Prologue - 10
You don't remember what happened before you got here, but as far as things look to you, you were having a normal conversation with this woman, who seems to be showing you around the manor properly. Something about tubes nags at you at the back of your mind, but you're not certain what it was as the thought melts away like mercury.
Perhaps it would be rude to ask who the woman is, just now, so you smile and nod as she keeps talking. It seems like she is talking about your late aunt and her undeserved bad reputation among the townspeople.
"Sorry, I'm still not very used to the house... where are we going again?" you ventured.
She pauses, "Oh, we're going to the chapel, I can prove to you that Ms. Fergusion keeps it in pristine condition. Well, she used to. Now I keep it tidy, like the rest of the house."
She sighs, "I do know, of course, that she's been missing for a long time now. But it didn't feel right, just taking my advance pay then not doing anything, especially not when Monty seems to be convinced she's still alive and keeping her flowers watered."
The two of you come upon a room that brings to your mind what you'd imagine a classroom in a Victorian boarding school would look like, except instead of a whiteboard there is a large cross of tarnished silver, and a lectern of dark oak. You wonder if the rows of pews signified a time when the family was larger, or whether it was planning ahead for the future.
The maid walks over to the windows, opening them and seemingly proudly presenting the stained glass panes, depicting Christian scenes.
A strange dark stain behind the lectern catches your eyes. You walk over to see that the floor and lectern are covered in blood. The Bible, opened and dust-free, sits over the stain like tablecloths over a corpse. Looking at it up close, you realize that the book is fairly new.
"I- Uh- Why is there blood here?" you asked her.
"What?" the maid turns over to you slowly, blinking.
"There's blood on the lectern, and all over the floor here,"
She slowly walks over to join you, frowning as she looks at the blood, "Oh! I'll get it cleaned up!" she says as she makes a move to leave the room.
- "Okay. Well. That's, uh. Great." Let her clean it up while you go do something else. Like getting breakfast.
- "Yeah, but, why is there blood on the lectern?"