The Veil of Darkness
Chapter 36: A Change For Good

The memories of the previous night and early morning invaded her thoughts and made her blush as she hid her face under the blanket. Her body shivered at the recollection of all that she had experienced at the hands of two of her husbands.

A knock on her bedroom door yanked her out of her thoughts and she pulled out her face from under the blanket as she allowed the person to enter.

Sera entered the room holding a basket of warm water and a clean white towel and placed them next to the bed before helping Annalise out of the bed. There was a soft smile playing on the girl’s lips as she carried on with her job of helping Annalise in getting ready for the day.

Once Annalise was done washing up and had put on a light purple dress, she took her seat in front of the mirror and allowed Sera to style her hair in a simple bun with a beautiful pearl hairpin tucked in it. She moisturized her face and noticed the extra glow that was present on her face.

"You are looking so pretty, My Lady." Sera chirped happily after she was finished helping Annalise in putting on some simple jewelry that matched her dress and looks perfectly.

"Thank you, Sera." Annalise thanked the girl as the two of them headed outside the room and down the stairs.

"Where are the Lords?" She couldn’t help herself from asking when she didn’t see even one of the three Dark Lords on her way to the dining hall.

"Masters have gone out and will be back before evening but they didn’t specify where they headed," Sera answered Annalise’s question as she helped signaled Garron to bring out the meal that Aunt Claire had prepared for lunch.

Annalise had her lunch in silence and she enjoyed the delicious meal cooked by Aunt Claire. Once she was done, she headed toward the side area next to the kitchen where Garron and the others had been busy setting up the vegetable garden.

In less than two days, they had done a fabulous job in setting up the garden. Rows and rows were prepared to grow various vegetables.

"Why no one is here? Are you guys working somewhere else today?" Annalise asked Sera when she found no one working in the vegetable garden.

"Replying to my lady, Master Kenric asked Mr. Warren to fix the fountain. So everyone else is helping him to complete the job before the Masters’ return." Sera answered and followed behind Annalise who immediately headed towards the front of the Castle.

She did find everyone working there on fixing the fountain and she noticed how much the front garden had changed in the past two weeks. The grass that previously reached their knees had been cut short and it looked much greener compared to the dark shade it had before.

The trees had also started changing color and unlike their previous dark complexion, there was a lot of greenery and light colors seen on them. Barron and Mr. Warren had also styled the bushes that stood along with the Castle walls. The stone path that had been covered with moss was now looking cleaner. She also noticed a new stone table sitting in the garden with four stone seats arranged around it.

"Mr. Warren had spent the last two days cleaning the pond and Garron is thinking about planting some lotus and lily flowers in it since My lady likes them. And if the Masters allowed, he will also buy some carp." Sera informed Annalise when she noticed the latter observing the garden.

"That sounds like a good idea. I’ll try to ask the Lords if we can buy some lotus seeds and carps." Annalise said as she liked the idea of having a small pond filled with carps and lotus flowers.

"What’s there?" She asked as her eyes landed on a structure that stood at the far end of the garden. It was heavily covered in vines and moss that she could hardly see exactly what it was.

"My lady, there’s a pavilion there but it hasn’t been cleaned yet." This time the person who answered her question was Garron. The boy had a bunch of tile bricks in his hands as he was heading toward the fountain where Aunt Claire and Mr. Warren were working.

Annalise nodded her head as she followed Garron and made her way to the fountain that was getting fixed. It had a beautiful structure originally and as much as she knew about Mr. Barron, she was confident that the final result would impress everyone.

"Here, let me help you guys." She said while picking up the white tiles that were going to be used for the floor of the fountain pool.

The silence that followed her words made her look up at the others and she found hesitation written all over their faces. She let out a small sigh as she spoke, "Do you guys want to see this fountain demolished tomorrow morning?"

All of them immediately shook their heads at once, clearly hating the idea of seeing their hard work going to waste.

"Then let me help you since I’m your lucky charm." Her words gifted her with smiles and giggles as everyone relaxed and once again began with their work.

"My lady, let me help you or you will get dirt all over your clothes." Sera hurriedly moved to Annalise’s side and started cleaning the tiles before handing them to Annalise who arranged the tiles on the pool floor as Mr. Warren directed her.

The five of them worked continuously for the next five hours and by the time they were done, it was already half past five and the fountain was finally back to life. The only thing lacking was the water.

But not for too long because just when Annalise was about to climb out of the pool, the fountain suddenly started raining water on her.