章節 12: A deadly ploy
Concerning the divine abilities, Josh had discovered that after a few uses, his head would hurt, and it seemed like Whisper of Life drained him more than Vision of the Past. He did not know why it was like that. The abilities seemed to work on his energy levels; if he was too tired or mentally exhausted, none of them would work. If he had enough energy and used the abilities, he would start feeling tired after a few consecutive tries. Currently, he could only use Vision of the Past three times a day and Whisper of Life only twice.
He had a single question he was asking himself: how did the old man acquire these gifts he had gifted him before his death? He was now sure that the old man was at least not pure human. He wondered how did he get his abilities, and if there were many more out there? These gifts were really something worthy of a god, but here he was, a mortal wielding them. Where did they originate from, or who had gifted them to the old man?
He had never come across this before, but those harrowing creatures he had faced also did bizarre things. If it wasn't for their strange nature, he was sure that his team would have survived that encounter. Shaking his head as he thought back to the day he lost his team, the memory was a recurring one that would not end anytime soon. He blamed himself for their deaths. Maybe had he taken a different decision, things would have turned out different for them; he would still have his job, and they would still be alive with their families. But everything that took place that day seemed planned out; it was as if it was supposed to happen.
Analyzing the series of events that took place, he always felt like there was more to it than what he had initially thought. Resting on his bed, the sound of birds outside signaled it was morning. Closing his eyes one last time before waking up, his hand moved to his temple, slowly rubbing it. It seemed like yesterday's drinking was too excessive. Ignoring the crippling headache, he went for a bath. After dressing up, he made his way down the stairs to the dining hall to check if everything was set for breakfast.
Passing by the kitchen, he overheard a hushed conversation between the head cook, Selena, and head maid, Brianna. The conversation caught his attention, and he paused his steps to listen. "A new objective has been given to us; take care of Lady Sarah and young Master Derrick permanently." Selena spoke in a hushed voice. "Time limit?" Brianna asked, her voice cold and detached. Selena did not answer, but Josh suspected that she had used a hand gesture to answer her partner in crime.
He quickly left the scene and began formulating a plan on how to stop them without alerting everyone else. He suspected that it was one of the noble Households that were not on the side of the crown, which house was it? House Jackson? House Erivile? House Danima? Between the three, House Jackson was the most influential and powerful; it had to be them. Now he was worried; how could he eliminate the threat without alerting anyone? [I need to tell Simon.]
Josh made his way down the stairs and found the table already done. He did not stay to wait for the maids to bring the food, immediately going to look for Simon by the stable. He found him whistling, busy tending to the horses. Clearing his throat to get Simon's attention, Simon turned to him with a smile. "Morning, pal. What is it?" Simon asked, noticing Josh's expression. Josh got closer to him and leaned on, whispering every detail he had just heard to Simon. Simon's expression was relatively calm, even after Josh had revealed everything to him.
"So, you need us to find a way to eliminate the threat looming over the lady and the young master?" Simon asked, his brow raised. Josh nodded in answer. "Okay, you may leave it to me. All you have to do is make sure they do not eat anything from this place until the threat is gone, and also have an eye out for them at all times." Simon instructed before continuing to tend to the horses. "Thank you." Josh said before leaving. Simon smiled, having heard. "My pleasure, pal."
At the dining table, Josh stood waiting impatiently for the lady and the young master to arrive. He watched as Brianna and two other maids, Helena and Kim, brought food to the table. He did not focus too much on the person; otherwise, it would be seen as suspicious from the person's point of view, especially when it comes down to the issue at hand.
A moment later, Sarah's voice could be heard coming down the stairs with a ruffled-up look, still in her nightgown. Derrick was already dressed up in preparation for the beautiful day ahead. Before they could sit on their chairs, Josh stopped them, earning himself an annoyed frown from both Sarah and Derrick. "What is the matter?" She asked, her eyes scrutinizing him. "Yeah, Ishmael, what is the matter?" Derrick also voiced his concern. He stood staring at them for a while before finally responding, "I believe today we should have an outdoor breakfast, don't you think so, Lady Sarah?" He asked in a calm voice.
"You could have suggested it yesterday, plus it would be rude not to eat the head cook's food, you know that." Sarah answered, her reasoning simple, coupled with the fact that he did not want to say anything that might put her life and her son's life in danger.
Quickly rummaging through his brain, he tried to think of a way to convince them, but before he could think much, Sarah spoke again, this time addressing her son, "But I fear that he is right, Ricky. Let us leave the house and have our breakfast somewhere else." Hearing his mother speak, Derrick had no choice but to comply, "Okay, I understand, mother." He spoke through gritted teeth, clearly hungry.
Sarah called out to Brianna and instructed her to tell Selena that she would not be eating at the manor today. Then, she ran up the stairs to go bathe and change. After about an hour of waiting, she came down wearing a velvet dress with two pairs of earrings with a red ruby in the middle. If it was any other scenario, he believed she would have looked very elegant while coming down; instead, it was the total opposite. She was practically skipping down the steps.
Once they reached the coach, Simon's voice came out soft, "Where to, milady?" He asked from outside. Both Sarah and Derrick turned to look at Josh, who now wished the world would open up and swallow him whole. After a short pause of silence, Josh answered, "Take us to the café on Boulevard Street."
No response came, but soon the coach had started to move. Two people watched the coach leave with heavy hearts, eventually one of them sighed, "Don't give up hope....we still have next time." The other person nodded without saying a word.
The coach stopped right in front of a quaint café written "Memoir of Deliciousness." Many aristocrats either came in or left the café. The café's design was simple and welcoming. Entering the café, all four of them, including Simon, the coachman, aristocrats shot them nasty looks before the owner arrived. "Mr. Sterling, I thought you were never going to arrive. Please follow me." They quietly followed and went to a neatly arranged table written "Reserved for Mr. Sterling."
Questions began formulating in his head; what was going on? How did he know his name? Seating on the table with everyone to eat their breakfast, he was clearly not here. Sarah noticed this and kept quiet, she believed that he would be fine after some few minutes of clearing his head. He realized it had affected him before the breakfast incident.
"I remember this place," She spoke, looking at the menu booklet in her hands. "Even though it's now much more improved than how I had last seen it." Sadly, no one answered, as they all remained quiet, each thinking different thoughts.
After a short while, they had all ordered the same thing. The other aristocrats in the café simply watched at the four usual group. Which master would treat their servant as a friend? None. What Sarah was doing was new in their eyes.
Patiently waiting for their food, Derrick was showering his mother with endless questions about the city and how she was in charge of it, ignoring her son was not hard; in fact, for Sarah, it was almost like a second instinctual ability, like breathing. "You do not think that if you do not give me attention, I will start throwing tantrums." He added with an eerie smile. Sarah returned the smile with an even more eerie smile, "Have you forgotten I can still give you a good hiding?" She asked her son, who immediately kept quiet.
After a long wait, the waiter arrived with their food.
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