Геннадий Логинов – Fatal Beauty (страница 2)

Many years had passed since then, and for many years the only permanent resident of the mansion was Desmond, an extravagant collector of rarities, an erudite, an artist and a sculptor. Or, as some people believed, he might be the only known inhabitant of the mansion in which he officially lived alone.

Being the heir to a considerable fortune, he still was unpretentious in everyday life and made regular donations to charity, including contributions to the church fund. But no money could buy love and respect of his fellow citizens.

At some point, Bargest appeared in the mansion. A suspicious guest from nowhere brought him to Desmond. The stranger was unpleasant and rude and looked more like a wild beast in human clothes than an ordinary man. This shaggy character with rotten teeth temporarily attracted the attention of all the surrounding residents. All kinds of rumours and gossips began to spread; people discussed his wild appearance and reasons for his arrival, but soon, he vanished without a trace – as unexpectedly and imperceptibly as had appeared before. To the general displeasure of the locals, the terrible dog of an unknown breed remained and became an indispensable companion for his master.

Now, being in his declining years and not having an heir, Desmond, apparently, ventured upon some plan. In the announcement discovered by Manon, Monsieur Desmond regretted that his once prosperous and beautiful mansion was now in decline and desolation, while the owner was oppressed by longing and craved for confidential communication. Therefore, he invites the lady who agrees to enliven and enrich his dull routine. It was said that the guest would not need to do anything that could somehow affect her honour and good name. She simply must live in the house of the elderly aristocrat; talk with him on various topics; read books that he was no longer able to read due to certain circumstances; help a lonely bachelor to maintain cleanliness, comfort and order to the best of her ability; accompany him on walks and visit various places, for example, a salon or theatre, and inspire him to new creative achievements. She wasn’t meant to be a housekeeper or a nurse, but the muse in the last years of a fading artist. He didn’t demand either passion or close friendship from her, but expected only attention and care. In return, she could count on living in his estate like a daughter with a loving father, and when the day would come, and Monsieur Desmond would complete his life’s journey in the time designated by God, she would inherit all his earthly wealth. Additionally, she had to pay him the last tribute, keeping the body in the mansion and sitting close to it until she would find obvious signs of starting decomposition. Monsieur Desmond had a panic fear of being buried alive, and because of it, he even set a bell in the family crypt to make himself heard in case this would happen. He also designed his coffin so that it could be opened from the inside. Further, after ascertained the death of Monsieur Desmond, the girl had to keep his body for another three days so everyone who would like to could say farewell to him. During the wake, she had to pay attention to all the guests, make sure that his favourite records would sound all day, read his favourite book to him, and then organize memorials and mourn for at least three months.

For Manon, all these conditions looked quite creepy, at the very least. At the same time, she never was cynical or mercantile, so even the desire to find her own place wouldn’t have forced the girl to serve for it in this way. But in Monsieur Desmond’s message, she saw the desperate cry of a lonely soul who had neither friend nor companion, except for the guide dog. She experienced a wide scope of mixed feelings, and the most powerful of them was probably compassion. She understood and shared the pain of this unfortunate, rejected man. He even had no one to organize the funeral – most likely, an appointed executor would do it at the expense of town budget, and then the town authorities would sell his estate with all the contents due to the lack of heirs.

On the one hand, she was sincere in her compassion for the suffering blind man, and she was ready to show mercy to him without any conditions, simply out of kindness; on the other hand, she really needed a roof over her head and a source of subsistence. Therefore, she decided to give it a try and stay with Monsieur Desmond for at least some time, hoping for the gentleman’s word. She also decided to turn around and leave immediately, if something would go wrong.

Ultimately, determination overpowered fear, and Manon went toward the old mansion. Locals showed her the way, but not before they got alarmed and surprised that someone voluntarily headed to this evil place. Having examined her closer, they also began to show a special interest in her, so Manon tried not to invite residents’ attention and not to engage in conversations unless it was absolutely necessary and passed every street as quickly as possible. As a result, the information she had received was rather fragmentary and yet she got the general picture: the mansion was a hotbed of devilry, and the sorcerer with his pet monster lived there; at night, a light (unnecessary for the owner) was seen in the windows, and some bloodcurdling screams and strange sounds could be heard.

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