The Leviathan's Rose

Chapter 5 - Sickly Sweet Smiles

Lili's study used to be a sanctuary for Lottie. Now, it felt like there was something holding her back from going in there. The ghost of the things Ingrid had done seemed to lurk around, like Ingrid was actually there. 

Lottie couldn't sleep, her thoughts kept thrashing around with no avail. Physically, she was exhausted, her body begged to sleep. But her thoughts never ceased. 

Lottie could barely remember how she made her way to the study, much less when. The fog only cleared from her mind when her gaze bore down upon the broken pendant and the letter. 

Lottie's heart twisted in her chest and her eyes scanned over King Alexander's words over and over again. Poor Kana... first she lost Alexander, then she lost their child. 

But why did Ingrid want to destroy this so badly?  

The more she thought about it, the more Lottie's stomach twisted into knots. For some reason, Ingrid didn't want anyone to find evidence of something that could ruin King Alexander. It could ruin the entire Maravish Royal family... 

Why in the world would she want to protect them? With this information, Leviathan could rip the Maravish family apart. 

They could take everything away from Ellie, maybe Jamie too...

Lottie's delicate fingers traced King Alexander's crest. The faded ink on the pages creased beneath her touch. She let out a heavy sigh, her eyes sliding to the pendant. 

Ever since she put that pendant together, she couldn't help but feel a disgusting affinity for it. To be broken and forgotten. A horrifying realization had settled into Lottie's bones. She had felt the same way, long ago. When her mother died, she lost so much. Her friends left her, her father never made an effort to be with her or see what was going on in his daughters life, and her step-mother was no better. She only had Ollie and her hopes for getting into Rosewood Hall. 

It felt like she was severed from the world. As if she herself was banished from the lives of the people she once knew. She hated it, hated the fact that she could feel any ounce of the same feelings that she speculated the Master of Leviathan did. 

Lottie wondered what Claude would think of Ellie. What he'd think of her mother, what her father had become. What would've Queen Matilde thought of King Alexander's past with Kana? Did she know about Kana? 

"I think it's time to go back to bed." Lottie muttered to herself. She hid the letter and the broken pendant behind one of the paintings in the study, careful not to make too much noise. She couldn't shake the feeling that the desk drawer and Lili's study weren't as secure as she'd hoped. Not after Ingrid...

Lottie's blood froze when she heard something creaking a good distance behind her. She sucked in a quiet breath. I will be brave, I will be brave, I will be brave. 

Lottie willed her heart to quiet down. 

Lottie spun on her heel, ready to face whoever had dared to enter Lili's study. 

Lottie tilted her gaze down to see two glowing eyes staring back at her. The fairy lights strung from the ceiling illuminated the black fur on the small creature's body. 

"Vampy!" Lottie whisper shouted. She knelt down and lifted up the mysterious cat. Vampy tilted his head, his tail curled around Lottie's wrist.

The cat leapt out of Lottie's arms, softly prancing towards the entryway, taking a pause to look back in Lottie's direction. 

Are you coming?  The gesture was enough for Lottie to get the hint. 

Lottie turned off the fairy lights and stalked behind the small creature. The halls of the school were eerily quiet. Lottie had no clue how Vampy was able to escape from Jamie's room, though she believed it was best not to question it. 

Vampy stopped outside of an oak door with the name Hinamori engraved on a gold plate. Vampy pawed at the door. Lottie heard shuffling around on the other side. Her heart began to thunder in her chest. 

Lottie pressed her next to the door. 

"I hear you Ingrid. I will not fail this mission."

Lottie's heartbeat roared in her ears as Haru's voice paused. 

"I will not let Jamie Volk get away."

No, no, no, no!

Lottie scooped up Vampy into her arms and raced through the hallways as quietly as she could. Her heart clung to her rib cage as she ran. Vampy's soft fur slid against Lottie's soft skin as he readjusted in her arms. Lottie's steps quickened when she saw her dorm room looming ahead. 

Running with Jamie really did make me faster. 

Lottie threw the door open. She let Vampy jump out of her arms. She shut the door firmly behind her as Vampy crawled up onto Ellie's bed. 

Please don't wake up!

As if on cue, the sleepy eyed girl sat up, taken aback by the black cat curling up in her lap. Ellie's eyes trailed up to Lottie's.

Lottie had her back pressed up against the door, her chest heaving. 

"We've got a problem, a very big problem."

~~~

"What do you mean he was on the phone with Ingrid!?" Saskia shouted, her hands slamming down on the table in the rose garden. Their cups of tea wobbled on their saucers with the impact. Lottie and Ellie flinched. Anastacia on the other hand didn't even blink, instead she calmly placed a hand on Saskia's shoulder, beckoning her girlfriend to sit back down. Saskia complied, muttering a small "sorry" before composing herself. 

Soft rays of the morning light cast halos upon their heads. The pungent smell of roses tickled Lottie's nose.

Lottie sighed. "Like I said, I'm not a hundred percent sure he was on the phone with her. I doubt Ingrid would come back to the school after her run in with Jamie. It's possible Haru has access to a phone, but I'm still not completely sure." she said simply. 

Saskia pinched the bridge of her nose, her brows furrowed. Lottie couldn't help but think about how much her actions resembled Jamie's.

"Listen, I'm sorry. But if Haru still has direct contact with Leviathan then I need to know how. If it's a phone then that means he can give them instant updates on everything that's going on. If it's someone who's able to sneak into Rosewood then I anonymously can tell the security guards that I saw someone suspicious sneaking around. Then they can take care of adding extra precautions."

Lottie nodded. She knew that all of this was still difficult for Saskai to deal with, especially since Leviathan had the Hamelin Formula. Haru could do anything, even coax Saskia into coming back. Or worse, he could get his hands on Anastacia. Then he'd be killing two birds with one stone. 

"Jamie's coming." Anastacia said smoothly, her eyes focusing on her glossy red nails. Lottie turned to look at Jamie as he sat down next to her.

Her eyes widened immediately, as did her friend's around her. They knew that smell, they knew it better than anyone else. That sickly sweet baby powder smell. It smothered Jamie's usual smell of cinnamon, it practically drowned it. 

Images of the pool flashed through Lottie's mind. The memory of how disarmed Jamie had been, how his hard exterior had cracked and shed. Then the memory of what happened to Percy ran through her mind. No, we just got to Rosewood Hall, there's no way Haru is moving so fast. This, this has to be a mistake!

Before Lottie managed to speak, a vicious growl ripped through the air around them A shiver crawled up Lottie's spine. Ellie's hand gripped Jamie's shoulder. He didn't budge. 

"Why do you smell like the Hamelin Formula?" she demanded. 

Jamie only smiled.