by Emma Harley
“It was nothing, I didn’t want to see anyone get hurt that’s all,” she mumbled, slipping her hand from his grasp.
She awkwardly bid farewell and goodnight, hastily making her escape to her bedroom and slamming the door behind her. Her little reception room was softly lit by crystal sconces, casting a warm glow over a rail of clothing she had tried on that morning. The plastic had been taken off a puffy grey couch and armchair and a small potted plant with pink flowers had been placed on a little side table. She plopped herself down, running her hands thoughtfully over the fabric.
She text the address to her aunt and called Luke for a quick catch-up. His mood clearly had not improved since their last conversation, and they spent a frosty five minutes talking before he gave a fake sounding yawn and hung up. Raina stomped into her bedroom and tossed her phone onto the bed, flopping herself down beside it with a growl. She needed rest. Today had not gone at all how she had planned it, and now her new employers knew a significant amount more than she had ever planned to tell them.
Raina kicked off her boots and stripped off her clothes. She didn’t bother putting on pyjamas as she flopped down into the bed and pulled the duvet over her, praying that today’s rollercoaster was not an indication of how the rest of her time here would be.
Chapter 3
Raina stared blankly at the maid who had brought her several brown boxes littered with postage stamps and large red fragile markers. News had spread throughout the household that the new hire had a gun, the rumours twisting into various levels of derision. Some thought she was a bodyguard disguised as a nanny; others assumed she had been hired by a business rival to take out the Blanchard family.
A week had passed since the incident at the store and with time brought an assortment of hushed tones and hurried whispers when she came across the other employees. She locked herself in her room most of the time, her first day she had spent cursing her traitorous body for wanting to see Logan. A particularly vivid dream had left her reeling, she hated how he made her feel and most of all she didn’t want to think about how utterly relieved she was to see him alive after the robbery. He was a stranger. She shouldn’t have cared so much.
For several days she had taken to slipping around the house as best she could to avoid contact with anyone, even managing twice to sneak into town without anyone noticing her absence.
She was learning her way around, and she had even found a beautiful little corner of the town hidden away behind a gate, which was in turn nestled along a row of boutique stores and jewellery shops. She often caught herself justifying the journey into town to sit in the courtyard with a fresh pastry and a mug of tea from the little café buried in there.
It also housed a quaint little store she enjoyed perusing because it reminded her of her mother. Incense wafted through the air, nestling on the array of wind chimes and sun-catchers that hung in the air. Semi-precious stones sat in neat piles, and most of the jewellery was made from them too. She remembered her mother delightfully squealing when Raina had presented her with a large amethyst geode. It was her birthday soon, Raina wanted to make a point of travelling home to visit her grave.
She dumped the parcels into her room and ripped them open. Thea had packaged up most of her belongings for her, so she did not have to try lugging them across the country when she moved. One box was just full of knick-knacks: framed photographs of her with friends and family, some jewellery, tattered teddies and some decorative pieces she had in her old room. The largest box was pretty much the same except it contained her books too.
Raina set about placing her stuff neatly around her room, artfully arranging her teddies into the shelf in her wardrobe, out of sight from prying eyes. As she picked up a worn blue elephant, she gave it a soft squeeze and placed it gently with the odd assortment she had. She made a point to only keep sentimental childhood objects, the rest had gone to charity shops years ago. Her books were lined up in order in her bookcase and everything else was scattered throughout her room. The sun-catcher she had hung at her window cast hundreds of tiny rainbows throughout her room, and a wave of nostalgia washed over her as she tore open the last box.
A soft hint of her mother’s perfume lingered on the contents. There were three photo albums, labelled neatly with familiar lettering. Raina put them on her bookcase up as high as she could reach, along with the amethyst geode she had given her mother.
The jewellery box was still as pristine as ever despite its age. She attempted to open the lid but it appeared to be locked. Turning it around carefully, Raina spotted a small keyhole surrounded by a gold heart. She knew her mother’s jewellery was worthless to anyone else, she would never buy expensive stuff, so Raina placed the box with her teddies, carefully hidden behind them.
Some loose tumbled crystals were nestled on top of a large grey scarf and an old diary from almost fifteen years ago, and as Raina carefully removed them to put them away, a bottle of perfume tumbled out onto the floor. She recognised it instantly as her mother’s favourite scent, she would wear that perfume often and even sprayed Raina’s pillow with it when she was a child. She cradled it gently as though it were water from the fountain of youth itself.
A knock at her door made her jump and she settled the bottle among the colourful variety she already had out on display on her dresser. The same maid as earlier had yet another box and a message from Kalen, asking her to join him in his office. She sat the box on her bed and locked her doors as she made her way to the office.
Kalen was hunched over his desk, his head in one hand, the other flipping through pages with a listless expression as she knocked loudly on the open door and poked her head around.
“You wanted to see me?” she uttered breathlessly. He tossed the papers away and gave her a tired smile.
“Raina, please come on in, have a seat,” he gestured, almost throwing a barrage of paperwork into a nook beside him. She perched warily on the seat. Despite his authoritative demeanour, she saw a different side to him behind the closed door of his office. He always seemed to be on the brink of a breakdown, and she wondered how often he threw folders of paperwork across the room when no one was here. He straightened his tie and sat down opposite her with two glasses and the crystal decanter.
“I know it’s only lunchtime, but I think we’ve both had a few rough days,” he sighed, pouring himself an oversized measure and pushing the other glass towards her. She looked at him quizzically. “Rough days?”
He glanced at her before pinning his glass in one gulp.
“I was made aware of the recent rumours about you, and that you haven’t left your room in almost a week. I thought maybe you’d like to talk about it.” She swirled the amber liquid in her glass as he poured himself another.
“I’m not too bothered by it, if anything I’ve found it amusing seeing the lengths a person will stretch their imagination to,” she chuckled lightly, sipping her drink. He nodded awkwardly in agreement, sipping his own.
“Would you like me to have a word with the rest of the staff about it?”
She laughed harder, shaking her head. “Sir I have worked in a lot of places, and I have learned some tips for survival. If the boss is eager to squash rumours, there’s a good chance they’re true. Secondly, if a boss defends one singular employee against something as petty as rumours, the next round of rumours will be more vindictive and could cost me my job.” Raina looked at his dumbstruck face, still chuckling to herself. “The staff will start to think I got my job through less favourable means.”
Realisation dawned on his face and he rolled his eyes.
“I doubt they would be so petty as to start allegations like that,” he snickered doubtfully, but Raina just shrugged.
“I’m guessing you’ve never worked in a minimum wage job,” she teased, and he shook his head with a sigh.
“I’ve been running my father’s businesses since I was old enough to work, I suppose you would understand the politics of being an employee better than I would.”
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A few moments of casual conversation passed as Kalen poured them both another drink, until they were interrupted by Logan striding in without knocking. He froze as he spotted Raina nursing a glass of whiskey while Kalen had cleared his usually-cluttered desk of any paperwork.
“Seriously Kalen, it’s the middle of the damn day,” he snapped, slamming a folder down on the desk.
Kalen glared at his brother.
“I’ve done so much work this week I could take a month off, and I’d still be ahead of schedule. I’m taking a small break,” he retorted. Raina assumed Logan must have been busy too since he was also wearing a suit. She had gone out of her way to avoid him since the day they spent together, although she had a suspicion he was also avoiding her too. Raina avoided his gaze while Kalen flicked through the papers.
“Did you manage to get the contract with Woodrow?”
Logan leaned over the desk and flicked through the pages with unnecessary force. “It’s right there.”
Kalen just nodded. “Raina can you give me five minutes, I’m just going to make a quick call and I’ll be right back,” he said, excusing himself quickly and leaving Raina with his sour-faced brother.
Logan strode over to the assortment of bottles Logan had carefully arranged behind his desk and poured himself a drink.
“Haven’t seen you around in a while,” he muttered, not bothering to look up at her. She shrugged and resumed swirling her drink.
“I’ve been busy,” she muttered drily, mentally wishing Kalen would come back quickly. He slammed his glass down angrily.
“Have I done something to you? You’re obviously pissed about something,” he fumed, glaring at her with those honey gold eyes that could melt stone.
Raina glanced up at him and scoffed. “I said I would stay and give it a chance; I didn’t realise I was expected to keep you company.” He paced along the room, pretending to look at things on the bookshelves.
“I thought we were on better terms now,” he grumbled, eliciting a long-drawn sigh from Raina.
“What exactly do you want from me Logan? You asked me to stay and give the job a chance, I did, now it’s not enough for you. I’m here to work, not to be your buddy when your friends are busy,” she sneered. He paused abruptly before making his way to the door.
“Well I’ll see you later Miss Phoenix, I have work to do.” And with that he closed the door behind him a tad forcefully. Raina pinned her glass and waited for Kalen, the silence in the room becoming suffocating. No sooner had she thought it, Kalen returned, looking slightly more relaxed than he was before. Raina smiled at him as he sat down across from her once again.
“I forgot to ask this days ago, but when will Vincent be returning to the manor?”
Kalen paused for a moment in thought.
“I’m not sure on the exact date but he should be home before the start of the school year,” he affirmed, getting up to tidy away the folder Logan had brought him. Raina studied him flicking around the shelves much like the awkward movements Logan had done just minutes before.
“Where is Vincent now?” she asked curiously. She had expected to run into the boy at some point since she arrived, yet there had not even been a whisper of him. Kalen silently rearranged large box files before answering. “He lives with his mother.”
The sudden shift in his tone prevented Raina from pushing any further with questions. Instead she bid him farewell and retired to her room.
She wandered down the carpeted hallway to her room, observing all the large framed pieces of art hung proudly on the walls. She locked the doors to her room and pulled out her laptop. Before she moved, she had bought herself a dongle for her own internet use. The last thing she wanted was her online movements being monitored by an employer. She clicked onto her social media pages and looked at some of her friend’s recent posts and pictures, mostly holiday snapshots since it was summer.
Quickly bored of endless scrolling, she played some music and pulled out her mother’s photo albums. She vaguely remembered a beach trip they had taken when she was younger, although the most she recalled was how much ice cream she had eaten in one day. After a particularly large chocolate cone, she had thrown up on the sandals of a very unimpressed elderly man.
Judging by the photographs, her mother had documented almost every stage of Raina’s life, except for her youngest years, she noticed with a jolt. The earliest pictures of her started when she was a grown child; old enough to be at school but young enough that she still had baby chub around her cheeks and legs. It didn’t bother her too much that there were no pictures of her as a baby, but it sent her mind into a flurry.
What if her mother had taken photos but her father was in them? Did he really abandon them before Raina’s birth? Why is there a whole section of her life undocumented?
Raina stared blankly at her chubby little face full of sass and her mother’s beautiful face lit up in radiant laughter. She knew an accident had left her with no memories and she had to learn to walk again, but even if she did remember anything after the fall she would be far too old to remember it now. A thought flashed across her mind and she recoiled from the book with a bolt of fear.
What if they had to hide from her father?
It made sense. There was no hint of a father in her life, even her birth certificate had no mention of him. No photographs, not even a name for her to go on. She had never given a damn about learning his identity, but now she was curious. She leapt from her bed and dug through her drawer to find her document folder with her birth certificate. His name wasn’t on it, but another piece of the puzzle was. Her birth certificate was dated over six years after her birth.
Hands shaking, she stuffed the folder away and began pacing around her room. It was possible her mother had lost the original and needed a copy, she was adopted, or her name had to be changed. She highly doubted that she had been adopted by a young, single woman so she could count out that option. Eliza Phoenix was 17 years older than her, not even legally an adult when she had fallen pregnant with Raina.
Raina sat back down on her bed and pulled the album closer to her. She scoured over the pictures for any hints at her heritage. Pictures of barbeques, beach trips, four whole pages dedicated to her first day of a new school year in chronological order. She pulled down the second album, which was significantly denser than the first. This one held fewer photographs but contained an assortment of art from little Raina. Handprints made into flowers, about thirty pictures of a rainbow, and a painting she had done of her mother. Nothing to show for the first six years of her life.
Flicking back to her school photographs she realised at least two were missing. Six-year olds were in 3rd class. Nursery wasn’t mandatory, but her 1st and 2nd class pictures were missing. She continued through the second book before coming upon 2 locks of hair tied with purple ribbons. One was the sleek dark brown of her mother, the other, obviously dyed, was a bundle of deep ruby curls. She didn’t recall anyone with hair that colour, although it was probably a friend of her mother’s if they were old enough to dye their hair.
Before she could scour the final album, three loud thumps sounded at her door. She scrambled to unlock the doors to find Logan standing stony-faced at the door.
“Sorry to bother you Miss Phoenix, but Kalen sent me to prepare you for dinner. We have a client coming to dine with us and he would like to request that you dress appropriately,” he commanded, not quite meeting her eyes. Raina opened the door wider in silent invitation.
“By appropriate do you mean “evening dinner wear” or “professional wear”?” she sighed. Logan shrugged. “Somewhere in the middle I suppose. Definitely not those shirts and boots,” he scowled at her clothing.
Raina left Logan in the reception while she rustled through the layers of new clothing in her wardrobe. She selected a white satin blouse with long sleeves and a low bust line and a pair of high-waist black pants with gold buttons.
“Are these okay Your Highness?” she asked mockingly
, thrusting them in front of him. He nodded stiffly before adding, “You’ll need shoes too.” She flounced back into her bedroom and chose a pair of small-heeled pumps. Logan merely rolled his eyes at them.
“Well you’ll have to excuse me Your Highness I’d rather get changed in private,” she snapped, going back into her bedroom.
“You’ll have to try and pretend to be civilised at dinner, so I suggest you drop the attitude before you join the table,” he called to her retreating figure. She smirked and started getting undressed.
“I’ll assume if it’s a gathering of civilised people you won’t be there then,” she called in retort. Raina dressed quickly and dug out her curling iron and makeup bag.
She applied a gentle touch of colour to her face, a slick of pink lip-gloss, a dusting of brown eyeshadow and a heavy coating of mascara and eyeliner. She pinned one side of her chocolate curls back and pushed her mother’s pearl and crystal slide in, gave her hair a spritz of hair spray and slid on her pumps. Reaching for her perfume, Logan yelled at her to hurry up or they would be late. Raina sprayed herself with the perfume and went to join the grumpy ass.
“I’m ready now keep your hair on,” she muttered, locking the bedroom door behind her. Logan just looked at her with slightly wider eyes.
“You…you look good,” he stammered, blushing a delicate tint of rose. She ignored him and guided him out so she could lock the reception room door behind her. He cocked his head at her.
“You can rest assured we aren’t going to take your stuff, you don’t have to lock your door you know,” he hissed quietly as they walked towards the staircase. Raina gave him a glossy grin.
“I need to make sure no one can get at my guns,” she claimed, sliding the keys into her pocket, “and I wouldn’t want you dropping by when I’m in the bath.”
He bit his tongue as they approached the top landing and seen Kalen standing with two particularly important looking businessmen. Raina hurried ahead of him to greet them, much to his surprise. The taller of the two, gripping a gold tipped cane turned to see Raina striding towards him and immediately straightened into a salute. Raina stiffened before him and she brought her fist to her shoulder in response. They shook hands and hugged with gleeful laughter.
