"I am sorry, Lord -- I meant, that I have lost her at the party tonight. Do you know where she is?" Hartford asked again. "No, I don't, Hartford. Have you looked in the parlour and checked the water-closet?" Brook suggested. "She's not there!" Boy came up to both men. He didn't say a thing but Brook knew that something was wrong. They exchanged glances at one another and briefly Hartford became pale, then forced a smile. "You've found her?" he asked. Boy looked over at Brook then back at Hartford, and nodded. "She ... she is in the garden." the boy said, swallowing each word. "She is dead, Hartford!" Hartford lost all colour in his face and his pupils dilated to pin-prick size, then he ran outside to the garden. "Oh God, NO!" Hartford had finally found his lovely betrothed, dead. He embraced her limp body gently into his arms and took the dagger out of her body, hearing it scrape against her exposed ribs. He set the dagger to the side and kissed her cheek and he wept. Then, as if her own body cried for Hartford's pains, a tear crept forth from her eye, mixing with his own tears and flowing towards the arm-length gash in her chest. Hartford moaned and rocked back and forth; for with her death came the death of his world. Brook was disturbed and directed Boy to prepare a chamber upstairs for Hartford and Mercedes. Boy went forth and paid no attention to Lloyd standing up on the balcony, looking at the crowd. In his eyes were tears and he too was pale from his witness. In his mind swirled whirlwind thoughts of the demonic masturbation that came out of Halls and touched every living thing with its Evil impurity. He could not keep all that he saw, from his mind. All laughed and were enjoying themselves, while outside was an innocense was forced into the obscurity of loss. What had happened to his own love, in Besten, those few short years ago, had been replayed before him, this night. It was a terrible loss brought on by someone's whims of power and glory. He heard Boy's voice telling Dearborne about the problem that happened and that Brook ordered a chamber be prepared. Dearborne was heard making her excuses to a couple women that she was talking to in her own bed chamber and went into another room with Boy. When out in the hall, Lloyd bowed his head solemnly to the lady and she returned with a nod. From his expression, the Lady Dearborne was sure that he knew something about the problem that Boy mentioned. She finally found out what the problem was when she was preparing the one room with Boy. She was saddened by what Boy told her he had found in the garden and she imagined how Hartford felt. Yet, Dearborne herself could not cry for Mercedes. In her lifetime she had seen too many deaths, most of which were associated with Halls, in one way or another. This must be another death caused by someone at Halls, she believed.