The Tower

Chapter 19

Sarah couldn't help but stare at him. She wanted to turn away but she couldn't. In most ways, he looked the same as always. Brown unruly hair. Slightly tanned skin. Yet.... he was different. His eyes... They were glassy. His body looked as though it were frozen in time. She could make out dried tear tracks on his cheeks. She didn't even notice Mary reach forward and catch his hand. She let it go, shivering. "Cold." Her voice was small and would have gone unnoticed had it not been the only sound in the room.

She tore her eyes away. Look anywhere. Just not there. A small glimmer caught her eye. It came from not too far from where she stood. Slowly, she proceeded towards it.

A camera.

A small broken camera. Her fingers traced the crack on the lens. She removed her fingers and looked at them. A small bead of blood had formed on her index finger. It trickled down her fingers and fell onto the cold, hard, grey floor. She turned the camera in her hands. "Mary! A camera. I think it belongs to your uncle." Mary got up and walked over to her. She took the camera from her and played the last video.

Charlie. Crying. His face was full of fear, sorrow and a dozen other emotions she couldn't place. "Oh no! Oh god!! Can someone hear me?...... They're dead! All of them! Every last one of them......... Oh no! I don't know what to do......."

His sobs filled the air around them. His choking voice, his breaking voice... it left them feeling desolate and slightly confused. None of them spoke. Finally, it all came rushing out. Sarah held up her hand up in defeat. "It doesn't make sense. What is going on? Who on Earth is his daughter? How is she related to any of this? I hate this! Every time we come close to finding out, something always turns up." She stamped the floor in frustration. Mary had been quite this whole time. "Mary...?"

The redhead shook her head, quickly, over and over again. She turned away. She walked over to the wall and leaned her head on the wall. She began hitting it in frustration. "No! She had nothing to do with this! Liya....." Sarah ran over to her. "Hey! Mary, stop!" She dragged her away from the greying walls. Her hands were red and bruised

"Liya....... she's my cousin. She visited us quite often. The last time she came was.... around three months ago. A few days after she left, the news arrived that she...... died. Brutally killed is what the police said. Tied to a stick and burned alive. The killers were never found. She was so young, Sarah. Too young to die. " She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "In the eyes of the outside world, my uncle was seemingly unwavered by her death. But I knew better. His armour was breaking bit by bit, faster and faster. Someone killed her. He got away with it. My uncle... he was enraged. He left more and more often. Came back lesser and lesser. He told me.... he was investigating the life of a girl..... the age of Liya. He said he had to. No matter what."

Sarah was deep in thought. "Mary... someone killed your uncle to silence your uncle. But that made him more determined. A while later, he went into a Slovakian Tower where an untold truth remains buried. Coincidence? I think not."

Finally, Amelia spoke. "Mary, I think you know what to do? Earlier on, you didn't want to trust Laura. Now I think you know why you have to." Mary nodded. "Now both of you, I think it's time I told you about Mr Holland." Amelia took a deep breath and continued, "Daniel has been investigating him for a month now. His native land is Slovakia. However, a long time ago his ancestors left this country and never came back. A few weeks after Daniel began investigating this case, Holland came back. Daniel has a reputation for not ever giving up on a case no matter how long it took. He's stubborn that way. Daniel had a genuine interest in this case and was bothered by the killings so he took it up. Once it became clear that Daniel was getting somewhere in his investigation, Mr Holland began interfering. He did everything he could to halt the investigation. That was five months ago. That was when Charlie came in. Mary, you know the way he is. Very short-tempered. Shouts and curses began to be exchanged on a daily basis. One day, it stopped. After that Charlie was like nothing before. That happened three months ago."

"When Liya was killed."

"Well then, I guess we know exactly what is going on." The other two turned to Sarah who smiled in satisfaction. "Revealing an old truth and putting the 'Hero of the village family' in a position of extreme trouble does sound like a motive to me." Her smile of satisfaction changed into a grim one. "I think.. No, I know, why your uncle was killed, and who this madman really is.

"Liya was killed and your uncle
angered by
The same family who hired The black assassin who framed
Laura Bathory for murder.

Mr Holland and his ancestor."

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Sarah! Sarah! Where are you? Don't fall into their hands! You.... are the only one... My chosen one. If they catch you, they will kill you.

"Every castle is haunted. Ghosts are nothing to fear. It's real life you should worry about. "

Humans are cruel, Humans are merciless, Ghosts aren't the real monsters.

It's humans who are.

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Hope you guys like this chapter. I know it's a little short but I decided to stick with a short one this time.

I really want to know what you guys think is going to happen. I want to thank you all for your support so far. Thanks!!