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"I hate you, Christopher Thorn." Lilith spat the words as she screamed in his face. He grabbed the knife from her hand and tossed it across the room.
His response was cold and dull. He stared into Lilith's tear-filled eyes. "I know you do. It's evident. People who love each other don't try to kill one another." Dragging her off the bed by her wrists, he pulled Lilith to the bedroom door and tossed her out into the hall. "I think you should sleep in your own room from now on. I have nothing to offer you, Lady Lilith. Good night." The Lord slammed the door in her face, and she heard the lock snap shut.
Lilith stood in the hall and tried to comprehend what had happened. She lightly knocked on the door and asked Christopher to talk to her. No reply came from the other side of the door.
"I'm sorry." she whimpered to her husband through sobs," I promise to be a better wife. Please talk to me, Christopher." Lilith pleaded at his room door. Only to be met with silence.
Lilith walked down the hallway to the foyer. Slowly she turned the knob on the front door and stepped out into the cold. She was devastated by what had transpired.
Christopher began to regret how he had spoken to Lilith, even if he didn't love her. She was right. He could have treated her more dignified than he did this evening. It was usually not in his character to act as he did. Lilith had pushed his buttons, and he lost his temper. Christopher knew he had a habit of going overboard when it came to teaching a lesson to his spoiled wife.
However, Christopher spoke the truth about their marriage and did not want kids. He looked out his bedroom window and saw Lilith walking to the gate in the snow-filled winter night.
It dawned on him that he had failed to keep his wedding vow for better or worse. Christopher had broken Lilith's heart...
Guilt and dread filled Christopher's chest. "How could I have been so insensitive to her." He muttered, running his fingers nervously through his hair. Lilith was right. He had been as awful to her tonight as she had to the servants. All Christopher wanted was to teach Lilith a lesson, but he realized his actions were too rash.
Lord Thorn rushed from his room, and down the hall, he almost collided with Duncan. "Pardon me," He grabbed the butler by his shoulders so the man wouldn't fall. "Lilith is outside with no coat. I have to get her back in the mansion." He resumed moving past the startled man.
Seeing the confusion and distress on The Lord's face, the butler grabbed a quilt from the bedroom and followed Christopher toward the foyer. He was unsure of what was taking place.
Duncan saw Christopher reach the entrance of the mansion. He burst out the door and called out to his wife. "Lilith, Stop!"
She turned only for The Lord to be met by her distant, empty eyes. The flame that once lit her soul had been extinguished. Lilith turned away and continued moving closer to the gates. Christopher ran after her, seized her by the shoulders, and turned her to face him. She had not ceased crying since he threw her from their room. Lilith's tiny button nose and eyes were bright red. Her body trembled from the snow and cold.
His heart sank at the sight of her. "Lilith," Christopher called her name softly. He hoped he could reach her and bring her back to her senses. She finally responded, "Why did you come after a woman you don't love?" Tears slid down her reddened cheeks.
Before Christopher could reply, she heard footsteps clicking on the ground. Lilith raised her head to see Duncan. She began to back away. Her heart was incapable of taking any more anguish or embarrassment. Lilith thought it was bad enough to be told she wasn't loved, but now having outsiders and servants know her secrets was an unbearable shame. Lilith unexpectedly bolted for the road.
Christopher tried to catch hold of his wife but was too late. She had slipped through his fingers like sand. In an instant, she was gone. He couldn't move and stood frozen in place. The Lord watched in horror as Lilith shrieked in pain; she was crushed beneath the wheels of a passing coach. The carriage halted, and the coachman jumped down, running over to where Lilith lay bleeding and broken in the snow. Christopher saw the driver bend down to touch her body. Lord Thorn snapped, and before the man's hand could reach her, The Lord hurled the driver back across the road.
Lord Thorn knelt in the crimson-stained snow next to Lilith's lifeless body. He could see her neck was broken. The cold, dull stare in her eyes told him she was no longer alive. Duncan approached to cover her with the quilt. "Don't touch her!" Christopher said to the man with an angry growl. He pushed the butler away and stood with her broken body in his arms.
"Yes, Milord, I'm here to assist if you need me." Duncan bowed his head.
The butler cautiously passed the quilt over, careful not to agitate The Lord further; Christopher took the blanket and covered Lilith's dead body.
Without warning, there was a scream that cut through the stillness of the winter night. The sound of wailing brought Christopher back to reality. He looked over to see Lilith's aunt Rena racing towards them. It was her carriage that had struck and killed Lilith.
Lord Thorn turned to his trusted butler, "Please, take care of her family. I'm heading to the parlor. Get Jackson and wake up Cedric. Tell them what happened. They will know how to proceed."
The butler bowed, "Yes, Milord, consider it done." Duncan moved down the walkway and blocked the aunt before she could get closer.
Christopher walked up the mansion's steps and went back inside with Lilith's body. He took her to the parlor and sat on the ornately carved gossip chair with her still in his arms. He brushed back the hair from her tear-stained face and kissed her head.
He spoke softly, even though she would never hear the words. "I'm sorry, Lilith, I just wanted to give you a dose of your medicine and see if it would change your views. You didn't deserve this. You were correct when you said I treated you without grace." Swallowing past the lump that formed in his throat, Christopher took a ragged breath and finished. "I lied when I said I didn't love you. I was going to tell you when you asked me why I would come after some I didn't love, but you never gave me a chance. I still love you, Lilith." His sight began to cloud from the tears forming in his eyes. The Lord hung his head, and a single tear dropped to the marble floor. He knew his actions had caused her death. Christopher's conscious would never be clear of what he had done to Lilith.
***
Lord Thorn sat for a long time holding his wife's body. He looked as if he were in a daydream. The butler was trying to speak to Christopher to get his attention. His face made it clear that words were not getting through. He was pale with a passionless expression on his face, his eyes dark. The man no longer resembled a human. He was nothing more than a phantom.
"Sir? Milord? Can you hear me?" asked Duncan.
Eventually, he heard the servant speaking to him, bringing him back to this world.
"Hmmm..." Christopher hummed at his servant.
"Constable Clement is going over what happened with Cedric, and Jackson asked to speak with you. The calamity you hear in the foyer is Sir Thomas and his wife," Duncan reported.
The pain-filled cries of women and a male voice that was raised in anger could be heard echoing through the halls.
Christopher looked up at his servant, grief written on his face, "Please, just one more moment, then send Jackson in here."
Lord Thorn stood up from the chair and gently laid Lilith's body on the table brought into the parlor for the wake. He looked around the room to see servants had already brought in flowers, covered the mirrors with black cloths, drawn the curtains on the windows, and stopped the clocks. It seemed surreal to know that Lilith was no longer alive.
"Milord, Are you okay?" A voice from the door asked Christopher. It was Jackson who stood there with a look of concern for his friend. He was the second in charge of the estate. The tall, lean brown hair man was the estates stable master and The Lord's friend for many years.
"No, I'm not alright." Christopher furrowed his brows as he shook his head.
"How can I help?" asked Jackson.
"I will need you to prepare the Welsh Carriage for the funeral. Please use the Friesian stallions to pull the hearse. To respect the lady's status, I want the funeral coach and horses to be completely dressed in black ostrich plums." Christopher instructed Jackson." Also, Lilith loved white roses. Please be sure to place some on the hearse."
"I will see to details myself," answered Jackson.