2023-03-06 22:28:20A knock on the door saved Jane from answering this strange question. A grimace of displeasure flashed across Katerina's face. A pale girl entered, her eyes downcast to the floor.
Baron Bertrand has sent me to serve you, mademoiselle,” she said in a barely audible voice.
You walked for a long time, - Catherine said sharply, and turning to Jane, she, smiling charmingly, said:
It was nice to meet you. I'll see you at dinner, dear," and she headed for the door.
When the door closed behind Catherine de Gou, Jane looked at the girl carefully. Small in stature with brown hair hidden under a cap, the fragile pale figure of a girl was like a ghost in this gloomy castle.
Tell me, my dear, - Jane said, not taking her eyes off her. "Where's my chambermaid?" Why wasn't she sent to me, as your master said?
The girl glanced quickly at Jane, then lowered her eyes again, busy sorting through Jane's things.
Oh, mademoiselle. The owner gave her a very nice room on the half of the servants. She settles down there.
Half of the servants? Jane was outraged. Leave my things, my dear. And tell your master that I am not yet his wife. But only the bride. And although circumstances forced me to live in the groom's house before the wedding, I still wanted to observe at least some decency. My maid here, as at home, should live next to me, and not on the half of the servants. Go.
The girl darted her eyes back at Jane, curtsied, and left. Jane tried to figure out what flashed through that quick look: disapproval, relief, doubt? The girl obviously knew something or was afraid of something. It's a pity Jane gave in to an impulse and sent her out. The first thing to do was to ask her. But now it's too late - the maid is gone.
Jane propped up the door with the poker again and busied herself again with the ties of her cloak.
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Once again, she was distracted from this exciting affair, this time by a slight noise behind one of the draped doors. With a cold heart, Jane waited to see what would happen next. Finally, the noise grew a little louder, and a key creaked in the lock. Jane ran to the fireplace and pulled out another poker. The door slowly opened, and a broken voice was heard from the dark opening:Please, Mademoiselle Jeanne! This is Bianca le Mui. May I come in? Holding the poker in her hands, Jane went to the draped opening, in which she saw the pale and sad face of Bianca.It is you? she asked in amazement, looking at the guest's black attire.I'm afraid it's powerless against my cousin," Bianca said, pointing to the poker. But I wasn't wrong about you. You are not stupid like those four stupid chickens.Against your cousin? Jane asked, lowering the poker. - Excuse me, but what are you doing here? And why did they enter in this way?Leave the questions, - Bianca rushed to Jane. - Run
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Having finished writing, the Queen Mother, without looking, put her pen into the inkwell, running her eyes over what she had written. In one place she reached for her pen and vigorously crossed out and wrote something on top. Then, putting aside her pen, she leaned back in her wide chair. The hand with the pen drooped helplessly.- Nobody will believe me. Everyone will blame me,” she whispered, staring into space."Of course," came an insinuating voice from behind the curtains. You have committed many mistakes and crimes. Something actually, something is attributed to you. One atrocity more, one less - what's the difference? As soon as she heard the voice, the queen turned sharply in her chair, narrowing her eyes, looking at the newcomer. A young man of graceful and somewhat feminine appearance, with a smooth rosy face and fluff above his lips, approached her with a sly smile, holding a hat with a magnificent magnificent feather in his hand.- Who you are? the queen asked sha
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“I told you to leave the sword,” the woman said calmly. The knight's fingers loosened. “I didn’t see you or your coat of arms. I haven't heard of you or the sorcerers. I was just waiting for you.- How did you know that I would come? the knight asked furiously. The woman shrugged and turned to the shack. - No, you say! The knight grabbed his sword again. But the woman, without turning around, waved her hand, and his fingers seemed to burn. He stared at his hand, then at the back of the retreating woman, and with a cry he rushed to grab her and strangle her. But his hands passed through the void. And the woman herself was a few steps ahead of him. The knight hesitated.- Well? the woman asked as she continued walking toward the shack. - Will you come in? Or am I here to predict your future? The knight hesitated and followed her. Indignation bubbled in his soul - this peasant woman dared to turn her back on him, and even expose him to ridicule with her tricks. Muttering curses,
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After a while, when there was no place for the apple to fall in the hall, the door slammed shut with a loud noise. Katya looked doomedly from one face to another: so different and so the same. Bodily deformities and mental pathologies, the gifts of the psyche and the curses of the soul - all this must soon be destroyed. All this will die and not be reborn. The poems written by a novice boy centuries ago were just poetry. And no prophecy. And now some fanatic decided in his own way to fulfill what he considered a prediction. All of a sudden, all heads went up to the glass ceiling. Katya also heard a sound and raised her head. High above her in white robes and a white mask on his face stood a man.Dear relatives! Suddenly, a voice sounded in her head. “Today, the prophecy of the old monk who was killed right on this spot will be fulfilled. Many years ago, the abbot Gilbert Orsi was crucified by our ancestor and, dying, predicted his punishment up to the thirteenth degree. Only
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During the same week, Katya tried to leave the castle , worrying about Agnia. She was also made nervous by the ever-increasing number of relatives gathering in the castle . And also the strange behavior of golems, wearing something all the time, dragging and repairing. What caused such a pilgrimage of relatives to her, no one could clearly say. However, the sane, interrogated by her, fell into some kind of inhibited state and insisted that they should be here. By the end of the second week, Katya became more and more worried. Moreover, Guillaume became somehow apathetic and clearly tried to avoid her. And Katerina just stopped noticing her. Discouraged Katya tried to act herself. But then her clothes suddenly turned out to be dirty or washed, then the keys to the car or passport disappeared somewhere, then it rained from morning to evening, turning the roads into impassable obstacles, then the candles in the car flooded, then gasoline disappeared somewhere, then she herself ha
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Guillaume looked attentively at Katya, sighed and opened his mouth to continue the story. Suddenly he became alert. Katya also had an unpleasant feeling. For a while, an uneasy silence surrounded and weighed on them. Then there was a thump of feet, and the door swung open. Katerina stood in the doorway, alarmed.Catherine,” Guillaume turned to her. “I feel the presence of a member of our family. Who is this? Katerina suppressed her surprise and spoke quickly.Some woman came and brought the police. She screamed that her friend had gone mad here and she was being locked up like a beast. That people are being killed and eaten here. She brought her hands up to her face. “And worst of all, the commissar who came with her is a distant descendant of ours. Guillaume looked at Katya with a smile. Then he turned to Katherine.But is it possible to influence him?Bertrand finds out just that,” Catherine said calmly.And what is the name of a friend, she did not say? Katya ask
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Well, - Guillaume clapped his hands and rubbed his hands. – Would you like to have a bite to eat? A simple question reminded Katya of a monstrous feast, and nausea rose in her throat.No, no, she shook her head. - Do not worry.Then coffee. Suddenly, quickly, the little man rode up in his chair to the corner where he had a kitchen. It really was a miniature kitchen with a refrigerator, electric stove, microwave and dishwasher. A switch flipped, and a soft, muted light lit up the corner. Everything was sparkling clean and tidy. Jars of coffee, a sugar bowl, a teapot, a salt shaker and other little things were at arm's length. Katya watched in amazement as Guillaume deftly managed all the objects, moving his chair along the way.Yes, in this sense I am not disabled, - he said without looking at her. I have been living with a chair for a long time. It is my legs, and it would be surprising if I had not learned to manage it for so many years. He pointed Katya to
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The room they arrived at was huge, dark, lit only by candles and torches. Through the high window openings one could see the starry sky and the full moon. A circle was drawn in the middle of the room, in which a pentagram was inscribed. There was an inscription in Latin around the circle, black candles burned at the corners of the pentagram. A cross was inscribed inside the pentagram. A smaller part of him was looking at the door. In the place where the planks of the cross met, there was a bowl. Along the walls of the round room were couches with pillows and bedspreads, which could be guessed from the outlines, since most of the room was in the shade. Bertrand de Gault came out of the darkness with a tarred torch.“Here you are,” he said, and lit a torch from a nearby candle. Sweetish smoke drifted across the room. Bertrand waved his hand. Pierre put a three-legged stool over the cup in a pentagram and led Boris to it. Boris, who had already begun to have its effect on the smoke,
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Entering, he saw the hostess standing by the fireplace. In her hand was a frighteningly long mouthpiece, at the end of which a cigarette smoldered, spreading a sweet, intoxicating aroma.I don’t understand you, Boris,” she said. - Why was it necessary to hide and eavesdrop if you are a member of the family, and everything will be told to you anyway?However, about Agnia, you fooled me. Boris walked over to the fireplace and took a cigar from a box on the shelf. The flame of the candle danced merrily at the tip. The woman smiled as she puffed out a puff of smoke.You already think we're out of your mind. What if we told you the whole truth right away? You would run and call a psychiatrist here. We don't need more noise today. Boris thought and nodded in agreement.You were talking about guests. Will there be someone else? The woman stepped away from the fireplace and, taking a cigarette out of the holder, put it out in an ashtray on the table.I received a
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The silence was broken by the melodious chime of a clock that stood somewhere in the darkness. The candles had long been extinguished, and only the light of the moon, softly pouring from the window, dispelled the darkness. The clock, having finished cooing, struck eleven.It's time to get up, - Katya said languidly, stretching under a light sheet. The shifted corner revealed Boris's contentedly resting nature.So you can’t see a damn thing, ”he muttered, sitting up on the bed.And what? - Katya jumped off easily and ran barefoot to the door. – Peter! she called. - Light!What are you? - Boris involuntarily covered his penis with a sheet and stared in amazement at Katya. - Cover up! But she did not pay attention to his words, impatiently tapping her bare foot at the door, while the impassive Pierre lit the candles in the room. He walked from one chandelier to another. It seemed that the darkness and twilight did not bother him at all. When he finished with th
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Finally, the forest ended with a clearing, which in turn turned into a small clearing. The outlines of a castle rose on the horizon . Light shone from two windows. The trees creaked ominously in the wind. The road through the clearing led to a high wrought-iron gate that locked a stone fence. When the car pulled up, the gate swung open noiselessly and closed behind her just as silently. After making a semicircle around the dark mass of a flower bed, the flowers of which were difficult to see in the dark, the car stopped in front of a high dark door, which immediately swung open. A tall, gray-haired man in a gray sweater stood in the doorway. Approaching him with a simple luggage, Boris shuddered: on both eyes of the man there were thorns that completely covered the pupils.Welcome to us, - he said in a hollow voice and smiled. His face instantly changed: he looked like a cunning dwarf. Pierre will take your things. A stocky man with a stiff expression stepped out o
