Haunted (a Crimson Peak Fanfic) - Tom x OC

Chapter 4

Edith Pov

When I woke up in the morning I found Thomas lying next to me. I smiled lightly thinking all of the events last night were just a bad dream. From downstairs I could hear a piano playing. My stomach cramped so I decided to get up. Following the music I ended up in an enormous room lined with books and glass curio cases. The walls full of oil portraits. Over the fireplace I noticed something written in Latin. "To the hills we raise our eyes." Lucille translated still playing.

"I'm sorry I didn't meant to interrupt you..."

"It's quite the opposite. Did I wake you?"

"Oh no actually I didn't get much sleep last night. I..."

"You did? Why?" Lucille asks in an undertone of mistrust.

It was probably better not to tell her about my vision from last night. I should change the topic! "That piece of music. What was it?"

"An old lullaby. I used to sing it to Thomas when we were little." That was a much more interesting topic to discuss. "I can imagine you two as children. You playing and Thomas coming up with his inventions."

Lucille made a sad face. "We weren't allowed here as children. Only in the nursery in the attic." That's strange...I imagined them to be happy and giggling but everything she told me until now makes it seem like they had a very sad childhood.

"You know, she brought this piano in Leipzig. Whenever we heard it through the floor we knew she was back in the country." She continued her story. But then she got up and walked over to a large painting of an old woman with the coldest eyes I've ever seen and a skull like face to be honest I would be scared to meet her in person. "Mother", she said pointing her head at it. I gulped. "She looks...." "Horrible. Yes that's very true." "Still I think this is my favourite room in this house so far." I said looking around. "Mine too. I've read every book in this room. But mother collected most of them." We talked a bit more and she showed me a book with a fore-edge illustration. It was a Japanese couple, which clearly was having sex. "Oh my..." "Surely that can't shock you. Now that Thomas and you...", she said with a smirk. I felt embarrassed but it was nice to have another woman to talk to. "Oh no we didn't. I mean he totally respected my mourning."

Elena's Pov

Thomas was working on his inventions out in the cold. I watched him through the window of my room. While I was still alive I loved to watch him work. I used to sing soft songs while he was studding and drawing his sketches he always enjoyed hearing my voice. My voice...oh how dearly I miss it too. I could see the girl walking towards him. It's strange I still didn't caught her name. They started talking for a bit. But soon they tried out Thomas machine that was now fully built up. I didn't quite caught what happed but I could hear Thomas scream out and saw him holding his hand. The girl and a worker I got to know as Finlay bought him back into the house. I decided I should check on him even if I couldn't anything for him anyway. They were in the kitchen so I hid myself in a wall and watched them carefully. She had cleaned his hand and wrapped it up in a bandage. I was relieved to see that he was alright. "My hands are getting rough. Your father would approve." He suddenly said. Then he looked sad to the floor. "The machine will never work. Why do I keep deluding myself?" he said. Oh no don't think like that dear. Right now I wanted nothing more than to comfort him and tell him it will be alright, but that wasn't my job anymore. "You shouldn't give up hope. " The girl said. "Hope? Edith, hope is the cruellest of feelings. It's normal to stay away from it." Edith, so that's her name! He continued calling himself a failure in the process. He told her about how people call the land Crimson Peak in winter and I could see her face change completely like she as he left her standing in the kitchen. I think tonight I'm going to give Edith a little visit.

When the night finally set I wasn't sure if that was a good idea. I mean I could scare her to death on the other hand she had seen me saving her before. No Elena, no more ducking out, she needs to know. With that I slowly entered her room. She was fast asleep and I felt bad that I would wake her up but it needed to be done. I walked over to her bed and run my hand gently down her cheek.

Edith Pov

Something very cold touched my cheek and I jolt awake immediately. It took some seconds for my eyes to get used to the darkness but then I saw her. That ghost girl form last time. She was standing next to my bed just looking at me. Out of instinct I crawled away from her to the other side of the bed which was surprisingly empty. "What do you want from me?" I shrieked. She just looked at me with an apologizing look on her face. Somehow I started to calm down in her presents, she didn't looked like a threat to me. "Answer me!" She shook her head sadly. I thought about her for a moment. "You can't speak?" I asked more calm this time. She nodded her head. "Okay, you saved me the other day, is that right?", again she just nodded. "Thank you for that..." I mumbled and she seemed to smile a bit. "Isn't there anyway how you can speak with me? Other ghost did before you." She thought about my words sometime and then she floated over to my desk where the pen, my dad gave me, lied. She picked it up and wrote something on a paper. I saw ghost move things before like doors but never I imagined they would be able to write. Carefully I walked over to her and looked down on the paper. Maybe like this, stood there in a beautiful handwriting. I was amazed. "What your name then?" I asked.

Elena, she wrote.

"Why are you here?"

I wan to warn you Edith. You shouldn't trust Lucille.

"What? Why not? I mean I don't even know if I can trust you! You're a ghost after all."

I'm not here to hurt you but you don't have to believe me. You'll learn the hard way then.

"Who are you anyways?" what she wrote next shocked me so much my breath got stuck in my throat.

I once was Thomas wife just like you.

"It can't be..." I mumbled when a sudden noise in front of the door made Elena disappear immediately. I looked around the room searching for her but she was gone. Just then Thomas entered the room looking quite exhausted. He looked confused at me. "Why are you awake my dear?" "I...I uhm I couldn't sleep so I wanted to write a little." I quickly said. Should I ask him about her? Maybe she was just lying to make me trust her... I looked back down at the paper but everything she wrote was gone. "At this time of the day? Come here, you should try to sleep you look a bit pale." he said worriedly. "Yes maybe you're right..."I mumbled as I walked back to my side of the bed.