The Great Escape

Chapter- 10

Ada's room is the closest to the scene.

If anyone, Ada should have been the first to reach there.

But she was not.

Ada was not there.

She isn't in her room.

What if they suspect-

"Ada? The girl with burns? You don't know? She was dragged out by the Countess' order and was locked up, I guess. Just a while ago."

"Locked up?" Sarah and Misa repeated together incredulously.

On the other side of the door, Paris' clenched his jaw. The blood on his clothes, still fresh, made them damp. Licking the back of his hand clean, he tightened his fists. The five silver coins in it digging against his flesh.

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Paris managed to slip past the horde of guards and maids without being noticed. He got rid of his bloodied coat by throwing it in a box collecting dust in the store room on the third floor. He now walked in the quiet corridor in the East wing of the mansion. Two guards were positioned on either side of the door of the record room. Paris watched them from behind a pillar.

Torchlights and candle stands were mounted on the walls, but none of them was lit up. Vampires' eyes worked just fine in the dark. Thus, to reduce the expenditure on kerosene, candles or other flammable material, all the guards and servants who worked at night were either half blooded vampires or werewolves. Humans were rarely allowed to be out of their rooms after the clock hands hit nine. The maximum extension was thirty past nine.

Paris took a breath in and composed himself. Then strode out from the shadows and walked towards the guards.

They bowed as soon as they saw him and opened the door for him.

"Do not let anyone enter," he ordered and pulled out a cigarette and a pack of matchstick out of his pocket. Lighting the matchstick, he lit up the cigarette. With the white pipe dangling between his lips, he stepped into the room.

The room was dimly lit with a single candle placed in a stand in one corner. Shelves lined the room horizontally. Records of the employees were neatly piled by Mr Thompson in them.

Paris searched for the wage records of the maids, making his way through the narrow aisle between the shelves when he felt the presence of someone else in the room. His head snapped to his left and he narrowed his eyes, trying to find if someone was there.

Across the room, the wind whistled and the side of the curtain flattered. Paris narrowed his eyes. Mr Thompson must have left the windows open. Frowning, he made his way towards the window and shut it.

Turning around, he again scanned the room for any intruder.

No one.

Sighing, he continued to search for the wage records of the maids employed two years back.

1843, 1844, 1845, 1846, 18...1847! This one.

Taking the records out, he searched for Ada's name, his eyes adjusting just fine with the lack of luminescence. Taking out the records of the following year as well, he counted the wage she was allotted and how much she had taken out from her account.

Total balance in the account- 3,325 bronze coins.

Amount taken out- 238 bronze coins.

Balance- 3,087 bronze coins.

"No where near even a single silver coin, let alone five," he whispered to himself.

One silver coin was equivalent to 7,200 bronze coins. Who—

Mother.

He rubbed his jaw. Slamming the book shut, he lazily threw it away. Was she trying to frame Ada?

But why?

Paris was lost. He had no idea what to do. His sister, Beth— she always knew what to do. But she would not be here until her exams are over. So he was stuck, with no one to ask for any advice.

Snatching some other records, he walked out of the room.

Unbeknownst to him, green eyes eyes followed him as he took his leave and shut the door behind him.

The woman rose up from her crouched position behind the desk crammed in a tight spot of the room. Stealthily, she searched for the document the aristocrat had lazily thrown away and frowned as she read the name of the record in the dim light of the candle. Pursing her lips, she left the record as such and opened the window. Looking down, only one guard was present there. She scaled down the wall and dashed to her mistress to report her findings.

A/N: Vote and comment if you liked the chapter! Thanks for reading xD