6
Henry
arrived at the creek and saw Sven was attending to someone near the overturned
carriage. There was one other person standing nearby, an elderly lady holding
her left arm close to her chest. He rushed over towards Sven.
“Help
me with her.” Sven told the younger man. “Hold her gently. She may be hurt on
the back.”
Sven
held out his arms to assist the injured figure, a young lady with the bonnet
still on her head. He had helped Sven before with the farm creatures in need of
aid, like the mare when she gave birth to the foal. They lifted the lady to the
wagon and gently placed her there.
“May
I know where you are taking her?” The elderly lady asked. “She is …”
“To
our home. I have sent Parker to get the doctor.” Sven replied. Parker was the
one who told Sven about the accident.
“Oh,
that poor man. He was by the road when the wheel came off, and we crashed to
the side. I hope he is well.”
“He
is, my lady. So will she be soon. I am taking her to the home. We have some
doctors there.” Sven had directed Henry to pull the horse then.
“Please
be gentle with her. And... she disliked noises and prayers. She is rather
special.” The elderly lady called out. “I will follow behind soon after…”
“Come
along, lady. We have a chamber for you on the wagon.” Sven cleared a space for
the elderly lady. “No reason to walk yourself.”
“My
…” The elderly lady looked to the carriage.
“Do
not worry about the carriage or your belongings. The road is without any
strangers. No one will touch your belongings.”
The
journey to the mansion was short, and then the injured lady was moved to the
spare chamber near the kitchen. The maids were the ones to assist in the
moving. Sven went to look for the owner of the mansion.
“Sire,”
Sven was careful to address the Общий by the salutations they agreed on when it
was not private. “There was an accident at the creek. A carriage overturned,
and a lady was hurt. She is in the spare chamber at the left wing.”
“Called
the doctor then. The village is not far.” The elderly man seated in front of
the fireplace looked towards Sven. “Need I be bothered with such matters?”
“No,
Sire. I thought the … either one of the boys with knowledge of the ... body may
attend to the lady on her injuries. As the initial checks before the doctor
arrives.”
“They
are ... biologists, not medical doctors, Sven.” The elderly man looked back to
the fireplace. “Do not involve them. And Spielsdorf arrives today. Be discreet,
please, there.”
It
was said, but the one who attended was the lady who was the tenant there.
Justine was returning the morning breakfast tray when she came across the
rushing maids from the chamber.
“Good
day, Ms. Moritz.” The maid, Emily, was rushing out with the bowl of water,
shaded dark brown.
“Was
there an accident among the staff?’ Justine asked. “Can I help?”
“No,
Ms. Moritz. The staff are fine. It is someone brought in by Sven. Was injured
in an accident at the creek. We are just trying to clean her wounds while
Doctor Mitchell has been summoned.”
Justine
went into the chamber, and being a lady, she was allowed in. The men were all
shooed out to wait outside. She saw Maple and Elaine; the two other maids had
opened the bodice of the injured lady. The bonnet was removed. An elderly lady
was tended to by the kitchen cook, Mary Louise, by the seat near the window.
The drapes were pulled shut over the window.
“Be
careful with her, please.” The elderly lady called out. The maids were dabbing
the wet cloth over the injured lady’s chest when Justine stepped over.
“May
I please?” Justine examined the lady’s wounds. There were some bruises but no
open cuts on the chest. She helped to push the cloth aside to look at the ribs
when her hands were grabbed by the injured lady. It was a tight grip and caused
her to pull back.
“Arghh….”
Justine pulled her hands back, but the grip was still there. “Please …”
“Carmilla,
please ……” The elderly lady called out.
“Nobody
touches me!” The injured lady called Carmilla shrieked out. “I …”
“Carmilla!
Behave now.” The elderly lady pushed herself towards the bedding. “Behave.”
“I …”
Carmilla loosened her grip, and Justine pulled back. She looked at her wrists;
they were bruised.
“No
sunlight…” Carmilla spoke out while her arms covered her eyes. “No sun…”
“The
sunlight is covered. You are ……. Were hurt. They are trying to help.” The
elderly lady approached Carmilla. “You will be …”
“I am
fine. I will be fine.” Carmilla stared at the elderly lady. “You know of it.”
“Yes
… You will be fine.” The elderly lady spoke out in a calm voice. She pushed the
maids away and tended to Carmilla. She pulled the bodice closed and then patted
Carmilla on the cheek. Justine had then stepped aside and nursed her wrists.
“Are
you okay, Ms. Moritz?” It was Emily who stood next to the lady. “Do you want a
hot towel?”
“No,
Emily. I am fine.” Justine shook her head. She had studied bruises as part of
her studies. From her knowledge, a force of around one point five to two
times the body weight applied to a small area can often lead to bruising,
though lighter impacts can also cause it. The lady, Carmilla, does not look to
be a heavy lady.
Bruising
due to abusive squeezing also forms along lines of greatest anatomical stress,
resulting in a negative imprint of the flexural folds of the hand. That could
be it, but again, what was causing Carmilla such stress?
Justine’s
thoughts flitted back to when she was younger, back home in Belgium.
“Waterduivels!”
The
call went out. It literally means ‘water devil,’ and it’s used both to refer to
a specific creature of mythical aquatic monster nature. The waterduivels that
supposedly live in the river Maas; the creatures held the humanoid frame with
black skin and horns protruding from their heads. Their faces were adorned with
curved, wicked tusks, and their large eyes were glowing like burning coals,
perhaps the influence of the image of the Devil, but these creatures dwell in
the flaming labyrinth.
Some
tales said they wielded large, curved metal hooks, which they used to pull
people under the water if someone peeked into a well. Somewhere they may
incarnate into cats; the victim found themselves being followed by a large herd
of cats. One myth was of a beautiful girl named Marieke. She was the lover of a
young and handsome bard named Claes. He adored the bard, and one day at the
quay next to her house, a wicked waterduivel asked the lady for her wish. She
longed to see her lover again.
The
waterduivel told her to go to the edge of the water at exactly midnight, for
Claes would be there. She did as she was told. At the stroke of midnight, the
waterduivel climbed on land and sucked all the blood and the very life force
out of her body before disappearing beneath the waves. Claes found her there
the next morning, and his heart immediately ceased beating. He fell on top of
her, locked in a kiss from which neither of them would ever get up.
There
was the creek. Water was there. It was then Justine felt the rush of coldness
in her spine.
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