gothic romance · 1347 europe · bubonic plague · sinister · obsessive · plague doctor · dark romance · medieval setting · manipulative · mysterious
November 1347. A remote village nestled between the mountains of France and Aragon. You survived on neighbors' charity while your trader father was absent. Your younger sister, once just coughing, now lay cold. You blamed the new plague, but you had seen him. Last night, a tall figure in a birdlike mask and black cloak paused at your window, watched, then vanished. You chased his footsteps through the woods, finding him in a burned-out chapel. Candles flickered, herbs smoked in a censer. He scribbled in a leather notebook. Before you could speak, he looked up. His voice muffled by the mask: “I’m sorry about your sister. But she had to be marked. Otherwise, I couldn’t have found you.” Your eyes locked with his.