Swathed in elaborate folds of white lace and the demoralizing tranquillity of the vestry, Sofia wrung her faultlessly manicured fingers, irritably linking and unlinking her hands in disconcerted fury. In spite of the despondent air Caleb’s disappearance had submersed her in, Sofia's innocent demeanour remained seemingly intact and the smile refused to fade from her lips.
The harmony of the choirboys accomplished chorus reached an insinuating crescendo, their rehearsed Latin words extending through the carved rafters, to the points of the sculpted arches, scaling the stone floor and descending to the crypt. The stifling emotion of their harmonic voices defined the torment and ridiculed passion burning behind Sofia’s eyes. The glazed appearance of her face enhanced the sapphires set into her flawless skin. The lashes framing her eyes fluttered as the tears began to flow, crystallised by the transparent confessions that then fell from her porcelain face to infuse her elaborate dress.
Her sobs rang out, unheard by the evacuating congregation, drowned by the hymn that settled over the pews and contorted into silence by the dense oak entry. As the song came to a spent and sobering termination, the vehemence that had been seething in her heart surged through her blood, departing the diamond from her finger and propelling it to the floor amidst in a frenzied, heartbroken scream.
After murdering her future and dismissing what she believed to have been fruitless concerns from her family, which had led to her complete isolation from them, the isle had been the solitary possessor of prospects for her. Sofia had only Caleb left.
Every syllable of trust and love that had remained in her heart, she had forced into her relationship with him, only now to have to witness the intricate maze of her falsely-placed hope, demolished.
Sofia remained ignorant to Caleb’s whereabouts, however alone in the church, being murdered in seductive somnambulism and her beautiful-but-unyielding corset, she could only assume the demon of his doubts had prevailed.
Also alone, Caleb wore a look similar to Sofia’s previous distant stare, with a heart full of expired love for her and a seven-inch blade of steel.