horror effect

Chapter 36

As Sister Tofana said, Mikhail Bouy was annoyed that he had to go to the capital once because of company business and had to leave his new wife Anna alone in the town, but before he left, he said: Having met with Herbert Wernstein, the proprietor of the Cedar Hill Inn, it had been agreed that the wedding would be held in the restaurant of the inn, and that during his absence Anna would oversee the preparations for the wedding.

This morning Anna walked around the mansion first, and then she asked the butler to report on the preparations for the wedding. Then she sat by the window and read a book for a while, but felt a little stuffy and wanted to go out for a walk.She remembered again that Herbert had told her that there was an excellent female painter in the town, and she asked the housekeeper to bring her coat, intending to pay her a visit.

After asking the direction, Anna walked up the mountain alone.She didn't want to be followed, and with everyone busy preparing for the wedding, she didn't want to interrupt other people's work for a little visit of her own.

Anna walked casually, looking at the old houses on both sides of the mountain road, feeling very comfortable.Just as she walked into a secluded alley, she was blocked by someone.

The person blocking her was a fat, dark-skinned middle-aged man. Anna felt as if she had seen him before, and then she remembered that she had seen him outside the door when she was accompanied by Herbert when she got lost in Linnon's bookstore for the first time. She couldn't think of anything else about this man.

"I'm sorry, please let me go." Anna said politely.

The middle-aged man grinned and said, "Don't worry. As an old friend of your husband, let's talk first."

"Oh? So you are Mikhail's friend." Even though she said that, Anna felt confused in her heart: If this person is really her husband's friend, how could she be turned away that day?

"Yes, it seems that Mr. Boai did not tell you. My name is Yosif Theoros, and I am an old friend of Mr. Boai for decades."

"In that case, please come to my husband's and me's house, although he is not at home now, I welcome you very much." Saying that, Anna turned to walk out of the alley, but Theolos quickly walked around to her , blocked her way.

Anna was very gentle, but not stupid, she immediately saw that something was wrong, her expression became tense, and she took two steps back. "Please get out of the way, I'll take you to my house." She tried to calmly say.

But Theolos didn't move.In his eyes, Anna was indeed too weak. Her soft voice and graceful posture all gave people the impression that she was particularly easy to bully.Theolos was very happy, thinking he had chosen the right person.

"Of course I will visit the Bouilly family, but before I made a little request... no, a little request." He said with a smile.

"Please tell me, if I can promise..." Anna said cautiously.

"Oh! Of course you can agree, and I won't make excessive demands." Theolos said and suddenly took a step forward, staring at her with gloomy eyes, but his mouth was smiling.

Anna started to get scared, but she didn't yell or panic. Facing the man approaching her, she just slowly backed away calmly, trying to keep a relatively safe distance.

But fortunately, she didn't find a knife or gun on Theoros, which made her feel a little relieved.

"Don't be afraid," Theoros continued, "I know you're married to Bouy, and you're going to have the wedding here, so I won't interfere in your affairs. But understand, I'm Boy I am an old friend of yours, and I know what he did before I met you, and as long as I am happy, I can reveal what I know to the press, and they will be very happy."

"What do you want?" Anna asked.

"Hey... what else is there, of course it is money. My own logging factory is in some trouble, so friends should help me no matter what."

"I can give it to you," Anna said, "but I don't have cash in my hand right now. When my husband comes back, I can persuade him to help you."

Theoros' expression changed from joy to fury in an instant, and he roared: "Stinky bitch! You and your husband are scoundrels! You are all pretending to be innocent and good people. Bowai's money Every picture is stained with blood, you upper-class people, take off your superficial coats, you are some vicious and ruthless executioners! Especially you, who pretend to be ladies, actually drink human blood to live every day! Open you mouth, spit out the bone!"

Terrified, Ana stepped back and shouted, "That's not true! You misunderstood! That's not true!"

"Misunderstanding?! Do you think I don't know? Think I don't know about your great husband's dirty fortune? Looks like he never told you! Haha! He's scared himself! Let me tell you, Little girl, your husband, he is..."

Before Theolos had time to say it, there was a sound of stones falling under his feet. He turned his head and found that Stephen Breumetrost was standing at the entrance of the alley and looking at him, holding a few stones in his hands .Theoros glared at Stephen viciously, spat on the ground, and walked away quickly.

Seeing Theoros walking farther and farther in the alley and finally disappearing, Anna exhaled exhaustedly.She turned to look at Stephen and said, “Thank you.”

"Nothing," said Stephen, "I don't think Monsieur Boyle hasn't told you about the town, or he hasn't told you all.

But now you should know that when you come out in the future, it is best to have someone by your side. "

Anna smiled awkwardly. "I didn't expect this to happen..."

"I didn't expect that either," Stephen walked up to her, looking in the direction where Theolos disappeared, speaking to Anna, as if talking to himself. "Although Theolos is not a good person, I didn't find that he had the guts to blackmail you. Well, it seems that money makes people corrupt." He turned around and smiled at Anna, "My name is Stephen. Brymontroste, it is a pleasure to meet you, Madame de Bouilly."

"I'm glad too," said Anna. "I've heard of your name. You are the son of Mr. Brumontrost, the president of the bank."

"Obviously Mr. Bouilly has told you. Are you going there?" Stephen asked her.

"To see the painter Constance Marmet. I hear she is very good."

"Oh, Marmet is the pride of our town. M. Bouilly must have told you that too."

"Exactly not." Anna shook her head. "Mr. Herbert Wernstein told me about it, and he suggested that I visit her studio."

"Vernstein...?" Stephen was quite surprised. In his eyes, Vornstein was out of step with the simple and slow pace of life in the small town. He was a businessman with the quick and shrewd characteristics of people from big cities. The hotel owned by this person It is independent from the small town system and will not be restrained by Boai enterprises.

Stephen thinks Wernstein doesn't seem to need to court Bouy.

"What's wrong?" Anna asked.

"...Ah, it's nothing. I was thinking that I'd better accompany you to Marme's studio. She lives in seclusion and doesn't like to receive outsiders. I can introduce you to her."

"Oh! wonderful!" said Anna cheerfully. "Thank you, Monsieur Breumontrose."

Anna walked in front, and Stephen followed two steps behind.Looking at Anna's happy figure, Stephen sighed and shrugged his shoulders helplessly.He murmured to himself: "Well, here we go, I believe I have done well. I want to thank you too, Anna Bouilly."

The female painter Constance Malmey receives Anna and Stephen in her studio.She seemed very pleased with Anna's visit, whose sweetness and cleverness must have pleased the painter, and she even invited them to tea.

Holding teacups in their hands, Stephen and Anna are carefully admiring paintings and sculptures in the studio.

Stephen finally saw the painting that Julian had mentioned to him. In the picture was a dark green dense forest with rising mist. A fairy was surrounded by branches and leaves, emitting white light all over her body. The fairy looked serene, with her hands folded on her chest. In front of her, the posture is a bit like the Madonna in the icon.Anna liked the painting very much and couldn't stop praising it.

"It's really beautiful, especially the characters' expressions, which are soft and a little sad, and the eyes are full of pity. This kind of eyes will make people want to talk to him, as if he can understand everything and forgive everything. This is sacred. face, like the Madonna or Christ. Was that what you had in mind when you first painted it?"

"Well... so to speak." Marme said, standing beside Anna. "I want to reflect a kind of broad tolerance, a kind of maternal love..."

While Anna and Malme were talking about paintings, Stephen walked over to the side where the sculptures were placed, and he liked the fine statuettes even more.Stephen picked up a bronze ivory bust, and then picked up a transparent resin sculpture and fiddled with it in his hands.But he was thinking in his heart that if the female painter had ever seen Bergs, she would probably use his beautiful face as a model, maybe she really knew something.

Putting down the sculpture, Stephen continued to walk forward slowly, approaching the workbench with many sketches, paints, palettes and solvents.He flipped through the sketches one by one and found that the female artist's sketches were as beautiful as oil paintings, full of whimsy and fascinating illusions, such as beautiful fairies, charming monsters, deep forests and oceans, Form the mysterious world of Constance Marmet.In the drawing, Stephen found a sketch of a sculpture. At first glance, he thought it was a sphinx, but upon closer inspection, he found that it was different. The front half of the statue was a lion, and the back half was a lion. It is the tail of a snake, entangled in a circle, and there is a lotus flower on the forehead of the statue. The shape of the whole statue is strange and graceful, with a weird taste.

"Is this your new work?" Stephen asked.

"Yes, this is a commission I recently accepted and must be completed as soon as possible."

"The shape is very strange."

"Oh, my clients always have various requirements." Malme laughed.

“Does it make you feel uncomfortable doing what other people ask you to do? Does it feel like you’re being restricted?” Anna asks.

"No, I think this is a kind of challenge, a good test of my creative level. Of course, I will also communicate with clients and try to satisfy both parties."

The visit to the female painter ended soon. After leaving the studio, Stephen took Anna home and promised to come to visit whenever he had the opportunity.

Then he left the Bouilly mansion and went straight to the Cedar Hill Inn.