Chapter Eight: Mariana
Lothaire walked out of Mona's tent with a dark expression on his face. The things Mona had just told him weren't what he'd expected to hear. He clutched the tiny glass bottle in his palm tightly before depositing it in his pocket. He couldn't shake off the strange feeling that clung to him, a feeling that something was... missing. He looked around, hoping to find signs of Angelina, but he couldn't find her.
"Where's the angel?" he asked one of the guards, panic evident in his eyes.
"Relax, she went to buy cotton candy," Logan walked over. "She's in the shop ahead."
"What shop?!" Lothaire found no cotton candy shop ahead. Logan raised a brow. "There was a cotton candy cart there just now," he said. Lothaire clenched his teeth. "Look for her!"
---
Mona frowned as Lothaire left the tent. This was something she hadn't thought would happen. It was something she thought the wizards had prevented. "We should send word to headquarters; the days of darkness are fast approaching." She stroked her cat's fur, and it meowed in response. "Yes, master," a shadow, which had been lurking in the dark, emerged before walking away.
---
Angelina groaned in pain as she and Nessa were thrown to the cold cell floors of a dimly lit room. The door behind them was locked by the thugs, plunging the cell into complete darkness, with only the light seeping in from the small window dimly illuminating the cell.
"Sister, I'm scared of the dark," Nessa whispered, holding onto Angelina tightly.
Angelina held Nessa's arm, trying to pull her closer, but she flinched. She quickly remembered the thugs had held her tightly before.
"Your arm, it still hurts. Let me help," she held Nessa's arm, closed her eyes, and focused her mind on happy memories, slowly absorbing Nessa's pain.
"Whoa, sister, you're amazing," Nessa said, the pain she earlier felt gone. The frown on her face dissolved into a smile.
Thinking back to their situation, she felt guilty. "I'm sorry for putting you in this situation. Your mommy must be looking for you too," Nessa said, her eyes glimmering slightly in the dark cell.
Her mother? Angelina thought, she hadn't seen her in days. She imagined her mother's current state would be disheveled, given her soft heart towards emotions. Well, she couldn't blame the little one; she was just a child. Children tend to speak straight from their mind without thinking through.
"It's fine," she smiled, her only hope now was for Lothaire to find the clue she'd left behind. She felt uncomfortable as she couldn't even stand up; those bastards had tied her up well, using a short chain to bind her hands and feet together. She took in a deep breath, immediately feeling the urge to throw up as she inhaled the cell's stale air.
She felt Nessa's little arms wrap around her own arm. "Sister, I think someone's there," Nessa's voice was shaking as she pointed to a dark corner. Someone else was here? Angelina seemed shocked, she'd looked around the cell earlier and found nothing strange.
Angelina narrowed her eyes, but she couldn't see anything; a demon's vision was the best, they could see even at night. It wasn't a surprise that Nessa could see someone in this thick darkness.
"Who's there?" Angelina didn't want to admit her fear in front of the little one; she had to be brave. That's the situation with little children,if the person they seek protection from is scared like them,their sense of security would be shattered.
The rattling of chains echoed as a figure emerged from the depths of darkness. Narrowing her eyes, she could make out a woman's figure. The figure moved closer to the window, giving her a better view. She had long, blue hair, and her figure looked thin, probably from starvation.
"Hey there," Angelina smiled, trying to be friendly. It was better to make a friend than an enemy they couldn't deal with.
"Relax, I'm not a monster," the figure faced Nessa's trembling figure. Children, they're easily scared by appearance.
"My name's Mariana," she introduced. "Mariana... you're a mermaid," Angelina smiled, mermaids were mostly friends than enemies.
What was a mermaid doing here in hell, far away from the water? No wonder she looked so pale and skinny.
"Half," Mariana sat down, her back against the wall. "Thane stole me away from my people on a fishing hunt," she explained.
"And you haven't been able to escape?" It seemed Angelina's earlier plan to escape this place wouldn't work.
"It took a lot of work before I was finally able to hypnotize one of the janitors, he'll be here by midnight" Mariana answered.
"Who's that?" She asked,seeing Nessa's trembling figure as she hid behind Angelina.
"Just a scared kid" Angelina whispered,"it's okay,she won't hurt us" she calmed Nessa down.
"Now,tell me,what's an angel doing in cinderfall?" Mariana asked,eyes closed. "How did you know?" Angelina was shocked. "I can smell it,it's in your blood." She answered. Angelina found this ability weird. On the other hand,she was worried whether Lothaire had found her clue yet.
----
Lothaire's eyes scanned the crowded market,his gaze piercing through the throngs of people. He could sense it - Angelina's presence,but she was nowhere to be seen,it was driving him crazy. Did that little angel think she could slip away like this?!
He quickly retrieved the glass bottle from his pocket and gulped down its content. He closed his eyes,taking deep breaths as he slowly returned to his calm state.
"We've found something!" Finally,after endlessly searching for hours, Logan found a clue.
Lothaire walked over to the scene,his gaze narrowed. There was nothing but a turned over cotton candy cart,a few were stepped on,with muddy foot prints.
"How does this help?!" He raised a brow,"She probably ran away,you were the fool for letting her go,lover boy."
"Look!" Logan raised his hand as he rolled his eyes. Lothaire stared intently at the glittering,tiny object in Logan's palm,it was Angelina's earring.
"You see,this will lead us to her" Logan smiled. Lothaire inhaled, Angelina's faint scent was still in the air. "That way" he pointed at a direction.
----
Angelina's heart pounded increasingly as night fell. It dawned on her that waiting for Lothaire wasn't a good idea,he probably wished her dead.
Mariana turned her face away from the cell's window. "They should be asleep any moment from now," she said.
Not long after, a janitor came running towards their cell,he burst in happily, immediately running over to Mariana's side like a pet dog.
He held her hand, leaning his cheek on it. "Mistress" he whispered, startling both Nessa and Angelina.
Mariana quickly pried her hand away from his hold, looking at him coldly as if looking at an enemy. "Get us out of here!" She commanded.
Angelina was confused,why was Mariana treating him that way. Wasn't this considered harsh,given the fact he was the one helping them and not the other way round.
"Yes, mistress" the man had a gaze of love in his eyes,it seems Mariana's hypnosis had a strong hold on him.
"Is she the bad guy?" Nessa whispered silently to Angelina who didn't even know how to answer as she herself was confused.
"Help the child first" Mariana moved away, pointing to little Nessa ,she could sense the little one's fear. It wasn't surprising that Nessa was scared of her figure,she'd been away from water for too long and it was starting to show. As she thought of her plan,light flashed in her eyes,she'd be back soon.
The chains were rusted and took a long time to open. When they finally succeeded...
*Clank
A noise was heard at the front corridor. Angelina looked at Mariana; someone was coming.
"Quick, take the child and leave, there's no time to free us," Mariana urged.
"What about my sister?" Nessa was obviously scared. She didn't want to leave Angelina behind.
"You have to go, don't worry about me," Angelina hugged her. "You have to find a man named Lothaire," she whispered.
As light gradually approached the cell, Nessa followed the stranger out of the cell.
"Uhn! You're still awake," the red-haired thug walked in, Mariana had said his name was Thane earlier. "One, two..." He counted. Angelina gulped hard.
"Where's the little girl?" He asked, angry.
"We don't know," Angelina was the first to speak.
Thane rushed over, slapping her hard across the face.
"Arggh!" Pain shot through Angelina's face.
"Where did that little bitch go, huh?" He pinned her neck against the wall. Angelina could inhale his odd breath. She tried to beg, but none of her words came out right. Just when she thought she was going to die, he let her go, facing the dark corner where Mariana sat.
"You two will be sold to Nikko! I hope you meet your end there," he said before walking away, his evil laughter echoing off the walls.
Angelina slid her cool hands down her burning throat. What a cruel man, she thought. Her face tinged in pain,she was sure there would be marks left on her face from the impact.Her heart pounded as the sound of Mariana's wall punching echoed through the cell. How could she have so much strength? She had noticed Mariana seemed to always have a rollercoaster of emotions, one time she's calm and the other... a burst of rage.
"We're not going to make it," the once raging woman fell to her knees in tears, burying her face in her laps.
"We should be positive," Angelina said, although she was also scared, that was the way she'd been brought up, to give hope to people.
"No! You don't get it, do you? Nikko is a very powerful and wicked demon lord," Mariana rose her head. Angelina felt fear creep into her heart towards this Nikko she hadn't even seen before. All she prayed for was for Nessa to find Lothaire; she didn't want to put the little one's life in danger, but she had no choice now. But that was one in a million chance.
---
Lothaire couldn't rest; he'd been following Angelina's scent, but he hadn't found her yet. Logan and the others were tired from the endless searching, but they didn't dare voice out. The clouds gathered, sending down rain like a thousand whips. Lothaire frowned; this rain would wash Angelina's scent away, making this search even harder.
"Let's seek shelter in the tavern ahead," Logan suggested. "This rain isn't stopping anytime soon," he added.
The once lively tavern fell silent as this group of men in clad armor walked in, followed by Logan and Lothaire in his royal attire.
"That's the devil," "He's still alive?!" They heard whispers.
Lothaire looked around, choosing an empty seat beside the open window while Logan and the others grabbed drinks. As Lothaire stared at the lonely streets, with only a few people passing by, his mind drifted back to what Mona had told him. His lips pressed into a straight line.
His eyes landed on a little girl, soaked to the bone. She paused at intervals, asking passersby things he couldn't hear; it seemed she was looking for someone, or...something. Uninterested in her business, he looked away.
"...Lothaire?" He heard his name faintly.
He turned his head; why was this little girl looking for him? He didn't know her. Or was he overthinking things?
"Excuse me, are you Lothaire?" She asked another man, but he quickly shook his head and ran away, seeking shelter from the whipping rain.
Frustrated, she stood on the spot. Why hadn't she found this Lothaire when she'd been searching all day? Should she keep searching or go home? She looked down at her feet; rain whipped the back of her head. Her mother must be so worried.
"But I have to help that pretty sister," she placed her cold fingers on her cool lips, looking confused.
A pair of black leather boots came into her sight as the rain above stopped whipping her; she looked up, smiling immediately at the sight of this handsome stranger holding an umbrella over her head.
"Hello, Uncle. Are you Lothaire?" She asked, hope glimmering in her eyes.
"Yes," the corner of his lips rose.