"My Lord, It is my pleasure to be standing before you." Blythe bowed gracefully, showing ample amount of her chest with an alluring smile. Lord Knight was sitting in his chair regally in the meeting hall and was holding a cane. The cane he was holding looked different.

It was black and the top of the cane was holding a metal bird with its feathers out. The bird was holding a skull under its paws which gave the cane a very dangerous and powerful appearance.

Lord Knight gave an overall look to her. Though his eyes were looking predatorily, his words and actions were quite a mystery.

"Sure it is pretty pleasurable." One side of Lord Knight's mouth turned upwards into a smirk. "Are you here for any prominent reason, Miss Garrick?" Blythe blushed at the way her name rolled out the Lord's mouth.

He was interested in her and she could feel it. He was looking at her how a looter would look at the treasure and she was enjoying the Lord's attention on her.

"My father sent you a correspondence through me, My Lord. He was expecting me to help you regarding it." Blythe placed the scroll in the guard's hand and smiled at the Lord gracefully. The guard moved to the Lord and gave him the scroll. Lord Knight opened the scroll gazing pointedly at Blythe and read the content in the correspondence.

Yet again the Lord's mouth formed into a mysterious smile. "Absolutely I cannot fulfill my duties towards your town without your help. Your father is a clever person to send you here for help but dear, he is also witless to send you into my territory alone." The Lord scoffed in entertainment. He was enjoying at how the fate brought one of his prey into his hold so naturally.

He laughed at the entertaining play of events.

"My Lord?" Blythe blanched at the Lord's words. She knew that the Lord was too dangerous and mysterious to play with but she did not feel anything wrong with the Lord. She just felt him so mannish and dark.

"I have a very strong bone of justice, Miss Garrick. Once I receive something, I would take liberty to do complete justice to it; in this case – complete justice to that person." The Lord's words made her happy. He was thinking to make her his and she couldn't be happier that the Lord was getting affected by her beauty.

"Lyndon, show Miss Garrick to the visitor room in the eastern wing and assign Lucy at her service." The Lord ordered the butler who was standing at door folding his hands back in respect. Lyndon scurried away to the Lord in hurry and took the sachet that Blythe was holding, escorting her out of the room.

"Beware of keeping what you see in my terrain to yourself, Miss Garrick. I am called the evil for nothing." The Lord's nonchalant warning sent shivers through her spine.

If she mistook the Lord to be courteous then he was clearly showing how naïve she was in thinking so. There was something about the Lord that felt so frightening to Blythe. Definitely he was so remarkable and attracting but his eyes, his eyes held evil fantasies in them.

Blythe was taken to the large guest room that she would be staying in and to say she was amazed by the luxurious room is an understatement. It was a large room with a huge bed covered in golden silk sheets. There was a large feather hand fan which amazed her again. She was feeling like a queen to be in the mere room.

Her help, Lucy got all her clothes arranged in their designed place. Lucy helped Blythe change into fresh clothes and arranged warm bowl of water for washing her face. Once she was fresh, Lucy took her discarded clothes to wash them.

"So, what kind of person is the Lord?" Blythe pried to get knowledge about the mysterious Lord for his staff. She wanted to influence Lucy and use her to get information she needed.

"My apologies, Miss. We are not allowed to talk about the Lord to anyone or among us. The only person who has the power to know about anything and anyone here is the Lord." Lucy clipped out and walked out of the room with a polite bow.

Blythe was infuriated at the guts of a servant for denying her. She wanted to show the servant her place and how powerful she was but she knew better to have rows with the service staff on the first day of her arrival. It would be only the matter of few days that she would become the high command of the region, and then she would show all the low lives their place; which is at her feet.

"Miss, Master was wishing to give you a tour to the whole palace. He asked you to get prepared tomorrow morning at the breakfast table. He wished you a good stay here." Blythe was on cupid's cloud at what Lucy informed. She couldn't wish for more. Everything was going according to her imagination and she was glad that the Lord himself was giving her a tour to her future home.

He was definitely smitten by her.

~*~*~*~*~

Darkness engulfed and the moon was shining brightly from between the clouds. The stars were twinkling vibrantly after many days of hiding behind dark clouds. It was a chilly yet a pleasant night.

"You are not on time." A woman berated, adjusting the shawl around her head.

"Why, I was... busy. I had an eventful day." The person before her chuckled and pulled her briskly behind the large joint trees.

The woman scowled at the person but still smiled when the person raised an eyebrow in amusement. The person was still looking at her in amusement when she rambled about all the difficulties she had to go through to come meet up.

"Alright, what was the reason for calling for me this late at the night?" She asked, adjusting the shawl again which was disheveled due to wind.

"It was an important issue." The person's voice turned grave and the woman stilled.

"There would be a gathering held by the villagers a few days later and I have a mission for you." The person turned his attention completely towards the woman and smirked evilly. "I want you to suggest Ella's name in the discussion." The woman went pale when she heard the large person before her told.

"What? What is the gathering about?" She asked astonished at the ever so evil smile playing on the person's lips.

"The witch's remedy to stop the storm was to deflower a virgin widow out of any religious bonds." The woman gasped and looked at the person acutely.

"What do you mean deflower a virgin widow?"

"A man married or not, should take a flowered widow to his bed without getting involved into any legit relationship. And your mission is to be present at the gathering and whisper Ella's name in their ears. You need to make certain that Ella was chosen for the sacrifice but you also should be assured that you are not caught in the process. You need to be sly and trap Ella in the gathering." The woman was stumped by the revelation and was reluctant to do it.

She looked at the hooded eyes of the person and noticed something feral and lethal in them. Her frown was immediately turned into a smirk and she nodded enthusiastically.

"What is in that wicked mind of yours?" The woman chuckled and raised her head to look at the person in complete interest.

"Punishment." The person clipped out, voice cold and outrageous and face representing an erupting volcano. "Time has come when Ella should receive the grave mistake she has done." The person laughed out followed by the woman who was excited to do the task she was given.

"Let the first chapter of the end begin." The woman hollered and tipped her head in an overly gracious bow and walked away, giving the person a smile of assurance.

'Truly it would be the start to the end. Let the devastation begin with sweet Ella's sacrifice.' The person's lips turned up into a sadistic sneer.