The Crown's Obsession (WN)
chapter-257

Madeline looked at the glass that had cracked under her touch, leaving fine white lines like a spider's intricate web. Compared to the last three times, this time it was different as the glass didn't shatter itself.

"What's happening?" Madeline questioned.

Calhoun had told her that her father was hiding something, something that her paternal grandparents were aware of, and it made her question what was being hidden. The way her grandparents spoke, it was as if Madeline was a clumsy girl, but she wasn't.

After a first few times, Madeline came to understand and believe that she wasn't like her sister Beth, that she was different. After all, who went breaking glasses at the slightest touch.

All these years, she was normal. She had felt normal like any other person, but what was happening, it was far from being called normal, and humans didn't have such powers or curse did they? Madeline had heard of how some of the humans, who possessed unusual powers were often labelled as witches. And witches were never welcomed in their houses or the villages because of the amount of bad luck one brought with them.

Madeline wondered if she should get a second reading from Calhoun's acquaintance. The man named Raphael appeared to be nothing short of knowledge when it came to a person's past and future which were twisted in riddles.

She wondered if the glass would break if she would put more pressure on it. Her body felt cold, goosebumps rising on her skin as she raised her hand for the third time towards the window. Madeline took a deep breath. If she placed it for more than two seconds, it would break, and there would be pieces of glasses on the floor, she thought to herself.

But when she placed her hand on the window, the cracks instead of continuing to create more damage, it started to mend.

Madeline's curious eyes followed the cracked lines that started to disappear behind her palm. The windowpane which was about to break, it looked crystal clear. She had a look of surprise on her face and to test if she was dreaming, she knocked on the glass, and nothing happened. Calhoun had mentioned to her that breaking glass was considered to be a sign of an ill omen, but she had fixed it back. Was it possible to consider it to be good luck?

Examining one more time, Madeline went to knock on it with her knuckles when someone knocked on her door.

Madeline's eyes snapped at the door. Was it Calhoun? She asked herself. It was late for him to be visiting her, but Calhoun always appeared during odd hours. She doubted it was him because the man would not bother knocking or bother himself with locks. Her hand reached towards the lock of the door, hovering over when she heard another knock.

"Maddie? Are you awake?"

Madeline frowned hearing Beth's voice from the other side of the door. Quickly opening the door, she saw it was her sister who had worn a coat over her nightdress and behind her stood a guard.

"Do you think I can sleep here tonight?" asked Beth who looked worried.

"Yes, of course," Madeline pushed the door wide open, and she looked at the guard to say, "Thank you." The guard gave a deep bow before leaving. Beth looked as if she was in shock and Madeline went to stand in front of her and ask, "Beth, are you alright?"

Beth looked disturbed, and she nodded her head, "I just overheard some kind of noises in the room I was sleeping in. I thought of coming here to sleep."

Madeline gave her sister a nod, "The bed is big enough. You can take the left. No, I mean the right," she corrected herself. Beth didn't seem to mind it, and she moved around the right side of the bed to get inside the sheets.

She wondered what had gotten Beth worried. Surely, it was nothing big but only the rustling sound of the leaves and the forest that wasn't too far away from the castle. Madeline didn't want Beth taking the side where she and Calhoun were on the bed before.

Getting inside the sheets herself, Madeline laid her back on the surface of the bed that had turned cold as she had not occupied it before Beth had arrived at her door. The candles were still burning enough to let one see the room but not too much to hinder one's sleep.

"I was worried you would be asleep," commented Beth, who was on her right, "I mean you left my room some time ago."

Madeline's eyes moved to the corner, looking at her sister, and then looked back up at the ceiling, "I was finding it hard to sleep," and it was the truth.

"Is it because you went to meet grandma and grandpa?" Beth asked her voice barely curious who was looking at the decor of the room.

Madeline had already questioned Beth, and she had not received an answer she was looking for. "Hm," she responded to her sister, "I was wondering about Jennine's death."

"What about it? A vampire came and killed her," Beth replied. She then turned to sleep on her side so that she could look at Madeline and Madeline did the same.

"You said you saw the vampire?" inquired Madeline again and Beth nodded her head.

"I told you that it was a vampire. What were you expecting?" asked Beth, her eyebrows furrowing, "What's the matter, Maddie?"

"Nothing," whispered Madeline. After a minute of silence passed, she said, "I sometimes worry. About things that I have never seen or felt. I feel like there's something missing." Whenever Madeline tried to remember what happened when they were small, a lot of it was a blur.

But there were some parts of her memories, when she was small, that she still remembered. One of it was, seeing the blood on her hands and the blood didn't belong to her but of the person who was lying on the cold, snow-covered ground. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Madeline felt the things that her grandparents and her family were trying to cover up, everything coming to point right at her.

Beth said she saw the vampire with her eyes, and being a year older to her, Madeline wanted to believe that she had nothing to do with her friend's death. That she would never do something so murderous.

Her elder sister placed her hand on her arm, "You simply worry about nothing, Madeline. Things are just fine. Sometimes our minds like to conjure things, and when you are small, you always end up with bizarre memories. I have had them too."

"You did?" Madeline felt a sense of relief flooding her mind. To think that Beth was experiencing something close to what she was feeling, Madeline felt less stressed.

"Yes. I remember when we were small. Children used to not play with me. I would often dream of them not talking to me, where I was being ignored," Beth confessed to Madeline, who couldn't believe it. Beth was the popular child in the village where everyone wanted to be her friend, wanted to know her. Hearing this Madeline realised, Beth and her fears were two separate things.

"But everything turned well later, didn't it?" Madeline question, placing her hand on the pillow and letting her head rest on it.

Beth stared at Madeline, and a broad smile appeared on her lips, "Yes, it did. For some time," she murmured the last words which Madeline didn't catch.

"What else do you remember about our childhood?" Madeline wanted to know everything, wanting to refresh her memory through Beth's help. She hoped she would get something out of it. Though the glass didn't break today and went back to looking normal, it didn't mean she was not worried about the future.

She wanted to believe that mending the crack of the glass was a sign of good luck, but something told her otherwise. That an ominous event or presence was lurking right around the corner, waiting for her.

Beth said, "Hmm, I think we used to visit our grandparents' place a lot. There was a boy, who used to come to play but then I don't know what happened to him. It was funny how we used to play house. I remember once we went to this cemetery, but grandma was quick to chase us away from there. Telling it wasn't a place for children to play."

"But we have been to some of the graveyards," Madeline's eyebrows furrowed, "I mean, I remember once one of our aunts asked us to go fetch the handkerchief that she dropped in there."

"Oh, that didn't go well. Grandpa was very angry. It's not like there were ghosts in there who would abduct us," Beth laughed at the memory, "Sometimes I feel our grandparents were a little too over-protective of us."

"Don't you think it is strange," questioned Madeline, trying to dig more from Beth.

"They have always been like that, Maddie. Are you meeting them for the first time?" asked Beth who tried to get in a much more comfortable position, "I mean, the whole village is strange. They don't allow vampires, not a single one. But I think it's because of Jennine's death."

Madeline doubted it was because of their friend's death. There was some secrecy going on which both she and her sister weren't aware of, "Beth."

"Hm?" Beth responded back.

"Do you remember from which cemetery we were chased away from?" asked Madeline.

"I don't...remember, Maddie," Beth replied with her sleepy voice, "Why do you... want to...know about...cemetery?"

"I was curious," Madeline whispered when she noticed how Beth was drifting off to sleep. She decided not to disturb her sister's sleep and turned her back against the surface of the bed, staring into the dark ceiling. Somewhere between their talks, the candles had dimmed, and so did the flame in the fireplace.

Madeline was curious to know about their childhood, maybe more about her. There had been moments in the past where Beth spoke about her childhood, but when it came to Madeline's childhood, Beth didn't have much recollection about it. It was strange, Madeline thought to herself. Someone from outside would have told it was because Beth was too involved in herself for not taking note of her sister.

Beth being older to Madeline by a year, she should have remembered at least one figment about her, but there was nothing.