Chapter 179 Early preparation of gift

Music Recommendation: Emma is bored- Isobel Waller

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When Eve entered the Moriarty mansion’s hallways, Marceline, who was coming in the other direction, greeted her, “Morning, Ms. Barlow. I wasn’t expecting you to be here today.”

Eve noticed how the vampiress never used ‘good’ behind the morning. She smiled at the vampiress and offered a bow, “Good morning, Lady Marceline. Is it because the local carriages have stopped moving for today?”

“Yes,” Marceline offered Eve a sweet smile. “I was wondering how you would come today, but then I suppose you came from your personal carriage?”

Eve knew if she breathed a word about Noah, Marceline would end up piling her with more questions about him before asking if she delivered her request.

“The carriage—”

“What a lovely morning with the sun shining, birds talking in front of our mansion. Do you ever wonder what they chirp about?” Asked the devil of the Moriarty family with a head full of silver hair. “I thought I saw a familiar carriage drop you near the mansion.”

Vincent walked towards where she and his sister stood. The smile on his lips was wide, and his eyes twinkled in mischief as if he couldn’t wait to see people in their misery. When Marceline turned to look at him, Eve offered him a pleading look.

“Birds sing, brother,” Marceline replied to her brother while offering him a slight bow as if she sought validation from him.

“My innocent sister, some birds even talk,” when Vincent smiled, Eve noticed his perfectly aligned white teeth. He then turned to look at Eve and asked, “What do you think, Eve?”

Marceline’s eyebrows rose in question after hearing her brother call their governess in such a familiar tone and name while failing to pick what Vincent’s words meant. On the other hand, Eve had hoped that Vincent would stop teasing and throwing her right under the moving carriage. How wrong she was. This vampire would push a person from the cliff and then tell how the flying person added beauty to the scenery.

“They sing and speak, by chirping,” Eve answered Vincent’s question.

“Might you know what they might be talking about?” Vincent indulged in torturing Eve.

Marceline rolled her eyes, not knowing why her brother was suddenly interested in birds. She asked Eve, “Did you have your breakfast?”

“I did. Until I couldn’t eat anymore,” replied Eve, not wanting to be invited to join anyone in the Moriarty’s dining room.

“Have a good time teaching Allie then. I will find you later,” Marceline smiled at Eve before walking away from there.

Vincent watched his sister walking away from there while Eve turned to look at him and asked, “Don’t you have important work to attend to, Master Vincent?”

“So concerned about my work. Only a wife or the employer would worry about it. But then I have neither,” Vincent chimed, shifting his gaze to look at the little mermaid. “Did you dream about me?” He smiled at her.

“I have other better things to dream about, Mr. Moriarty, than to dream about you about trying to kill me,” retorted Eve and started to walk away from the hallways.

Vincent followed her in the same direction as they walked up the stairs, “Dreaming about Duke charming?”

“No, about a merman,” Eve rolled her eyes.

“My youngest sister has a fish tank if you want to take a look at it, though they might not be the fish you are interested in,” replied Vincent, and he said, “Did you go to see your friend yesterday?”

“No… Her mother preferred that we stay away from each other,” Eve murmured.

“You didn’t offer the chocolate cookies to the lady?” When Eve turned to look at him, Vincent added, “I heard the Marchioness and her daughter paid a visit at your house.”

Eve wondered if Vincent heard it from the MArchioness or Rosetta. She replied, “No. Not everyone visits people’s houses and takes a jar of cookies.”

“Who would ever do that?” Vincent looked at her with a look of horror in his eyes, and he chuckled on receiving a blank look from her. “How is your coachman doing?”

“Eugene? He’s doing fine, why?” Eve furrowed her eyebrows, and when they reached the top of the stairs, she stared at Vincent.

Vincent continued to smile before shrugging his shoulders, “He didn’t drop you and instead the Duke did. Anyways, getting back to things that are more important. You will be leaving work at two in the afternoon and be picked by my coachman at six in the evening. I am hoping that it is enough time for you to get ready?”

Eve pursed her lips before she said, “Master Vincent, I have a request.”

“Alfie will come fetch you and take you to the carriage to get you back home. Anything else?” Vincent stared back at her. She shook her head, and he said, “Go on then. I don’t pay you money to talk to me,” his lips twisted into a smile again when he saw her walk up the next flight of stairs on the right.

On reaching in front of the piano room, Eve pushed the door open and noticed the young vampiress sitting on the piano bench. But instead of playing the piano, she had three balls of wool and was trying to knit something that looked like a messy patch.

“Good morning, Miss Allie,” Eve greeted the girl with a bright smile and cheerful voice. “What are you doing there?”

Allie kept fiddling with the two sharp knitting needles, and she looked up at Eve with a smile, “Good morning,” she greeted in her sweet and delicate voice.

Vincent wasn’t wrong in calling her a hamster thought Eve. The girl was the sweetest, and she wondered if perhaps someone had switched Lady Annalise’s baby with Allie when they were little, not knowing how such a girl had ended up growing up in the Moriarty mansion.

“Knitting for Christmas,” replied the little girl, who looked like she was on a mission.

“Oh, are you trying to make a Christmas present?” A smile appeared on Eve’s lips and she placed her things next to the wall before sitting on the other end of the bench. It was evident that the small girl didn’t know how to knit and had randomly been crisscrossing. Eve asked the little one, “What are you planning to make?”

“What is the easiest one to make?” came the voice of the small voice girl.

“Scarf? You don’t have to worry about the size and everyone can make use of it,” Eve answered thoughtfully. “Would you like me to teach you how to do it?”

The little vampiress’s eyes lit up as if Christmas had already arrived before she asked, “… you will?”

“Why not? I am your governess so I should be able to teach you things out of books, something that you will enjoy,” said Eve, and her eyes fell on the little girl’s hands that had little cuts on her fingers. “Maybe we should look for something less sharp for you.”

Eve called a servant and asked the person to get the two thin wooden sticks with a sharpened end, which was given for Allie to use.

“Now we have two of each. Let me teach you the easiest one and then I will show you how to close the end with another design,” said Eve, and the two of them began to knit.

“So easy,” whispered the little girl, looking at Eve’s elegant fingers moving back and forth while knitting woollen thread.

Eve couldn’t help but stare at Allie, who earnestly continued to knit without looking up and focused on the wooden sticks and the wool she used. No matter how strict Lady Annalise was, Eve doubted that she would refuse her daughter if the little girl were to ask for a scarf from a shop, which would come from the most expensive shop. Curious, she asked,

“Is this for your brother Vincent?”

The little girl didn’t stop moving her hands but looked up at Eve and shook her head. The two of them stared at each other before the young vampiress went back to continuing to knit without saying whom she was knitting it for.

When it was two in the afternoon, Alfie appeared in the piano room and knocked on the door. He informed,

“Ms. Barlow, the carriage is waiting for you.”

At the same time, Eve noticed Allie quickly pushing the wool and other things she had been holding behind her as if not wanting the butler to see them.