Breakfast (2)

Ten minutes later,

A platter was slided before Lillian which was filled with piping hot food. She pulled the cup of coffee away from her lips as her eyes trailed off to the white ceramic platter. Her curiosity filled eyes jumped from one item to the other, and she couldn't stop herself from feeling more hungry.

On the white ceramic platter, small crystal bowls were placed, each filled with a different item. A couple of those small bowls were filled with fruits like blueberries, cherries, some strawberries and sliced bananas. Whereas, the slightly larger ones had baby pancakes and waffles along with a chocolate filled croissant. There was a small glass plate placed at the corner which was filled with scrambled eggs.

After feasting her eyes, Lillian finally shifted her attention to the young man who was standing across the counter, looking back at her with a hopeful expression. He seemed excited for the young lady to have a taste of the delightful meal which he had prepared for her.

"Do tell me what you think of it after you are done." Mark spoke up seeing her gaze on her. He was excited that he finally had a chance to cook for someone else beside Blake, who had never muttered a single word of praise for his cooking skills. He was the only one who was allowed to cook for him and take it up to his room. No one else was even allowed to touch the spices which went into his food.

Blake had his own reasons for arranging things that way. He trusted his men without a doubt, but the chances of someone, who meant harm to him, infiltrating his people were also high. Moreover, infiltrating the base in disguise of a cook or work staff was more easier, especially for people who were against the 'Brigade of Sin' and wanted nothing but to see Blake fall.

"I will." Lillian mumbled before retracting her gaze back to her food. Without wasting another second to admire the delicacies which was served before her, she picked up the butter knife and fork from the side of the platter, and started digging in.

Another fifteen minutes later,

"Oh, my!" Lillian mumbled to herself as she licked the chocolate which was stuck to her finger tips. The only thing which was left now were the fruits as she had cleared the rest of her platter.

Mark, on the other hand, had left a little while ago so that she could enjoy her meal in peace. He had also made sure that beside those staff members who needed to be there, no one else would find their way inside the kitchen.

Lillian, who was clueless to all what was going around her, just continued to focus her attention on the fresh fruits which were calling out to her. Just when she was almost done with her breakfast, she heard a not so unfamiliar voice.

"Here's your fresh coffee."

It was Mark who had interrupted her. He placed a coffee mug next to her platter from across the counter. Lillian's eyes drifted to the other cup which was still half filled with coffee but it had cooled down.

"What about this coffee?" Lillian frowned as she looked at the man who was standing on the other side of the marble counter.

"You don't want to drink that, trust me." Mark shook his head firmly in a no.

"Why is that? I mean, I get it that it's stale and cold now. But you can reheat it, can you not?" She threw a questioning gaze across the counter only to see a smile appearing on Mark's face.

"That coffee is not your average coffee, Miss. Reheating it would not only spoil it's taste, but the coffee would become much bitter. It's better to have it while it is still hot." Mark replied to her. He didn't forget to address her formally even though she was younger than him.

"What are you going to do with that one then?" Lillian pointed her finger towards the earlier cup and questioned him.

"Gonna throw it away, I guess." Mark shrugged his shoulders, stating the obvious.

A frown appeared on her forehead as Lillian clearly didn't like his answer. "Why are you wasting it?" She questioned him back. "You just said that it's not an average coffee. Doesn't that make it expensive?" The frown on her forehead tended to deepen only as she continued.

"What else do you expect me to do with a stale coffee?" Mark questioned her back instead of answering to her. He didn't find mentioning the price of the coffee before the girl necessary. It was the old butler's orders to give her the best. He was merely only acting on it.

"And if you don't want it to go to waste, I suggest you better drink it on time, Miss." He chuckled lightly seeing the worried look on her face. "You don't have to worry about things going to waste here. Coffee is the only thing which is thrown away like sour milk in this kitchen." He continued, but didn't give away the identity of the person who was behind all that wasting.

"Oh, okay." Still holding herself responsible for it, Lillian just muttered out a disheartened reply before picking up the new mug of coffee from the counter. Bringing the cup close to her lips, she gave him a nod. She knew there was nothing she could do about it, but she still felt bad. Especially when her mind recalled how she and the other children used to eat back at the old warehouse, she only felt worse.

"Are you done, Miss?" A voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

She turned her head to face the entrance of the kitchen where the old butler was standing by the doorway. She knew that he was there to take her to the room where Blake had asked her to come.

"Umm…" She looked at him then shifted her eyes to her coffee mug which was almost full. She didn't have the heart to leave it there and let it go to waste, so she turned her attention to Mark, who was carefully observing her.

"It is fine. You can take the cup with you, and just hand it over to Uncle Robert later on." Mark shook his head with helplessness even though there was a fond smile resting on his lips. "And, don't worry about the remaining fruits either. I will send them upstairs for you to finish once you are done with other things." He continued.

Lillian bobbed her head like a broken doll, before thanking him for his help. "Thank you so much." Without waiting for his reply, she got up and made her way towards the kitchen entrance where the old butler was waiting for her.