The Fourth Mistress - Chapter 35：Massaging with cold fingers

Father Edward didn’t stay to have some tea even in the manor’s garden. Louise watched the carriage, which the priest had come in to leave the manor. Even though the man had assured her about exorcising the manor, he didn’t seem confident about it.

The spirit had returned the cross without being harmed. She remembered what he had earlier said about spirits and how some could turn into pure evil if they would try to exorcise the place.

When she turned around, ready to step back inside the manor, she caught sight of the butler who stood at the door, watching her.

His eyes briefly moved to look at her hand before it quickly looked back at her. She wondered if it was because of the dull features that made him look suspicious. His eyes were droopy, his frame straight, and his face that was probably the scariest thing to come across at night.

Stepping inside the manor, Louise heard Gilbert close the main door behind her. She turned back to him and said, “I am going to the cellar to bring out some of the paintings. I would like to have your help there.”

Gilbert’s expression barely changed, and he bowed his head, “Let me go and get the lanterns, milady.”

Louise had promised Graham that she wouldn’t go anywhere alone, and even though she only wanted to fetch the paintings from the cellar, she hadn’t forgotten the day she had seen and heard things in there. As if the ghost lived in the cellar.

Within a few minutes, Gilbert arrived at the front of the cellar with two lanterns, where Louise had been waiting for him. Before opening the door, he handed her one of the lanterns and held another in his hand.

Louise walked to where the paintings were, and with the butler’s help, she got them out to see the light after many years. So far, she didn’t know what the ghost’s motive was and if it was upset with something. But right now, she wanted to honour the memories of the women and other family members who were once part of Reed’s family.

With the help of two more servants, the paintings were nailed to the walls. Louise, who stood there with them, saw one of the men standing on the wobbly stool.

“Why don’t you make use of the other stool?” questioned Louise in concern.

“We are used to balancing on it, milady,” replied one of the male servants named Saul. “We all are used to standing on it,” he offered a polite smile to the lady.

“I see,” murmured Louise. “But it would be better to have it replaced with a more sturdy one. Gilbert, can you get it replaced?” At her request, the butler bowed his head. “I would feel terrible if something happened because of this… stool.”

Was it possible that this was the same object that Lisa had tried to stand on and had fallen? Louise asked herself.

Curious, she asked the other servant, Philip, “How long have you been working for the family?”

“It must be around three years for me. In terms of serving, I am the youngest staff member to be working for the family, milady,” replied Philip, while placing the nail on the wall and hammering it. “It was the time when the family wanted another servant because they were short at that time.”

“That means you didn’t work for them in Warlington’s manor,” murmured Louise.

“No, milady,” answered Philip, and the sound of a hammer hitting the wall filled the corridor.

“And how about you, Saul?” She turned her head to the other servant, who was supporting the painting with his hands.

“I have been with them for nearly a decade, milady. My father used to work here as a coachman, and my mother used to work as a maid for Master Grahams’ grandmother,” replied the servant named Saul, and Louise nodded her head.

“It must be nice, to have a generation of your family working closely with Reed’s family,” stated Louise, and the man nodded his head. It was good to know love was possible to bloom between the servants.

“It is, milady. We find it to be a privilege to be working for such a prestigious family,” came the answer from the servant.

“I have, milady. The longest period out of the lot,” came the dull response of the man.

Before she could ask how long, one of the servants appeared in the corridor to inform the butler and say, “Lady Viola is asking for your presence in her room.”

Gilbert bowed his head at Louise, excusing himself to go and attend Lady Viola, resting in her room.

Saul, who was standing near the wall, turned his head to look at Louise and said, “I was surprised when I was called to nail the paintings. I thought a new painting had been made.”

Louise smiled at this, “We haven’t called the painter to make a portrait for us yet. I always wanted to be in one.”

Saul said, “The painter of these paintings, George Steward, has now turned into a drunkard, and his talent has turned to such a waste. The man used to live in Habsburg, but now he has moved to live in another town. He wasn’t always like this.”

“What happened to him?” asked Louise, the curiosity in her never failing.

“Don’t know, milady,” replied the servant and said, “There are some painters in Habsburg, maybe Master Graham will know.”

“I will be sure to ask him,” said Louise.

Taking a step back, she looked at the wall in front of her, staring at the family portraits, which had vivid colours. “If you don’t mind my question, were the portraits always kept in the cellar?”

Philip, who was new, wasn’t aware of it, but Saul seemed to have answers to it as he shook his head, “No, milady. Previously the paintings were always on the walls. But I don’t remember when exactly they were taken down.”

“Thank you for replying to my questions, Saul and Philip,” she offered them a polite smile. Once they finished hanging all the portraits, the two servants went back to continue their other work while Louise stood there admiring the paintings.

Compared to the low lighting that came from her lantern in the cellar, the paintings now looked much better, and she could see the people in them. She came to stand in front of one of the paintings, Senior Mr. and Mrs. Reed sitting on the couch, and behind them stood Graham. It looked like a recent painting compared to the rest of them, but it made her wonder why this one was put away with the rest of the old paintings.

Also, by seeing the position of Graham, it seemed like he loved and cared for his mother more. Not that Louise felt that he loved his father less, but it was the subtle positioning that let her know. During the time of dinner, Senior Mr. Reed or Robert as Louise had been told to address him, spoke from the head of the table,

“I heard that it was you, who brought the paintings out and had them fixed on the walls, Louise.”

Louise looked up from her plate, her hands paused, and she looked at Robert cutting his steak.

“I did,” she replied. “All them are beautiful paintings that-”

“Next time, maybe you could discuss it with everyone before doing something like that, that concerns everyone in here,” said Robert, a polite smile on his lips.

“My apologies for not discussing it,” Louise bowed her head from her seat.

“That’s fine, Louise,” assured Robert, his smile not leaving his lips.

Graham spoke next, “It has been a while since we got any of the paintings done. Now that we have Louise in the family, it is time to call the painter and have a family portrait made. Don’t you agree, father?”

Robert nodded his head, “Indeed it has been a while. Gilbert, get George to come to the manor tomorrow and make sure to let him know not to show up here being drunk.”

To Louise, it seemed like this person, George, was very efficient for the family to consider him, even though he was an alcoholic. Because of how she viewed Reed’s family members, they were intolerant to people who didn’t have work etiquette.

“Surely, it is better to find someone else than someone like him,” muttered Lady Viola, who seemed to be in a sour mood.

Robert placed his hand on his wife’s hand, patting it as if he was consoling her.

After having dinner, Louise retired to her room, while Graham had stayed back to go to his study room with his father to discuss the machines they would need to purchase for the branch in Hungate.

Louise sat in the bathtub in the room and behind the wooden divider, candles lit around the tub. She soaked herself in the warm water, which was filled by one of the maids earlier, so that she could relax.

Soap covered her body as she lathered herself with it. Closing her eyes with her head leaned back as she continued to ponder on the current state of Reed’s family. Maybe she could find something with the help of Mr. Winkle, thought Louise to herself. Louise was about to sit upright to wash the soap off when she heard Graham speak behind her,

“Let me help,” he offered her, placing his hands on her shoulders and letting her lean back again.

A small blush appeared on Louise’s cheek, but she didn’t refuse him. Leaning back again against the bathtub, she felt him massage her shoulders and neck, his fingers gentle on her, and she felt herself internally sigh.

“You must be tired,” she heard Graham say behind her.

“For some strange reason, I am. Even though I was in the manor today. I guess I walked a little too much back and forth,” said Louise. Not to forget, amid everything that was going on, she was also making sure to study for her upcoming exams. “How was your day?” she asked, her toes curling when his fingers massaged the back of her neck.

“Just like any other day,” he replied to her, and Louise gave a nod to him.

Louise said, “Father Edward had come by, he said the ghost that haunts the manor took away the cross that was placed here to protect us from it. I believe the chandelier that fell was its doing. Trying to hurt Gilbert and Emily.”

“Why would the ghost ever want to hurt the servants?” asked Graham, his voice sounding confused.

“I don’t know,” whispered Louise. “Is it possible that the servants know about the person who was killed, that your uncle Ernest was involved?”

A chuckle escaped his lips, and he said, “I don’t think he was ever close to the servants for them to know anything at all. What made you bring out the portraits today?”

Louise smiled at the question, “The walls looked empty and I thought it would be nice to have all the portraits” so that everyone could look at it.

When her neck was being rubbed, she let her head lean forward so that her husband would get more space to work his fingers on. After a few seconds, Louise opened her eyes, looking at her reflection. And as her eyes fell on the decayed hands that circled her neck, she turned pale.

Louise suddenly snapped her head around to look behind her, and there was no one there. She realized until now, she hadn’t been speaking to Graham.