A New Maid

He had returned but this time she was prepared. When he propelled in the room she showed no emotions like before. Her face matched his with only one expression… loathing.

"How many servants does the palace have?" he asked after a pause when she did not ask him when he had locked her or what he was trying to do.

She paused and he glared.

"As a lady of the house, I am sure you can answer such a simple question." She gulped. She knew she had read it somewhere even when she had not managed them personally.

"Thirty." He nodded with a look of skepticism. His hands touched the vase. He noticed that it did not belong to their kingdom. The small velvet cut design on it comes from Alexia. 

He looked out of place in the rough clothing of the road: high boots of brown leather cuffed above his knees; dark breeches, dark waistcoat, a black wool jacket that flared out to reveal the glint of his sword hilt as he turned. He looked like a dark knight but she knew… he was nothing but a mercenary wearing the king's uniform. He had ignored her for so long and now he had decided to talk to her as if her wish meant nothing. And how right he was! He held the power. She held.. Nothing.

"Only six of them could stay. The rest would be dismissed by you in the morning." she would have dismissed many of them in the past if she had the power. But she did not hold any.

"They would whisper about you and your men in my house." she spoke in a soft voice. "It would be better that you wait for my husband to return. He would be there by the morning." she assured when he paused. A hint of surprise on his face and then he laughed as if she was a maniac.

She bit her tongue to stop a reply but she did not check the scowl on her face when he shook his head as if he was dealing with a retard.

"Pardon me, when I have loved you here I have never thought that you could not feel the.." he didn't speak further but he held the curtains tightly and pulled them apart.

She had to cover her face to adjust to the lightning and she noticed that it was not early morning. But it was already noon! She had been sitting here all this time but she did not notice how the time passed? Usually, it takes her a lot of effort to pass even a single hour in this large manor alone.

And now… she was lost in his memories. She wanted to say that but she did not dare to. She looked away from the sky. The clear free sky was never meant for her anyway.

"I will wait for your husband here, of course. But that does not mean I will wait for my decisions too. The staff is leaving." he announced in a firm tone that had no place for rebuttal.

"But.."

"If you are having difficulty in choosing, I can do that for you." 

"You can do your chores too." she offered with a smile. "I remember you have brought eight men with you. Their food and laundry.. Since they are soldiers I am sure they are habitual of tending them." she felt her mouth turn bitter when he was not affected by her jab. 

He looked unaffected like he looked in the parties they had attended. He was covered with a long line of admirers while she was hiding in a dark balcony. He had earned a lot of them with those charming faces and taut muscles. But it did not mean she cared about them.

"Then you could help them," he added with a malicious tone. "All over the empire, you are known for your simplicity and house managing skills." those words.. She held her dress tightly. Others might not know but he did. He knew how much she had resented those words yet he was standing here, mocking her. 

 "And you think I would care if you and your men think that I am not a foppish person like them? Or you think I am your servant since you have locked me in the room and taken all my authority from me?" he better cut her tongue or worse kill her too. Perhaps, he wanted to take revenge from those words.

She could still recall how she had jabbed him in the woods. He had told her that she could be a knight with him and she had laughed over it.

How could a woman be a knight, a king's men? But he had assured her that he would do that for her one day. And now a day had come when he wanted her to do laundry for soldiers. ha! 

If only she had never met him. If only she had never been there. Her eyes burnt with past and present resentment as her lips curled into a mocking smile.

"If you have already decided that, my lord. Shall I get a servant's uniform too?" Why are you even asking me when you have already decided everything you fool? Was written all over her face as she smiled at him.

The words grow in her mind increasing her resentment every passing second. 

"A time would come when you would be in a worse situation. So why not enjoy what you are getting for now?" he asked with a raised brow as if he was offering her some compensation. He was giving her a chance to live a better life and for a second she wondered.. Wouldn't working as a maid be better than her being the marchioness?

"For once, you are right, my lord."