Sophia and Liam sat on the floor of the study, the journal open between them. The entries were written in Henry's hand, each one more chilling than the last.
> March 3, 1815: The pact is sealed. The future of the Harrington family is secure. In exchange for our loyalty, they have guaranteed our prosperity. No harm will come to us, so long as we honor our end of the agreement.
Sophia frowned. "Who is 'they'? What agreement is he talking about?"
Liam's jaw tightened as he turned the page. The next entry offered a grim answer:
> June 12, 1815: The debt has been called. They demand a life. I thought it would be enough to offer wealth, but they require blood. This is the price of our success.
Sophia's stomach churned. "He's talking about a blood pact. The family's wealth and power came at the cost of human lives."
Liam nodded grimly. "And James was one of those lives."
The journal continued, detailing how Henry had orchestrated James's death to satisfy the terms of the pact. But as the years passed, his guilt began to consume him.
> October 25, 1820: I see them in my dreams—the ones we sacrificed. They haunt me, their faces twisted with rage. I cannot escape. I fear I will be next.
The final entry was short and desperate:
> November 2, 1821: They are coming for me. I have failed to keep the pact. God forgive me.
Sophia closed the journal, her hands trembling. "That's why he was killed. The pact turned on him when he couldn't fulfill it."
Liam nodded. "And it explains why the manor feels so cursed. The spirits of the victims are still tied to this place, along with the Harringtons who betrayed them."
The weight of the revelation hung heavy between them. The Harrington legacy wasn't just built on lies—it was built on blood.
"What do we do now?" Sophia asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Liam reached for her hand, his grip firm. "We end it. Whatever this pact was, whatever power it gave the Harringtons—it's time to break it."
As they sat in the dim light of the study, the air seemed to shift around them. The scent of magnolias grew stronger, and a faint whisper echoed through the room: Finish it.
Sophia and Liam exchanged a determined glance. The past wasn't just a story to uncover—it was a curse they had to break.
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