Savannah's House
"How can you tell us to leave this place?" Savannah's disbelief was evident in the way her voice wavered as the words passed her lips. The woman on the other end of the line used to be more of a lifeline in Savannah's world of uncertainty, was now coldly telling her to walk out. How had it come to this?
Savannah's heart beat wildly as she repeated the words in her mind, attempting to be rational about them. This was the person who had been more than just a friend... she was someone who had been a rock for Savannah when the world was crashing down. And now the same person was telling her to leave?
The waiting was long and painful, filled by only a sigh, and Savannah could feel its weight across miles of distance. A quiet resignation spoke volumes. Savannah's pulse quickened in the silence, and uncertainty twisted in her gut as she waited for a response—any response.
"Leave the place within a month or we will use force." Finally Mrs. King spoke and the phone disconnected.
The voice, on the other hand, was not Mrs King's, it belonged to someone else Savannah did not know.
Sighing heavily, Savannah's thoughts were now filled with several possibilities and scenarios, but she could not find one explanation for why this was happening?
After pondering for a moment, she decided to sleep for now and go to Mrs King's house tomorrow.
It is unlikely that she will vacate this house just like that, and if she does, there must be a very good reason for doing so. She have had so many memories built up here, and it would be a very difficult thing to leave.
Almost eight in the morning, Savannah was on her way to Mrs King's house. She left early because she needed the answers asap she couldn't sleep not could she concentrate on anything, plus she had to visit the mansion later, so she got up early, dropped Theo at school, jumped into a cab, since her's was still at the mansion.
The cab came to the halt after 15 minutes.
Savannah stepped out of the cab and made her way toward the front door, passing through a charming garden area.
As she reached the door, she pressed the doorbell, but there was no response. She tried again, but still, no one appeared. Looking around, she noticed that all the windows and the balcony on the second floor were closed. Puzzled, she decided to take a walk around the neighborhood.
As an old lady passed by, Savannah politely asked, "Can I have a minute?" The passerby woman gave her an annoyed look, making Savannah realize that her approach may have been inappropriate.
"Sorry for the trouble, but can you tell me where Mrs. King is?" She glanced at Mrs. Kim's house, then back at her. "Who are you?" Instead of an answer, she questioned back suspiciously.
"I'm Savannah, and I was-" the lady cut her off.
"Wait- you're "Savannah." The lady's expression showed that she was deep in thought.
Confused, Savannah nodded her head. "Come with me," the lady said as she started to walk away.
Without thinking much of it, Savannah followed the woman, thinking that maybe she'd get to meet Mrs. King.
"We are very good friends," the old lady began to talk. Savannah listened carefully to everything she said.
She then started telling Savannah about herself and Mrs. King's stories. Hearing about their story was kind of nice and refreshing, the lady trusted her enough to share her story.
"Wait here-" the old lady instructed, as she proceed to walk inside her house.
After a few minutes, she emerged holding a piece of paper in her hand. "I hope you didn't have to wait too long," she said, to which Savannah replied with a reassuring smile, "Not at all, don't worry." Returning the smile, she extended what appeared to be a sheet of white paper.
Savannah looked up at her, curious about what it could be.
Mrs. Kim gave me this to pass it on to you," Savannah received the item and noticed her name inscribed on it, "She's gone to a distant place, didn't disclose the exact location, and mentioned the possibility of not returning." This revelation left Savannah deeply unsettled. What had happened? What was the cause of all this uncertainty? Numerous questions lingered without any resolution, and she couldn't help but hope that the answers lay within this blank sheet of paper. It had to be.
A single word 'traffic' can turn your world upside down, and that is exactly what happened. Savannah drove out from Mrs. King's around 9:45 and was still stuck in traffic. Earlier she had decided to go home but as the traffic grew thicker she changed her destination directly to the mansion. The never-ending stream of cars and honking horns seemed to have a mind of its own, dictating her movements and testing her patience.
Baldwin's Mansion
The night was getting late, and yet here she was in the mansion's own patio, gazing into a descending orb of sunlight. The sky was colored shades of orange to pink and a soft light shone on the grounds. The view from here was nothing short of breathtaking — a sweep of rolling hills, far-off trees and the sound, faint but alive, of the world beginning to settle for the night. This mansion was all she'd ever dreamed of, a dream in marble
It felt as if for the first time in days, her mind was at peace. The past 24 hours of chaos, a tornado of decisions, confrontations and racing thoughts, had whipped her. But now it was late afternoon, as sun set behind her, and its soft heat seemed to wash over her face, quieting the turmoil she heard in her mind. For an instant, there was silence.
"Ms. Miller?" The silence did not last long.
As the voice came beside her she turned her head to see Arthur standing
"Got some time?" He questioned
"Yes." She answers. And-
Her eyes were wide in wonder as she took in the view in front of her. It was so breathtaking, she felt like unreal. It felt like she was right in the middle of an infinite library—each expanse of land unfolding as a page out of a book she could not wait to read. But there was a wistfulness in her chest, an echo that she couldn't touch this world; it wasn't hers to unearth. It was an intimate, private collection, it felt like the —one meant for someone else's eyes only. She longed to see more of it, but the sense of intruding on someone's private space hung in the air and held her still where she stood.
Turning away from the breathtaking view her eyes landed on Blaze who sat behind an enormous mahogany desk. His posture was both relaxed and remote enough to be weighing something in the air. His gaze locked with hers, and there was a spark of wordless communication before words began to flow from his mouth.
"Sorry to call you here, out of the blue," Blaze said, his voice slicing through the silence hung between them. He leaned back slightly in his swivel chair, the old wood of the desk seeming to echo the weight of the moment, like it too held a story that hadn't yet been told.
Savannah was standing in Blaze's study room, earlier Arthur had told her that Blaze wanted to discuss something about his father.
"It's fine," Savannah politely spoke.
"What do you want to know?" She asks, her eyes on him and his never leaving her.
"I wanted to speak about my father's skull injury." And Savannah understood. She had been wanting to discuss this matter as well but Blaze was hard to have a meeting with.
As a matter of fact, Savannah had told him about Mr. Baldwin's head injury at the dinner earlier that day, and Blaze had said he would think about what he wanted to do next, and Savannah believe it was about that.
"I want him to recover as of current method." Savannah stared at him as he spoke. "I do not want him to undergo another brain surgery."
Savannah had always respected her patient's choice or their family, so she did respected it now and nodded in agree with his decision.
Some people go with the most efficient way and others want the other way for their own satisfaction. Savannah had calculated Blaze has come back to his senses, the surgery had a 70-30 chance of success. He could recover, but it would make him worse than now. Mr. Baldwin might lose his understanding as a result.
After updating Blaze on his father's current condition, Savannah was now scanning all the books through her eyes from afar, she was still fascinated by them but resisted because again, she did not want to be shouted at. As she was about to get up and leave-
"Feel free to read anything you like."
Blaze's words stopped her.
He looked up at her "It's all yours."
Blaze's words lingered uncertainly in the air, striking and confusing all at once. They stopped her cold.
These would have been fighting words that should have lifted her spirits, and for a breath, she thought they may. Her heart fluttered and a spark of new belonging danced in her eyes. But then came the confusion. "It's all yours?' What did that mean? Was he being generous? Or did his easy offer conceal some inner meaning?
She glanced at Blaze, but all he offered her was a small half smile before resuming his interest in whatever it was that appeared so incredibly interesting by the blotter on his desk. It was the gentle, simple manner in which he brushed off the moment that puzzled her more than anything.
Shaking the feeling off of her chest and mind, Savannah decided not to dwell on it more. She wasn't here for that. With a deep breath, she pushed the thought aside and walked over to the massive bookshelf that stretched high above her. It wasn't just any ordinary shelf—it had a ladder attached to the sides, a sturdy one that reached all the way to the uppermost shelves, as if to invite exploration. The sight of it sent a thrill through her; books always had that effect on her.
She'd always been enchanted by books, novels whatever is to read, the way their pages could swallow her whole and make everything else fade into the background. Reading was her comfort, her escape since childhood till now, and in this moment, it felt like she was finally in a place that truly belonged to her.
Her fingers traced the spines of the books as she moved along, marveling at the sheer variety and the age of some of the tomes. Then, something caught her eye—a dusty book tucked away in the far corner of the shelf, almost like it had been forgotten. Curious, she reached for it, her heart quickening with anticipation.
As she pulled the book from its resting place, her fingers brushed something cold and sticky. She froze. Her pulse raced when she saw what was smeared along the spine—blood.
Author's Note:
Hello y'all, hope you guys are doing well <3
Sorry for not updating yesterday:(
Enjoy reading now<3 and do let me know your thoughts, it'll be appreciated <3
Good Night/Morning<3<3<3<3