CHAPTER 514: THE LIGHT WE WAITED FOR (13)

Meanwhile, on the other side, Aliya glided through the grand hacienda-like estate, her heels clicking softly against the marble, echoing down the empty hallways like distant drums of doom. Ornate arches framed her silhouette as she passed, and golden light from the setting sun bathed the halls in a burnished glow that did nothing to warm the air.

The hallways echoed because of the absence of the usual bustling of workers coming and going. In the months that Aliya had instated herself as mistress of the Thornston estate, the place had continued to dwindle, and the workers had kept on ’disappearing.’

No one wanted to be alone in the hallways, lest they meet ’that woman’ and their end!

Aliya paused briefly to admire the sprawling courtyard beyond the arched windows... the garden, the fountains, the symmetry of wealth that now answered to her whims.

"All of this... mine," she mused, fingers trailing along the intricate woodwork of a bannister. The taste of power was still sweet on her tongue.

Although she also knew that a lot of things were lacking. Obviously, Aliya remembered what the place was like when Shelby had been around. She wanted it to be more glamorous than that, but she had never imagined the state. Despite that, Aliya was all okay with it. It was all hers, and that was what mattered.

’It will all be complete if Ian were here... under my control or dead!’

At that thought, her eyes darkened, her expression flickering with something colder. Him. Ian!

How could he be gone?

Vanished from right under her watchful eye, as though the earth had swallowed him whole. That single failure burned at her pride like acid on silk. Even with her power and connections, she could not find any trace of him. He had vanished from the face of the earth like that bitch!

’How could that happen?’ she thought again, jaw tightening. No one escapes me. NO ONE!

As she walked, she became faintly aware of movement .... silent scurries behind curtains, hurried footsteps softening to nothing. The maids. She didn’t need to look to know they were cowering in doorways, frozen behind columns, holding their breath until she passed.

There were no men left on the estate. That bitch’s maid had made sure of that. That girl was becoming a thorn in her flesh! Aliya thought, while Suzie’s face surfaced in her mind.

The remaining men, if any, had either fled... or served their final purpose.

A slow, cold smile played across her lips as she reached the far end of the corridor. Her eyes gleamed faintly, catching the light like glass blades.

’Next meal,’ she thought with pleasure, her tongue ghosting over her bottom lip.

She was getting more hungrier each day. At first, she only needed to ’feed’ once a week, and Aliya could even go for longer periods without having any, but that had changed drastically. She hungered so much that it hurt! She was never satisfied. Nothing satisfied her—not completely.

"That stupid Clara did not bring me that meal that I had hungered so long for!"

She frowned and then,

"For now. I need to find something for now!"

Until she found the one she was looking for. And when she did, she would drink not just his essence, she would drain him of his soul.

Just the, she spotted one that might be okay....

’This will do for now.’

***

A maid turned a corner when a silver tray in her hand tumbled down, and a scream caught in her throat.

Her friend had only stepped away for a moment to straighten a vase. There had been no warning. No sound.

Just a blur of shadow ... then the new mistress was there.

There was no doubt that the woman was tall, regal and beautiful, but another way she could be described was that she was dreadful.

Though this maid was unsure why she thought of Aliya so, she couldn’t help but shudder.

The tray slipped from her hands, but she didn’t even hear the crash. Her eyes were locked on her dear friend, frozen in place like a statue, too shocked to run, too slow to bow.

Aliya’s hand snapped out and gripped the maid by the chin, tilting her head with cruel elegance.

"No," the maid whispered, backing against the wall, hands trembling. "No, please..."

But Aliya wasn’t listening. She never did. With a hiss like silk torn from bone, the woman’s mouth descended and hovered over the maid’s face. She had sunk to her knees, face painted in horror with whatever she was feeling. She gasped, body jerking once, then again.

The sound was wrong. Wet. Slurping. Like something being emptied. The observing mad, though frozen in place, by what she saw, could not explain it, yet she was terrified!

She could only watch, paralyzed. Her heart pounded in her chest, but her limbs wouldn’t move. Her feet felt nailed to the marble.

And then, just as suddenly, it was over. The first maid’s body crumpled like discarded laundry, pale and still, eyes wide open and unseeing. Aliya stepped back, wiping the corner of her mouth with something like satisfaction. Her eyes glittered. The silence that followed was unbearable.

The living maid dropped to her knees, not far from her friend, grabbing her hands, which were cold. Already cold.

"No..." she whispered, voice cracking. "Please, no..." But there was nothing left in the dead maid to answer her.

Aliya turned and walked away without a word, her dress trailing behind her like a shadow unfurling across the floor. She didn’t hide anymore. Why did she have to bother? It was not like any of them could leave the estate without her knowing? She did not even bother to wipe the memory of the only witness.

In fact, one reason was that consuming her power made her hungrier!

Besides, why should she? Aliya thought,

They were ready livestock. Waiting to be chosen and slaughtered.

And tonight, this maid had been the meal.

’Obviously, it would have been better if I could get one of those males, but I’ll make do with this for now!’ Aliya thought and continued out.

Aliya had barely taken ten steps when her stomach churned—"What the hell?!" Her breath caught as pain stabbed through her insides, sharp and acidic.

This was an indication that she needed more.

’What is happening to me?’

Her back arched slightly, a guttural growl curling in her throat. Her eyes almost flared red before she clenched them shut, fighting to hold onto the fragile glamour of her human face. The hunger was back—brutal, ravenous. She had to use all her willpower to maintain her current form. There was no way she was going to allow her true form to be seen!

Aliya staggered forward, one hand pressed hard against her abdomen, the other reaching, clawing for a wall, a door, anyone.

She regretted letting that ’extra’ maid leave.

"I should have taken both of them!"

There was absolutely no one around! The halls were maddeningly empty.

Just as she racked her mind, she heard the sound of what she felt was a sweet melody!

pitter-patter. Tiny feet. Bare, light. Running across polished stone. That could only mean on thing!

The meal she had bought from the orphanage had presented itself!

At the back of her mind, she remembered the Timeless Witch’s words, but then, Aliya was in no mood to be selective. Still, she paused for a bit, knowing that the Witch was Timeless for a reason and any such crossing was her own demise. At the same time, Aliya was losing all reasoning because of her state. Knowing this, she muttered to herself,

"What can she do if he is already dead?! Kill me? Hmmmmm?"

Her head snapped to the side. Her lips stretched into a slow, gleeful grin. Oh... yes.

In a blur, she charged, catching the young Gabriel mid-step and lifting him effortlessly into the air. He squirmed in confusion, eyes widening with fear as her face began to twist, hunger overtaking her restraint.

"AAAAHHHH!"

His scream pierced the silence as he was lifted by the shoulders and yanked clean off the floor. His stuffed cat fell to the ground. Gabriel kicked, screamed again—raw, panicked.

They had told him to stay clear of this woman. At that time, he began to regret dashing out of the room,

"Mamammammaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!" He screamed, wishing that his Mama Shelby would appear and save him.

But Aliya’s grin was wide now, terrifying the living daylights out of Gabriel when his eyes landed on her face, for she was not able to hang on to her human shape anymore. Gabriel cried even harder.

Just then, Gabriel was yanked from her arms.

"You promised you would not feed inside these walls! Not from staff and especially, not from family. What is wrong with you?!"

Suzie’s voice cracked through the air like a whip, making Aliya hiss in anger. Aliya turned her glowing eyes toward the source....

"Then I’ll feed from you!" she snarled, reaching for Gabriel again and tossing him aside like a ragdoll. Thankfully, he fell on a cushion by the thick carpet.

Aliya’s eyes locked with Suzie’s figure standing in the corridor, heart pounding, rage trembling through her frame. She moved forward like a shadow unhinged from light, her hunger now homed in on new prey, but Suzie did not flinch.

*********

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