DEVILLE

Chapter Ten: Things Better Left Unsaid

(Willow's POV)

After a few minutes of small talk in between bites, I finally push the plate away before I give myself a stomach ache.

Man, that food was definitely fire.

"Well, I can see you definitely enjoyed your meal." Walt says smiling at me warmly as he waves over a servant to come collect the plates from the table. "So, Willow... How are you liking New Carfax?" He questions and follows it up with a sip from his glass.

Do I tell him the truth? I mean how does one explain that they had a horrendous nightmare that someone drank their blood and not sound like a crazy person? I can't do it, no way. I will however pick his brain on whether or not the place is haunted though. Those screams throughout the night really creeped me out and I'd like to know if it will be a reoccurring thing.

"Well..." I start but trail off for a moment trying to find a polite way to say what I'm about to say. "I'll just get to the point... Is New Carfax haunted?" I quickly ask as blood rushes to my cheeks and my face begins to get really hot.

He smiles at me and raises his brow, taking another sip from his drink. He's either amused or I've caught him off guard with such an absurd question. Let's hope it's not either one of those and that I'm just overthinking it.

"Not that I'm aware of." He responds chuckling a bit. "Why do you ask?" he asks me, leaning back in his chair and crossing one leg over the other in a sophisticated manner.

Just tell him, Willow. If he thinks you're crazy you can just change the subject. No harm no foul.

"Last night I heard screams... Like women screaming in pain. And it's definitely not something that will lull a person to sleep." I say, quickly looking down to avoid eye contact.

Walt sits up a bit in his seat, adjusting to get a bit more comfortable after my question seems to have rattled him a bit. Maybe I'm just going crazy or something. New place and all I might just be uncomfortable.

No stop gaslighting yourself. Something is definitely off. Trust your gut.

After sitting in silence for what seems like forever but was definitely only a minute or two, Walt sucks in a bit of air through his teeth.

"Well, Willow that's definitely quite the conundrum. I honestly didn't hear anything from my room last night, but I'm also a heavy sleeper." He responds calmly and his answer is very poised and logical. I stare at him puzzled for a moment.

"I mean, if it's not haunted then I guess you're the one behind the blood curdling screams I heard all night last night." I joke, taking a drink from my coffee.

"Oh those screams? Yeah that actually was me." He says in a serious tone, staring through the slits in his eyes. Wait... Is he kidding? I can't tell if he's kidding. He then smiled at me before completely changing the subject. Maybe they have a different sense of humor over here. I don't know but it really doesn't ease my newfound discomfort.

"But... If you feel that uncomfortable alone in your room, maybe I could come stay with you this evening?" He asks with a somewhat hopeful look in his eyes.

Whoa what? Stay with me?

I look up from the ground and back at him for a moment, sucking in my bottom lip and gnawing on it. What a nervous and quite painful habit of mine.

"I-... Well... Maybe." I respond timidly as I try to avoid looking into his deep blue eyes. If I'm not careful, I'll get lost in them again and it'll be awkward having him pull me out.

"I'll let you think on it." he says as he stands up from the table, dusting his shirt off to make sure no crumbs lingered on it. I quickly stand so I don't seem disrespectful for not standing for a lord. This amuses him and he walks over to me and cups my cheek with his hand. I melt into him like velvet.

"Please don't be nervous around me, Willow. I'm a normal human being just like you. I promise, I'm not a threat." he says softly as he stares into my eyes making me weak in the knees. I nod slowly and push my bangs behind my ears so they no longer swirl around my face due to the wind.

"I mean... I'll most definitely try." I reply quietly as if my voice were no louder than a mere mouse. I'm unsure what it is about this man that makes my mind go blank. What's funny is I've never been this way with guys. My dominating personality is always a killer for my relationships, but with him? He makes my heart race and with that voice I'd do anything he asked of me.

After staring into his eyes for a moment and inevitably falling right into them as if they were the deep end of a pool, he brings me back to reality.

"Well, my darling Willow, I must be going." he says with a hint of disappointment in his voice. He gives me a light friend-like hug and walks off. "But please do think about my offer. I'll be waiting for your answer." he yells out to me as he continues his walk back into the manor.

I stand there for a moment, soaking in all of the good energy from that situation as a whole and trying to process my emotions rationally, instead of acting like a little school girl who's crush just told her that he liked her on the playground.

Stay calm, Willow.

Before I could completely process everything, my phone starts ringing. I look down and retrieve it from my back pocket and read the name that popped up on the screen. It's Rue! I answer and start squealing, inevitably letting myself down and failing at trying to have composure.

I then decided to take a walk down the little path that led into the woods right behind the manor. From there, I go on to tell Rue everything. From the car ride, to the screams and even the dream I had. She's just as puzzled as I am.

"Well forget about all of that spooky shit... How did the meeting with the record label go?" She asks and I go completely silent as if I were brain dead.

Oh my god. I totally forgot about all of that. I was so distracted by Walter and New Carfax, it completely slipped my mind.

"Well, Rue. I haven't had time but I'm gonna meet with Katherine today to set up a date and time for this week." I respond nervously, hoping I didn't piss her off. When she's mad, it's like hell getting her to forgive. She's just bitter that way.

"Alright girl, well I gotta go. Aiden is taking me out tonight." she says excitedly. I smile and lean against a tree listening to her ramble on about where they were going, what she was wearing and how she felt about the boy as a whole. I'm so happy for her. She deserves this.

"Alright, well I love you and have fun." I say calmly as I stare off into the woods and watch the leaves fall from the trees onto the dirt.

"I love you! Call me when you can and don't leave us hanging!" she responds. I hang up the phone and take a deep breath in. Now to call Katherine and set this meeting up.