondered if she was hurt as she didn't feel injured since she entered the room. Yet as soon after Ian's question, Elise winced, cold sweats breaking to her face where it turned painful that Elise had to clutch in the surface of the sofa.

"It hurts," was the only words Elise managed to say as she gritted her teeth. Since young she couldn't tell if she felt hurt and perhaps it was the reason why pain sometimes was slow acting to her body. But this pain felt hurt, as if a hundred pins were struck on her body.

"The wounds are on your back," Ian asserted, pushing himself by his feet, he walked to her seat to take the candle on one hand as his other hand went to turn Elise's body when he saw how her white nightgown had turned soaked in red. Upon seeing the color, the color of eyes darkened. Ian placed the candlestick aside, "Lift your skirt, Elise."

Elise felt embarrassed but this wasn't the time for her to be shy which she knew. Pulling the hem of her dress, Elise thanked herself for choosing a thicker nightgown material than the one she used before where it almost looked sheer. Elise pulled her night gown to roll it and pin it with her hands in front of her chest.

"Pull it a little higher," Ian instructed and Elise felt her breath shuddering from the pain and his instruction.

Ian saw the wide wound on her back which started from her right shoulder down to her lower ribs by now most humans would have screamed or cried but Elise managed to keep down her pain by biting to her lips. His eye color continued to darkened as the flowers which was placed inside the vase outside the room had turned to dusts.

Ian reached out his hand, swiping it to Elise's lower lips which quivered when it come to contact with his hands, "Don't bite it, you could also bite your tongue if you keep that up." Ian whispered to her ears before observing how this wound was made clean as if Elise was clawed by something or perhaps a dagger had ran down her back.

In one second, Elise felt all pain from her body disappeared like magic. Elise turned to see that Ian had indeed used his magic to stop the pain and heal her wound.

"I almost thought you were going to kill yourself up there," Ian remarked his red eyes seemed to be calm and starting something. As he there was no joking tone in his voice, Elise felt the air was turning strained.

"I wasn't going to kill myself," defended Elise. If she was going to kill herself, she wouldn't use such a frightening death method either thought Elise to herself. She may be alone in the world, feeling sad for the loss of her family where there was a gaping hole in her chest she felt but to kill herself was something she didn't want nor what her family would wish for.

"I was joking dear, if you were thinking of such a thing I would use my ways to change your mind, the world is ugly but with me it isn't, don't you agree?" Ian raised one of his brows at her where his lips tilting to a grin to turn the air better for her. He knew how when he didn't joke his voice would taunt humans and he didn't want to do that to Elise who was currently shaken.

Elise didn't know what to reply. In the position she was, where her bottom were exposed and the swell of her breasts, she felt her words dried up in her throat even though she wanted to agree. Instead, Elise nodded her head slowly and the lone action widened Ian's smile.

"What happened?" Ian then asked, letting Elise's night gown to fall and the girl quickly fix her dress where it wouldn't crumple and cover her bottom which was exposed earlier.

"I'm not sure, Master Ian. I was in my room, sleeping when I heard someone singing," Singing? Ian rose one of his brows as he hadn't heard any sound. Out of every being or creature living in the house he was by far the one who held the sharpest hearing, yet he didn't heard ut at all.

Elise continued to say with her tone unsure, "I brought a candle with me and went out to see who was singing but suddenly I felt my body was not moving as I want. Then the flame on the candle was blown and when I open my eyes I found myself on the roof."

"I assume you've never went to the roof or learn how to go there?" questioned Ian, his red eyes watching her every change of expression keenly.

Elise brought her head left and right, "No, I never." Elise curled her lips and furrowed her brows, "I felt someone pushed me from the roof."

"Where did you feel it?" Ian continued to ask her.

"On my back," Elise found a thought and continued, "perhaps that when I also acquired this wound but there wasn't anyone on the roof or behind me." It sounded weird and eerie but that what happened to her which she felt it did. She didn't know when she had been dreaming and when was the reality.

Ian's eyes narrowed sharply at her explanation, without changing his tone, Ian called, "Maroon."

As if right on time in less than a second, a click came from Ian's door which then open for the butler with the dull red hair and dull gray eyes came inside the room. Maroon was quick to be under Ian's service and his head bowed to curtsy.

"Gather all maids to the hall, don't leave any one of them," ordered Ian, who then stood from the seat.

"Yes, milord," obliged Maroon to leave and close the door, before leaving, his eyes met Elise and the man's gray eyes narrowed at the smell of blood. It would seem today Vervor's body would not be the only corpse to be buried under White Mansion's soil. The butler then thought to fetch his shovel from his room which would come in need.

"Why the maids?" Elise was still confused on what and why Ian had called the maids, wouldn't she need to be there too?

"It's voodoo magic." Ian said, there was cruel glint appearing to his eyes. "Someone in this house use black magic to curse you to death."

It took Ian a while to realized this. Knowing Elise could see ghosts, Ian thought this happened with her power as the sweet child constantly growing. The first time didn't seem to be very much out of place as it felt as if Elise's pure soul was the one that had moved her body to the place where most ghost would stay at, the dungeon. The wound, however, didn't fit to the sequence.