Try and Catch Me

Atonement (1)
Lia’s legs were sore. She had been walking for almost half a day, trying to look casual as she scoured the manor for Eldric. She passed by the grounds where some of the patients and relatives camped into the hall that extends to the makeshift infirmary. It had only been a few days since she started holing herself up to her room but it seemed like the number of patients in the place grew twice if not four times since the last time she went out. It was as if the whole town occupied the entire manor.

No one noticed her or even glanced in her direction. Everyone hustled and bustled, walking to and fro. All occupied to their own business.

There were some people who speak a different language and wore clothes, unlike the usual ones. Lia thought that maybe these were the people from nearby towns or the visiting merchants. They were unfortunate enough to get caught up in the scheme of The Unseen.

But gathering information about the outside world was not the reason she was walking around. She sighed and continued her search. She really was tired.

It was almost noon when she returned to the first room she started. They missed each other when she came here earlier. But now, she was trying her luck in this room once more.

She stood in front of Eldric’s office for who knows how long, unsure of what and how to state her purpose. When she finally gathered the courage to knock, the door to his study opened leaving Lia’s hand suspended in the air.

Eldric furrowed his brows. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Just… may I talk to you?” Lia took a peek inside the room over Eldric’s shoulder. Some of his men were still huddled on the table, discussing things, for the preparation of the attack perhaps.

“Alright.” Eldric turned back and told the guys to leave them. “You can sit anywhere you like,” he said when they were left alone.

Lia remained standing, fearing that all of her resolved would vanish once she relaxed. “It won’t be long.

Eldric stood up from behind his table. He went around and leaned back on the desk as he stood in front of Lia. He pressed his palms on the table, his expression softened as he spoke, “What is it?”

“Here.” Her hands trembled as she passed the paper to Eldric where all the ingredients were listed. “I-I’ll need these to make the antidote along with other medicines that the patients might need.”

Eldric read the list. When he was done, he looked up at Lia, questions burned in his eyes. “Where did this come from?”

“That’s from my mother’s. I found it when I came to the house. She hid it on one of the vases. ” Lia muttered as she fixed her eyes on the floor. “That’s the newer version of the one she gave to Yolly. I only happen to find it,” she added hastily.

She knew that they both knew that she was just making excuses.

When Lia dared to take a peek, Eldric seemed to be thinking of something but decided against it when the words he uttered next were different from what Lia expected. “How many people would you need to do this?”

“Let me do it alone.” Lia decided that doing this would be like her atonement for concealing this knowledge so she could not let other people handle it. “You don’t have to worry. I’m a fast worker. I’ll finish the medicine before you know it.”

Eldric sighed. “I’m not worried about that. I’m more worried about you. This is the first time you left your room and now you’re saying you want to hole up yourself again.”

Lia forced herself to look at Eldric directly. “I’ll be fine. Please let me do this.”

For the second time, Eldric sighed. He looked tired and defeated. Lia felt bad for adding to his problems. “Alright. I’ll have Tim look for these things. You can use any room you want. If you need anything else, just tell me.”