The room was silent except for the soft rustle of fabric as Manda shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She had been in the mansion for two days now, but it still felt like she was walking through a dream - a nightmare where every detail seemed to mock her reality. The vast spaces, the cold elegance of the house, the stone walls that seemed to absorb all warmth, all comfort, all humanity.
Manda sat in the sitting room, the one she had first entered upon her arrival, now dressed in a soft, elegant gown she had never worn before. It was a color she didn’t recognize - cream, like the walls, like the floor, like the cold, impassive beauty of everything around her. The butler had brought her tea, but it sat untouched on the table before her. She couldn’t find the appetite to eat, couldn’t bring h
