Chapter 193: The Collection
Once inside, she noticed the room was completely dark, but her vampire eyes allowed her to see clearly. She spotted a narrow staircase leading downward. Unsure if anyone was present below, she remained in her shadow form and began descending the spiraling dark steps, which seemed to go on endlessly. The farther she went, the more an ominous feeling rose within her, as though some sinister energy seeped through the very walls.
Unknowingly, her heartbeat began to quicken, her nerves tightening at the thought of what she might discover. What if it really was Ivan in there? What if he was in an even worse state than when she had seen him a couple of hours ago? Cece couldn’t stop her mind from spiralling out of control, overwhelmed by the countless what-ifs flooding her thoughts.
When she finally reached the bottom, her nostrils were immediately assaulted by a strong stench...one she recognised all too well.
Blood!
And not just blood....there was also the unmistakable smell of rot!
Cece had to pause mid-step, struggling with a herculean effort to force down the bile rising in her throat. She shifted back into her vampire form but stayed within the shadows, pressing a hand over her nose to block the nauseating stench as a sinister heaviness filled the air.
’This is worse than the smell back in the dungeon! Just what the hell is going on in this place?!’ she screamed internally.
Barely containing herself, she scanned her surroundings. At the bottom of the staircase, not far ahead, stood a smaller dark wooden door. Swallowing hard and steeling herself for whatever might be waiting behind it, she approached with slow, cautious steps. The place was deathly quiet, yet her mind was screaming, her heartbeat pounding loudly against her ears.
When she reached the door, she slowly extended a trembling hand toward the doorknob, but paused midway. Realising that if she entered normally, she would reveal herself.
So she pulled her hand back and took a shaky breath. Shifting once more into a shadowy patch on the ground, she slipped through the narrow gap beneath the door.
.....
Back in the dungeon, Edward paced restlessly around his cell, his mind sick with worry over Cece’s well-being. He didn’t know how much time had passed since she had left, but he was certain it had already been a couple of hours.
He released another distressed sigh, prompting Dante to finally snap, "Lord Edward, I understand you’re worried, but for the love of the gods, please calm down. Your anxiety has practically grown limbs at this point. It’s pacing the cell with you and stressing the rest of us out."
"What’s taking her so long? Why hasn’t she returned yet?!" Edward asked nervously.
Damien, who was leaning against the wall separating his cell from Edward’s, replied, "Have some faith in her, Lord Edward. My sister is overly cautious. She wouldn’t let herself get caught so easily."
"But...aren’t you worried, Lord Damien? I mean, we’re still in this repugnant place with those vile people out there!" Edward couldn’t hide the worry dripping from his tone. The more he thought about Queen Viva and her twisted son, the more his anxiety spiked.
"Of course I’m worried," Damien replied quietly, "But I also know my sister. I’m sure she’ll return safely....if she remembers to control that temper of hers." As he said it, a frown formed on his face at the thought of her short fuse...especially now, when she was already on edge with everything happening.
Edward also frowned at Damien mentioning her temper. He ran a hand through his pale blue hair and muttered, "I swear, if she doesn’t return in the next half hour, I’m going out to find her!"
"Now, now...let’s cool down. It’s already hot down here, and the smell is not helping, but that doesn’t mean you should start making rash decisions. Just think about how much worse it will get for Evelyn, who must have struck some kind of deal with that witch, only for us to ruin it," Dante said dryly.
Seira chimed in as well, "I agree with Professor Dante. I know you’re both worried, and so are we. But acting on impulse won’t help any of us right now. And Lord Edward, you should remember that Lady Cece is a pure-blooded vampiress. If she runs into trouble, I’m sure she’s more than capable of handling it."
Edward heard them all, but the usual calm composure he was known for was nowhere to be found. He released another sharp breath before whispering in his mind, ’Cece... I hope you’re safe. Please come back soon before I go insane with worry...’
He stared up at the dark ceiling of the dingy dungeon as he sent his silent plea into the void.
.....
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[Music recommendation: Lullaby of Woe - Ashley Serena]
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Back in the dark underground chamber, it didn’t register at first what Cece was looking at. It felt as though someone had slammed the brakes on a moving carriage.
But as the wheels of her mind slowly began turning again, her crimson eyes widened bit by bit.
Inside the chamber, rows of chairs were lined up on either side of the narrow room, each one was occupied by someone.
At first, she thought the people seated there were gathered for some sort of silent meeting, that alone was bizarre to begin with. But then, as her senses slowly sharpened, she realised something far more unsettling.
They had no heartbeat. Not a single thump. Not from any of them.
In fact, she couldn’t hear a heartbeat anywhere in the entire stretch of the room.
Cece shifted back into her physical form to get a clearer look. Taking slow, careful steps forward, she stared at the unmoving figures.
’What is this? A-are they... dolls?’ she wondered as she inched closer.
But then her heartbeat began to climb....slowly at first, then faster, while her throat turned dry. As her vision adjusted, the shapes in the chairs sharpened into something far more horrifying.
They were women. Rows and rows of them.
And as the moment that truth settled, the stench hit her full force.
Thick, suffocating, rot filled the entire space that the air itself felt diseased. She slapped a hand over her nose and gagged as bile surged up her throat. She swallowed it back down with sheer will.
Steeling herself, she stepped closer, and the details became clearer like a nightmare coming to life.
Their skin was as pale as a corpse, eyes sealed shut as if in a sleep. Bodies dressed in delicate, frilly gowns, with their hair brushed smoothly and left open... styled like someone had tried to make each of them beautiful as a living.
Cece froze, every instinct screaming, because these weren’t just corpses lined in chairs....they were human dolls! Displayed like macabre ornaments in a forgotten tomb.
When her eyes drifted to their necks, she froze to see clear stitches run across each one of them...as if a deep cut had been crudely sewn shut.
The longer she stared at it, the more violently her stomach churned, until she couldn’t take it anymore. She stumbled to the far corner of the room and vomited everything out. Her whole body trembled while her mind couldn’t comprehend what kind of sick, twisted monster would do something like this. Never in her life had she witnessed anything so grotesque!
Horrified didn’t even begin to describe it.
Gasping for air after retching, she lifted a shaky hand and wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve, only for her eyes to catch something else.
Heavy curtains hung across the opposite side of the chamber.
A cold dread curled in her stomach at the thought of what more horrors might be hidden behind them.
Steeling herself once again, she forced herself forward, taking slow, silent, trembling steps toward the curtains.
Raising her trembling hands again, she let her fingertips brush the curtain’s heavy fabric. She drew in a deep, shaky breath, squeezed her eyes shut and in one swift motion, she tore the curtain open.
Reluctantly, Cece opened her eyes and saw a bathtub in the corner. Beside it, rows of glass bottles were neatly lined up, each filled with something thick and dark. Her gaze then drifted slowly and unwillingly to the tub.
The moment her eyes registered what she was seeing, a strangled gasp tore from her throat, and she released the curtain only to stumble backwards.
"No...no...no...this can’t be..." she whispered in a shaky voice as she noticed that the inside of the tub was not white. It was layered with a thin, crusted film of dried....blood.
Her breathing came in sharp, shallow bursts. "No way..." she whispered again, shaking her head slowly in denial, with the horror clawing up her spine. Her gaze moved to the motionless women lined like dolls, their sewn necks, and it was not hard to guess whose blood had dried up there.
Cece could barely process what she was seeing when she heard sharp footsteps outside the door again.
