章 7: The window
Lilith danced her eyes on the structure of the bathroom, the green walls were tainted black, perhaps due to the house’s old age. How long has this mansion stood strong?
She took the robe that hang where the maid had left for Lilith. She opened the bathroom door and was greeted by the maid.
Was she standing there the whole time waiting for Lilith to finish her bath?
Lilith was surprised by her sudden appearance, the maid then started to walk as if telling Lilith to follow her, and so Lilith did.
The house was too big that made her count each door that passed on their way, she wandered the numbers of windows in the mansion as well as the closed rooms. It was spacious yet felt narrow.
Drops of water from her hair drenched the wooden dark-browned floor. As they walk this never-ending corridor, she noticed some of the wallpapers were about to easily come off.
Lilith leaned closer to the wall and out of fun, she strip down one of the loosed parts of the wallpaper. A cockroach crawled out from the wall which surprised Lilith. She continued to walk on the Jacobean floor, disturbed by the insect.
The maid stopped before a door and turned to Lilith,
“Madam, I have prepared your chamber. Please rest well” she glanced to Lilith’s eyes, and walked away.
Lilith turned the knob open. A bed, a thin closet, and a small table were the only things present in the wide space room. The walls were scratched, and wallpapers were no different from the state of wallpapers outside the room.
The ceiling was not filled with cobwebs, thankfully, but it was indented by dried waters. There was a lamp on the bedside table that dimly lighted the room.
The window was noticeable, about a size of a full horizontal human body wide. It was as if the construction workers were lazy to cover the big hole in the house with blocks or bricks and put a window instead.
However, it provides a full view of the moon and the outside of the mansion, the moon looked big from this height.
Although the furniture in the room were a disappointment, the window view was shockingly beautiful.
Lilith drew open the wardrobe, and in her relief, they were not drowned in dust nor chewed by insects.
Although in good state, they are rather old-fashioned. She grabbed a white nightgown, with small ruffles on its ends and its long sleeves. Her wet dark hair dripped on the dress, took the robe as a towel and dried her hair.
The metal bed frame clanked as she slumped on the bed. At least it can hold Lilith’s weight. The blue moonlight slipped through the massive window and invaded half of the room.
The combination of its hue and the warm light from the lamp was soothing, but before she could close her eyes, Lilith remembered where her bag had gone after the maid took it. Her personal belongings were in there, after all.
Her gown rubbed on the thin mattress of the bed as she stood up.
The slow, creaking noise of the wooden floor, upon Lilith’s careful steps, echoed through the empty hallway. Beyond silence, were the whispers of the wind at night.
Through the glassed windows in the corridor wall, Lilith felt as though there were eyes lurking behind where her eyes are unable to reach.
Lilith pressed her hand on the doorway, looking left to right, as if afraid of getting caught. She began to wander in the corridor,
“Hello?” she called to the air.
Unfortunately, the mansion was too massive for anyone to hear Lilith’s call. She wanted to call out for the maid, then she realized she forgot to catch her name before Lilith was left in the bathroom.
Her phone, her money and her keys were inside her bag, a couple of trash, but it is not about it. She walked through the scraped walls, in hopes to find her belongings, perhaps the best way is to find the maid first. Since Lilith have not totally explored the mansion yet.
Lilith heard the door creaked ajar as she pass by, she was curious. It moved on its own. Has its nail gone loose? Lilith thought, hoping that beyond this door is where the maid is at.
She drew nearer to the door, cautiously. Between the opened door was darkness, she wanted to pry open the door, but something chilling and odd changed the atmosphere of the night upon holding the edge of the door.
“Madam.” A woman’s voice from behind, breathy but stern tone, surprised Lilith to her core.
“Ah! -–“ Lilith jolted, releasing her hand from the door “You almost cracked my nerves!” her hands shifted quickly to her chest, feeling the continuous loud thumps of her heart.
The maid stood inches away from where Lilith stood, her face structure was highlighted by the light fire from the kerosene lamp she held with both of her hands, in the chest level.
“Pardon me. What are you doing wandering around in the mansion in the middle of the night? You should be resting, madam.”
“Ah, I was looking for you.” Lilith sighed.
The maid had an expressionless face until her eyes got bigger for a split-second, from what Lilith said.
“You took my bag and I assumed it would be placed in my room, but I didn’t find it” Lilith added.
“Is that so? Let me lead the way, madam”
Another silence, except the stamping of their shoes on the floor. Then, arrived back to Lilith’s room.
“Here, madam” she walked across the bedroom, in the corner which the moonlight nor the lamp could not reach.
There lied her bag in the shadow, on the wooden chair, its back leaned on the wall of the room, its thinness was no match for the spacious room that made it look sinister.
Lilith was relieved. She went and grabbed her bag. Everything is still in the bag as well as the trashes. She turned to look to the maid and asked,
“Thank you, really. What is your name, again?”
“Ada, madam. Ada Bennett”
“Ah, thank you, Ada” Lilith clasped her hands tightly on the bag and warmly smiled at her.
Ada nod and held her head down for a long time, “My pleasure, madam” and went on her way.
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