The Apple of My Eye

Chapter 11

When Charlotte finally made it back to the cellar she was greatly saddened. Saddened and angered. Angry at herself for not being smart enough to figure out that Alastor was the master of the house. Angry for foolishly letting herself fall for someone higher in rank than she was. But she was not only only angry at herself, she was also angry at Rosie.

"Rosie where are you?" She called out once she was alone in the small room. However no one responded to her call. "I know you can hear me! I want to speak to you! Show yourself!"

But the witch-woman did not appear.

"You knew didn't you? You knew all along who he really was and you didn't tell me!" She cried bitterly. "It's not fair! You know we can't be together! It's not possible! Now because of you I'm hopelessly in love with a man that I can never hope to be with! I wish...I wish that I had never met you! Because then I would have never come here and met him and...And end up loving him so much!"

She buried her face into her hands and sobbed. The poor girl believed that everything had just been some cruel joke. That she finally knew the joy of loving and being loved in return again only for it to be snatched away from her by the horrible truth of social status and shame. She cried herself to sleep, certain that she would never see her sweetheart again.

As for Alastor, as soon as dawn broke he went off to search the countryside for the beautiful stranger. He was very desperate and he asked nearly every person he encountered if they had ever seen a young lady with hair like the sun, skin like ivory, and cheeks like apples but to his great disappointment none of them could recall seeing such a woman. After many weeks had passed he decided to return home, thinking that he would never find his darling. 

Through the kitchen window Charlotte watched the young master return and it broke her heart to see how sad and discouraged he was. She longed to tell him who she was but alas she feared that he would only love the woman in the shimmering gown. Not the spurned daughter of Lucifer who now cleaned the kitchen. If her own father tossed her aside for being simple then there was no doubt in her mind that Alastor would do the same.

"He'll love again." She told herself as she watched him. "He may long for me now but in time he'll forget me and find someone else."

Charlotte was certain that both she and Alastor would be better off not seeing each other again. After all what could she possibly have to offer someone as rich and refined as him? She had no dowry, no name, nothing. Should she marry him she would only disgrace him. She should just leave him alone to court a woman who was equal to him in wealth and stature.

Unfortunately she failed to realize just how much her absence would hurt him. Alastor had fallen so deeply in love with her that he could not bring himself to do anything anymore. He no longer hunted or worked or danced or played music. He did nothing but stay in his room brooding. Soon he barely had the strength to eat and denied all food being brought to him which made him quite ill.

"Sir please let me in." Husk called from behind the door of his master's bedroom.

"Go away." He replied in a quiet voice of depression.

"Sir you have not eaten in days. You probably can't even move now due to the lack of food. At least try to stomach some gruel."

"What is the point Husk?"

"The point is to keep yourself from wasting away."

"If I cannot see her again then let me waste away." He heard his master sigh. "Perhaps she never existed at all. Maybe she was nothing more than a figment of my imagination. But I'm not sure if I could bear it if that's all she was."

Husk and nearly every member of the household tried to get their master to eat and to regain his appetite for life but it was a futile effort. He was in utter misery, agony, and heartache. Only one person could possibly bring him back to life and she was staying as far away from him as possible. Although to be fair she had yet to know just how unwell he was. But then one afternoon...