• Chapter 1
    tab A girl enters a small room through a window. She carries a brown sack on her back. “Tonight was a good haul.” she says as she dumps the contents of the bag on her bed. Many different objects pour out of the bag as she turns it over. “I wonder how much this silver cutlery will get me, down at the market.” She holds up a silver spoon and examines it.
    tab “Eliy! Eliy are you in there? Stop sleeping and come on down, someone is here to see you.” Eliy is surprised by this; she looks out of the window to see that the moon is still high. She hurriedly grabs the pile of goods and stuffs it into her drawer. Then her eyes rest on a small box at the bottom of the drawer. She opens it to look at a ring. It was her grandmother’s wedding ring, it is not much -- just a golden band, but it is special to Eliy. “Eliy!” her mother calls again. Eliy replaces the ring and hurries out of the room. As she rushes down the stairs she begins to wonder what it is that her mother could need this late.
    tab “Eliy my goodness! What has taken you so long?” says her mother with a stern look on her face, as she stands waiting at the bottom of the stairs. “And look at your clothes! What are you wearing!?” Eliy looks down at her short torn skirt, her flat shoes, her fingerless opera gloves, and her old bustier. These were her normal “after dark” clothes. In her hurry she had forgotten to change out of it. Now she worried if her mother would question her sleeping wardrobe. “Ah, never mind that -- quickly put this on.” She tosses her a long cloak which Eliy unhesitatingly puts over her clothes.
    tab “Mother what is going on?”
    tab “I told you, you have a visitor. Now stand up straight, hands at your side, chin up.”
    tab “But who is it?” She asks as they start to head for the next room.
    tab “It is your intended. He has finally called to take you.” Eliy stops in her tracks upon hearing this.
    tab “What!?”
    tab “Eliy you could not have thought that we would allow you to continue living unwed did you? Especially when living in this house.”
    tab “But how? When? Why was I not told?”
    tab “Now, now, there was no reason for us to tell you. You understand? You will go in there, act like a proper lady, and do not make us regret letting you meet him first.”
    tab “But mother!”
    tab “Now no buts!” She starts to fix Eliy’s hair. “Now I suppose you ought to know the ‘how’ and ‘when’ so as to not look like I complete idiot if it comes up. Now let’s see … I believe it was about a year ago that your father and I started to ask around for a suitor for you. It was then that one of your father’s workmates at the mill mentioned to him that he knew a boy not much older than you. He comes from a decent family, rich enough to increase our status, but poor enough that he would settle for you.”
    tab “‘Not much older’? Just how much is ‘Not much older’?”
    tab “On hodgepodge that does not matter. Besides he is only ten years older. Nothing to make a fuss about.”
    tab “Only! Mother! I am barely sixteen years of age, how can you send me off with some twenty-six year old!”
    tab “You should be glad he was not taken while you dawdled about all these years.”
    tab “At least tell me, mother, just what is so horrible about him that he was not taken already. Is he ugly? Hideous? Repulsive?”
    tab “That is enough Eliy! Do not speak about your future husband that way! Now come! And please for the love of all that is holy -- do not speak until he requests it of you!” She grabs Eliy’s hand and drags her into the next room.
    tab “Mo-Mother!”
    tab "Ahh, here comes my daughter.” Says Eliy's father as he stands to take his daughter's hand. He takes her hand and pulls her in front of him. "Do not mess this up." He whispers to Eliy. She looks back at him wondering why he is so concerned about this match up as well. She looks across the room to see the person she dreads to see the most. A young man stands there examining the heirlooms decorating the walls. He turns around as Eliy is pushed forward. She examines his blue eyes, and golden hair. Most would be taken in by these looks but something stopped her. She grew weary of the eyes which she could not see through. She felt an incomprehensible coldness emitted from them. She tries to back away, to not fall into their trap. Before she can get away he takes her hand and pulls her forward.
    tab “Ah you must be Eliy. I am Edward Scott, your future husband. I have been waiting to meet you for a while.” Even his voice distressed Eliy. There is just something about it, it seems too perfect. No human would have a perfect voice, not their normal one anyway. No, this voice is one meant to entrap people, to lull them into a false sense of security. Eliy began to wonder just how many girls had fallen into his trap, how many had he stolen from… hurt…betrayed. His vice-grip upon her hand is tight; she is unable to move away. All she can hope for is to make this meeting end and be rid of him as quickly as possible.
    tab “Um, I-I am Eliy Pen-”
    tab “Yes, Eliy, I know, I have been told much about you. You shall be my wife very soon and I wished to have a chance to meet you before then, thus I am here.”
    tab “Soon?! How soon is ‘soon’?”
    tab “Why, in a few weeks time. Were you not aware of this? My, my what an absent-minded woman you are to forget your own marriage.”
    tab “Excu-”
    tab “My! Look how late it is. You two lovebirds have been yapping for so long, the time just flew by.” Interrupts Eliy’s mother as she casts a stern look towards Eliy. “Well then Eliy, why don’t you show him to your room.”
    tab “My room?!”
    tab “Yes, we can not have him sleeping down here on the drafty floor after all. Do not worry; you have plenty of room on your floor. Now take his belongings upstairs.” She turns to talk to Edward. “I am truly sorry; we have very little spare accommodations here."
    tab "It is perfectly suitable madam." He takes her hand and kisses the back of it. “Now if you will excuse me, I shall retire now.” He walks past Eliy paying no heed to the trouble she has trying to lug his bags upstairs. He stops in the middle of the hallway. “Which room is it?”
    tab “There. That one on the left.” He turns and opens the door.
    tab “Ugh, disgusting.” He says as he takes a step into the room.
    tab “Excuse me?!”
    tab “This room, it is so cramped. And what is with this useless garbage all around? This bed is so minuscule how am I expected to sleep here?” He walks around the room inspecting every object. “Is not there something of worth in this entire house?” He steps towards the drawer where Eliy had hidden her stolen goods; just before, before she had been -- betrothed. She tried to think of an excuse. Something -- anything to distract him. But alas she was at a lost for words and he drew closer and closer. She began to wonder what would happen if he found them. Would he believe that they were her own, that they came from this very house? Unlikely it seemed, as he had just commented on how ‘there is not something of worth in this entire house.’ Would he know instantly that they were stolen? Would he tell her parents? Would she be arrested? Her heart begins to race faster and faster, and then he stops. He reaches his hand out and picks up a little box. He opens it and takes out a golden ring.
    tab “Hmm, is it possible that this is real gold?” He holds it up higher to look at it. Eliy rushes forward to try and take it from him.
    tab “That is my grandmother’s ring. Please it is my most precious possession. Give it to me.”
    tab “Hmm, so there is something of value in this house. I bet this ring would fetch a hefty price.”
    tab “No! Please return it to me.”
    tab “Do not worry I will not sell it right away.” He slips the ring onto his finger. “Consider it an early wedding present.”
    tab “Why are you even going through with this wedding? You most certainly do not like me and I do not like you.”
    tab “For the money, silly girl. Think of all the money a wedding brings in if you invite a bunch of people. The money, the gifts, it all goes to me. Not to mention the fact that, not only are your parents paying for the services, they will also pay me.”
    tab "What?"
    tab "Of course. I would not have made the trip here without some guaranteed gain. Your parents must really wish to be rid of you. They simply would not let me refuse the offer. Once I am the head of this house, I plan to sell it and everything in it."
    tab "Just haw many times have you gotten away with this?"
    tab "Ohh, many, many times. Though I am sad to say, you are the first woman that has not melted into my arms at the first sight of me. Are my looks not enough for you? Is my voice not enough to entrance you?"
    tab "Wha--?"
    tab "Do not trouble yourself with it. This will all be over soon. Now be silent so I can sleep." He takes the spare blankets, which were placed in the room for Eliy's use on the floor, with him to the bed. He lies on top of the covers already there and pulls the blankets over himself. Eliy can hear him mutter something to the effect 'dirty house' as he goes to sleep. Eliy lies down on the floor without saying a word. All she wishes for is this torture to end, but she cannot think of a way out of it.