'Don't look, Lillian. Never look into the eyes of a Sin-Eater, you will be as cursed as he is and will forever languish in darkness.'
Lillian Elmes remembers the warning her mother gave her about the town's Sin-Eater only too well.
How could she n...
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The morning has been a bustle of activity at home, with Silas taking Mama into town early so she could take morning tea with Mrs. Chatham and Marie taking up the rugs for a beating while the waning season is still generous. Papa has spent most of his day shut up in the library, his back bent over the writing desk, nose-deep in parchment. As for William, not a hide nor hair of my brother is to be seen, but I had heard him share sharp words with Mama after breakfast, so no doubt he has gone to lick his wounds somewhere in a typically-William sulk.
I, on the other hand, have spent my morning waiting on the opportunity to sneak off unnoticed and with Papa wholly preoccupied, I am soon on my way to do the very thing I promised Daniel just the day before. As I make my way to Lutwyche yet again, my head swims with thoughts of how I am going to sneak into Mr. Hawkstone's study avoiding detection, but do it I must, if I am to retrieve our first clue.
Admittedly, I have not yet told Daniel about the strange photograph of Papa and his friends taken in Rectory Wood. He had asked, naturally, but when he pressed me for my assurances that I would not put myself in danger, I had silenced him with another kiss – I think perhaps to calm my own concerns, as much as his. I cannot bear the notion that Papa might be connected to all of this in some way, but once I have the photograph in my possession – and whatever lurks behind it – I will confront him and ask him for an explanation. There is little Papa can refuse me, I know this from experience, and I am certain we shall soon get to the crux of the mystery of the necromancer.
The day has started to warm again, but not uncomfortably so, yet in the distance, the skies mute into a smudged grey that looks as if it might bring with it rain, so for once I am glad I opted for my coat and wide-brimmed bonnet. The smaller trap fares less well than Papa's larger, sturdier trap does on the bumpy road and I have to take it slower than usual, unwilling to put the wheels and axles under unnecessary strain.
With such a delayed morning, by the time I reach Lutwyche, it is afternoon already and I know I must make haste, if I am to return home before anyone notices I am gone. I had told Marie that I would likely visit Lizzie, but I am all too aware that I have spent an uncommonly amount of time at the Hawkstone residence of late and I doubt very much that I can continue with this alibi without arousing suspicion.
