The Riddle Of Us (Lesbian, Girlxgirl, Gay)

Chapter 10

A/N: I updated chapter 9 today too. Go back if you haven't read that yet.

Chapter10

The town square was a twenty-minute walk from the Ashborne castle. Vera was surprised that it was so near. In a large place like Luca where, according to Margaret's suicide letter, the Price's had settled to cultivate land, she expected that the town square wouldn't have been accessed so easily, yet there it was, as real as the sun glaring at their faces.

"I'm right," Nyx said. "The statue in the second clue can be found here."

Vera shielded her eyes. The town square could be as big or bigger than a football stadium. It was hard to guess. All she knew was how it was surrounded by taller houses and had a good view of the castle, as if it was the sea reaching out to the lighthouse in the distance.

"Shall we take a look, Lady Ash—"

Vera had already taken her steps towards the plaza even before the invitation. Nyx, brows furrowing, followed right behind her.

The statue was the centerpiece of the whole place, if not the main attraction. With its substantial size and height, it was hard to miss when coming down the area, but really, it was the way it was positioned that would make any passerby stop and stare.

"It's pointing somewhere." Nyx gave a furtive glance over her shoulder. "She, is pointing somewhere."

The hair on Vera's arms slowly stood to attention. She didn't know why, but something about the statue felt off. Something about the woman who it was sculpted after, or maybe it was just her imagination. She had never seen such a vivid piece of art— something that could even rival the ones she'd visited in the Louvre with her parents.

Nyx, who was equally curious, slowly circled the figure. It was wide enough so both of them couldn't meet their hands if they embraced it together. It was taller than the two of them combined.

"What do you think are we supposed to do here?" the Price said as she disappeared behind the statue. "Do you think we have to go to the direction where it's pointing?"

Vera was tempted not to answer. But if she kept her silence, they'd be going in circles. She had no more time for that, especially now that her uncertainty with Nyx had developed into frustration. "I don't think we're supposed to leave here yet," she said. "The clue in the notebook said to reach the statue and the square. What's the point if it will lead us elsewhere?"

"Okay." Nyx reappeared. "Should we search the statue then? Maybe there's something sticking somewhere."

The two of them immediately inspected the figure, dividing the search front and back. Nyx made comments here and there about how the statue looked as if it would spring to life anytime, but Vera kept her mouth shut, more concerned at the heat rising on her neck. Besides, the statute deserved admiration, and Vera would give it no less.

Whoever it was sculpted after was wearing clothes fit in the later years of the 18th century; A riding dress that could be pushed away when mounting a horse, shoes that were made to withstand heavy mud, gloves that protected the woman's pointed hand. But aside from those, what Vera found most fascinating were the fine details. How the skirt that was made of stone seemed to billow in the wind. How the hat atop the sculpture's head seemed to be mid-fall when it was carved.