Her lids were heavy as they fluttered open.
The intense pain in her head followed and she shut them close once again, her mind concentrated on numbing the pain. And as it did ebb away, she remembered what she saw when she opened her eyes.
Nothing.
Utter blackness.
She gasped and forced her eyes to open again. The pain that followed was far less intense than the confusion and panic rising inside her.
She panted for breath, whimpering in pain and loss. But what had she lost? Why couldn't she...
Why couldn't she remember?
"I see yer awake."
That low, terrifying voice was the last Sophia heard before she shot up in bed, drenched in sweat and nightmare.
Gasping for a semblance of control, she slowly let out a shaky breath as her hands blindly wiped her damp curls off her forehead. Her bed bounded as her dog jumped over her lap with a whimper, nuzzling its head on her lap in comfort.
"It's all right, Aabha." She hardly recognized her own terrified whisper. It was not new to her for it was not the first that she had to wake up from that first memory of this life. Whatever happened before that had abandoned her.
Aabha moved his head off her when she gently pushed him away. Sophia reached for her bedside lamp. She heard the click as it turned on but her sight remained in utter darkness. She could not seem to shake off the habit of turning the bedside lamp on before she would pad her way to the opposite wall across her bed and turn on the ceiling lamp, one she did now.
Faint light seeped through her eternal darkness when the ceiling lamp lit up. She blinked a few times to allow her sight to focus on the shadows. Aabha's white form was still on the bed. A smaller black form was sitting not far from the bedpost. Brigid, the cat, meowed as she neared.
Slipping back into the warmth of the sheets, Sophia uttered and whispered, "I am well, my friends. Fret not."
When she managed to go back to sleep, another dream crept in and Sophia smiled.
A man was forcing himself on her and the Sophia in her dream was fighting a whimpered cry as her skirts were pushed up to her hips, her wrists being held high over her head in a tight, powerful grip.
Everything will be all right, she wanted to whisper to the crying Sophia, knowing full well what would happen next.
And like in all other dreams, it did happen. The sound of the door slamming against the wall came and the painful grip of the man was snatched away. His heavy weight left her and the tattered bed.
The next she heard was the dream Sophia asking the stranger, "You own me?"
"Not really, no," the soothing voice said, "but I did pay for you, yes."
It will be all right, Sophia whispered in her sleep, soothing the girl in the dream. I swear it will be all right.
"You will leave with me," the stranger's voice said.
"B-but what do you intend to do with me, milord?" The raw fear in her voice was undeniable. Go with him. It is all right, she whispered in her sleep again.
"You will work for me."
"Service you?" came the dream Sophia's question.
It will be all right, I promise, Sophia murmured in her sleep.
"Yes, but in a far more interesting way."
And the dream faded away as Sophia snuggled in the safety of her bed, comforted by the memory of that night when her life started to change.
*****
Rock'oles was not like any brothels around the Town.
Its very structure would be enough proof of it.
Built many years ago by some lord who thought it was best to carve every chamber of his home into a giant wall of rock, the process had gained great attention. But before it was even completed, the lord lost everything and had no other choice but to sell the unfinished marvel to a young gentleman.
And that gentleman turned Rock'oles not into an ideal home envisioned by its previous owner but into a scandalous yet discreet professional brothel.
Many women from the affluent towns were scandalized, mortified by the business, but their husbands, brothers and distant relatives secretly loved the idea. They clamored to gain membership, fully aware that their reputation would not suffer for that was what Rock'oles offered: extreme caution and discreetness.
Although the men were very much prepared to pay any price for the Rock'oles women, most of them would often go home disappointed, cursing the place in their heads only to return the next week and the weeks after that.
The women, unlike the ordinary brothels, had the power to choose only those they wish to welcome into the chambersâthe richest, the best of rakes or whoever could please them in anywat. Whatever business they dealt inside could merely be left in one's great imagination. The important matter was that each and every lord and gentleman who walked out from any of the chambers were greatly satisfied, causing those who were left in the gaming halls without an invite to be green with envy and wait for a lucky strike.
The women would often grace the gaming halls and entertain their guests, enjoying the shower of attention and flattery thrown at them by eager, rich men. The Rock'oles women could socialize and pretend themselves being courted like their upper class counterparts the men left behind in their own rich, lonely estates.
They flaunted their expensive gowns, gifts from their generous customers, all the while scouring the gaming halls for a man that could take their fancy.
But one woman did not join the flock of beautiful mistresses in the gaming halls. In fact, she had never been seen leaving her chamber.
The men in Rock'oles knew of her presence and most would agree that they had all tried to woo their way into her chamber by talking to her outside her door. Yet most would be requested to leave by the notorious guards. Not all were lucky for there were merely a few who could tell what she looked like or how her service was like. But these men would not talk, causing an even intense mysterious air along the corridors that led to her chamber.
The other women would not dare talk about her for none knew her at all.
And Sophia had no desire to be in the midst of their presence either.
Her services were not for the men in the gaming halls. Hers was entirely of different nature.
The only men who had the privilege to grace her chamber could be counted in one's pair of hands. Amongst them was Stanley Mast, the manager of Rock'oles.
Sophia remained still as she heard her chamber door open. Stanley was the only one with the key.
"Good morning, Miss Sophia," Standley's voice uttered from the doorway.
She heard another pair of footsteps before she heard the door close.
She sniffed and smiled warmly. Once was enough for her to recognize the man walking toward her.
Lord Cigar was what she called him for the man reeked of smoke. And since secrecy was the ultimate rule of her task, she had no other name to associate the man with.
"I have another gift for you today, my dear," said Lord Cigar.
Sophia held out her hand and gently clasped the thin folded envelop he placed in her palm. She set it aside and blindly smiled. She knew he was sitting across from her in the winged chair he had always occupied.
She knew what was coming next and she almost agonized at the thought of it.
Silence enveloped her dimly lit chamber. She had turned on the bedside lamp but the ceiling lamp was off, rendering her utterly blind.
She heard Lord Cigar shift in his chair as the waiting began. For that was all that they had always been doing: wait. Wait until it was time for him to leave without rousing suspicion from the people outside.
"How is your wife, my lord?" she asked in a soft voice.
"She is doing quite well, Sophia, dear. Thank you for asking."
"And her health?"
A long pause followed before he answered with a sigh, "Not getting better, I must say, although the doctors are feigning to be hopeful."
Sophia merely nodded. With a graceful wave of her hand, she pointed to where she believed the liquor cabinet was located. "Please, help yourself with a drink."
Lord Cigar chuckled. "No, dear, I would rather not. My friends in the gaming halls would surely question why I would rather drink spirit than tumble in bed with the most mysterious woman in Rock'oles."
A smile curled her lips. "You can always tell them that you can do both at the same time."
Lord Cigar let out a hearty laugh. "No, my dear, I am fine."
Sophia hesitated. "Then would you do me the honor of continuing the favor you gave me from last time?"
"Well, yes, of course!"
Sophia leaned forward and pushed the book on the small table toward him.
She heard him pick it up and leafed through the pages. "Where were we, my dear?"
"Page one-hundred-ten."
"Ah, the prince picking up his sword to rescue the maiden, yes, I remember. I was curious where his battle would lead him."
She nodded and closed her eyes as Lord Cigar read on.
After an hour of reading and a glass of brandy he eventually made for himself, Lord Cigar stood from his seat and handed Sophia the book. "Until next time, my dear."
She nodded and stood up to see him out. Without another word, Lord Cigar's footsteps walked away and Sophia locked the door.
*****
Nicholas came alert in his seat, almost causing the woman on his lap to fall on the floor if his reflexes did not save her, when he saw Lord Baldwin reenter the gaming hall.
"My lord!" the woman screeched but he ignored her by planting a loud kiss on her mouth.
"I believe I need to settle a very personal business, my dear," he whispered in her ear. "I shall return very soon."
The woman batted her eyes at him. "I shall be in my chamber waiting for you then," she said without questioning his business. Rock'oles women knew better than to pry.
He grinned at Marivic but he knew he would not have time to be in her chamber today. He stood up and exited the gaming hall, feigning to find the room for the chamber pots.
When he was certain that no one was about along the empty corridor, he made a sharp turn to the right.
His pace slowed down when he saw the closed door at the end of the corridor. He walked toward it and knocked only when he was leaning against the wall beside it.
"I know you are in there, sweetheart," he said, loud enough for the mysterious woman inside the chamber to hear but soft enough to not go any further than the corridor.
Hers was the only door in the corridor. The ones owned by the other women were scattered in the other parts of Rock'oles' maze.
"You are not going to open the door, are you? I wager you will not even if I am lying bleeding outside your door," he added with playful accusation.
He let out a dramatic sigh, followed by a clucking of his tongue. "Months, my dear. Almost a year now, in fact. I have been talking to a door or this wall," he said, slapping the one behind him with his palm, "without an answer." His lips curved into a wicked smile as he added, "Apart from that time I heard you gasp, of course."
He pulled his watch from his pocket and checked the time.
"I am expected somewhere, I fear, and I cannot stay longer." He pulled away from the wall and faced the door. There was a tiny hole just below the level of his eyes and he knew she was looking at him through it. He lifted his eyes to find a bright ceiling lamp hovering above him and he scoffed. She could clearly see him. Unfair, really, for he was here standing under such bright light while he was yet to see even a glimpse of her shadow. At the thought of that, he wondered if she could truly see his face for if she could, how could she bloody not open her door? No woman had ever said no to Nicholas Everard and his looks, and definitely no one had ever dared refuse him after a sample of his bedroom skills.
Apart from Tania, of course, who had now banned him from her chamber after his sister-in-law barged inside Rock'oles in her attempt to fetch Nicholas' brother and his sister-in-law's husband, Maxwell Everard. Yet Tania banned him because her pride was hurt, not because she found Nicholas revolting or that she no longer enjoyed their sexual relationship. In fact, Nicholas believed that if he were to woo Tania now, he would be back in her generous bed in a blink of an eye.
Yet this woman, this mysterious lady, had managed to stay silent behind her door for months! She was either blind or had an oddly bad taste in men. The proof of that was Lord Baldwin himself. The man was not merely portly and incapable of more than a single thrust before he collapsed due to exhaustion during a carnal act, but he also reeked of cigar smoke!
It was not long before Nick wondered if the mysterious woman was intensely lacking in senses or if she was truly providing the same services the other Rock'oles women did.
"You are not going to stop me? You will surely miss me, my dear, for I will be gone for quite a long time." He tilted his head to the right, acting as if he was expecting her to answer. He let out a dramatic sigh of defeat. "Very well, fret not, I shall return." He gave her door a bow. "Until you open your door."
He turned and walked away, telling himself that he ought to be more patient.
Whatever was behind that doorâwhoever was hiding thereâwas the answer to his brother's slavery case.
*****
Sophia watched the shadow disappear from her line of sight before she pushed away from the door.
Her entertainment for the day was finally over and she sighed with disappointment.
As she settled in her settee, the secret door that connected to a secret corridor opened.
"Marcus," she uttered in greeting, a warm smile on her lips as she listened to his footsteps.
"Why do you even bother to turn on the bedside lamp when you cannot see," he uttered with light derision before the ceiling lamp flickered and Sophia blinked to open her eyes to the little light she could see. It helped her distinguish the tall, lean form of the man walking back to seat in Lord Cigar's winged chair.
"I find no use for more light," she explained, "and Aabha needs the smaller lamp." She petted the cat beside her. "And Brigid."
"I see your cat found its way back," Marcus Durley commented. "And so did Nicholas Everard," he added.
Sophia fought the smile that threatened to twitch her lips at the mere mention of the name. "Yes," she said, curious of one thing. "Why did you allow Nicholas and Ralph Everard to regain their membership in Rock'oles?" When he failed to reply, she added further, "Was it not you who had been waiting for the day that they will do something to cause their banishment from here? The incident their sister-in-law caused months ago ought to have been reason enough to finally be rid of them."
"I realize I ought to keep my enemies closer, that is all."
"You seriously consider them your enemies?"
"Those who threaten to keep me from my goals are naught but enemies, my dear," he replied, his voice light and almost amused.
"And because I realized I do need Nicholas Everard."
"Not the Town Guard brother Ralph but the rakehell Nicholas Everard?" she asked with curiosity. "Why and how do you need him?"
He drew a breath but did not answer.
She felt him stand and walk to the table where she earlier laid Lord Cigar's letter. She heard him unfold the paper to read its contents before he said, "It is time you allow Nicholas Everard entry into your chamber, dear Sophia."