Trails of Intertwined Stars: Chapter 74 {Part 1}

~Chapter 114: The Chandelier~

The two separated from the parade of servants and down the hall to go back towards the ballroom. It was the safest bet that he hadn't left there; after all, guests were not permitted to go up or down the stairs inside the house, or enter any locked doors on the bottom floor. Despite being a man of business, Lord Bernard would know better than to dabble in the private affairs of the Mohan's, unlike Jiu, who of recent, had seemed to be a professional in that. Besides, if Lord Bernard was in the ballroom, nobody could send him to the dining room: the servants were all very busy in the kitchens, and all the other members of the house were in the dining room. Lord Bernard was entirely alone.
"Wasn't he quite drunk?" Jiu frowned, trying to recall.
"He definitely wasn't sober," Leora concluded, nodding her head, decisively," Though, he wasn't particularly a mindless, blabbering drunk either. He knew what he was saying, but I think the filter had left him."
"Hm, so drinks can't be the reason he's not in the dining room?"
"It could be, depends if he drank more when I left."
Jiu tried to think back, but now he did, he couldn't recall ever seeing the man since Leora's absence. Perhaps he hadn't been very observant, but he could have sworn he'd seen everyone else in that time.

The two arrived at the ballroom doors, they were closed; likely from a servant who'd rightfully assumed it was empty.
"Do you think it's locked?" Jiu frowned.
Leora shook her head," They never lock the ballroom if we're returning to it after a meal."
The girl pressed lightly on the door, opening it so it only shed a crack of the ballroom.
"As I thought..." Leora mumbled.
She gently pressed harder on the door, so it opened fully, and revealed the ballroom. It seemed completely empty. Nobody was there, it was just an old, echoey hall; yet there was something so unmistakably eerie about such a room, meant for lots of people and noise, at such a pindrop silence. They stepped in, trying to see if maybe he'd turned a corner to go onto the patio; it wasn't uncommon for drunks to get air. But before they could, Leora let out a pure cry of terror.
"What's wrong!?" Jiu glanced at her.
Leora trembled, pointing above them. He glanced up slowly, to where the grand chandelier was. His jaw dropped in sheer horror at the very sight he saw. The figure of the, once, proud man swung just below the elaborate chandelier; the only thing holding him was a rather thick rope. Leora fell onto her knees, clearly horrified by such a disturbing sight; trembling as choked tears ran down her face. Jiu stayed frozen in place, unable to particularly take his eyes off such a haunting sight.

It definitely could not be suicide. Nor was it likely it was the murder of any of the guests. To access the chandelier, you would have to have some obnoxiously large ladder. But to transport a heavy, dead man on an obnoxiously large ladder? Impossible. This must have been done by Duncan, as some sort of statement or threat. The guests, who had likely followed Henry when he left to find Leora; all froze in horror at the door, screaming in fear. The curse of the red roses seemed all the more believable to them, and now, the guests felt like waiting ducks in that house. Henry hovered at the door, his eyes wide in horror; his grandparents behind him, equally as mortified. It didn't take long for the Lord to recover and stumble in beside the two, at a complete loss at what to think. Rather than asking how the murder had taken place, he somehow found that a rather insensitive comment was much more important to make light of.
"How on earth has that rope managed to hold that man up? I'm rather scared for the chandelier, if the rope snaps, I fear a man of his weight would bring the whole thing crashing down-"
"Harry!" Lady Gwendolyn cried, covering her eyes.
Henry gave an unamused shrug, before turning back to the crime.
"So; who did it?"
The hall fell particularly silent. In truth, everyone had been at the dining room; everyone aside from one at one point in time.

The guests collectedly turned to look at the girl on her knees. Leora stared at them in disbelief.
"I was there!" Leora cried out," You all saw it!"
"But not initially, miss..." A servant, who had been particularly close to Archie Mills, stated.
Leora stared at the servant in sheer betrayal. She would have expected that sort of comment from her own family, but the servants? She'd believed they were her family for so long, but now she felt so fooled to have believed so.
"That may be the case," Jiu swooped in, swiftly," But we all know Mistress Mohan was with her; did we not?"
The guests all turned to look at the elderly woman, who looked unnaturally calm in this situation.
"I was not there the whole time...besides, I spoke to her in the corridor outside the ballroom," Mistress Mohan shrugged," It would have been quite easy for her to hide and commit such a murder when we all went to the dining hall."
Leora stared at her in horror," You liar...we spoke in my ill room."
"If you did speak in your ill room, Miss Leora, then why did it take you so long to come to the dining hall?" Another servant asked," That room is just opposite the dining room door."
Leora couldn't quite believe this was happening.

"Because I was rather upset, and crying! Thus why my makeup was a mess!"
"Couldn't it have been a mess from trying to heave the body to the chandelier?"
"I suppose...but I was not there!"
"How do we know that for certain? Nobody else was present. Besides, didn't you have a dispute with him earlier?"
"That's true, but I-!"
"Aren't all these deaths always tied to where you've been as well? It can't be a simple case of coincidence."
Leora looked ill. Henry stood beside her, and surprisingly, did not accuse his sister.
"Leora is ill," Henry stared, glaring at the guests," For her to heave a body up to such a height in a weak state, let alone Lord Bernard's body, would be nearly impossible. My sister did not kill him."
Leora's eyes filled with tears, as she looked at her older brother with a newfound sense of hope," Henry, you-"
Henry glanced at her, softly, before glancing up at Edward.
"Edward, please take Leora to her room. She looks positively exhausted. Julian, go with her, have her treated."
Edward helped the girl up, taking her out of the ballroom. Leora glanced back at Jiu, who met her gaze sympathetically, and gave him a weak nod of reassurance. Henry glanced back at his crowd.
"I'll have Scotland Yard come, inspect the body. I'm afraid you will all have to stay here a little longer, nobody else is permitted to leave the scene of the crime. Please make yourself welcome in the living room. I'm afraid to say it, but, we must close the festivities of tonight."

The guests muttered frustratedly and nervously to each other, making their way out of the scene of the crime. Basil made his way over to Jiu and patted him shoulder, nodding towards Dorian, who was stood at the door. Seemed he'd be spending time with them tonight as they waited for Scotland Yard to do the searches. Jiu sighed, and nodded, following. But as he left, he couldn't help but glance back, and frown at the sight. This was a threat.