18

*Lotus POV*

Later that night, I found myself wandering the halls of the mansion, unable to shake the feeling that something was calling to me from that room. Against my better judgment, I found myself standing outside the door, hand hovering over the doorknob.

Just as I was about to turn it, I heard a sound behind me. I turned around to see the maid, the head maid, standing there with a stern expression.

"Miss, what are you doing here?" she demanded.

"I...I was just curious," I stammered, feeling like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

"Curious?" The maid repeated, her voice cold. "Do you have any idea what's in that room? Why the master keeps it locked up tight?"

"I...I don't know," I admitted, feeling a chill run down my spine at the look on her face.

"Then let me enlighten you," she said, her voice low and menacing. "Inside that room is something that the master has sworn to protect with his life. Something that could destroy us all if it were to get loose."

"What...wh