Lady of the night

Prolouge

   Vincent Eriksson walked slowly next to the young lady, lost in thought. A car passed them by and he looked at the lady next to him.

"This dig is all paid for by a millionaire I hear, but no one knows his name or origin. Isn't that a bit strange?" He asked.

"It is strange but it is a chance of a life time, Vincent. I have waited for an opportunity like this for ten years now!" The young lady said putting her hands on her hips.

   Casandra Black was her name, her origin was in England where she was born in 1986, her father dissappeared the same year and her mother had to raise her on her own. Weak of health and always suffering from some sort of illness didn't exactly make her life any easier. Nor her mothers. She had attended school from home due to her health, it all changed on her sixteenth birthday when her illness mysteriously vanished. Now at the age of 25 she was a strong woman. She worked in Sweden as a librarian and part-time for the english museums as an archeologist. Her health still played tricks with her at times, but it was normally not enough to hold her back from her goals, what ever they might be.

   Vincent sighed and smiled, he had known her all her life. He was her family doctor after all.

"Never mind all the mysteries of this. I am still proud of you. And I know your late mother is as well." He said and put a hand on her shoulder.

"I know. I just wish she was here at times. Like now, to see me off as I go to fulfill a dream." Casandra said with a weak smile.

"Well your test results showed nothing strange, so nothing is stopping you from taking that flight." Vincent said as he stopped by his car and took out his keys.

   They parted ways and Vincent drove off home, Casandra stood by the sidewalk and watched him drive away. She knew something was off about this dig, but she couldn't resist it either. As she walked home she started thinking of her mother. She had passed away from an heart-attack five years ago. Yet her death still seemed close, like the sorrow refused to let go of her mind.

They had a hard life, her father went missing shortly after her birth. It crushed her mother, when Casandras health was found to be weak though, her mother seemed to gain new life and devoted her very being into her newborn.

   She moved from England to Sweden and started working in a small café to earn enough to support them both. She had much help from the family doctor, Vincent Eriksson. When ever he could he sent them some money to help them. His wife took Casandra in when her mother had to work late. They found that she had hidden talents when she was old enough to start reading. Mysteries was her thing and she worked through the books on the subject in great speed. She followed characters like Miss Marple, Sherlock Holmes and so on at a young age.

   At five she started playing the piano, she found it helped her relax when she was weak. When she was bed bound she returned to her books.

   At sixteen she was declared healthy for the first time of her life. She attended school for the first time and found it thrilling. People to talk to was a new feature for her since she had never really had any friends. She was weird to the other kids. She was pale, thin and beautiful. Her dark blue eyes captured most of those who met them. Yet she never had any boyfriends. Simply because she was terribly shy and rarely spoke to anyone. She only spoke to one girl, Maja Holger. They were best friends throughout school. As she went on to study in the university, Maja got married and started a family of her own. She still visited them when she found the time.

   Casandra her self devoted her life to the mysteries of old. She finished her studies in England, but decided to move back to Sweden anyway. She had to be close to her mothers grave. Who else would care for it if not her?

   Her flight was due in a week. She was going to Transylvania where her team had been hired to excavate some ruins on the grounds to the mansion of the millionaire.

   It bothered her greatly that he refused to meet the team or even reveal his name.

   As she took a long hot shower she thought of this and many other things. Unable to see any answers she got out of the shower and down stairs of her house to her piano.

   There she sat down and opened the lid, looking down at the keys.

She decided on Chopins Nocturne.