NIGHTS OF HALLOW

On reaching the town of Blackfang through the forest pathway, the trio arrived at the building of the Head Warden overseeing the affairs of the town.

Those around were quick to bow their heads on seeing the King approach. Curious glances were cast along Perdita’s way on whom she was, and more especially on the dress she wore. It was rare to see anyone accompany the King, and those who had heard the rumors of the king’s woman in the Castle whispered amongst themselves.

”Ignore them,” Sthena said to Perdita, guiding her towards the entrance of the building.

”Their words are the least of my problems than pay attention to loafers.” At her words, the women around who have been the ones whispering become offended. While they couldn’t do anything to Perdita, the hate was immediately sown in their hearts waiting for a perfect day to unleash it.

Sthena smiled, one of a knowing smile. He hadn’t forgotten the woman’s heart beside him was as strong as a rock. The strong heart that was already melting for him which he planned on having all to himself.

Just as they got to the entrance of the building, the door was flung open revealing the Head Warden.

”Greetings, Your Majesty!” He bowed low enough to show his utmost respect. Turning to Perdita he also greeted, ”Good morning, My Lady.”

”Good morning to you too,” Perdita responded, inclining her head to acknowledge his greeting with a bow of hers.

”Please, come in, Your Majesty, My Lady,” The Head Warden spoke, gesturing inside while he stepped aside to let them through.

The Head warden’s office was of a considerable size given the large cupboard holding racks of books and parchments that stood by the left towards the entrance. At the other side was a couch and in the middle was his table and a seat where he sat and two at the front for his guests. On the table was his nameplate, ’Head Warden Blackfang Town. Anthonio Malchantara.’

”Please, have a seat, Your Majesty,” Anthonio continued, clearing his throat nervously while his hands remained clasped at his back.

”I have not come here to sit and dawdle with you, Anthonio Malchantara.” Sthena declared, his red eyes transfixed on the Warden. He went on to say, ”What has kept you from giving your report of the case as I ordered you to do? I had given you a grace of an additional day to the two days I gave, yet, I fail to see your parchment on my table?”

”My deepest apologies, Your Majesty!” Anthonio bowed deeply, his voice shaky at the aura the king eluded. He hastily spoke, ”The report was delayed as I encountered a challenge the day I was to send in the parchment to Chief Advisor Daemon.”

”And what could that be? You found your son’s head detached from his body too?”

”No—no,” Anthonio swallowed a lump at the question of the King. His newborn son was too young to be described in that way! But who was he to speak with the King standing strong and tall in his office?

Perdita also having heard the question of Sthena turned to glance at him, her head shaking unbelievably. She could sense the turmoil of the Head warden. That was how the king made everyone feel. She heard Anthonio speak,

”The parchment of report I was to send got s—stolen, Your Majesty.” The warden revealed, sweat breaking off his back. The day before had been the day he had set aside to send the report of all his findings concerning the case of the missing head when his carriage broke down on the way. He had gone to check what the problem was only for him to find the parchment inside his bag missing when he had gone back to the carriage.

”Stolen. By who?” Sthena questioned, his eyes narrowing at the end.

”That is what I don’t know, Your Majesty,” Anthonio replied and quickly explained what happened to his carriage and how the parchment got missing.

Sthena stayed quiet for a moment, thinking about what the warden said. Damaged carriage and stolen parchment. And then his carriage also broke down on his way too. These two acts are identical, he thought. Seems like someone doesn’t want the truth of what happened to be discovered. The question now was, who was this person?

Sthena clicked his tongue in annoyance. His hand in his trouser pocket as he went on, ”The parchment was stolen, but I believe your brain is still intact and was not stolen too, was it?”

Anthonio blinked. His light-colored red eyes darted in confusion before the realization of what the King said hit him. ”Ah, yes, I mean no, Your Majesty. I can write another report and have it delivered to you right away.”

”While wait when I am here already? Go on, speak,”

”O—okay,” The Warden nodded vigorously while taking a parchment that was on the table. He began, ”As per your order, Your Majesty, all heads have been counted for in the town and no family seems to be looking for their member. The travelers and visitors of the town for the past three months have also been checked and no one is reported to be missing. All heads are counted for.”

”No one is reported to be missing,” Sthena replied, nodding his head in understanding. ”Then what happens to the woman whose head was found missing from the body? You can not tell me it is not from this town that the body was found.”

As Sthena and the Warden continued to converse, Perdita walked from where she had been standing towards the window that had its louvers open. She placed her hand on the wooden pane hoping to see how the environment of the town was when she suddenly felt a burn on her right palm.

In fear, she quickly brought her hand away from the window pane, her eyes widening to see the red patch on her palm. Was it her powers resurfacing again? Oh no!

Perdita panicked, her heart skipping a beat that drew Sthena’s attention to her. He continued to speak with the Warden while his eyes cautiously stayed on her.

Frightened at the cost of what she was being discovered if her powers were truly resurfacing, Perdita moved away from the window when her eyes caught a mark on the pane where she had placed her palm.

Curious, she stared at the mark looking like a marking that was scrawly drawn. She reached out her hand again to briefly touch it and just like before she felt the same sensation she had felt earlier under her fingertip, the red mark emerging as well. What was that? This was no power of hers, but then, she could feel the energy from the marking.

Still watching the mark on the pane, she heard Sthena say, ”We shall take our leave, however, your head remains on the edge of the sword if you fail to provide the names of everyone in the town. Go to every house and mark the names of those present. First thing tomorrow morning, it should be on my table, or consider your son living without a father.”

”Yes, yes, Your Majesty!” Anthonio bowed, fear evident in his eyes at the threat of the king. ”The report will be the first thing on your table tomorrow!”

”Good,” Sthena acknowledged. He turned to Perdita to say, ”Come on, darling. We are done here, let’s move on to the other things on the list today.”

A small blush appeared on Perdita’s cheeks at Sthena’s public display of affection. However, the head warden was far from being concerned about what the King said afterward when the only thing that rang in his head was his head being on the line and his newborn son living without a father. He loved his son after so many years of waiting for one!

Sthena and Perdita stepped out of the building and walked into the street, Emily who had been outside rejoining them. This time, though the stares had died down, people still cast looks at the pair, especially at Perdita who was a new face. And not to add, her dress made quite the impression on everyone who was just seeing her for the first time and beside the king too.

”What is it about the missing head I heard you discuss with the Warden?” Perdita quizzed. She barely understood what was discussed inside the building.

”A body was found in this town with the head missing,” Sthena replied and filled her in with what happened in the town.

”That is so gruesome,” Perdita gasped trying not to imagine the horrible image and the look that’d be on people’s faces when they saw such a death. Nobody deserved to die in such a way.

”And now, nobody can identify the owner of the body?” She asked, her mind subtly going back to her palm and red mark while she rubbed on it.

”That is correct,” Sthena answered. He said, ”Come, let me show you where it happened.”

Though Perdita was apprehensive of witnessing the scene of the act, she was also curious to see it.

On reaching the scene which had been blocked by the Head warden till further investigations were carried out, Perdita found nothing of much interest as the body had been taken out. She turned to cast Sthena a questioning look.

”Do you sense anything?” He asked Perdita, coming to stand beside her.

”No,” Perdita shook her head. ”Is there something I should feel?”

”Not exactly. I brought you here to check something which I had earlier suspected, but it turns out to be false.”

”And what could that be?”

Sthena turned to stare at the ground where a small patch of the residue from the body was still smeared on which he ordered to be left as it was. Not like anybody was coming here after what happened. He replied, ”My initial guess was that this could be the doing of a witch but it seems not to be so.”

”How? What do you mean?” Perdita continued to question, turning more curious.

”Witches have the ability to sense their kind even if they might be different, supposedly the powerful ones. I was testing it out using you. Not only did I get my answer, but I also found out that your power hasn’t reached that extent.” He smiled at the end of his words while Perdita narrowed her eyes on him for turning her into a test tool.

”I cannot believe you sometimes,” Perdita shook her head. She bent down, trying to free her dress which had hooked onto her shoe as she spoke while placing her hand on the nearby wall for support.

”Ah!” Perdita gasped, her green eyes wide in horror as the sensation from earlier came again, prompting her to remove her hand from the wall.

”What happened, Perdita?!” Alarmed, Sthena rushed to her side and quickly took her hand to inspect. Emily beside Perdita too worried. His eyes narrowed seeing the red patches on her palm.

”I—I don’t know,” Perdita stuttered, the fear from earlier returning. ”Whenever I place my hand on something, I feel this burning sensation on my palm.”

”This is not the first time,” Sthena noted to which Perdita acknowledged. Confirming the skip of her heartbeat he heard earlier inside the Warden’s office.

”The first was inside the warden’s office. There was a mark on the window pane afterward,”

”And there is a mark too on the wall,” Sthena added as his gaze went to the wall. ”Look at this mark, is it the same as the one you saw earlier?”

”Y—yes, they are the same,” Perdita replied staring closely at the mark on the wall while she clutched onto her palm.

A one-sided grin appeared on Sthena’s lips which turned Perdita confused at what he was smiling about. She heard him speak, ”Seems like the person wasn’t hiding at all. They were only leaving a landmark to places they have been and you Perdita darling are the key to finding out who this person is.”

”What are you talking about?” Perdita’s eyes narrowed in suspicion and earlier confusion.

”The person behind the killing. My guess has not been wrong after all about the culprit being a witch. And you had fortunately or unfortunately discovered their marking.”

It took a moment for Perdita to digest what Sthena said before her eyes widened in shock. ”You mean that this person who killed the woman is the same person leaving the marking which I discovered by mistakenly placing my hand on? Also, whoever it is, is a witch too?!”

”Bingo!” Sthena dramatically exclaimed, a proud smile on his face. ”I knew you’d be smart enough to figure it out. Now, come along, another task awaits us.”

”Another task?”

”Yes,” Sthena nodded with a smile. ”Finding more markings of this person. It is the only clue to wherever they are hiding.”

”??” Perdita blinked. This sounded more like giving themselves to the killer to be the next on the list without a head on their bodies.

”Don’t be scared, I’m here to protect you,” Sthena assured, taking a strand of Perdita’s hair behind her ear. ”Consider this as part of your training.”