ALLURE OF THE NIGHT (C)

Chapters 241-250

In the town of Meadow, Eve had finished packing her things in the trunk and locked it. Carrying it down the stairs, she placed it outside the main door. Ready to leave the house, she locked all the windows and doors.

Eve's eyes fell on the letter she had written for Eugene on the dining table. This way, when he returned, he wouldn't be startled by her absence.

Carrying a bag on one of her shoulders, Eve locked the main door and slipped the key into her dress pocket. She touched the door while looking at the house where she had built memories with Aunt Aubrey and Eugene. She said,

"This isn't a goodbye. I will return when these feelings are gone. Until then..." But she didn't promise.

She stepped away from the door. Her hand clutched the trunk handle, pulling it along as she walked away from the house. Crossing streets, she made her way to the local carriage stop. She had decided to get on the carriage going to Thresk Hills and hop on another local carriage that would travel to Berkshire.

But when Eve was still halfway away from the stop, someone pushed her from behind with force. She quickly lost balance, and her hand let go of her things to fall to the ground.

When Eve was about to stand, she heard someone remark, "And where are you going in such a hurry?" The voice belonged to Mrs. Humphrey, who walked around and came to stand in front of her.

Eve looked confused and asked, "Was it you, who pushed me?"

Soon people started to gather around. Mrs. Edwards came to stand next to Mrs. Humphrey, and her eyes narrowed at Eve. One of the men kicked Eve's trunk for it to move away from the young woman.

Unaware of the intensity of the bad mouthing that had taken place behind her back, Eve noticed some of them look at her in disappointment, while the others looked at her in disgust.

One of the townsfolk stated, "We know what you are, Genevieve. You cannot hide it anymore."

But Eve mistook the man's words, that they had discovered her secret about her being a mermaid.

A nervous sweat broke on Eve's forehead, while dread quickly sank into her heart. There was no way they had found out about who she was. She had been meticulous. How did they find out about it?!

Mrs. Edwards shook her head and said to Eve, "I thought you were a decent woman of Meadow and supported you thinking you were a governess, but look at you. You have brought nothing but shame!"

With no support from Aunt Aubrey and Eugene in the town, Eve looked at them with fear in her eyes. She was speechless, and seeing it, one of the men demanded,

"Have you no shame? To be calling yourself a governess and then you go behind people's back and sleep with men for money?"

Eve's eyebrows furrowed further, now even more confused than before, and she said, "I don't know what you are talking about," and stood up. She dusted her palms and felt a sting as she scraped her palms against the ground. "You must have mistaken me for someone else, or it is just a misunderstanding," she was firm with her words.

"Look at that," Mrs. Humphrey scoffed and sized Eve. "Did you really think you could hide your dirty secret of how you have been earning a lot of money? Trying to prove that you are better than us, when you are nothing but a whore!"

Eve glared at the woman for her absurd comment, "I don't know what you have been cooking in your head, Mrs. Humphrey, but my only job is working as a governess."

"That's what she says," this time, Patrick joined from behind and looked at Eve as if he could barely look at her anymore. "You have been stealing the masters of the wealthy house who are already married. Trying to turn into one of the master's wife? Too bad that your secret is no more a secret."