𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐋𝐒 𝐃𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄 , 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬

𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧

❘༻༺❘

Moving your fork around your plate, pushing around the pile of mashed potatoes, your eyes lift to meet those of Barnabas, then to the portrait hanging in the other room, just in your eye-sight. "Where did you say you were from again, Barnabas?" you question in the silence of the dining room. 

Elizabeth immediately stopped cutting her steak. Barnabas's eyes narrowed at you, his expression unreadable for a moment before he replied, "I am originally from England, my dear. A small town in the countryside."

Elizabeth's grip tightens around her fork, a flicker of tension crossing her features before she quickly masks it with a polite smile. "Yes, that's right," she says smoothly. "Barnabas has quite the fascinating background, don't you?"

Barnabas nods, his gaze lingering on you for a moment longer before returning to his meal.

You nod back, slightly offset. Julia got caught up with something in her office and couldn't come down for dinner, and you felt yourself going slightly insane without her presence.  "England, huh? Must be quite different from Collinsport."

"Indeed it is," he vaguely replies. 

Before you can press him further, Elizabeth clears her throat, breaking the uneasy silence that has settled over the table. "Would anyone care for more wine?" she interjects, her voice a touch too bright. Nobody says anything. Elizabeth awkwardly smiles as her eyes dart around the table. "Y/n, a little bird told me that you have a birthday coming up soon?" She quickly averts the subject.

You nod your head with a slight smile. "In about two weeks," you respond. "I'll be turning twenty."

Elizabeth's smile widens at your response. "Well then, we simply must celebrate properly," she declares, a hint of excitement in her voice. "I'll make sure it's a birthday you won't soon forget."

You offer her a grateful smile, appreciating her gesture despite the lingering tension in the air. "Thank you –" you begin but are promptly cut short by the moody teenager on the other end of the table.

"Oh, please, mother, spare us the theatrics. It's just another birthday—nothing special," Carolyn interrupts with an overdramatic eye roll. You always promise a huge party, but you always disappoint."

You exchange a glance with Elizabeth, sensing the tension rising. "Carolyn, dear, manners," Elizabeth chides gently.

Carolyn immediately heaves, slumping her shoulders in defeat. "Whatever," she growls, abruptly standing from her seat. "I wasn't hungry anyway." She stomps off into another room of the house, probably back to her bedroom, but you weren't complaining. She seemed to have a temper. Maybe Julia should evaluate her.

You offer Elizabeth a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry, Elizabeth," you say softly. I appreciate the thought so much, but I can't remember the last time I had an actual birthday party." The girls at your boarding school weren't very welcoming, so you struggled to make friends. Your birthdays consisted of eating any sugary treat you could find and silently wishing yourself a happy birthday.

Elizabeth's tension quickly resolves at your words, and she looks over at you with a loving expression. "Well, we'll just have to make up for lost time, won't we?" she says curtly.

"You should've been there, Julia. It's so obvious that something about Barnabas is off. And I think that Elizabeth is in on it." You were sitting in one of Julia's black armchairs while she was finishing up some blood lab results. The sounds of her scribbling notes filled the room before she turned to respond to you.