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Dark souls 9
Finally, at sunset, they drove up to a small church that stood in some deserted place. The doors were opened by an old and hunched servant, who later turned out to be deaf. The prepared priest waited in the dark depths, lit by the glow of many candles. The ceremony took some time. Against her will, Jane was surprised to hear her "yes" said in a confident, if quiet, voice. The rest she was disappointed. Resigned to her unfortunate fate, she did not expect a sea of flowers and guests, jewelry and gifts. But still, is this how a wedding should be? Without girlfriends, without friends of the bride and groom, without a new wedding dress, without joy and exultation from a happy event? As if it was not a sacrament, but a formality. Guillaume le Muy, who led her to the altar, seemed to care who he led: bride to his nephew or a horse to the stable. Jane couldn't hide her tears as they ran down her cheeks.Don't cry, darling, - said Bertrand, gently touching her cheek with his hand. - No
Dark souls 10
At dinner, Jane tried to control herself, however, her hands moved from plate to mouth, from glass to fork or knife. Try as she might, Jane couldn't help it. She no longer wanted to eat, but the hand with the fork stubbornly brought another piece to her mouth. When dinner was over, Bertrand de Gault announced that he had to give some orders in order to prepare a surprise for Jane. Guillaume le Muy stayed with her and took her to show her the lock from the inside. Going into the library, where Jane had scattered books the day before, he led her to two portraits - a man and a woman.These are the founders of our family: Bertrand de Gault and Catherine le Mouy. The history of this castle begins with them. Jane looked at the faces in the portraits. The demonic grin of Bertrand de Gault was lost in a thick black beard. Thick black eyebrows hung over steel-gray eyes. A low forehead, a large nose and a fleshy chin - all this was crowned with black armor, in whic
Dark souls 11
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
Dark souls 12
Following the closing door with a mocking glance, Bertrand looked around the queen's study. The thick pile of carpets muffled his steps. The delicate aroma of the magnificent wax of the candles tickled the nostrils, and the richly decorated books delighted the eye. Running his fingers along the spines, he settled on a very simple pocket bible. The edge of it was worn out from frequent use, the pages were broken. Nearby lay a book in folio by Machiavelli on the sovereign and the state. Bertrand smiled. It was clear that this book was often read: in addition to the shabby binding, there were notes in the margins made by the queen's hand. A worthy student did not agree with the cruel and treacherous Italian in everything, but justified his position. Although she believed that in politics, weak rulers resorted to murder, but at the same time she recognized that that sometimes this is the only means to achieve the goal, although not the best. The proof is the murder of Jeanne d'Albret, th
Dark souls 13
At the door of her pet, Ekaterina knocked with the appointed knock. The door was opened by a young man with a smooth swarthy face, lively eyes and black curls.Lorenzo, is your father at home? the queen asked. The young man nodded and led the couple up the narrow stairs to the second floor. Knocking on one of the doors of the semi-dark corridor, he said: oh, a man with a smooth swarthy face, lively eyes and black curls.Father, this is your frequent visitor. He took the exclamation in response as an invitation to enter and opened the door for the queen. Entering the room, Bertrand seemed to find himself in the shop of a necromancer or an alchemist. Stuffed animals were hung on the walls, in which a crocodile, a hyena and a porcupine were guessed. Flasks, retorts, charts of horoscopes, charts of star observations, crystal balls of different sizes, crucibles, tongs and mortars with pestles, filled with some kind of dark substance, lay in disarray on the tabl
Dark souls 14
The massacre of the Huguenots in Paris lasted about three days. Bertrand's house, although it was near the Protestant quarter, where not a single Huguenot and not a single building remained alive, by a strange whim of fate was not touched by robbers or fanatics. Not considering it necessary to take risks, Bertrand spent the whole time of the pogrom locked up. Only once did he order the door to be opened, when a hurried knock was heard from the side of the back door. His silent servant let in a very young girl in a torn dress and wounded in several places. She sat down exhausted on the steps of the stairs and asked for asylum. Bertrand, who descended, carefully examined the random guest. If not for the soot on her face and the bloody wound on the severed arm, wrapped in a dirty, bloody rag, she could be considered a beauty. Green eyes, slightly slanted in a pale face, oddly harmonized with bright red curls. A closed dress hid a small, neat chest, and small shoes hid a
Dark souls 15
The massacre of the Huguenots in Paris lasted about three days. Bertrand's house, although it was near the Protestant quarter, where not a single Huguenot and not a single building remained alive, by a strange whim of fate was not touched by robbers or fanatics. Not considering it necessary to take risks, Bertrand spent the whole time of the pogrom locked up. Only once did he order the door to be opened, when a hurried knock was heard from the side of the back door. His silent servant let in a very young girl in a torn dress and wounded in several places. She sat down exhausted on the steps of the stairs and asked for asylum. Bertrand, who descended, carefully examined the random guest. If not for the soot on her face and the bloody wound on the severed arm, wrapped in a dirty, bloody rag, she could be considered a beauty. Green eyes, slightly slanted in a pale face, oddly harmonized with bright red curls. A closed dress hid a small, neat chest, and small shoes hid a
Dark souls 16
A young woman with a barely visible tummy, hidden by a pile of skirts and lace, swayed slightly and, fanning her face with an embroidered handkerchief, with her other hand grabbed the arm of a gloomy young woman who was standing next to her.My mistress, - she immediately responded. “Madame, are you unwell?”My head hurts terribly, Katerina, - The woman put a trembling hand with a handkerchief to her forehead. “I'm about to faint.” She swayed again.Damn stuffiness, - the gloomy woman said angrily. "Now I'll help you get out."But, the service, Katerina ... - weakly protested the exhausted beauty.I think Saint Anthony will not be very pleased if, instead of listening to the clergyman in his church, you fall into a swoon to talk to God directly. The beauty smiled weaklyYou say terrible things, Katherine. Okay, the Jesuits can't hear you.And they don’t even need to hear, - supporting the beauty by the waist, said the woman named Katerina. - Don't say a word to these papis
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- Dark souls
67
“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,
- Dark souls
66
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
- Dark souls
65
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
- Dark souls
64
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
- Dark souls
63
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
- Dark souls
62
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,
- Dark souls
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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
- Dark souls
60
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
- Dark souls
59
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
