New meeting with the Count (1)
It was early morning. The whole mansion was on edge. The servants hastily got ready and jumped out of their rooms. Audrey raised everyone who had not yet woken up. I quickly washed my face and woke up Alicia.
I dressed hastily and followed the others. When I left the mansion, two rows of servants had already lined up under Audrey. Joely stood in front of her.
Everyone was looking somewhere into the distance. I carefully squeezed into the line, peering in the direction of everyone’s gaze. Soon a car appeared on the horizon. She drove up smoothly and stopped in front of the mansion.
The driver got out and opened the back door. Someone's leg appeared, and behind it the guest himself.
“Greetings,” Audrey bowed. All the servants followed her example and bowed down. I did the same.
- Welcome! – Joeli’s voice was full of joy. The sound of her steps was heard. The car door slammed.
-You've come a long way. Welcome back. Nothing much happened during your absence.
-...
To those who stood with their heads bowed down the entire time, it seemed as if Joely was talking to herself. There was no answer, but she continued to chatter uncontrollably. Alicia, standing nearby, kept peeking. And not only she, but also those who stood nearby did the same.
Suddenly the strange monologue stopped. Everyone held their breath and pricked up their ears.
“We already met yesterday,” a sonorous voice broke the silence.
Hearing the unfamiliar voice, Alicia's eyes widened, then narrowed again, as if she was trying to recognize the speaker. The others, also not understanding what was happening, cast puzzled glances. I tensed because I knew who these words belonged to.
How could I forget?
The voice that I once heard every day.
Footsteps were heard approaching.
“You shouldn’t have bothered with such a greeting.”
- Oh, it’s not a burden to me. You should have seen this. What do you say?
- What?
– Any thoughts?
The footsteps stopped nearby. I clenched my hands tighter, my heart pounding like crazy. Despite the fact that several people separated us, I lowered my head even lower.
The top of my head was tingling.
- There are more of them.
“Sort of,” Joely replied.
– Have fun in moderation, otherwise you will regret it later.
- Don't worry. I won't cause you any problems.
- I hope so.
They left exchanging phrases full of sarcasm. When they were far enough away, the servants were finally able to straighten up. We should have stood straight, but some could not hide their curiosity and began to look after them. Alicia was no exception.
I carefully turned my gaze to the side. It seemed like this moment lasted forever. My attention focused on the man standing next to Joeli.
A large hand ran through golden hair. Irritation was read in this gesture. After talking with Joeli for a while, he suddenly looked back.
At that moment our views collided.
I looked at him, and he looked at me. No, he was looking at the assembled servants, not at me. But I only saw him. I didn't look away for a second.
His emerald eyes were so clear, focused, and directed directly at us, so suddenly a realization dawned on me.
He really could see.
I remembered. The death of a person that I wanted to forget about, because just the thought of it tore my heart into a thousand pieces. I wanted to bury these terrible memories deep inside and console myself with the fact that the person dear to me was able to find his happiness.
Lucas...
I knew about his death.
Bitter tears came. I tried not to blink, afraid that they would immediately pour down my face. Vincent's figure began to blur. However, he quickly looked away and turned around.
The sound of retreating footsteps echoed throughout the area. All the servants looked in his direction. Now it became clear to everyone who he was. Many girls were embarrassed and blushed at the sight of the handsome and graceful young master.
“Sister,” Alicia called, stunned.
I turned my attention to Alicia, who had been staring at Vincent all this time. She didn't even blink, and there was something ominous about it.
“He’s probably the owner of this place.” Yes?
-...Yes.
- Oh, my God!
The owner of the mansion disappeared, and his servants scattered about their business. I quickly walked away, leaving behind Alicia, frozen in place. My steps gradually quickened, turning to running. I completely forgot about the warning not to go into the forest.
I ran deep into the forest for a long time. Then she turned around and headed down the slope. My skirt fluttered in the wind, my clothes fluttered, and leaves rose from the ground and stuck to my shoes, but I didn’t care. The road seemed so familiar, so without thinking, I moved on, making my way through the bushes to the exit from the forest.
I stopped in front of the view that opened before my eyes.
I tried to exhale slowly. My breath caught in my throat as I began to scan the space in front of me. It was impossible to take in all the mansions here and the gardens connecting them at one glance. My attention was drawn to the fountain with water flowing upward and the trees surrounding it.
Why didn't I understand this earlier?
Why didn’t I even think about who this strange count could be?
I didn't suspect anything like that. Even such a thought did not arise. The place where I was now working was deep in the forest, quite far away, and none of my old acquaintances were here. Other people lived here.
But the painfully familiar terrain that opened up to my eyes destroyed all hope.
Vincent is not a guest here. This became clear after all the servants were gathered for greeting.
This is the mansion of the Bellunita family.
The Count returned home.
He.
Vincent.
I leaned on a tree and fell down. Sitting on the ground, I looked detachedly into the distance. After... I left, pouring out the grief that had been pent up for years.
Shmyg.
A tear rolled down my cheek and fell. I covered my face with both hands, sat down and sobbed from the sadness that gripped my entire being.
Before I had time to come to my senses, thoughts came into my head not about the sudden reunion, but about Lucas.
Apparently, I was just flattering myself with empty illusions. Lucas is alive, healthy and happy. I believed this despite the fact that our last meeting was like a nightmare. I dreamed that he would find his soul mate, some beauty, and that his fleeting love for a simple maid would fade into oblivion.
But as soon as I saw Vincent and looked into his eyes, the meaning of the words Lucas once said became clear to me:
“I'll give it to my brother. My world."
How much was hidden behind that bright smile?
How did he feel in the last moments of his life? What was he thinking when he saw me running away? I was too afraid to face his death. Be that as it may, knowing with what kindness he treated me, I could at least yearn for him. I hoped with all my heart that his last moments in this world were not painful.
Eh.
That was all I could do for him.
***
I was an insignificant character in the pages of their history. I had no power, and I don’t think I could influence anything. But for the first time I hated myself so much, and the realization of this was even more painful.
I was so unhappy and so helpless that I couldn’t even repay the person who had done so much for me. I was unable to change this, no matter how hard I tried.
At the same time, you can now breathe a sigh of relief. Since I can't do anything, it would be better to run away. If I stay here, I'll only get in the way. That's what I told myself.
I think this is my punishment.
This is surely retribution for all my sins.
“Ugly, ugly,” Robert pointed his wooden horse at me. I didn't move or react in any way. My thoughts were in disarray.
Should I run away? Or maybe it’s still worth waiting for the end of the trial period? It seems that I have returned to where I tried to escape from on pain of death. If I had known, I would never have come here. It's kind of crazy. It's probably worth running away after all.
I thought about what I had already learned about this place. All the people here were strangers to me. Previously, I only worked in the annex, so I didn’t know many of the servants by sight. Only a few, but they weren't here.
And most importantly, Isabella was not there.
As far as I can tell, she was the managing servant of the Count's estate. We can say that she is the second person after the butler. But Isabella was nowhere to be found, and her former position now belongs to Audrey.
What's even stranger is that the butler is nowhere to be seen either. Is he really so busy that he doesn't have time to look after this mansion? This could not but rejoice, but still something was wrong here. It’s as if all the servants have been replaced... and this... can’t be, right?
And yet, to my happiness, there is no butler or other acquaintances here, which means that nothing threatens me for now.
But the main problem has not gone away.
What if the butler comes here one day and sees me? If Vincent was here, then the butler could very well show up.
Wait, then who is Joely? What is their relationship with Vincent?
- Strange.
- What?
... They got engaged so quickly? If you think about it, the newspaper wrote about the engagement.
- Anything is possible.
- What?
- This is true.
My thoughts were interrupted. Nanny and Robert, sitting on either side of me, looked at me with puzzled faces. When I noticed their wide eyes, I realized that I had become too self-absorbed.
- Did something happen?
- Oh no. Nothing like that.
- The ugly thing is strange.
- Hah.
I tried to smile, hiding behind external calm. They began to stare at my back with suspicion while I was putting away the toys. Is the nanny not going to work?
-Where have you been? – the nanny stared at me.
- A? – I turned around in response to an unexpected question.
-Your clothes are wrinkled. And this,” the nanny said, removing something from my back. It was a leaf. I was dusting off my clothes when I came back, but I must have overlooked it. I grinned, snatched the paper and put it in my pocket.
-You were playing in secret! - exclaimed Robert.
- No no.
- Terrible! I want too! Take me with you!
- It's not like that.
-Where did you go? – the nanny’s question threw me into a stupor.
She did not know that I took Robert to the forest. Plus, I lied about Robert's injured knee, saying he fell while he was running. I changed my clothes immediately after we returned, so everything looked real.
But Robert turned out to be a pain in the ass.
- In the forest! – Robert guessed.
- Hey, sir!
But he didn’t even think of listening to me. My hand, which was about to shut his mouth, hung in the air. A chilling voice was heard from behind:
- Forest?..
I swallowed dryly, but didn’t dare turn back. A chill ran down my spine.
Why did it suddenly become so cold?