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nThe church bells rang loudly through the entire town. In the church, Heidi sat down, knees touching the ground and hands that were folded in prayer. Her eyes were closed, her brows furrowed as she spoke her concerns through her mind to God.

nAfter her prayer, she stood up and turned around to see Lord Nicholas talking to a local family of the town at the back. It wasn’t hard to spot the man, not because the church had very few visitors but because he held a commanding presence and appearance. The grey fur which he currently wore stood out. Only a person of a high status could afford such a high quality of cloak. For a common man, he would have to slit many throats of elites to acquire something like this. Both the family and the lord bowed, the family bowing at Heidi which she responded with a bow and a smile.

nIt was the time of evening, the sky resembling a painting she had seen in the mansion with different colors splashed on it. Normally she was escorted with a guard and a maid during her visit to any town. She couldn’t visit the church last week as her mind had been occupied with various things and when she decided to visit it, the lord had dismissed the guard and maid, taking their place. Before the engagement he had been nothing but busy, always cooped in his study room or outside the mansion. She didn’t know why he had accompanied her here when he wasn’t going to pray.

nHer heart was filled with mixed emotions as she made her way towards him. She was happy and at the same time the feeling of uncertainty lingered in her mind. The night of the engagement had replayed in her mind to the point that it had marked a certain part of her mind, not letting her forget what happened between them. More than a week had passed since then yet there were moments at night when she remembered the man who had held her so close like no other in her life. His words resonating in her ears which was still hard for her to believe.

nFrankly she didn’t know what she wanted anymore. No it wasn’t that she didn’t know but she was failing to acknowledge it. One side of her wanted to be selfish but the other side told her how wrong it was. Even if she did embrace it, what would happen next? It was hard to understand what Nicholas was thinking at any point of time, he confused her with his words and actions. And she was becoming weak to his words. It worried her. Worried about what the future was going to be.

n“Done already? I thought you had something to confess,” Nicholas asked when Heidi slowed down her footsteps to a halt, to stand in front of him.

n“I don’t believe that these walls could hold back the secrets I whisper,” she answered.

n“Do you doubt the priest? Is it because of the land?” he asked her curious as they began to walk outside the church.

nHeidi shook her head, “I just don’t believe in general. Confessions can be sometimes used against you.”

n“Care to put more light on it?”

n“In a town which wasn’t mine in Woville, there was priest like any other. Once a young woman confessed her problems in the church, she was a widow who lost her husband at an early time of marriage, abandoned by her parents as she had eloped with the man whom her family was against. One day when the young woman had only finished her work in the fields, she was violated by the man on her way home,” she explained.

n“He wasn’t a white witch,” Nicholas concluded to see surprise cross across her face.

n“Yes. The priest was an average human with no white witch blood. No one knew how he got through to be a priest.”

n“White witches aren’t welcomed in any of the empire yet. Usually they are monitored very closely by the council of the assigned higher up who govern the town. Just because of one slip up that doesn’t mean it’s going to be the same everywhere,” he stated reaching the carriage. The coachman opened the door and both Heidi and Nicholas got in, “The priests in Bonelake are all white witches and I can assure you they have been checked thoroughly. Yet if you feel its unsafe, you can always come to tell me. I have been told that I am a very good listener,” he beamed.

nConfessing her thoughts to the same person whom she had sinned with wouldn’t be right, thought Heidi to herself.

nWhen the carriage began to move, she spoke, “I thought you were going to pray too,” she heard him chuckle at what she said.

n“You might find a church in every town of Bonelake but you will very few vampires willing to go there. The conflicts between the vampires and humans hasn’t ended yet. It is a different topic that most of them don’t believe in God but most of my kind don’t believe that no harm would be caused to them by humans. Decades ago, humans and vampires fought against each other. Like how the black witches are killing humans in the name of massacre rituals, humans tried killing vampires while vampires fed on humans in the open,” Nicholas explained, his unwavering gaze looking outside the carriage’s window, “Vampires are sensitive to holy water.”

n“So it is true. Holy water can harm you,” Heidi murmured.

n“That depends,” he replied turning his eyes on her, “The severity of harm holy water can do is different for all the vampires. The half vampires who are turned and who are born cannot handle it because it basically it dissipates the flesh. A human will need to immerse a normal vampire to inflict the same amount of pain as the half vampire.”

n“What about the pure bloods?”

n“Nothing. It doesn’t make any difference to us,” he answered her question, “I am not interested in churches except for the beauty of the design the building holds. If I was, I would have to visit the church every two day for my sins,” he joked, his deep red eyes twinkling with merriment.

nAfter a while, she asked, “Do you think it will ever end? The conflicts I mean.” Sure the truce was made for that but she wondered if it would make any difference.

nThe invitation for the engagement had been limited to only official and family members but the news had been spread everywhere, enough to reach every local town across the four empires. It was publicity stunt, gaining many people’s attention just like the council and the lord had anticipated.

n“One day, maybe.”

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