"If you stay here, you become lost. And no one can find you. I like lost." – Ally Condie, Enthralled: Paranormal Diversions

1815

Valarie walked towards Flyzroy Castle, a majestic building set against the English countryside. It looked new, thought Valarie knew it had been standing for a good few years. She'd been staying at the inn in the village, looking for a way into the Castle when she'd met a mutual friend of the current Marquis, who insisted she join them up at the Castle. Even Valarie was surprised by how quickly she'd garnered an invitation. It seemed her plan was going perfectly and the new background she'd created for herself had always been spread by the poor orphan boy she'd paid money to.

Valarie was of course running from the incident in Bath with Victor Madden and was understandably worried about whether he would follow through on his threats or not. She was as cold as ice on the surface but that didn't mean she was impenetrable. She had briefly thought about impersonating somebody else but had decided that it wasn't worth the hassle of someone finding out she was a fake.

Squaring her shoulders, Valarie put her game face on, knowing she'd have to gain the trust of the current Marquis to be allowed to stay in the Castle as a guest. Currently, she was merely a day guest and she had several plans on how to become a long-standing resident. She was led to a spacious sitting room where other guests had congregated. The first time she saw him her breath hitched in her throat and she knew this handsome man had to be the Marquis.

She dropped her eyes to the floor after he entered the room. With so many people present, the act of a quiet, demure girl was the best persona to adopt. I was introduced to several people and invited to sit and converse. She did so without complaint and listened to those around her drivel on about unimportant things. Several questions were thrown her way by the people in the group who were trying to suss her out. She hoped she impressed them with her answers and hadn't blown the opportunity set out before her. She'd clocked the Marquis again, but he was involved in conversation with another and was not looking her way. She sighed in frustration.

When there was a lull in conversation, she made her excuses and took a turnabout the room. She ended up standing by a large window that overlooked the grounds of the Castle. In their simplicity they were beautiful and seemed never-ending. Valarie felt a presence come up behind her and felt the breath of another dance across the back of her neck.

"Though I know your name, I fear we have not been introduced. I'd remember a beautiful face like yours."

Valarie blushed, though she was used to such compliments, his seemed so sincere that it was hard to remain unaffected.

"No Sir, we have not met. I am new in town and was invited here by a mutual friend. I am currently staying in the local inn and am yet unaware of how long I will stay. I do hope I am not intruding here Marquis."

He smiled and it made him look even more charming.

"Please, I detest formal titles. My friend's call me Raff, and I do hope we could become friends. I have heard nothing but wonderful things of you from those in this room."

Valarie narrowed her eyes in suspicion. She hardly knew the people in this room and had talked to them for even less. She wondered what conversations they were already spreading about her.

Valarie was used to what the Marquis had just said to her. She'd always had a knack for bringing a man to his knees in a matter of seconds and was able to break the promises set before all me. A simple shrug of titles after a first meeting was something not done in the English Country, but Valarie had always been able to make men give up the things they were brought up on. It was either that or this Marquis was something she'd never come across before.

"I would be honoured to call you a friend."

He smiled and her heart warmed in a way she didn't know it could. As he walked away to converse with others, Valarie had to push down the sudden feelings in her stomach. She hadn't had these feelings in a long time, and they weren't good. She was here to escape one disaster, not to fall heard first into another. Lust was a weakness and love could kill and Valarie was in the business of looking out for number one. She couldn't afford any distractions.

She caught eyes with Raff again as she fought not to yawn in the presence of boring company. They held eye contact for several seconds before she broke it by demurely glancing down at her hands. It seemed she'd garnered enough attentions from the host and those around her to earn an invitation to dine with the group for dinner. She worried briefly that she might be underdressed compared to the other women present but decided she wouldn't worry about what she couldn't change.

Dinner was a stately affair, held in a lavish dining room with gold chandeliers, polished silver cutlery and red velvet upholstered chairs. It wasn't until it came to seating that she realised how many people were in attendance. She was sat near the middle of the table on the left side of the room. She was sat next to a young brunette woman with a pinched upturned nose and an old dowager whose hearing seemed to be going. From her position she had a clear view of Raff, who looked quite handsome in his evening attire and she had to stop herself from glancing at him too often. She was acting like a child and not the woman she was. It needed to stop.

Conversation at the table was quite varied and more intellectual than she had expected. Many of the people present had humorous stories to tell of their recent ventures into town or of the people they knew. Some of the stories even had Valarie chuckling quietly, which was a surprising achievement. Valarie felt eyes on her all throughout dinner, as the outsider there she was untrusted by all except the jolly man who had first invited her to the Castle, and Raff, who seemed to genuinely want to get to know her.

Dinner was a delicious four course meal and since her escape from Bath, was a welcomed sight to her stomach that had been crying of late. By the end of the meal she felt she could not move from the sheer amount she had eaten, and her neck was hot from all the stares she'd received.

Now came the part of the evening that she dreaded. Where the men departed to the smoking room and the women retreated to the lounge. There were only ever two types of women, simpering dramatics with fluff between their ears or cold and calculating women who knew how to get what they wanted in life. There was no in-between. Valarie detested both and disliked having to fake her way through conversation with a forced smile upon her face.

For the most part, it seemed she was to be left out of the conversation, for the woman around her believed her to be inferior to them. The elderly dowager – who she'd sat next to ad dinner – seemed to be the only one willing to acknowledge her and did so by declaring to the others that Valarie reminded her of her younger self and subtly remarked upon her intelligence being higher than the other women in the room. It didn't do any favours for Valarie.

The dowager dragged Valarie off to a corner of the room, where they spoke on all matter of things and finally, Valarie realised that the old dowager was a likeminded as she was. 

In the week that followed, Valarie enjoyed all manner of activities with her newfound acquaintances. They went on picnics, country walks and fruit picking. They saw music concerts, small theatre productions and attended large dinner parties and balls. Valarie was grateful the old dowager was spry enough to attend all the events for Valarie would surely have gone out of her mind without the company.

At the turning of a new week, she was pulled aside by the old dowager and Raff. As it turned out, the old dowager – as Valarie had been calling her – was Raff's Great Aunt and she had asked Raff to allow Valarie to stay at the Castle. Valarie was very grateful to finally be accepted into the fold like this, for her funds were growing short staying at the inn. Valarie took this as a sign that she was finally being accepted and trusted by those around her and smiled inwardly at her accomplishment.

Carlotta – which, Valarie learned was the old dowager's name – ordered a horse and carriage complete with a servant to accompany Valarie back to the inn to collect her belongings. Once Valarie returned to the Castle, it was to Raff and Carlotta waiting for her. However, after greeting her, Raff excused himself, winking as he retreated. Valarie was left in Carlotta's company as she was guided to her new room.

The room was simple yet extravagant and far away from the other ladies staying at the Castle. There was a simple canopy bed, a wardrobe and two bedside tables. Across from the bed was a large vanity table and a round table with an exotic bunch of flowers on it that filled the room with pleasant smells.

Valarie was pleased, it was more than she expected, and she thanked Carlotta sincerely.

"Think nothing of it. It'll be good to have someone like you here. I cannot stand most of the people my nephew insists on keeping around. I recognise someone in need when I see them, and we practical people have to stick together."

Valarie noticed the knowing gleam in Carlotta's eyes. She was worried that she had been discovered but dismissing the thought, she reinforced the guard she always kept in place.

"There is to be a close gathering of friends on the 'morrow and my nephew has requested that you be included. This new week will bring new people, hopefully with more than fluff between their ears but you can never be certain," Carlotta paused to laugh at her own joke, and Valarie smiled accordingly. "Well, the day isn't getting any younger. I'll take my leave for now. Do enjoy the rest of your day Valarie."

Valarie thank Carlotta once again before watching her leave. Then she unpacked what little she had brought with her. Everything had a place and for those items that needed to be kept hidden, Valarie managed to find a couple of unique hiding spots to use that she was confident wouldn't be found by others.

Taking leave of her room, she indulged in an afternoon walk around the gardens. The glorious sun was shining down on her and reminded Valarie of how glorious the English summertime could be.

Roaming the gardens caused Valarie to feel at piece with herself and free from the stress life was causing her. Quite randomly Valarie found that she had moved away from the sculpted part of the gardens and towards a piece of land where the grass was so long that Valarie assumed the gardeners had forgotten about it. She stood starring at it. With a little help and a wall built around it, this place would make the perfect secret garden. Valarie loved secrets and kept many close to her chest...her own and the secrets of others. As she stood and stared, she thought about how well things were progressing – and after only one week! She thought about how she'd successfully managed to leave the scandal behind her and how different her life would have been had she been born to a different social class.

"Tell me, what has captivated your mind so intently?"

She flinched and cursed herself for not observing her surroundings.

"Wouldn't this spot make the perfect secret garden?"

"How would it be a secret when everyone can see it?"

Valarie looked at Raff and saw he was gazing at her and smirking mischievously. She mock frowned in response, pretending to be hurt.

"By building a wall of course."

"Alright."

"Alright? What on earth do you mean?"

"Alright, I'll build a wall."

She laughed, "you'll build a wall just because I suggested it?"

"It was a valid point and one you seem interested in. Perhaps this part of the garden has been ignored long enough."

Valarie turned to stare at him. She looked closely and examined his facial features but could find nothing untoward. It seemed he generally wanted to do something that would please her.

"Come, we should head inside before the evening chill appears."

Valarie didn't think it was that late in the afternoon but accepted Raff's arm without complaint. She could get used to the life here, especially if that life included Raff.

The morning dawned and it appeared to be nothing special. The real fun started in the afternoon. The events described as 'fun' were really anything but as far as Valarie was concerned but she could do nothing but weather the storm. They had all gathered in a large yellow sitting room that also housed a writing desk and grand piano. Valarie was one of the last people to enter but she paid no heed to it as she took an empty seat next to Carlotta.

She noticed Carlotta gazing disgustedly around the room and wondered what had caused her to become agitated as the older woman was usually good at hiding her emotions. The fun started when Valarie was accosted by a woman she'd never met before.

"I've heard all about you. I'm Harriet Peters, Raff's best friend. That's my Mother over there in the corner. Don't get her started on marriage, she'll talk your ear off!"

Harriet laughed, but it came out as fake. Valarie adopted an equally fake smile upon her own face.

"I'm sorry but Raff has never mentioned you."

Harriet stormed off, immediately hovering by Raff's side where they seemed to have a rather rushed conversation.

"Well done girl, I never liked Harriet. She thinks too highly of herself and doesn't believe Raff should have any other female friends. Oh, and her Mother, what a pompous woman, she's desperate to marry off Harriet. She would probably have pushed for marriage between Raff and Harriet had she not been afraid of me."

Valarie laughed, it seemed that she had found the things that had disgusted Carlotta so. Harriet remained tight lipped and closed off to Valarie that evening and it was clear that Harriet did not trust Valarie, or the way Valarie had appeared at the Castle. Valarie suspected she just didn't like the fact that she'd now be sharing Raff with another.

Valarie had all but dismissed Harriet as not being a threat, until...

"Have you heard about the scandal involving Victor Madden?"

Valarie froze and her heart stopped beating.

"You know I don't go into town and I detest Bath most of all," said Raff.

"Oh, how could you not know! You and Victor went to school together."

In a blink of an eye, Valarie could see all possibilities and outcomes of this line of conversation. She felt like a trapped animal. A hand was placed on her forearm and Valarie turned her head a fraction to see Carlotta staring intently at her.

"Relax or they'll suspect," the older woman whispered.

Valarie forced herself to do just that, but it was hard to do, especially knowing Carlotta knew more about her than she previously thought.

"Victor and I never got on in school. I didn't care much for him then and I sure don't care much for him now," said Raff.

"Well you're the exception then. I'm sure everyone else here wants to know the story."

A cheer went up and Valarie forced herself to count down from fifty and calm her nerves.

"Well, turns out that he was seen to be courting a young noble girl and plans were set for them to be married but she jilted him. Someone overheard the tail end of their discussion and heard this unknown woman reject Victor. Seems she's now disappeared off the face of the earth and get this, there is no record of the noble family she belonged to. She made it all up. She doesn't exist."

"People will do anything to get ahead these days," said Harriet's Mother distastefully.

"She was probably just some scarlet woman looking for her next victim and ran when she realised Victor wouldn't play her game. He is known for his temper," said Harriet.

Scarlet woman indeed, thought Valarie.