Ordained

Chapter Eighteen

A loud bang shattered the peace that clung to the estate, making Emmeline jump and let out a tiny shriek. Whirling frantically around for the source of the sound she hardly had time to make a full rotation when another boom echoed harshly through the quiet. Pressing her hand to her chest, feeling the pounding of her heart she cursed.

Gun fire.

Her father had insisted with almost maniacal fervour that her brothers became adept marksmen. A range had been set at the back of their estate, the distance meant to dampen the sound, but there was little to stop the thunderous booms of gunfire that punched through the air.

Emmeline chastised herself for being so spooked, looking around more keenly for the tell tell signs of smoke. Spotting a pair of thin winding trails in the air, she headed for the whispish indicators of other people in the sprawling gardens.

She heard them before she saw them. It was somewhat odd she thought to herself, how unnaturally quiet it was here. Her father's lands back home had been somewhat isolated but there was always a light din of the nearby towns in the far distance. Here, even though she could see the villages below if she wished, she couldn't hear a thing. It was nice in a way, she supposed, it just felt unfamiliar for there to be so little noise.

Another shot made her flinch, her nose scrunching in distaste. What was she saying about it being too quiet again?

It didn't take her long to spot the source of the sound. Cassius and his father, along with a small collection of servants, stood with rifles in hand. Cassius appeared to be laughing, the sound faintly reaching her. His head was tilted back, his hand on his stomach, his strong frame seeming all the taller for it. Maybe it was the gunfire that he dampened her hearing, but she struggled to hear what the two men were saying. All that reached her were sounds too indistinguishable to decipher.

Part of her thought about moving closer, even announcing herself but watching her pair smile so widely, in a way he had never done in her presence made her retreat.

She wasn't sure how she'd feel seeing that smile fall off his face when he saw her.

Suddenly, Emmeline found that she didn't want to be in the gardens. Actually she didn't want to be outside at all. Wrapping her arms tightly around herself she hardly registered the interesting plants, or manicured rose bushes, or beautiful water features she passed by, as she made a beeline back to the manor.

As was a habit of hers, her thoughts began to spiral downward. Carmen's jabs at her last night, Victor's condensing expression, Cassius' sarcasm. "Well, somewhat." All of it replayed in her mind as she blindly walked back into the warmth of the manor.

No. She felt herself slipping, the overwhelming wave of anxiety threatened to crash over her as her steps picked up the pace.

She wasn't wanted here.

She didn't belong here.

But she had nowhere to go.

She couldn't go home.

She couldn't stay here.

She, she, she...

Emmeline was brought up short by the smell that hit her as she threw open yet another set of doors. She hadn't been looking where she was going, her eyes seeing but her thoughts clouding her comprehension. As if desperately clinging to her plan from that morning of exploring the house, she had almost ran through the hallways that led her to here. Like if she just went back to exploring she could push back down this gnawing panic that she was barely keeping down.

That was, until she opened these particular doors.

Musty, yet pleasant. Dry, cosy, and warm. The sounds of an unseen crackling fire joined the smells that Emmeline recognised at once as the distinctive scent of a well stocked library. Still holding tightly onto the doorknob her knuckles were white with the strain as she stared wide-eyed around the room. Well, what she could see of the vast hall.

Private libraries had once been all the rage. Her mother had come from a house that was known for its impressive collection of rare books. It had been a fad to boast of a large library, some ladies even holding tea parties inside to show off their ability to procure the expensive symbols of a good education. She didn't know if her mother had had a library at her home on the Elva estates; if there had been then her father had sold it long ago, and no one ever took kindly to her asking questions about the mother everyone blamed her for killing.

She liked to think there had been a library once. That her mother had enjoyed reading just as much as she had. It warmed her to imagine this connection to the parent she hadn't known.

The carpet was plush as she took a tentative step inside. There were other people here, on the mezzanine level above her she could see a few people fetching tomes from the shelves. The sounds of turning pages, that ever so subtle rustling, also told her she was not alone in this most wonderful of discoveries. There were a great many freestanding bookshelves, many feet long and high, ladders on runners were attached to each, and as Emmeline stepped further inside she could see there were many, many rows of such shelves.

This had to be one of the largest rooms in the entire place, she thought as she walked past several desks, some occupied by men who gave her curious glances.

Nestled in the alcove of each window were a pair of chairs and small tables. Emmeline found herself gripping her hands together with joy as she realised that she wouldn't have to spend all her time outside if she wanted some peace here. This library would be her sanctuary. 

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Author's Note:

Be honest, all of us would hide in the library too. 

Vote, comment, enjoy.

Sophie