De Sauveterre Mansion

"Oh Francis!"

'What? Francis?'

Edith immediately opened her eyes and looked at Mark. Mark suddenly got back control of his body when that happened. He got out of the bath and Edith got out as well. She begged Mark,

"Mark! Wait!"

"I don't know what I was thinking, but Cindy's gonna kill me!"

Mark got dressed and Edith grabbed her robe to quickly cover herself with one hand. She used her other hand to grab Mark by the wrist. Mark stopped and said in a stern tone,

"Edith...please let go of me."

"Please Mark, I will release you, but please listen to what I have to say!"

"Fine...what is it?" Mark sighed.

"I'm sorry...I don't know what came over me."

She let go of his wrist and he stood there. Edith could not find words to explain what happened. Mark was unsure of how to respond to her silence. After the brief pause, he opened the door and began to head out. As Mark was leaving, Edith said,

"You don't have to put up with her!"

Mark turned around and said in an angry tone,

"What?"

"I know abuse when I see it. Cindy is abusing you. I know because I was a victim at one time."

"..."

Mark wanted to yell at Edith for seducing him and having the nerve to accuse Cindy. However, he remained silent because she was right. Cindy did give him this swollen eye on purpose and she had been very abusive to him verbally as of late. More than usual. Edith realized just how impolite her words were and apologized to Mark.

"I...I apologize! I should not have said that!"

"It's...it's okay...goodnight."

"...g-goodnight Mark."

Mark left the bathroom and headed for his room. He heard screaming coming from the second floor...

Chapter VI: A Monster

During the time Mark headed to the bathhouse, Cindy decided to explore the mansion. She was getting bored and she sensed no real danger in it. It creeped her out, but that did not stop her from exploring. She took one of the candles with a metal handle and explored the hallway, but when she checked each door, they were all locked. So, she decided to see what was downstairs. She assumed that everything else on the mirrored hallway was locked as well. She walked down the stairs and took a right.

She saw the dining table and could see it was meant for at least fifteen people. Although the dining room was dark with all the candles out, Cindy could still make out a pathway through the dining room to the next room. Thunder roared with some lightning lighting the room quickly. She jumped at the loud thunder.

'God! Fucking scared me!'

Once she walked through the dining room, she found herself in the kitchen. When she was in the kitchen, the thunder and lightning went off again. Cindy could see everything momentarily that she could not see in the darkness. It seemed like an ordinary kitchen. However, what she failed to see was the figure hiding in the darkness of the corner behind her. It held a dagger in its hand. Once the lightning ceased, the figure could be seen no more.

Cindy found a door to the cellar. She opened it and held the candle out to see if there was anything down there. She could only see the stairs leading to the bottom, but nothing further. The figure in the corner began to move towards Cindy. It took its steps quietly as it got closer and closer. Cindy retracted her candle when she felt a cold chill go up her spine. It felt like someone was behind her. She turned around!

Nothing...there was nothing. She took a couple of steps back due to this unexplainable fear she was starting to feel. She thought to herself,

'Someone's watching me!'

She took one more step back. Her heel went downwards. Only half of her foot was on the step. She tumbled down the stairs and fell to the ground.

'Fuck!'

She got up quickly and hoped no one heard her. She found the candle to be still lit on the ground, miraculously. She picked it up and got back on her feet. She then saw something horrific. She gasped and said in her head,

'Oh my God! Those are human skulls!'

On the table was a pile of skulls. They all seemed old, like they had aged a few hundred years. They had cobweb and dust on them. Cindy was speechless. If she did not want to leave now, this would certainly change her mind. She turned around, but heard footsteps. Cindy decided to hide under the table with the skulls on top. She blew out her candle and remained silent as she heard the footsteps descending from the stairs. She saw the person's feet. They wore those all too familiar high heels with stockings. It was Renee.

She walked closer to the table. She was obviously checking to see if anyone was down here. She walked around the cellar, but found no one. She turned back towards the stairs and began to walk up. She closed the door and Cindy started to come out. However, she bumped her head on the table and one of the skulls fell off and shattered to pieces when it hit the floor.

'Shit!'

The door opened and Renee walked back down to see what caused the noise. She saw the shattered remains of the skull. She walked to the table and stopped right in front of it. Cindy was about to pee her pants.

'Oh shit! Oh shit!'

Suddenly, a mouse appeared from the pile of skulls and fell off the table. It quickly ran into a dark corner in search of a place to hide. Renee watched it flee and turned around. Cindy figured that Renee thought it was the mouse that shattered the skull. Once the door was closed again, Cindy waited for a couple of moments to time Renee leaving the kitchen. She got out from under the table, this time making sure not to bump her head. She climbed the stairs and opened the door. She peeked out to find no one there. She sneaked out quietly and made it through the kitchen, then the dining room, up the balcony, to the hallway.

Cindy felt relieved to know that she would make it back without being discovered. However, she saw the door to her room opened. She peeked in to find Renee inside. Cindy panicked. She did not know where to go now. She thought,

'All the other doors are locked!...The hallway on the left!'

Cindy quietly sneaked to the other side. She saw that one door was open. She peeked in to see if anyone was in there. There was no one. She sneaked in and peeked her head out of the room to see Renee leaving her room and closing the door. Cindy closed the door quickly and turned around. This room had nothing but the moonlight from the window lighting it, but Cindy could tell this room was different. It seemed like a personal study area. There were a couple of large bookshelves on the right wall. In the center of the room, there were a couple of couches and a small table. The chandelier was very elegant and there was a desk in front of the large window that let the moonlight shine into the dark room. The window had to be ten feet at the most. She explored the desk.

'Is that another skull?!'

Cindy saw a skull with an unlit red candle on top of it. However, she took it as something that was possibly plastic or ceramic. She then noticed a locket next to the skull. She picked it up and opened it. She saw an image of Edith in medieval attire on one side. On the other, she saw a man dressed in medieval clothing with a very familiar face. Cindy inspected the man's face more closely and she realized...

'He...He looks like Mark!'

At the moment of Cindy's discovery, she heard two footsteps in the room. She quickly turned around and scanned the area. She immediately spotted two ominous red eyes staring at her in the dark. It approached her slowly and she froze in place. She could not make out the face, just a black silhouette with evil red eyes.

"P-pp-pp-please don't hurt me..."

As the figure got closer, she could see its hand in the moonlight. It was holding a dagger. Cindy screamed and ran for the door. The monster was on the right side of the couches and table in the center of the room. So, she ran to the left and opened the door quickly. She heard it running towards her. She forced the door open and slammed it shut as she exited the room. She ran towards her room and looked back to see the monster slam the door open. She ran into her room and shut her door. She locked it and leaned against it to brace it. The few seconds of waiting were too long of time for suspense. The creature began to bang on her door.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"AHHH!!"

Cindy put her hands on her head and continued to scream. Then it stopped. It was quiet for a few seconds again, but then she heard it turning the door knob, trying to get in. She yelled at it,

"Just leave me alone!'

"What?! What did I do?!" Mark yelled from the other side of the door.

"Mark!"

She opened the door quickly and let him in. She hugged him and let out all of her tears. He held her in his arms and comforted her.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

Cindy jumped and they both looked at the door. It was Renee and Edith.

"We heard screaming. Is everyone okay?" Edith asked.

"Yeah, I found the door locked and Cindy opened it for me. She's terrified by something."

"Oh, you poor dear. What happened?"

"Don't fucking pretend with us! You're keeping monsters in this creepy place!"

"Cindy!"

"Monsters? Whatever do you mean my dear?" Edith questioned.

"Monsters! Monsters with red eyes and knives!"

"Red eyes? And knives?" Edith said with a look of suspicion.

"Ms. Clark, are you positive it was not a nightmare?" Renee asked.

"No!"

"Cindy, please, calm down—"

"No! It was real!"

"Well, we could search the mansion for this monster if it would please you." Edith offered.

"That won't be necessary Edith, thank you."

Cindy looked at Mark in disbelief. He was siding with them. He did not believe her.

"Very well. If you need us, just ring the bell." Edith reminded them. She closed the door and Cindy immediately hit Mark's face with an open hand.

SLAP!

"I'm telling the truth!"

"Cindy, please, maybe you dreamt it and—"

SLAP!

"No! It was real! These fucking bitches have skulls in their cellar and I wanna leave!"

"Babe, please, they're not bitches! They have been nothing but nice to us! And what's that about human sku—"

"Fine! Take their side! I don't give a fuck! It's because of their big racks!"

"Cindy! That has nothing to do with—"

SLAP!

Cindy began to insultingly mimic Edith's accent.

"Oh! Mizz-zyell Mock! Get a load of my mon-stel teetez. Come let me sow-ffocate you wit zem!"

Renee was outside on the other side of the door listening to the couple argue again.

'I really do not like this bitch.' She thought to herself.

Renee saw the door knob being turned. Cindy had had enough of this place. She turned the knob and opened the door. There was no one outside. She hurried down the stairs and heard some thunder accompanied with a flash of lightning. She did not care though. She wanted out and continued to the door. She opened the front door of the mansion only to find heavy rain outside. Mark was behind her. He was about to stop her, but quickly saw why she had stopped.

"Are you leaving?" Edith asked.

"Uh, no, even if we wanted to, it seems like we'd just catch our deaths out there."

Cindy was in a complete state of incredulousness. She was stuck here with two woman who were more attractive than her, her stupid husband, and a red eyed monster that had a knife. Mark held her hand and gently guided her back to the room. She did not resist due to her extreme feeling of hopelessness. There was no way out. Once they were back in the room, Mark guided Cindy and sat her down on the bed. He lied down on the other side next to her. He tried talking to her, but as always, she responded to him in an angry tone,

"Don't fucking talk to me..."

He gave up and turned away from her. He quickly fell sleep. Cindy lied down and stared at the ceiling, contemplating a way to escape her situation.

Chapter VII: Mark's Feelings

The hours had passed and it was already morning. Cindy looked out the window but got a disappointing answer. It was still raining heavy. She felt Mark moving on the bed as he got up.

"Oh, you're up early. How'd you sleep?"

"What the fuck do you think?"

Mark knew what that meant and refrained from talking to her. He got up to check his eye. It was a bit discolored but the swelling was completely gone, along with the pain.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

"You can come in." Mark said.

The door opened and Renee came in with breakfast. There, on two silver platters, were pancakes with what looked like homemade syrup, toast with butter, and some sort of shredded meat. Renee said to Mark,

"I apologize Mark, we may not have restaurant quality, but we did our best with what we had."

"No, it looks delicious! Merci Renee!"

Renee became bashful, saying,

"Aww, it was nothing. I shall leave you to enjoy."

Mark quickly cut his pancakes and took a bite. The syrup was sweet, but not too thick. The texture of the pancake was superb. It was fluffy and warm just like how he liked it. He said to Renee before she closed the door,

"Oh my God! The pancakes and syrup are perfect!"

Renee opened the door to peek her face in and smiled at him.

"Merci Mark."

"No, thank you."

Renee left with a flattered smile on her face as Mark gobbled down his food. It was one of the tastiest meals he had ever had. Once he finished, he turned to Cindy and begged,

"Babe, please come eat."

"..."

"Cindy?"

"Get the fuck out..."

"Cindy, babe—"

"GET THE FUCK OUT!!"

"Cindy! What is the matter with you?!"

"I got an unfaithful husband who always sides with his two fake breasted whores!" Cindy got up to face Mark. She stood there in front of him and continued her accusation, "I know you check them out! You stare at them with lustful eyes! This is all your fault! You selfish bastard!"

SLAP! SLAP! SLAP!

Cindy was about to slap Mark a fourth time, but he caught her by the wrist. It was his turn to yell. He had repressed his emotions and had put up with her verbal and physical oppression for long enough. He did not care if she threw another paperweight at him; he began to tear as he yelled at her,

"No! You're the unfaithful one! You're the cheater! I loved you unconditionally and have done everything I could to make you happy! It's never enough!"

Cindy did not like Mark fighting back and she definitely did not like him holding her like that. She threw her knee out and it hit his groin. He fell to his knees and covered it. The pain was excruciating. He fell to his side and Cindy stomped on him. She hit his floating rib and stomped again. She hit his ribcage this time and then ceased. She yelled at him,

"Don't ever come back!"

Mark crawled to the door and opened it. He got up and left immediately. He heard the door slam behind him. He slowly walked towards the balcony, but did not want to move down the stairs. His groin was still in pain. He stood there for a bit to let his testicles recover. Once he felt the pain decrease enough, he decided to walk it off by going to the other hallway. He saw all the doors closed except one. He walked towards it to look in as he passed it, but he saw Edith come out. She saw him and greeted him with a smile. However, it quickly left her face as she saw him limping.

"Mark! What's wrong?! Are you hurt?!"

"I'm...I'm fine." Mark answered quickly, trying to avoid alerting her.

"What happened?!"

Edith walked over to Mark and touched his side. He whined in pain. Edith ended up touching Mark's fractured rib. She immediately retracted her hand, afraid of hurting him further. Edith could already guess what happened. However, she did not want him to avoid her by trying to get the truth out of him. She instead offered some medicine. He tried to decline, but Edith grabbed him by the arm saying,

"Come to my study and lay on the couch. I will apply it."

Mark was not in any condition to fight her. The more he struggled, the more he tensed up, causing his pain to increase. He begged her,

"Edith, please—"

"I will not do anything but heal you. It will not be like the bathhouse, I promise. You need medical attention."

Edith knew that Mark was afraid of her seducing him again. She could not blame him. Not after what happened in the bathhouse. It was her fault for wanting him. However, she was genuinely concerned for him. She wanted to help him, being a former victim of domestic abuse herself.

Mark resisted, but gave in shortly, not wanting to increase his pain. He let Edith guide him to her room. He saw a large window shine light on him with heavy rain hitting it. In front was a black desk with a skull and a candle on top of it. The chandelier was a beautiful glossy black and he could clearly see she had quite the collection of literature on her black bookshelves. Edith laid him down on her couch. It was very comfortable. He saw a small table next to him and another couch behind it. Edith went to her desk and pulled out that same cream. She asked him as she walked towards him,

"How is your eye?"

Mark remembered just now. His eye was not swollen anymore. It did not even hurt. It was only discolored. He had miraculously healed in a short period of time.

"Hey, I never got to thank you about my eye. It's all better now. Merci, merci Edith."

Edith smiled with content and replied,

"You are welcome, now lift your shirt. I will use the same cream."

Mark happily accepted, figuring that it would help. He lifted his shirt and Edith saw immediately where the fractured rib was. The area was red and she knew it would become a bruise like the one on his eye. She saw Mark close his eyes as she applied the cream. Taking advantage of Mark keeping his eyes closed, she quickly held out her other hand. It began to glow white. She put it over the floating rib Cindy stomped and then over his groin. Mark could feel the pain in his ribs and groin subside. Edith lifted her hand before Mark opened his eyes to ensure he did not see anything suspicious. She said to Mark,

"Okay, I have finished. You may sit up."

Mark covered his torso and sat up. He felt like a million bucks. How did Edith do it? It was as if he had never been hit in the groin or his side. His fractured rib still hurt, but the pain was significantly reduced. Edith walked to her desk and picked up what looked to be scotch. She offered Mark,

"Would you like a drink?"

"..."

"It will help with the pain."

"Actually Edith...a drink sounds perfect."

It would be around this time that Mark would drink. Every time Cindy made him angry, hit him, or both, he would drink. This was perfect. It was what he needed. The drink being scotch made it all the better. Edith sat on the couch across from him and put the scotch down along with two glasses. She poured some for Mark first and gave it to him. He picked it up and thanked her,

"Merci."

"Je vous en prie." Edith smiled at him.

Before Edith finished pouring some for herself, Mark had already finished his glass and put it to the table. Her face wore a surprised expression as she saw the empty glass. She commented,

"You are quite the drinker."

"I love my scotch, this stuff is good."

"Do you want some more?"

"If it's not too much to ask."

"I would be my pleasure. I shall not hold back then. I love my scotch too."

Edith poured a lot more into her glass and then poured an equal amount into Mark's. He thought in his head,

'Now that's what I'm talking about! Edith is so cool. If only she lived in America...I'd make her my new drinking buddy, haha.'

"First one to gulp it all down wins!" Edith challenged him.

"You're on."

Edith did a countdown,

"trois...deux...un!"

The two gulped down the scotch in their glasses as quickly as they could. Mark made sure to do big gulps. He was down to his last gulp and was about to slam the glass. However, Edith finished and slammed hers at the same time. Mark complimented her skill,