Lily returned to her room and fell on the bed sighing heavily.
'Daughter of a friend. He made up everything on the spot. Quite a smooth liar. But it's to be expected after all he is a demon'.
"Now that I think about it, I don't know anything about hell and demons and angles. The only thing I know is angels are good and demons are bad. Good people go to heaven and bad people burn in hell".
She sat up abruptly, "There's no time to waste. I have to get used to this situation as soon as possible. It's better to know what you're dealing with".
Lily was never given a chance when she was alive. Even after death, the only choice she was presented with was to obey or die.
"I died before because I was weak but this time, I won't let myself suffer the same fate. I'll get stronger…strong enough to get rid of anyone who dares to use me or threaten me. I'm done being a prey", her face was resolute.
'But where should I start', she saw the bell resting on the table beside the bed and rang it.
"I should get familiar with my surroundings first". A knock sounded a minute later and Bell entered with a tray of refreshments. The tray was full of different types of desserts, cookies, drinks, and whatnot.
Lily has only seen this type of food in advertisements or posters posted outside a café. She had a sweet tooth but she never got the chance to eat any. The only sweet she ate was a cake that was given by the warden only when a kid was adopted and that was also only for a show so the adoptive parents could see what a happy environment the kids have been raised in.
She was drooling at the sight when Bell said, "Miss I brought some refreshments for you. You must be hungry you barely ate anything in the morning".
She shook her head, 'This is not the time to be distracted. Focus Lily, focus'.
"Thank you, but I'm not feeling hungry right now", she smiled apologetically. "Can you give me a tour of the mansion?".
"A tour? Sure Miss".
"Let's go then", she followed Bell out of the room. Once they were out Bell started the tour. The mansion has three levels and Lily was on the third. There was only one room and a small attic at the end of the hallway. The second floor consisted of a library, office, some guests room. The southeast wing of the mansion was a restricted area as the master bedroom was located there only Butler Harold was allowed there. The first floor consisted of a dining area, a large ballroom, kitchen, separate sitting areas for ladies and men, and many other types of rooms.
Lily was stunned and the size of the mansion. It was her first time seeing a house this gigantic. She asked Bell if Shax was rich which only made her laugh, "Miss that was a good joke".
Lily knew she asked something stupid and could only go along, "Haha".
'I should watch my mouth until I know what I'm talking about', this made her even more determined to learn.
They ended their tour as it was almost dinner time. Lily was happy with the tour but the only thing on her mind was the library. She asked Bell if she needed permission to use the library.
"I'm sorry Miss. I don't know because I've never seen anyone using the library since I started working here. if you want, I can ask Mr. Harold for you".
"I'll ask him myself. Do you know where he would be right now?".
"It's almost time for dinner so he must be in the kitchen checking the dinner preparations".
Bell led her to the dining area that had panel doors on one side of the wall that led to the kitchen. The smell of food wafted toward them as they entered the kitchen and as Bell said Harold was there.
"Umm, Mr. Harold".
"Oh, Miss Lily. What are you doing here?". Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at her. All of them were curious about her. When Harold noticed this, he cleared his throat.
"This is Miss Lily. She is the daughter of one of Master Shax's friends. She'll be staying with us", he gave them a death stare. " I hope that was enough to quench your curiosities now get back to work". The staff gulped at the intensity and continued their work.
"Miss, what brings you here? If your hungry dinner will be served shortly".
"I was looking for you Mr. Harold. I wanted to ask if I needed permission to use the library".
"There's no need to ask for permission. You can go wherever you want unless it's a restricted area. You can't go there under any circumstances".
"Thank you, Mr. Harold. I'll remember that". She left the kitchen after talking with Harold. She couldn't wait to go to the library tomorrow.
Lily was bullied a lot for being an orphan when she was alive and used to hide in the school library to avoid them. The library was the only place where she felt safe this was one of the reasons, she was happy to visit the library tomorrow.
After dinner, Lily went to bed happily thinking about shelves filled with rows of books. She was excited to see what a library in hell would look like and fell asleep. This was the first time she was happy after what had happened to her.
It was the middle of the night when Lily's eyes snapped open. She was covered in a cold sweat, her heart pounding. She looked around the room frantically, paranoid that the men were still there. it took several minutes for her to realize that she was not tied, that she could move and it was all a nightmare. Even after realizing that it was all a dream she stayed in the bed, wrapped the blanket around her more tightly, and waited for the morning to come.
Morning came and the sun shone brightly through the window washing away the horrors of the previous night. Lily came out of the bed when she saw the light coming from the window. The light was not strong but it was strong enough to chase the darkness away.
She stumbled to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. she expected to look drained and exhausted but looked as fresh as ever like she has woken up from a good night's sleep. There was no puffiness, redness, or bags under her eyes.
"Is this also one of the perks of being a demon".
Lily got ready and waited for Bell and Ann. When they saw her awake and ready they didn't rebuke her because she made it quite clear the other day that she didn't need any assistance getting dressed. After Breakfast Ann took her to the training grounds.
The mansion from the outside looked more fine and graceful. It looked more like a palace of a princess in a fairy tale. The view from the window was great but the view right now was indescribable. Snow was falling slowly and the rays from the sun made each flake glitter. The wind made the snow dance and the delicate leaves hum. Everything looked ethereal covered in snow.
"Is it always snowing here?"
"Yes, because it's the north. The north is always covered in snow. Where are you from Miss?"
"I'm from the west", she lied.