Renee, overjoyed, hurriedly asked, “Well, where is it? Hurry up and bring it to me!”
The young maid looked fearful and stammered, “M–ma’am, your suitcase was in the basement. It’s… well, it’s best if you see for yourself!”
“What? In the basement?” Renee parroted, caught between laughter and tears at the revelation.
They had exerted so much effort to search the entire villa, yet they overlooked where it would most likely be.
How absurd was that?
However, judging from the maid’s expression, Renee didn’t think things were that simple. Heading downstairs, she went to the basement.
Stefan frowned, and he followed the woman silently.
The Hunt villa basement was two floors below the ground floor, led by long, winding spiral stairs. Having mainly served as a refuge during the catastrophe of the Great War, the airflow could have been better, and the place was dark. Usually, no one would come down here.
When he reached the basement door, he noted it was slightly open. A dark, red light emanated inside, giving off an eerie feeling.
“I–it’s inside…!” the young maid stuttered as she stood outside, not daring to go in.
Renee also noticed the weird scene, but she had already lived in this villa for four years, and there was nothing here that she was afraid of. She pushed the door and went in without hesitation.
“Ahh!”
The scene before her was so bizarre that she couldn’t help but scream in fear as she stumbled backward, almost tripping and falling on her butt.
“The hell are you yelling for?!”
Stefan had reached out to hold Renee’s stick–like waist in a tight grip, and his broad chest against her back gave her a sense of
security.
Renee jerked her head up, and her frightened eyes turned to meet the man’s indifference.
‘When did he come up behind me? He was as silent as a ghost!”
She tried to calm herself before pointing to the strange items littered around the basement and asking, “Who made these
things? Don’t you think they’re scary?!”
Stefan looked around the basement with cold eyes before nodding. “Yes. They are quite scary indeed.”
The large basement glowed eerily with the dark red lights surrounding it, and several bizarre–looking rag dolls were lying on the ground. The dolls were all dressed like Renee! Some had missing hands, some had broken legs, and some even had silver
needles sticking out of them!
At the center of the room was a skull wrapped in a piece of cloth as red as blood. The cloth was filled with curses written in dark red, which was creepy.
And this piece of cloth was exactly what Renee had been looking for the entire day! Her precious quilt!
“Have I been… cursed?”
Renee could feel goosebumps all over her body as she took in the scene. Even though she didn’t believe in this supernatural stuff, it was still uncomfortable to see little dolls looking like her being stabbed, and curses were written all over them.
“Briar has gone too far! What a vicious serpent!” Renee exclaimed as she held back the urge to throw up. She clenched her fist, so angry that her petite frame trembled.
No wonder the police would rather arrest that woman than tell Renee where her suitcase had been hidden! She knew if this place was discovered, her true nature as a crazy and cruel person would be exposed!
Stefan frowned deeply and asked the maid. “Was Miss Desrosiers responsible for all of this?”
The maid warily lowered her head and replied. “Um… We’re not sure. Miss Desrosiers only forbade us from coming down here.
She said if any of us dared to go against her orders, she’d cut off our legs…”
Well, the answer was obvious, wasn’t it?!
Renee calmed herself before pushing Stefan away. “Seems like your little mistress has strange ways of hurting others, huh?”
she mocked. “Quite refreshing, really. I’d advise you to check if she’s cast some sort of spell on you for you to be so smitten.
with her.”
After saying that, Renee gathered her courage and stalked into the room, kicking a few of the dolls away and picking up the
quilt wrapped around the skull.
The skull rolled onto the floor. Now that it wasn’t covered with the quilt, it was obviously a human skull, and the maid
screamed when she saw it clearly.
Renee ignored it and quickly checked the pattern on the quilt, but at the same time, her stomach started to hurt…
