To His Hell and Back-Chapter 119: Where’s The Missing One?

A single sentence was what it took for Madam Ursula to stammer and order her men to empty Ariel’s room as soon as possible. In matter of minutes, the room was quickly emptied and while the men were rushing out and in of the entrance, they were led inside where Cassius was offered the plush green couch which he leaned over slightly while looking at his gloves, trying to force it to fit to his long fingers.

Meanwhile, Arabella turned to the fretting Madam Ursula. The woman was demanding, haughty, someone who had a pride in herself. At least that was how she remembered about the older woman ever since their first meeting when she was sold off. Seems that madam Ursula didn’t remember her which she didn’t mind. She didn’t care about the woman remembering her face, after all, rather it was someone else, someone other than Ariel.

"Do you know the woman who goes by the name Courtez?" She asked after hesitating and madam Ursula turned to her, eyes slightly narrowed. She questioned why the girl was here, following Cassius. Wasn’t it odd if they were lovers and he had brought his lover to a brothel for a fun little date?

She didn’t feel like answering especially when it involves Courtez who two weeks ago had... tsk, Madam Ursula thought in her head.

She looked at Cassius apprehensively and knew that at one point this girl was someone she had to answer to all her demands as Cassius seems to be fond of her.

She answered, "Courtez doesn’t work here anymore."

Ariel was taken aback, "How could that be? What happened? Did she leave?"

She had left Ariel on Courtez’s hands and though one had always been taught to never trust a stranger, Courtez was different, making her to feel safe and to trust that despite her rough outspoken nature, she was someone who would protect her promises till death. Yes they’ve only met a few hours but she could feel this strongly from Courtez so she knew that couldn’t be true.

Seeing how she was undeterred, Madam Ursula felt a slight prick. She wanted to brush this question off but what if Cassius knew Courtez and wanted to see her too? That would be bad. Angering a customer’s by hurting the most favorite prostitute in his eyes would only cause more troubles for her. She could even be killed!

"She, she ran away," Madam Ursula then crossed her arms, showing a face that seemed to believe what she had said on her own mouth devoutly though Arabella still suspect her with narrowed eyes. Madam Ursula didn’t seem like she was lying but why does it felt like a lie? At least not a full lie, but half.

This made her feel unsettled as she asked again, "Then do you know how to find her?" Courtez might have wanted to live a normal life now but she wanted to extend her gratitude for taking care of Ariel. She wouldn’t even want her for leaving so suddenly, just a little worried by its suddenness as she couldn’t extend her sincerest and heartfelt gratitude to the woman.

"I don’t know. We don’t talk anymore to those women who left," quipped Madam Ursula. "Besides she’s know for being crazy here," she tapped to her head, "I didn’t care if she leaves but if you are here to find her, that’s a shame. I will be looking at other girls and come back once Ariel is ready."

"Wait!" Arabella called but madam Ursula marched fast as if she couldn’t spend a single more second near them.

Cassius who had been given a grape, plucked one of it from the table and flick it to his mouth. He hummed while crunching the grape, staring at Arabella’s face, "Your sister’s name wasn’t Courtez."

"No," Arabella turned to him, "When I was sold by this group of loansharks, there was a woman chosen to work at the brothel along with Ariel. I had begged her for help to look after Ariel."

"And she’s gone?" He asked and she nodded. Walking toward her, Cassius pushed the round and plump grape to her lips, nudging his chin as he coaxed her to eat it. She stared to his eyes that was looking at her and opened her mouth, feeling the round grape rolling into her tongue and the sweetness that came with it when she split the grape with her teeth.

Cassius let out a faint chuckle, as if delighted but somehow he looked hungrier despite offering her the grape.

He leaned to the couch and sang, "Maybe she had gotten tired of this place and decided to leave. Sure she promised you and you took her promise deeply but the other party might not feel the same don’t you agree?"

Arabella pursed her lips, "I know." She wasn’t foolish. She wasn’t going to blindly believe that people would hold their end of their promise when it couldn’t really benefit them. But... "It just feels odd, I can’t word it out but I feel that it’s odd."

Cassius could see from her expression how her guts feeling had keenly sensed the oddness coming from madam Ursula and he grinned, happy and proud to see his keen birdie. He walked toward her and clapped his hands, "You’re not quite wrong birdie."

"You mean?" She looked up, lifting her neck to see him.

"That woman was lying," he said certainly as though he had seen through madam Ursula’s heart. "That woman Courtez you mentioned hadn’t ran away and she knows where to find her."

’"Where to find her..." Arabella’s eyes darted around the brothel’s luxurious wooden floor, "She is still here?"

"Don’t you know? Brothels tend to have a room down in their basement. It’s meant to isolate the girls who are ill," Cassius shared his knowledge while the gears in her head turn. "My best guess is that girl must be below but I could tell that she wasn’t there out of an illness. There was guilt in that woman’s face. It’s as if she—"Cassius sang, "—had sent her there not because of illness but after accidentally hurting her badly."