REBIRTH : Chasing The Limelight

Chapter 107: A rich lady.

A middle-aged woman with sharp eyes and a clipboard walked over. Elara recognized her immediately as the assistant director.

"Why are you so late?" she asked, looking straight at Elara. "Everyone else arrived hours ago. We already started picking rooms and keys. Most of the good ones are gone now. This is not a vacation. You can’t just show up whenever you feel like it."

Elara stayed quiet, not arguing. She’s in the wrong here anyway.

The assistant director sighed and pointed to one of the keys on her clipboard. "Here. Take this one. It’s on the third floor."

Before Elara could reach for it, a hand moved fast from the side.

Relanie suddenly appeared and stepped forward, trying to take the key from the director’s hand. But Elara was faster. She quickly grabbed the key and pulled her hand back.

Relanie stopped, her smile still sweet but her eyes sharp. "The room I was given has windows that face the woods," she said softly. "I have a fear of dark forests at night. You wouldn’t ignore someone like me, right?"

Elara stared at her, a small, amused smile playing on her lips.

Just what is she up to this time?

The assistant director quickly spoke up. "Miss Relanie, let me get you another key."

"No, I don’t want to trouble you." Relanie replied, shaking her head. Then she turned back to Elara and waited.

Elara looked at her for a second longer, then stretched out the key.

She’s not scared of insignificant things anyway.

"Thank you." Relanie said, taking the key with a polite smile. She passed Elara her own key. "The room is very good and nice. I just hate the windows."

Then she turned and walked away without another word. Elara stared at her back, a smile still on her lips.

The assistant director watched them for a moment. "You two are kinda close." she said. "I like it like that."

Truly close. Elara thought in her mind.

As she and Ziva started to walk away, the assistant suddenly called out and stretched another key toward Elara. "If you don’t want that one, you can take this instead." she said but Elara shook her head instantly.

"It’s alright." She muttered.

Without saying anything more, she and Ziva went to take their belongings.

The production team had already brought them here from Starfall, so the bags were neatly placed at where people would notice immediately they came into the hall...

The room was on the third floor. It had old wooden floors that creaked with every step and stone walls covered in vague paintings. A big window looked out toward the dark woods.

The bed was very large and clean, with heavy curtains that smelled of detergent. A small lamp on the table gave off a warm but dim light. Everything felt quiet and a little too still.

Ziva looked around with wide eyes. "This place feels like it belongs in a horror story," she whispered.

Elara only smiled and shook her head.

They started unpacking. Ziva opened the closet to hang her clothes. Suddenly she screamed and jumped back, almost knocking Elara over.

"There’s something in there!" she cried, pointing inside.

Elara walked over calmly and looked. It was just an old coat hanging on a hook, its sleeve swaying a little from the hanger.

"It’s just a coat, Ziva. Not a ghost." she said with a soft laugh, but Ziva clutched her chest, still breathing fast.

"It moved! I swear it moved on its own! I saw it with my own eyes."

Elara kept smiling as she closed the closet.

"Relax. It’s an old building. Things creak and move. Nothing deadly is going to jump out at us tonight."

After they finished unpacking, they both went downstairs to the long dining hall for dinner.

The hall look like something from all those old historical dramas.

Large chandeliers hung from the ceiling. A very long wooden table was in the middle of the room, and many cast members and crew were already sitting around it.

Elara suddenly felt as if she had traveled back to those ancient days.

They found two empty seats at the far end of the table and sat down. The food was simple– warm soup, bread, and roasted meat. But it smelled good.

Everyone was eating and talking quietly. A few minutes later, the old housekeeper walked in. She was a kind looking woman with gray hair and a gentle smile.

She started clearing some plates while chatting with the group to cheer them up. Or rather... to scare the living daylights out of them with her favorite ghost stories.

"You know," she said in a low voice, "this building has a long story. Many years ago, a rich lady lived here all alone. She had no husband and no children. People say she would sit by the big window every night, staring into the dark woods. She waited and waited for someone who never came. One morning, she was simply gone. Her bed was neatly made, her clothes were folded, but she was never seen again. Some say her spirit still walks these halls at night, looking for company."

The table went quiet immediately.

Ziva’s eyes went wide. She grabbed Elara’s arm under the table and whispered, "I told you...this place is cursed!"

Some crew members laughed nervously. One young actor shivered and joked, "Great, now I won’t sleep tonight." A few others looked a little pale and kept glancing at the windows.

"How romantic of the lady. Waiting forever for someone who never comes." Relanie said, smiling sweetly.

Elara listened calmly, a small amused smile on her lips. She found the whole story a bit funny. It sounded like something from an old book. She took another spoonful of soup anyway, not bothered at all.

The housekeeper chuckled teasingly. "Don’t worry too much. Just keep your doors locked at night and you’ll be fine." she said with a grin.

The dinner continued with chatter relating to the story of the rich lady who was said to have disappeared. Everyone kept laughing and joking, but Ziva, and a few others kept glancing around every now and then.

Elara ate peacefully, barely containing the laughter that might escape from her throat anytime soon.