"Kazhetsya, ona ne ponimayet nash yazyk. Psikh skazal, chto vy mogli by nauchit' yeye, pokazav, kak eto delat' — ona khorosho nablyudayet za svoim okruzheniyem, poetomu khorosho nauchite yeye domashnim delam."
("It seems she doesn't understand our language. Psyke said you could teach her by showing her—she's observant, so teach her well about housework.") Sebastian addressed the three housemaids, who stood rigidly before him.
Leonariz stood behind them, dressed in the same uniform.
Two hours had passed since she woke, and Psyke was gone. Only a food tray remained on her king-sized bed.
After Leonariz finished eating, Sebastian arrived, bringing her to the living room.
An older maid stepped forward. "Razve eto ne slozhno, ser Sebast'yan? Kak mozhno uchit'... vzrosluyu zhenshchinu, kotoraya dazhe nichego ne ponimayet, neuzheli eto vozmozhno?"
("Isn't that a bit hard, Sir Sebastian? How could we teach a... grown-up woman but can't even understand a thing—is this really possible?") Her brow furrowed; she glanced at Leonariz, whose expression remained impassive. Leonariz stared at Sebastian.
Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "Nu, eto ne moya problema, madam. Eto tvoya rabota - nayti vykhod, a ne moya."
("Well, that's not my problem madamé. It's your job to find a way, not mine.") He surveyed the maids.
"No ser! Kakaya togda raznitsa, chto ona amazona? Yesli ona dazhe ne smozhet vypolnyat' tyazheluyu rabotu — chto, yesli ona prosto tupoye, nizkoye sushchestvo, kotoroye sovershenno nas ne ponimayet?"
("But sir! What's the difference of her being an Amazona then? If she's not even be able to do heavy work—what if she's just dumb lowly creature who can't understand us at all?") A maid with her hair in a bun spoke up.
"Dorogaya moya, Anastasiya... YA tebe uzhe govorila, eto ne moya problema." ("My dear, Anastasia... I already told you, it's not my problem.") Sebastian's voice was icy, making Anastasia flinch.
"Eto nevozmozhno, ser—" ("This is impossible, sir—")
"Togda u vas teper' voobshche net tseli. YA luchshe ub'yu tebya seychas, chem budu zhdat', poka Psikh razrezhet tvoi tela na kuski i skormit svoyey giyene."
("Then you don't hold a purpose now at all. I'd rather kill you now than wait for Psikh to cut off your bodies unto pieces and feed it to his hyena.") The gun barrel pressed against the third maid's forehead.
The maid trembled, terrified by the gun and Sebastian's cold eyes.
The eldest maid intervened. "Khorosho, my sdelayem eto, tak chto, pozhaluysta, pomiluy."
("Fine, we'll do it so please have mercy.") Her lip quivered.
Leonariz hung her head.
She understood their apprehension. Who would believe someone could learn without understanding the language?
She wanted to tell them she understood, but couldn't. She knew outsiders would be far more interested in the Amazonians if they knew they understood other languages.
She feared another attack on her tribe.
She wouldn't let others suffer as she had. She would endure, ensuring the safety of the other Amazons.
"Very good! I'll leave then. Teach her." Sebastian smiled, pocketing his gun, and left, closing the door.
The three maids and Leonariz remained silent.
Leonariz kept her head down, shy. She was unused to women outside her tribe.
Except for the woman murdered yesterday, this was her first close encounter with an outsider.
She breathed deeply, trying to regain her composure. As she looked up, a sharp kick slammed into her side.
She fell, clutching her ribs, gasping for breath.
"Fuck, you ruined everything, you bitch!" a maid screamed.
Leonariz steadied herself, looking at them.
Shock filled her eyes. Their anger was palpable.
The atmosphere shifted after Sebastian left.
"Stop it, Anastasia. They'll suspect us." the oldest maid said.
Leonariz understood their words, but not their meaning.
The third maid shrieked. "How dare they treat us like this?—we're top agents from England, for fuck's sake!"
"Hush, Shelly—" the eldest maid said.
"Oh, I won't, Edna! It's not like this lowlife understands us!" Shelly yelled.
"That Romanov killed Ava last night—because of this woman." Anastasia said, glaring at Leonariz.
"Now… now… you two rest. I'll teach her." Edna said.
Leonariz understood their true role in her life.
Enemies.
—
"Hmm? How'd it go?" Psyke greeted Sebastian, who entered the warehouse.
The other Romanovs were there, along with the bloody corpses.
"Hmm… they freaked out, just as planned." Sebastian replied, approaching Psyke, who sat amidst the bodies, smoking an expensive cigar.
Psyke smirked. "Good."
Sebastian shook his head, watching a businessman being tortured.
"You're making your tiger suffer, Psyke."
Psyke exhaled smoke. "It' better that she'd realize what kind of man I am, Sebastian. You see... wild animals tend to be more curious, anxious but tamed and well mannered when they faced someone who's much stronger and dangerous than them."
Sebastian chuckled. "You and your metaphors. It fucking hurts my head you know."
"What I mean was... I wanted her to grow and be more stronger so she could survived being by my side—I planned to use her at any chance or situations afterall."
Sebastian sighed. "Poor Amazona, she caught this psychotic and twisted bastard's attention."