A fox in the snow

Chapter 5

"Oof... At last... Aersberg," said Dylan with a smile, dismounting from his horse and helping Lilith. "It was a long, tiring journey, but check this out guys..." He looked on with admiration at the dainty little village.

They were dressed as townsfolk and wore wigs so that they won't be easily recognized. The village folk were engaged in their business, as it was a busy hour.

Lilith, Melissa, and Ethan explored the various stalls, passing by an array of quaint handicrafts, specially made by the villagers.

Dylan remained with Heather, who was famished by the hectic journey and had a sore back. She couldn't move an inch and rested under the shade of a giant oak tree. Dylan sat beside her, taking in the surroundings.

"Excuse me..." Lilith approached a fishmonger. He surveyed her from head to toe.

"You're... not from around here?" He asked.

"No," she replied. "We came here to meet a person named Robert Woods."

He frowned at her. "Do you know him?"

"Uhh yes. He was one of my father's close friends-"

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"So doesn't your father know he passed away thirteen years ago?"

Passed away?

"Umm yes. We wanted to meet his family. Do you know where they live?"

"You've never come here before?"

Why are you asking me so many questions?

"Reminds me of Heather. Poking her nose into everyone's business," Ethan whispered in Lilith's ear. She chuckled under her breath.

"What did 'e say?" the fishmonger asked, sour-faced.

"He said your catch looks really fresh," said Melissa.

"Of course they are! Caught 'em at dawn today," he said, gesturing at the catch, glistening in the sun. "Do you want some?" he asked, unaware of the change in topic.

"Buy some fish and then ask him for directions," Melissa advised.

     *                          *                           *

After some time, Dylan saw Ethan, Lilith, and Melissa approaching and nudged Heather to wake her up. He saw the packet in Ethan's hand.

"What's that?"

"Fish."

"Fish? For what? Reunion present for Martha?" Dylan joked.

Lilith simply scoffed and walked ahead.

They walked around three kilometres, passing by an old church and a paddy field, and several brick cottages.

At last, they reached a small thatched hut with a little vegetable garden and a well. Lilith took a deep breath and pushed the fence open. The door was ajar, but she knocked anyway.

"Who's there?" A sweet voice asked from inside and they heard footsteps approaching.

A plump woman probably in her mid-forties, answered the door. She looked at the group smiling and asked, "How may I help you, kids?" She had a motherly tenderness in her voice.

She wiped her wet hands on her apron which was tied in the front. When she smiled, a cute little dimple appeared on her left cheek. Her red hair was tied up in a bun, with a few loose strands. Her green eyes looked at them coolly, waiting for a reply.

Dylan nudged Lilith to say something. That's when she realized that she'd been staring at the lady for quite some time.

"We... are here to meet someone by the name Martha," she said.

"Yes, that's me. What do you want?"

"Umm... I have to tell you something..."

"What is it?"

"Uh...I..."

"She's your daughter," completed Heather, nonchalantly. The rest of them, including Martha, looked at her.

Martha slowly shifted her gaze to Lilith. Her eyes turned wide when Lilith removed her ebony black hair wig to reveal red tresses identical to Martha's. And of course, their eyes were the same. Martha knew she was telling the truth.

Martha stared in disbelief for a few moments and then took a few steps backwards.

"I...I DON'T have a daughter!" She slammed the door shut and stormed inside.

"Well, that didn't go well," Ethan sighed, biting his lip.

Lilith was in no mood to give up either.

"WE'RE HERE TO TALK TO YOU! PLEASE OPEN THE DOOR! I KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED!" She screamed at the top of her voice and banged on the door, venting her frustration.

They heard footsteps returning to the front door. This time, however, she was stomping.

"Oh no, you don't!" Martha said angrily, opening the door again. "How did you know about all this anyway? Letters? Postcards?"

"Dad's diary... but how did you know that my dad did not tell me about it?"

"I know your Dad too well, that's why. He must've sworn to his Father to keep it a secret. Also, the devil by his side would've threatened him."

"Hey! That's my mom you're talking about!" Lilith said, pretending to be offended. In reality, she'd have called Catherine a devil, right on her face.

"I'm your mom, not that witch!"

"You just said that you don't have a daughter," Lilith said, smirking.

Martha smiled wryly. "Come in, kids." She ushered them in and gave them each a glass of goat milk. It was a neat little hut with just two rooms and not many amenities. But she seemed content.

"A part of me always wished to know how my daughter was doing," she said, patting Lilith's head affectionately. "But another part of me was unwilling to accept you because your father tore us apart, and I had no intention of mending it."

Lilith looked sceptical. "That's one thing I didn't quite understand. Why didn't Dad take both of us to the palace, me and my brother?"

"Aeden."

"What?"

"Aeden. Your brother's name."

"Oh, okay," she smiled at the thought of having a sibling. She'd longed for one, for many years. Though this was unexpected, to say the least, she felt lucky somehow.

Martha broke her chain of thought. "To know why our happy family was torn apart, you must know who I am."

~Author's note

They reached Aersberg, only to be pulled into another string of mysteries. What do you think is Martha going to reveal? Will you be able to meet Lilith's twin Aeden in the next chapter?

Also, which of these characters did you like the most? Why?

Again, this is a rather short chapter but I promise you, this story is gonna be one heck of a ride. Thanks a lot for your comments and votes, I always look forward to them.

Like always, if you enjoyed the story so far, do drop a ⭐.

Happy Reading!