Benjamin couldn't help his smile as his horse trotted further and further away from the barn. His morning was turning out to be rather interesting. More so than he thought it would be. He'd known about the mistress. Ben had known about her since the day she'd been brought in, before any maids or butlers had even started gossiping about her. He'd been in the library, reading the very book he'd just recommended to her, when he'd heard the sound of horses. The estate hadn't been preparing for any guests that he'd known of. When he'd looked outside, he'd only seen two men and a small hooded figure. It was when she'd been taken from the horse that her hood had fallen, revealing her silver stands and large dark eyes.
Ben's breath had caught in his throat at the sight of her. She looked like a faerie, small, magical, and beautiful standing in the snow. He'd leaned further against the window, his breath creating a fog over the chilled glass.
Adele had met the three strangers, but it was quite obvious she'd only been conversing with the two men. It became even more so with their rough handling of the girl.
Ben had furrowed his brows and closed his book. He darted from his seat in the library and made for the first floor, slowing when he'd come to the part of the hall where the wall ended. Ben could hear the voices of Adele and the men, but the girl hadn't spoken. He peeked from behind the wall and found her standing on her own with the others spoke.
She was past her debuting age, but he didn't think her older than nineteen. Her face, upon closer inspection, was gaunt and her eyes hollow. Her silver hair, while unusual and pretty, lacked a shine to it so many of the ladies in the nobility circles seemed to pride themselves on.
"Cordelia!" Adele called and the young maid emerged from a side room. She escorted the men to the receiving room to wait for his father while Adele led the girl away. When the coast was clear, he walked down to the first floor and towards the receiving room. He could hear the voices of the men as they spoke, though they were too muffled to hear anything. Ben opened the door an inch, and the voices became clear.
"Would you like some tea, Sir Marks and Carselle?" Cordelia asked.
"Much appreciated, beautiful." One of the men said. The sound of the voice curled Ben's gut.
"Are you from around these parts?" The other asked.
"No, Sir Marks. I'm from the south."
"You have quite unique looks for the South. Where about are you from?"
Ben could hear the men moving forward from wherever they sat. He crinkled his nose. Who were these Marks and Carselle to have such atrocious manners. He'd not heard of any such names in nobility.
"It's much too small for anyone to know of it." Cordelia said.
"Aw, now don't play hard. Maybe I've heard of it. I'm from the South, too, you know."
"Um, Sir Marks, please,"
Ben had had enough. He pushed the door open, scowling at the scene that had welcomed him. The man, Sir Marks, was leaning forward and grasping Cordelia's hand. She was frowning and trying to pull her hand away, but he wasn't letting go.
The men and Cordelia looked to him, and Ben simply smiled.
"Young lord!" Cordelia said and snatched her hand back when the man's grip loosened. She bowed her head low. "I-I wasn't expecting you. Shall I-"
"Thank you, Cordelia, but that won't be necessary." Ben smiled. "I heard that father was having some guests, so I thought I'd entertain them until he arrived." He walked over and took a seat across from the men. Both shifted in their chairs. Their shoulders hunched. Sir Carselle rubbed his palms together and Sir Marks was now intimately interested in his teacup.
Despite his words, Cordelia poured him a cup, and he gratefully accepted it before turning his attention back to the men.
"Now, to what do we owe this… pleasure of welcoming you to our home?" He crossed his leg over the other and looked down his nose at the men. Ben didn't take kindly to any type of mistreatment of their staff. These people worked hard for him and his family. We paid them for that, not to be disrespected and treated as something less.
The men shared a look before meeting Ben's eyes. "We're here on business."
Ben's smile grew. "Wonderful! I happen to be in charge of all estate finances as the next heir." He leaned forward. "So, why is it you're here?"
"With all due respect, you lord," Sir Carselle started, "we're here to speak with the baron, Edgar Astri."
Ben narrowed his eyes, and the men shifted under his gaze. "I see." He shifted in his seat and put his cup down. "Sir Marks, Sir Carselle," the men stiffened. "What are your names?"
The men were at a momentary loss before Marks spoke up, "I'm Johnny and my friend is Sam."
"And who am I?" he asked. The men couldn't answer and Ben smiled. "I am Benjamin Astri, young lord of the Astri estate and next heir to the barony." His smile fell away and his eyes became hard. "Notice how I have two titles there, much longer than Johnny Marks and Sam Carselle."
"Young lord,"
"State your business while I'm asking kindly."
"We're here to sell something to your father." Sir Carselle spoke up, his voice trembling. He was nothing more than a coward when someone put pressure on him. Ben looked towards the door he'd walked through, the same one his father would soon come through. He remembered the beautiful girl the men had brought and how much more worn and starved she'd looked. His lip curled.
Slavers. These men were slavers, and his father was looking to buy.
Ben wasn't so oblivious that he didn't know about Baron Astri's fixation on all things beautiful. But this was the first time he knew of his father stooping so low as to buy a slave. He supposed, though, it shouldn't surprise him in the least.
"The girl?" he'd asked for clarification's sake and the mere mention of her sparked something in the men's eyes. Both smiled.
"She's quite beautiful. A wonder from Tandelle." Sir Carselle said and Ben's eye twitched. Tandelle? They'd taken her from Tandelle.
"She's trained, too." Sir Mark's filled in as if that bit of information would be the deal breaker. If anything, it sickened him more. So his father was looking to buy a mistress? A girl from Tandelle?
"How old is she?"
"Seventeen."
Disgusting. He stood from his seat, and both men flinched. Ben couldn't stand to hear anymore of these. He looked down on the men and they shrunk at his gaze. A second later, he forced a smile.
"I'll be on my way now, gentlemen. My father should be along shortly to discuss…business." Ben looked at Cordelia who had taken spot behind him. "Cordelia, if you please." He didn't want her staying here a moment longer with Sir Marks and Carselle. She gratefully followed him, bowing to the men before leaving the room.
"My young lord?" Cordelia asked when Ben stopped at the bottom of the stairs.
"Is he insane? Slavers? Really?" Ben ground his teeth together. He wanted to go back in there and beat the men senseless. They had taken the girl from Tandelle. They had taken her from her home, her family and friends, and for what? To warm his father's bed at night? He clicked his tongue. "Cordelia,"
"Yes, young lord?" she bowed low when he turned to her.
"If father goes through with this ridiculous…purchase," the word sounded poisonous on his tongue. "You will be assigned as her personal maid." If it were up to his father, the girl would have nothing and she'd be utterly lost without anyone around here. Worst case scenario, she might even commit suicide in her room.
Cordelia looked momentarily surprised at the words. She quickly collected herself and nodded.
"And Sir Xavier will be her personal knight." People would talk. It wouldn't be long before word spread about just what that girl was. They'd wonder why she, a mere purchased mistress would be given a personal maid and knight. Perhaps Ben was just being selfish. This wouldn't make up for his father, but it was a start at something. And when his mother and sister returned from visiting family, she'd need the protection from their wrath.
Ben sighed and rubbed at his temples. Goddess. His father hadn't even gone through with the purchase and already he'd had a building headache. Cordelia didn't ask any questions and nodded once more. From the second floor, he heard a deep, hearty laugh. His father had finally made his appearance and Ben wanted nothing to do with him.
"I'll be out at the stables. If father asks for me, tell him I've gone for a ride."
"But, young lord it's-"
He was already out the front door.
It had been two weeks since then and Ben had seen the girl, Parisa, around the estate, but he'd made it a point to avoid her. If he was being honest, he was just a coward who couldn't bare to meet her eyes knowing who she was and why she'd been purchased. He was glad to see that Xavier and Cordelia were getting along with her. Cordelia had been the first to report to him about Parisa's visits to the stables and it became clear to him, with the attitude change in Kuro, that she'd been spending time with his horse. He didn't mind and, today, when he'd seen her with his horse, he'd had ever intention of simply leaving and returning later when she'd gone. It was Xavier who'd told him to approach and speak with her; that 'his lady' wasn't what the young lord would expect. So he had, and the knight had been right.
He remembers the book she'd been reading and her troubled expression when he'd told her to call him Ben. A laugh bubbles to the surface and escapes him. She was indeed very different from what he'd expected and he looked forward to learning more about her.
***
Parisa walked from the stables and made her way inside, Xavier trailing behind her. She'd asked him about the young lord of the estate and Xavier hadn't said much, just that he was a good man and that'd he'd make a good Baron in the future. Parisa thought back to his kind smile and playful gaze. She had to agree with her knight. Ben would, indeed, make a good future Baron.
Parisa is pulled from her thoughts when she hears laughter from the other end of the hallway. She trips in a step when her eyes land on the pretty young lady she'd seen walking with her ladyship the other day. Maria Astria, the daughter of the baron. She had yet to run into the young lady, though she recognized the ladies-in-waiting that trailed behind her. Parisa had passed them a few times in the hallways and all they'd done was whisper about her.
Parisa felt a comforting pressure at the small of her back, urging her to keep walking. She glanced back at Xavier, but he'd kept his eyes forward and back straight. She gulped and continued forward, her eyes cast downward and her hands gripped together in front of her. The ladies-in-waiting and fell silent as they recognized Parisa.
"Hm," Marisa hummed as she passed the girl. "I'll have to call the maids to clean this area. There's a certain stench here that clearly isn't right."
Parisa didn't need to look up to know the young lady was smiling. She bit down on her bottom lip and hunched her shoulders. Maria's ladies-in-waiting giggle.
"You're right, lady Maria. It does smell quite awful in this section of the estate."
"I think I've smelled this on some of our family's poorer maids."
"Apologies, my lady," Xavier's voice cut through the women and everyone fell silent. "I hadn't had a chance to shower since training this morning."
Parisa's head whipped up to find Xavier looking to Maria. The young lady scowled and opened a pastel colored fan. She held it in front of her mouth, through her eyes screamed her displeasure. It was clear she didn't appreciate his interruption.
"Is that so, Sir Xavier?"
"Yes, my lady. My deepest apologies." he said with a bow. Lady Maria's eyes followed him before flickering to Parisa.
"Do take care of it, Sir Xavier." Even as she spoke, her eyes were focused on Parisa. "The Astri name is one that has standards. Do not forget this."
"Yes, my lady." Xavier said and lady Maria stands there for a moment longer before turning up her nose and walking away without further comment. Parisa's eyes followed her and it wasn't until she felt a subtle nudging from beside her did she finally come to her senses. Xavier was watching her now, his eyes swimming with concern, though he wore a smile.
"Let's go, Parisa. Cordelia must be waiting for us." he said and Parisa cleared her throat. She looked down finding that her hands were trembling.
"Yes, yes you're right." she said, trying to stop the trembling but failing to do so. She clutched the book to her chest, hiding her hands from Xavier. Encounters like this were things she'd need to get used to. "Thank you, Xavier."
The knight simply nodded and led his lady down the hall.