Chapter 113 Chapter 113
Violet
Every eye turned to look up at me except uncle Raymond’s.
It was a subtle dig wrapped in false consideration, a classic Nicole move where she pointed out that I wasn't family while simultaneously volunteering me for a family duty. And she'd done it loudly enough that refusing would make me look ungracious.
"I'd be happy to," I said with as much dignity as I could muster.
Nicole's smile turned triumphant. "You're such a darling. I knew I could count on you." She air-kissed near my cheek, her voice dropping to a whisper only I could hear. "Try not to bore him too much. Though I suppose he won't notice either way."
She swept past me with Veronica and Madison in tow, already chattering about boutiques and champagne lunches.
“Oh well thats settled then. We shall go take a nap. We have something to discuss with Lia”
Aunt Thelma said looking at Lady Aurelia who didn’t appear all too pleased.
“Sure”
I stood there awkwardly, suddenly alone with the silent man in the wheelchair and his patient nurse.
"Don't mind her," Cassie's voice came from behind me. She must have returned from whatever phone call she was on. "Nicole wouldn't know genuine kindness if it bit her."
"It's fine," I murmured, though we both knew it wasn't.
"Would you like me to come with you?" Cassie offered.
I glanced at Uncle Raymond's blank face and at the nurse's encouraging nod. "No, it's okay. I could use the distraction anyway."
Cassie squeezed my arm. "Shout if you need rescuing."
The nurse who introduced herself as Mrs. Patricia, seemed relieved to have a break. "I'll be in the kitchen having tea if you need me. Raymond is quite docile, don't worry. He won't wander off or cause any trouble. He just... sits."
"Of course," I said, moving behind the wheelchair. "We'll be fine."
The handles were cold under my palms as I began pushing Uncle Raymond through the manor. He sat perfectly still, his hands folded in his lap, his gaze fixed on nothing.
"I'm Violet," I said, feeling foolish talking to someone who wouldn't or maybe couldn’t respond. "I'm staying here temporarily. Not by choice, really, but... anyway." I cleared my throat. "Let's start with the portrait gallery, shall we?"
I wheeled him down the west corridor, pointing out paintings and explaining their subjects as if he could hear me, recalling whatever bits Cassie had told me during my tour of the manor. It felt absurd, but somehow less absurd than staring at the dress and waiting to see an invisible hand wanting to choke me.
"This is supposedly the third Deveraux Alpha," I said, gesturing to a stern-faced woman in elaborate robes. "Though honestly, half these portraits look like they're scowling at you. Must be a family trait."
I attempted a joke but he didn’t even blink.
Uncle Raymond remained perfectly, eerily still.
We were passing through the second-floor corridor when we approached the large gilded mirror where I'd seen shadows and symbols I didn't understand, and where my reflection had seemed wrong somehow.
I slowed instinctively, my skin prickling with awareness. Even now, in the daylight, the mirror seemed to make my skin prickle with unease.
"Just a mirror," I muttered to myself. "A very expensive, very old mirror that definitely isn't—"
"Broken."
I froze. The word had been barely a whisper, but it had definitely not come from my mouth.
My heart hammering, I moved around to face him. His expression hadn't changed, it was still blank and staring at nothing. But his right hand had lifted with one finger extended, and pointing directly at the mirror.
"Broken," he repeated, his voice rough from disuse. "The glass. The binding. All broken."
"Uncle Raymond?" I knelt beside the wheelchair, trying to catch his gaze. "What do you mean? What's broken?"
His finger remained pointed at the mirror, unwavering. "But she's trying to come through. She sees them. She knows."
A chill raced down my spine. "Who? Who sees them?"
Before he could answer, someone shouted out loud, making me jump.
"Raymond! When did you arrive?"
Alpha Alaric's voice cracked through the corridor like a whip. I jerked upright as he strode toward us, his expression thunderous.
"What are you doing with him?" Alpha Alaric demanded, his eyes darting between me and his uncle.
"I was just showing him around, like the aunts suggested"
Alpha Alaric's jaw was tight. He snapped his fingers, and two maids appeared seemingly from nowhere. "Take him to the east wing and make sure he's comfortable."
"But he was speaking," I said, my voice coming out smaller than I intended.
"My uncle hasn't spoken in fifteen years," Alpha Alaric cut me off coldly. "Whatever you think you heard was your imagination."
The maids moved to take the wheelchair handles. I stepped back, but not before catching Uncle Raymond's eyes one last time. They'd gone blank again, empty and distant, as if the moment of clarity had never happened.
But I knew what I'd heard.
"Violet." Alaric's voice pulled my attention back to him. "A word of advice. My uncle's condition is... delicate. The doctors have warned us that strangers sometimes trigger episodes such as hallucinations so it's best if you keep your distance."
"But he seemed lucid"
"He wasn't." Alaric's tone left no room for argument. "And spreading rumors about his ramblings would be unkind. To him and to this family. To our family.”
It wasn't a request but a subtle warning.
"Of course," I said quietly. "I apologize if I overstepped."
Alpha Alaric's expression softened slightly, though it didn't reach his eyes. "No harm done. Just... be more careful. The manor has many guests right now, and we wouldn't want any misunderstandings."
He turned and strode away, leaving me standing alone in the corridor, my heart still racing.
I looked back at the mirror. In the reflection, I could see the maids wheeling Uncle Raymond away, his posture as rigid and blank as before.
But I knew what he'd said. I'd heard it clearly.
I stepped closer to the mirror, studying my reflection. For a moment, I thought I saw movement in the shadows behind me as if a figure that wasn't quite there was watching me.
I blinked, and it was gone.