The night air was laced with the scent of terror and danger.

In an abandoned tower, one dreaded by humans and deemed to be cursed, darkness loomed around and would have entirely engulfed the place if not for the flickering lamp, dangling from a certain pair of trembling fingers.

Evie's heart erratically raced in fear, sweats clung to her body like a shroud. Frailly, she continued running, her steps quick yet light against the cold floor as she tried navigating her way through the deserted corridors, but no matter how far she ran, she could hear his menacing voice closely echo behind her;

"You can run away from me, but you can't hide, darling. I'm willing to burn down the world to find you. And when I do.." he drawled sinisterly, "I make you pay for wanting to be so far away from me!" It wasn't a threat, it was a promise, a promise that sent dread crawling down her spine.

She was being relentlessly chased by a figure, oblivious to who or what it was, and neither could she fathom what the intent of his pursuit was, but one thing was clear: he intended to get hold of her. She needed a haven, she needed to get away from this maniac and whatever his crazy fantasies involved.

As though rays of hope had shone on her, Evie's eyes caught sight of a rope, thick and sturdy, hanging from a rusty hook high on the wall. Though she had no clue where it led to, the corridor's path was now a dead end and this was her only means to evade him.

In desperation, her feet scrambled towards it, ready to grab hold of the rope. However, two steps away, like a phantom, a silhouette, tall and ominous, appeared between Evie and the rope, swiftly grabbing hold of her before she pulled any attempt to run away.

In a moment, the figure's gaze met with hers, and Evie was greeted by a pair of red, glowing, vicious eyes.

"Ahhh!!" She screamed her surge of adrenaline to flee useless against his immobile grip. "P-please, let me go." she whimpered, feeling his iron-like grip against her flesh.

He had caught her….

"Silly of you to think you could escape from me," the figure's voice, resonating with a mixture of a growl and a taunt, "I told you I would find you, didn't I? And now…" 

Two elongated canines suddenly appeared in view, a sight that scared the wits out of her. His head inclined towards her, ready to dig his fangs deep into her neck. However, an inch away, the scene before her dissolved.

Evie shot out of bed with a series of ragged breaths.

It was a dream!

Sweats covered her entire body, soiling even onto her lilac quilt. It was the same dream that had been consistently reoccurring. The same tower, the same anonymous figure chasing her for an unknown reason.

This was the sixth time in the month she had been receiving these unnerving nightmares, and with every reoccurrence, Evie felt her days were drawing closer to something unfavorable…. something problematic.

But luckily, this was reality, and in her reality, there was no figure with predatory instincts wanting to claim possession of her. She steadied her breath, wiping her sweat with the quilt, but her moment of relief was shortened when the wooden door of her room flung open, revealing a pair of sharp, hasty footsteps approaching her.

Aunt Marie, clad in a blue apron, her blonde hair tied into a bun with her hands impatiently resting on her waist, stood with a disapproving frown on her face, directed at Evie.

"G-good morning, Aunt Marie," Evie nervously greeted, tightly gripping the quilt at her aunt's unwelcoming gaze.

"I wonder what good could come out of the morning, when all my niece does is lie in bed all morning, daydreaming of a man who she certainly will never come close to meeting." Aunt Marie's voice was sharp, not concealing her distaste.

Evie sighed inwardly. Of course, she had dreamt of a man. Only that he was more likely to have her as a meal than being a potential admirer.

"I had a bad dream," Her voice, laced with a nervous concern, came out in a whisper but was quickly dismissed by a wave of her aunt's hand.

"Another one of your silly nightmares? Really, Evie, you need to stop reading those fantasy books; they are taking hold of your brain."

Evie's lips pursed at her aunt's response; the lack of care in her tone was evident, but still, she needed to give her an insight. "It wasn't just a dream, Aunt Marie. It felt so real."

Her aunt, however, remained unfazed at the revelation. "Well, maybe if you had decided to get a job rather than sprawling on the bed all day long, you would get less time to dream about a non-existent devil trying to have you as dessert."

She sighed. Her aunt's impolite choice of words were alarmingly unnice, but then, it had been a constant habit towards Evie. Though it was clear to Evie that she wasn't loved by her, there were times she went extremely harsh, even when those criticisms were unnecessary.

"I haven't found a decent job," Evie's words carried a different meaning from her aunt's interpretation.

"Decent?" Her aunt's voice turned harsh, "You speak about decency when you threw away the golden opportunity Mrs Meyer had given you to work as one of her assistants in her mansion. What were you hoping for, the title of a duke?" her eyes seemed to be holding a subtle glare.

Mrs Meyer was a good old soul, one distinct from the rest of the haughty elites dwelling amidst them, but as kind as she was, Evie had to decline her offer. Not when her husband, the magistrate, constantly made her wary. 

His set of brown, decaying teeth always revealed a mischievous grin, each time he set his eyes on her. Not to mention the night she had almost been sexually assaulted by him, an incident she found hard to tell, which would certainly lead to being hunted down by the magistrate himself. It certainly wouldn't end well for her.

"I will find a good job," she responded, a promise to herself she was determined to fulfill.

"Whatever," Her aunt's eyes rolled dramatically, "I'm going to make pancakes, do not take another second to get out of bed, and make sure to fix your hair looking like a bird nest. You are a lady, Evie, not an animal who rolls in the hay. Also, be sure to deliver the packages on the porch to Mr Reynolds before mid-day." She instructed, exiting the room with an arrogant bang of the door.

Evie sighed, running her slender, pale fingers through her morning hair.

Her aunt's morning tantrums were like ringing bells, never ceasing to wake her from sleep each morning. She was certain she would never evade her troublesome familiar voice unless she got a job. A job that would earn her money to live independently, eventually moving out. This had been her aspiration, the moment she discovered the animosity of her relatives towards her.

But with the number of rejections she got on each job application, it was quite discouraging. Unlike the non-elites denied the opportunity to attain formal education, Evie could read and write and fluently converse during her job interviews, but for some reason, continually got rejected. Nevertheless, she wouldn't give up on her job hunt.

Evie slipped out of bed, the drowsiness in her eyes long gone from her aunt's disruption. She made her way to the vintage mirror; taking a brush, she carefully brushed the strands of her hair to settle properly.

Amidst the sparsely furnished room, Evie's curly scarlet hair, hanging loosely on her waist, stood out. Her hair was one of the rarest features in the land of Velmont, the same hair that constantly dragged attention to her and couldn't be concealed even with a head tie due to its length and volume.

Grabbing her soaked quilt, she intended to take it for a wash, when a knock echoed on the front door of the house. Dropping the quilt, she made her way to the front door.

Visitors were rare during the mornings. Uncle Thomas and Simon, her nephew were usually out for work before sunrise and wouldn't be back till evening.

Opening the door, Evie caught sight of a gentleman wearing a grim expression. Bearing multiple envelopes in his hand, it was evident he was a mailman.

"Miss Brooklyn, are you?" He gruffly asked, earning a polite nod from Evie to have him pull out an envelope and hand it out to her.

"Thank you," she replied, shutting the door. 

An Envelope? 

Why would an envelope be given to her? She certainly was of no importance to anyone to have a letter delivered right at her doorstep.

But then a thought struck her. Having applied for several jobs, this was likely to be a positive response from one of the places she sought a job through the mail.

Her eyes shone with a glimmer of anticipation, quickly, she broke the unfamiliar seal, removing the letter from the envelope.

Fixating her eyes on the paper ready to read, Evie's eyes went wide in awe the moment she glanced at the first few sentences.

It was a job offer. 

Not a casual job offer, but an offer to work as a maid in the Lord's manor…. the very manor of the lord of Velmont.