The Harvest of Souls

CHAPTER 53

"Hey! What a fright!" Shouted the short lady.

"Ah!" Shouted Vaughan, jumping to his feet and taking his dark glasses off his face. "What a fright should I say, Nair. I was sleeping."

"How? Listen to this absurd sound that is coming out of this device," she said, handing the Headphone to Vaughan while a voice came out singing: Oh, father of the four winds, fill my sails. Across the sea of ​​years...

Vaughan smiled at Nair.

"What do you need?" He asked, gently taking the lady's hands.

"Nothing, I just came to see if you need something," said Nair.

"No, I'm fine. Want help with something?"

"No, everything is under control. Are you really not going to join the party?"

"I'm still not sure. I'll stay locked here. Maybe when the sun goes down, I feel like joining the guests."

"Ok, who knows, I hope you cheer up, I'll coordinate the staff until around six o'clock, and then I'll rest a bit until eight. When the party starts; I don't lift a finger, I'm a guest, and I'm going to enjoy ."

"And you are right."

"The guys will arrive soon, they are coming by Vidde, and Richard is almost leaving Ástur with the guests. Want to join them?"

"An interesting idea, I'll think about it. Is everyone coming?"

"Yes," Nair replied with his eyes shining. "Scarlet wants to talk to you when she arrives."

"Tell her that she can come here whenever she wants."

"Are you really okay?" Nair rubbed her cold hands on Vaughan's face. She had to stand on the tip of her toes to do it.

"I am. I already explained: finding who did this is what motivates me," Vaughan spoke in a somber tone.

"Van, but even if you find, and then?"

"I'll kill them."

"Van! Don't think about this. Give this person to Charlotte."

"I'll decide that when that moment arrives. But now, I can tell you: I will only really rest when whoever has done such harm to my daughter pays for those actions."

Nair took a deep breath.

"I hope that when this moment comes, when you meet this horrible person, that by then you are more serene, my friend. You're one of the nicest people I've ever met, and I love you. You and Richard were the father Scarlet never had, and you were always so generous to me."

"And you and Lélia were the mother that Jeannie never had. The favor was always returned," Vaughan embraced the little lady. "You are part of the family. Never doubt that."

"I know our bond is stronger than that of a family. We are not linked only by obligation."

"Yes, we are connected because we want to be present," A tear even trickled under Vaughan's dark glasses. "Now go give your orders to the staff. And tell Scarlet and any of the others to drop by whenever they want. I'm not going to walk around the manor, so I don't run the risk of bumping into any guests inside who are prowling the halls."

"As for that, rest assured, all guests were instructed not to leave the East Wing of the first floor. Basically, they have free access to the Ballroom, Dining, Music, and Games rooms. This year only the family stays here in the manor. Everyone else stays in the village. Richard activated the subway to serve the stations every two minutes, so guests could easily get here. They won't need to use the cars."