Martha was unusual to say the least. She had silvery blonde hair stuck on her head in a messy lop. However, everything else about her shined professionalism. Sharp black jacket and black trousers. She was short and slim. A vast comparison to the somewhat stout Iris of average height.
Iris followed Martha out of the kitchen and and up the grand staircase. They started on the second floor hallway.
"Follow me, Miss Morgan. This house was built in the 1860s and rebuilt several times with new additions and annexes. This second floor was part of the original building. It's decorated with famous photographs from historical events. These rooms are mostly vacant and used for storing items of historical significance."
Iris was listening and enjoying the tour. By the time Martha took her to the third floor, she almost tripped from not watching where she was going. They paused outside Master Gastropf's room.
"Here is Master Gastropf's room. Entrance not allowed. Please keep following me."
Martha had kept going at such a quick pace that she didn't even notice that Iris had stopped at Antoine's bedroom door. She was still catching her breath after nearly tripping on poor Martha and stressed herself out a little. Intrigued by what mysteries Antoine's room would hold, Iris decided to open the door and walk in. She wouldn't remember any of it tomorrow anyways, right?! No way she could get caught.
Iris turned the heavy brass handle and entered the room. The first thing she noticed was the lighting. The curtains were dark blackout curtains so no natural light came through the windows across from the door. However, the room was anything but dark. Beautiful and dainty star string lights hung across every inch of the ceiling like the stripes of a child's rainbow parachute.
After adjusting to the lighting, Iris followed her nose to a bookshelf filled with dusty books. She smelled something like cinnamon sticks and oranges. It reminded her of putting cloves on oranges during Christmas for homemade ornaments. To her surprise on the bookshelf next to a collection of history books, there was a clove orange with the cloves creating a smile. It was sealed to prevent it from ever changing but somehow she could still smell it like it was fresh. Iris picked it up and held it in her hands like a precious jewel as she continued her walk around the room.
Like following in Goldilocks' mistake, Iris noticed the four poster bed. It had a simple black comforter stretched perfectly over the bed. No wrinkles showed. Four white fluffy pillows lined the top of the bed against the headrest. Iris suddenly knew she needed a nap and she didn't care if she was trespassing. Iris swiftly walked to the bed and sat down on the edge as if deciding to rethink the bad fairytale choice. But she didn't. Iris lifted her legs onto the bed and slowly repositioned herself in the middle of the bed. She fell asleep in mere seconds.
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Meanwhile, Antoine was cooking. He had some pre-cooked ribs that needed an extra flavor boost. He had just finished the sauce and was about to pour in the O Neg when Martha came back down.
"Where's Iris?"
"She's right behind me," Martha replied before she turned and looked. Poor Martha seemed quite frazzled that Iris was not actually behind her.
"It's okay, Martha. Where was the last place you turned around and saw her?"
Martha looked suddenly scared as she remembered, "Outside Master Gastropf's bedroom. I told her it was forbidden to enter."
"Don't fret. Go take the night off and get some sleep. You look like you could use some rest."
Martha bowed and left out the front door whilst mumbling quietly yo herself. Martha was the descendent of an original family Antoine's father met when he escaped Europe to Dallas. Her family was escaping some sort of bad situation and asked to serve their family in exchange for protection. To the outside world, Martha's family were servants of the house and acted as such to visitors in the 1860s and beyond. Except that was a lie. Antoine's father had just escaped Europe due to a long flee from unhappy pure blood vampires who shunned Antoine's mother gaining the right of vampirism through a bite. He was not for any social injustice. Secretly, he had made a pact with Martha's third great-grandfather that the service her family provided would always be fair and paid. Back then, the men agreed to secrecy so that Antoine's family could blend in with the era and not cause any suspicion. But all of Martha's family had been paid substantial wages for years. Her family had saved a small fortune and even had stocks within the company. Antoine had been raised to treat the family properly and tonight was no exception.
Antoine finished cooking his meal and left it on a plate in the kitchen. He went upstairs to gather Iris for dinner.
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Iris dreamed that she awoke in a thirst. Antoine had made barbecue with a sauce that tasted of blood. She dreamed that she took two bites and tossed it across the kitchen. Suddenly two men were restraining her as she went full rampage and a giant wine barrel was brought in. She dreamed of drinking that entire barrel dry. The entire barrel of blood dry before puking across his hardwood kitchen floor. She dreamed that she was carried in his arms back to this bed.