Eleanor perked up upon hearing that Ella had stated. "You're right! I forgot about him. Richard didn't say a word about him, either, and it feels like he didn't exist at all."
"Maybe he can find a solution for us, Mama. After all, he's supposed to be the heir to the title of a Viscount, right?" Ella smiled as if she had found a solution to their problem.
"Yes, yes. I should send him a letter. For now, take a good rest, Ella. I'll sort this out," Eleanor kissed Ella on the forehead before standing up and running toward Richard's office to look for the documents about the heir.
Ella watched her Mama with a lightened expression. "I hope this works," she whispered. She sat on the nearby chair and stared at the ceiling. "William, I think that's his name…. And he's currently being educated in a school."
Ella sighed deeply. "I wonder how it felt to be in a school," she said, closing her eyes as the heaviness weighed in.
In their time, it was protocol that noblemen were the only ones allowed to attend schools to further enhance their skills, especially if they were an heir to a title.
Noblewomen were mostly homeschooled by tutors, and the instruction was gentle, focusing on ornamental subjects such as music, embroidery, and etiquette for entertaining guests, and just enough arithmetic to manage a household allowance. Never enough to understand contracts, or how to get power.
Eleanor had taught Ella basic skills, but not enough to be equal to a noble teaching.
"Ah, I should go back to my room. I'm so sleepy from all this crying," Ella muttered to herself, and left the room in haste.
Day turned to night, and after hours of sleeping, Ella finally woke up due to hunger. She hadn't eaten anything since then.
"Ah! I'm so thirsty… and hungry!" Ella exclaimed, stretching her body. Her room was dark since she hadn't lit up a candle before sleep. It was also cold.
Ella wrapped a blanket around herself and went out. Since it was late at night, the servants were already in bed.
"It's a bit scary here," Ella whispered as she put her hand to glide against the wall to guide herself, as her eyes were still adjusting to the dark.
The kitchen was dim, lit only by the dying candles. "Okay, I will just heat up milk and grab some bread," Ella whispered while rummaging in the cabinets.
Ella started the fire and put the milk. While waiting for it to warm up, she grabbed some bread and put it in a small tray to bring it to her room later.
"It's so quiet," Ella muttered while swaying her legs while sitting on the table. That was when she heard a faint sound of chains clicking together.
Goosebumps appeared on Ella's skin, and cold sweat formed on her forehead. She looked around and saw no one. The darkness around made it creepier.
"Come on," Ella whispered as she jumped down from the table and looked if her milk was already warm since she wanted to get away from the kitchen as fast as possible.
The milk began to steam, a thin skin trembling on its surface.
Click.
Ella froze.
It came again, soft and metallic. Not loud enough to be deliberate, and not sharp enough to be accidental.
Ella's breath hitched. "It's just a house," she whispered, though the manor had never sounded like that before.
When the milk was done, Ella poured it into a cup with trembling hands, nearly spilling over the rim. The tray felt heavier than it should have as she lifted it, her arms stiff and her ears straining. She took one step toward the door.
Click… click
Closer this time.
Ella swallowed. Her heart beat so loudly she was sure it would give her away to whatever lurked in the dark. She turned, not toward the kitchen door, but toward the narrow corridor beside the pantry. It was a servant's passage, seldom used because it was old, and most servants used a different one.
It was basically abandoned.
Ella had walked past it countless times and never once wondered where it led.
The sound came from there.
"Should I… I'll just look," Ella murmured, more to keep herself from running than out of courage, but also, she was curious. "Just a peek."
Ella grabbed the candle from the kitchen and carried it with her. Its flame was small and trembling. She stepped into the passage and felt the air grow colder instantly, damp, and stale.
At the very end stood a wall that wasn't quite a wall.
"This is a dead end," Ella rolled her eyes and sighed in relief. "Ah, I'm sure this is just stress, and I'm just imagining things! Haha!" She laughed and was about to leave when she noticed something.
The stone in the middle of the wall was cleaner, with less dust. A faint seam ran down the middle, almost invisible unless one knew to look.
"Huh? What is this?" Ella whispered as her fingers brushed against the stone, and she felt she could push it; she did. Then, the panel shifted.
Ella gasped as the hidden door creaked open, the sound long and gruesome. Beyond it was a narrow stairway descending into darkness.
"Nope… No," Ella whispered. "No, no, no…"
And yet, Ella stepped forward.
"This better not be creepy," Ella said as she continued walking.
The stairs led to a room, barely larger than a storage cellar. The ceiling was low, and the walls were sweating with moisture.
The smell struck Ella first—rust, mold, and something she couldn't explain.
"Hmm, it's locked," Ella stated after seeing a lock on the door. She placed the items she was carrying on the floor and gazed at the lock, looking at its structure.
"This is a high-quality lock. I wonder what's inside to use this kind of quality…" Ella stated in amusement. Then a fire inside her burst. An excitement she had forgotten to feel.