Chapter 224 - We Don't Want Visitors! - Part 1

Belle had sat down on one of the stairs, her head leaning against the wall along with one side of her body. Staring at the walls and the other objects in silence. She loved her parents, having no sibling or relative or friend to share with, the only people she had come to share was the people who lived in this mansion. 

"Has this ever happened before?" Belle asked softly to Barron who had been busy looking at his body for the past twenty minutes. One could tell that Barron was obsessed with how he looked. Half of the time he was stuck in front of the windows or mirrors to look at himself, Belle wondered what kind of Grim was obsessed with being clean and perfect. 

Barron looked up from his hand, "I don't think so. We would have heard a bell-like the tower bell if that happened but...yes, Lucas and I have turned off the waves so that the others will not find out where we are," that would mean they didn't have the signal about what was going on. Lucas had told until the hellhounds were not here, it would mean the news about this little mishap would not have reached the Hawverts.

"You should spend some time with them before sending them away the way you would want to," said Barron, his voice nonchalant as he didn't have a past of attachments.

"They want me to go meet the Edmonds."

"Who are those? Your relatives?" asked Barron. 

"No...someone my mother was keen on having an alliance with. For me," she added the words, a sigh escaping her lips, "I don't want to meet them."

"Of course you won't," answered Barron. He stood up from his seating position, realizing the apple he had been holding had disappeared from the hall as he couldn't catch sight of it, "You have Lucas now. He likes you back."

"It would be best not to bring it up in front of them," to her parents, Lucas was the perfect butler but that was all he was. She doubted they would accept in the past and she doubted they would now. To her parents, it seemed like they didn't realize they had died in front of her eyes.

It was impossible to think that her parents had come back to the land of the living perfectly fine. She had sensed the pushiness coming from her parents and the slight agitation that came from her mother. Their souls were affected and she had seen it during the time she had stepped into the land of the dead in her dreams. 

With her parents home, they would have to push the plan of finding their test subject and working on it. Barron looked at Belle who had shifted her eyes away from looking at him to look up at the portrait that was placed on the wall. It was her and her parents who were painted in it. 

A few more minutes passed and the main door was knocked that had both Barron and Belle wonder who it was right now. It was not Lucas because he wouldn't use the door to come in and would rather appear in front of them. Barron was the first one to step down the stairs, his feet quickly walking to get the door when he realized he was just a rabbit. Belle continued to walk towards the door and opened it. 

A man stood at the doorstep, his eyes red in colour. It felt like Belle had seen the man before but she couldn't recollect where. 

"Good afternoon Miss Adams. Pardon me for showing up without prior notice. I am Joshua Salter who came here with the councilman Mathias," he introduced himself, "I came here with him when your parents passed away." That's where she had seen him. 

"Is something the matter?" asked Belle, clutching the door tightly in her hand. 

The timing was truly wrong, "I was asked to interrogate your butler actually. There has been an allegation on Miss Stlinkson's case of how she wanted to have him as her butler in the mansion. There's also another case of a woman who went missing but her body has not been recovered."

"You can ask me," Belle said, stepping outside the mansion and leaving the door that slightly closed. 

"Unfortunately, they want the report from the butler. The people have pointed on how they wanted to form a relationship with him," said the councilman. Belle didn't know how many people Lucas had killed but someone was digging in the cases which she thought had been closed, "Can I speak to him?" asked the man.

"He's not here," and she could see how the councilman looked at her with a suspicious look on his face as if she were hiding her butler, "He should be here in some time. Would you like to come in?" asked Belle. 

The councilman stared at Belle, "Sure," and he stepped inside the mansion and Belle closed her eyes. 

Barron on the other hand, exclaimed, "What are you doing?!" he whispered.

Belle turned around and placed her finger on her lips to quieten the rabbit. Leaving the councilman outside and sending him away would only increase the suspicion. She led him to the study room which was inside compared to the drawing-room that was right near the stairs. She didn't know how to send away the man from here. The sooner Lucas would appear, the faster the man would record his statement and would leave. 

"Please take a seat. Would you like to drink something?" offered Belle. Maybe it was easier to drug and make him sleep.

"No, I am fine," maybe not, thought Belle to herself, "Your house is beautiful, Miss Belle. It must be difficult to pay now which is why you don't have servants," commented Joshua. 

For some reason, it felt like he was baiting her but she didn't take the bait, "The servants are resting now which is why you won't see them walking around. It is past noon and everyone needs rest," she smiled looking at the man.