Chronicles of Mystery

The Damned Souls

He then left the two companions puzzled by this meeting. Both were totally unaware of what had struck the young boy and made him act like this.

Lucy frowned. Nothing was going as planned. Instead of arriving in a distinguished mansion, she found herself in a veritable lunatic asylum. This upset her greatly. She had no idea what to do. Giving up was not an option. Who knew when such an opportunity would present itself again? She couldn't risk failing her very first investigation, however strange and disturbing seemed the case. Moreover, there was a kind of curious fascination with the play that was being played within the count's mansion. She couldn't decently leave until she saw the end of it.

She took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down. She and Alistair had a plan in place for today, so she had to stop tormenting herself and try to learn more. She was going to solve this mystery. She knew it, she felt it. She only needed to complete her gear with this magnifying glass and this notebook.

Her biggest regret as a detective was not having a loyal pet that could follow her on her adventures. She had Alistair of course, but it wasn't quite the same. Alistair categorically refused to bring back the sticks thrown at him.

He had always said no about adopting an animal without even agreeing to the negotiation. All Lucy's strongest pleas had failed to change his mind.

Lucy therefore had to say goodbye to her dream of owning a dog that she would have called Watson and made wear a detective's cap.

Lucy heaved a sigh. This great emptiness in her, this absence that she sometimes felt, it was because of this dog that she had not been able to obtain!

Alistair looked puzzled at his companion who had rolled her eyes in a dramatic posture with a melancholy and distressed look. He sometimes wondered if Lucy shouldn't have chosen a career as an actress instead of that of a detective.

As they had planned, the duo split up to investigate. Alistair going to ask Maude for directions, and Lucy getting ready for her visit to the village.

After covering herself with a very long light brown coat, the tails of which she let hang around her, Lucy went out. Despite this precaution, the cold of this morning still struck her with its frozen fingers. She then hastened to close her coat on her. She sometimes felt like the wind was a vicious little being, a tiny goblin who loved rubbing ice cubes against the backs of innocent passers-by. At times, she couldn't help but turn around, hoping to catch him in the act, as the breeze caressed her.

The sky was slightly more overcast than the day before. It was a thin layer of clouds, of a very thin thickness that let through several pieces of blue sky. Already, as the sun began its course in the sky, this one withered away more and more, becoming transparent.

It was as if the Count's domain did not accept bad time.

The air was crisp and pungent and it brought with it a faint smell of wood fire. A scent of smoke and trees at the same time. Lucy took a deep breath to fill her lungs with the intoxicating smell.

This short walk to the village did her the greatest good. It helped her calm her thoughts and clear her mind, to rest away from her worries.

Lucy had always appreciated the great outdoors, nature and the immense green spaces they offered. Spaces of freedom where there were no limits and where the dome of the sky seemed to stretch endlessly while visions and rural landscapes spread out under its azure vault.

She suddenly felt a burst of joy and began to descend the small hill that led to the village, dropping forward, arms wide open behind her. The wind came to surround her entirely as she ran in a loving embrace. The lush, green grass rustled pleasantly under her feet. She could feel the invigorating chill on her face, her hair lifted around her.