Lost and out of place after her aunts vanished out of thin air, Corrine received a phone call that made a huge turning point in her life. Corrine Song, a 17 year old modernized, preppy city girl, will leave her identity of being the life of the party to an ordinary working student. It can be twisted in Corrine’s case. Just like her fate that led her to Drafdeille. After the disappearance of her three aunts she had no choice but to stay with their other sister, Cynthia, who lived in Drafdeille serving the Ascots. She knew something was up from the first time she stepped into the manor. Something made her feel more curious about the place. It feels like something is out of place that needs to be fixed. Or could it be someone? Like a flower that needs to be tended. The feeling felt like a drug luring her to come near and discover the place by herself. Discover the force pulling her in to their arms. It's up to her to discover the secrets hiding there and facing the dark forces of the place's history. From the manor to the town to all the unexplainable events that happened within the place. Little did she know, the one she's curious to know about was behind her all along.
Chapter 1 Prelude
Fate has been quite playful to Corrine despite the circumstances that have happened in her life throughout the years.
Her parents got killed by a shootout at a mall when she was 9, in the most mundane way as possible.
Luckily, her mom's three unmarried sisters adopted and treated her as their own. Florita, Floria, and Annita Parks loved her and took care of her so well that she grew into a spoiled girl because of Annita spoiling her with lavish gifts like the trendy phones and designer shoes.
"Life is quite boring. But I still like it."
Just when she thought that her life's going back on the road, another tragedy happened.
When she was 16, in her last year at middle school, they suddenly vanished. Like a puff of smoke. The news about the incident bewildered everybody in the city. Most people knew them for owning a flower shop business, just that. Yet, regardless if one knows them or not, hearing somebody disappeared overnight without a single trace can be unsettling. It devastated her, of course. Shocked, rather.
Nobody knew where they went or what they were up to or what happened on the day before, during, and after the incident. No records of them leaving and crossing the border to the other city can be found. Not even inside the city. Leaving Corrine hanging on a thread.
A few days later, she received a phone call that changed her life forever. From the person she had never seen in her entire life, only heard stories of her. It was their eldest sister they barely spoke about, Cynthia Parks, telling Corrine to come live with her in Drafdeille.
"Life's a freaking roller coaster and I'm in the front seat. "
The cold air caressing her skin as she hurried her pace, dashing away from the figure that's been chasing her for a while now.
After witnessing the horrific manual decapitation of somebody down the streets at Drafdeille. Not from afar. She saw a silhouette of a tall figure, pulling out the person's arm like they’re barbie dolls.
The sound of the rusty axe piercing through the neck, the scream and wails of pain and suffering as the worn-out blade slashed through the neck roughly, blood gushing out from the body, scattered everywhere were internal body parts that popped out of the body. It just feels terrifying for somebody of a young age to witness the scene. It felt traumatizing to Corrine.
All she knew she needed to get out. Fast. But she was too late. The figure saw her and started running in her direction.
Running can be stupendous. It's a foolish choice to run away from something you can never outrun, from her grades, her nightmares, and now, a tall, dark, wobbly figure down in the woods.
With the adrenaline rush she had, she picked up a steady pace and held her breath, even if it felt like her lungs were about to explode. She can't stop. She just couldn't or she'll get caught.
She couldn't determine which path to choose anymore. It caught her mind in haywire. Everything around her seems to get blurry and makes her think that she's just running around in circles. The tall, dark, unwelcoming pine trees seem to have a pattern that she couldn't break. The rocks and mossy boulders looked the same. It's like she's stuck on a loop.
"It's been hours. It felt like it's been hours now since it has chased me. How the hell do I get out of this here? I'm sure that I passed by this huge acacia tree just a moment ago." Corrine’s pace is slowing down as her legs are shaking. Her adrenaline is going down as her vision is getting blurry. Her legs wobbled and swayed unevenly as her shoulders felt heavy.
Her throat tightened, cursing at herself to go even further. Yet no matter how she tried to fight it, she eventually passed out at the thorny rose bushes as her cheek dug through the sharp dried needles. Her skin had fresh scars and bruises as blood trickled on to the ground silently.
"Oh, my dear beloved Corrine. You know you can't run away from me, darling. Wherever you will go, I won't be far to follow. Well, time to head to Nox Crior Street."
"Corrine, Corrine, wake up. You're having a nightmare." Cynthia drew out her wrinkly rough hands and tried to nudge the girl, who was groaning and moaning in discomfort, making noises that filled and bounced across the whole room.
"Nghhh—No-NO!" Corrine wailed as if she's in pain as she sat up immediately while beads of sweat and tears rolled down her anxious face down to her neck, leaving her collar drenched in sweat. She then welcomed her with a warm embrace.
"It's alright dear. I'm here. Don't worry."
Chapter 1 Prelude
07/12/2021