convincingness.
His boots scuffed the floor as he came to a halt right in front of the two swinging wooden panels. He lowered his chin, and turned his head to the right just enough to be detected. His eyes were downcast on the floor, but I could still feel them on me - kind of like he was looking at me without even seeing me. He let out a breath and then disappeared through the doors, into the shadowy room.
Vivian brusquely cleared her throat, redirecting my attention to her. She was standing at the front of the group, holding a set of keys.
“Well ladies – if y’all are ready, we’ve got just enough time for a brief tour before it’s time for bed.” I looked around at the other girls and some of them seemed excited, even eager to begin the tour. I suppose it wasn’t all that odd. The barn we’d been living in was no suitable place for anyone, let alone a woman. But still, we weren’t guests at the manor. We were the goods.
The foyer was lit up by a massive crystal chandelier hanging overhead . It had three tiers; each flanked by tiny lanterns, and must have been six feet across. The delicately etched pieces of fine glass shimmered from its own luminescence and it was beautiful . The room on the right into which Julian disappeared was a cocktail lounge. Directly across from that, to the left of the foyer, was the parlor.
The parlor was mostly just a fancy sitting room. There were lots of plush couches scattered about. There were baskets of yarn and cloth set in several places on the floor. Embedded into the wall over the fireplace was a shelf – and it was filled end-to-end with books. I hadn’t held a book in my hands in nearly ten years. The sight of them brought back memories of Mama’s naked, lifeless body - I shook them off.
“These books are here for your enjoyment. There’s no reason to be afraid, ladies. It’s already a known fact that all of you can, indeed, read. It’s part of the reason you all were chosen.” Vivian stared only at me while she said that. It was like she knew what I’d been thinking about, but I dismissed the thought as far-fetched and ridiculous. She allowed us to spread out in the room and look at everything it had to offer. I went straight to the book shelf and pulled a few books to hold onto for later.
After about fifteen minutes, Vivian called out, “Now don’t dawdle. We’ve still got the rest of the downstairs to view before I take you up to your rooms.”
After seeing the kitchen, dining room, and sunroom we were led up the main stairwell and onto a landing that opened up into a wide corridor. Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 were directed to the right; 6, 7, 8, Hannah, and myself were sent to the left. We each found a door with our number on it, and a collective gasp whooshed throughout the house as we each opened ours. I knew my room would be nice – that is, a big step above my stall out in the old barn. Still, I wasn’t fully prepared for what awaited me on the other side of the Number 10 door.
The first thing I took in was the sweet, smooth smell of lavender. It filled the air in my room and made me feel a little bit more at ease. The room was lit up by a crystal chandelier, equally as impressive as the one downstairs, albeit much smaller. I took a deep breath and assessed the rest of my new living quarters. A great, big bed took up about a third of the room. The mattress sat at least three feet off the ground, and the entire thing was canopied by sheer, red fabric. I’d never slept on something made especially for sleeping, and I was excited at the thought of that.
In another corner of the room was a cherrywood chifferobe. Next to it was a matching chest of drawers, and mounted on the wall between the two was a mirror tall enough to see my whole body in. A high, round table with two chairs and a plush high back chair sat in the third corner of the room. The fourth corner was empty,
His boots scuffed the floor as he came to a halt right in front of the two swinging wooden panels. He lowered his chin, and turned his head to the right just enough to be detected. His eyes were downcast on the floor, but I could still feel them on me - kind of like he was looking at me without even seeing me. He let out a breath and then disappeared through the doors, into the shadowy room.
Vivian brusquely cleared her throat, redirecting my attention to her. She was standing at the front of the group, holding a set of keys.
“Well ladies – if y’all are ready, we’ve got just enough time for a brief tour before it’s time for bed.” I looked around at the other girls and some of them seemed excited, even eager to begin the tour. I suppose it wasn’t all that odd. The barn we’d been living in was no suitable place for anyone, let alone a woman. But still, we weren’t guests at the manor. We were the goods.
The foyer was lit up by a massive crystal chandelier hanging overhead . It had three tiers; each flanked by tiny lanterns, and must have been six feet across. The delicately etched pieces of fine glass shimmered from its own luminescence and it was beautiful . The room on the right into which Julian disappeared was a cocktail lounge. Directly across from that, to the left of the foyer, was the parlor.
The parlor was mostly just a fancy sitting room. There were lots of plush couches scattered about. There were baskets of yarn and cloth set in several places on the floor. Embedded into the wall over the fireplace was a shelf – and it was filled end-to-end with books. I hadn’t held a book in my hands in nearly ten years. The sight of them brought back memories of Mama’s naked, lifeless body - I shook them off.
“These books are here for your enjoyment. There’s no reason to be afraid, ladies. It’s already a known fact that all of you can, indeed, read. It’s part of the reason you all were chosen.” Vivian stared only at me while she said that. It was like she knew what I’d been thinking about, but I dismissed the thought as far-fetched and ridiculous. She allowed us to spread out in the room and look at everything it had to offer. I went straight to the book shelf and pulled a few books to hold onto for later.
After about fifteen minutes, Vivian called out, “Now don’t dawdle. We’ve still got the rest of the downstairs to view before I take you up to your rooms.”
After seeing the kitchen, dining room, and sunroom we were led up the main stairwell and onto a landing that opened up into a wide corridor. Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 were directed to the right; 6, 7, 8, Hannah, and myself were sent to the left. We each found a door with our number on it, and a collective gasp whooshed throughout the house as we each opened ours. I knew my room would be nice – that is, a big step above my stall out in the old barn. Still, I wasn’t fully prepared for what awaited me on the other side of the Number 10 door.
The first thing I took in was the sweet, smooth smell of lavender. It filled the air in my room and made me feel a little bit more at ease. The room was lit up by a crystal chandelier, equally as impressive as the one downstairs, albeit much smaller. I took a deep breath and assessed the rest of my new living quarters. A great, big bed took up about a third of the room. The mattress sat at least three feet off the ground, and the entire thing was canopied by sheer, red fabric. I’d never slept on something made especially for sleeping, and I was excited at the thought of that.
In another corner of the room was a cherrywood chifferobe. Next to it was a matching chest of drawers, and mounted on the wall between the two was a mirror tall enough to see my whole body in. A high, round table with two chairs and a plush high back chair sat in the third corner of the room. The fourth corner was empty,
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