The two men went ahead of us and opened the doors. “Come, Renee, you have nothing to fear here,” Annabel said, holding her hand out to me. I took her hand, and we went in together. The entrance was almost beyond words. The stairway drifted up on both sides, meeting in the middle like a giant horseshoe. Dangling high above, centered with the staircase was a giant chandelier, covered in crystals so beautiful they could have been tears falling from heaven. The floor had a shine that showed the reflection of the objects above it, with a Spanish-style design made out of tile beneath. Fresh flowers graced the round table in the center of the room as well as every small table in the large foyer, giving a sweet fragrance permeating as we stepped further in, like a dewy spring morn in a bluebonnet field, and not a speck of dust could be seen. It was by all means immaculate.
I was so intrigued by the room, that I never noticed the slender woman enter the room. She was absolutely gorgeous. She was wearing a red silk gown that clung to her body with every sway of her hip. The dress had very little sleeves, and it was more than apparent that she wore no undergarments by the way her nipples pierced the extremely thin material. It was all I could do not to stare at her breasts as she glided toward us.
She moved in her bare feet like she was a well-trained dancer, while her glossy black hair swung free down the middle of her back. Her honey-colored skin was offset by her pale green eyes that rested above high cheek bones. She never took those eyes off me as she approached, and the two women that were with me bowed as if she were royalty.
“Mistress, this is the one you have been waiting for,” Annabel said.
“Do I look blind to you this night, Anna?” she asked.
“No, ma’am,” Annabel said, bowing once more. “Please forgive my ignorance.”
The elegant woman waved her off, and went to stand in front of Rebecca.
“I was beginning to worry that you would not be able to get the job done. You have done well, but now I wish you to leave us,” she said.
“As you wish, my lady,” Rebecca replied. She glanced at me momentarily, and then exited the way we had entered.
I was starting to wonder what was going to happen next, but my question was soon answered. The woman came up so close to me, that for a minute, I was certain she was going to kiss me.
“You must be tired and hungry. I’ve had a bath drawn for you. After we recline in a soothing tub, we will feed together,” she said looking me. “I see why our Martin chose you. Young lean, and you have a very pleasant face.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” was all I could manage, wondering if I just heard her say ‘we’.
“You may call me Lady Yvette, I am the reason you are here. I knew Martin would choose a mate before too long,” she said, looking me in the eye. “Be glad my people were there to save you from his torment.”
“Yes, ma’am, I’m very thankful, but I must say I don’t understand much of anything,” I replied.
“Of course you don’t. How could you? Let us talk more after you have been made comfortable.” With that said, she turned and started upstairs with Annabel in tow.
I did the only thing I could - I followed. Once we were on the second floor, she stopped at a closed door and turned to Annabel. “Make sure her room is ready, she will want some time to herself. She has had much to deal with in a very short time.”
“As you wish, my lady,” Annabel said with a small bow of her head, then left to do as she was told.
I was left standing alone with this woman who had just welcomed me into her home, and yet I still felt so out of place. I wasn’t sure why, but things just didn’t feel as they should. I wished Rebecca hadn’t left; we had become close the past few days. Now I felt like I was all alone, with nothing left to do but wonder what would come next.
Chapter 10
As Lady Yvette opened the door, steam rolled out pregnant with the fragrance of roses. “You must be dying to get out of that old dress,” she said as we she entered the room. “You will feel much better once you are clean and wearing the proper clothing.” I just nodded, not knowing what to say. Everything was happening far too fast. I stepped into the first indoor bathroom I had ever been in, and it was a welcome change from what I was used to. The room, staying with the theme from the rest of the house, was quite large, but what caught my attention first was the bathtub. It was built to appear as if it was sinking into the floor, and it was more than big enough to swim in.
I noticed there were three women in the room with us, all wearing maid uniforms. I guess they were waiting for me, because as soon as I walked through the door they started moving about. One even tried to unbutton my dress.
“I think I can manage to undress myself, thank you,” I said, a little uncomfortable. She looked to Yvette, and I could tell she was nervous. Then, she nodded and backed away.
“They are here to serve, she meant you no harm,” Yvette informed me. As she spoke, she took the straps of her dress from her shoulders and dropped it around her feet. She was completely nude and seemed perfectly comfortable naked in front of me, but where I came from, that’s just something women didn’t do, so I instinctively turned my head.
“Do not look so shocked, Renee. We are both women. We have the same things, do we not?” she said, stepping down into the water. “Do not be so bashful, come join me. You must be mad in all that filth.”
I began taking off my dress, if she only knew how right she was about my hating the feel of not being able to wash appropriately, so I was doing my best to agree. After all, we were all women here. I now stood there in my underclothes, too embarrassed to go further.
“If you don’t get in soon, the water will be cold,” Yvette said, laughing. I unsnapped my bra, but seemed to freeze. No one had ever seen me naked before other than my mother.
“I’m sorry, Miss Yvette, but I haven’t done this before...you know, bathe with someone other than my females in my family.”
“If it makes you feel better to wear your undergarments, then please, feel free to do so,” she replied leaning her head forward as one of the girls washed her shoulders.
“No, this is fine,” I replied glancing away when she leaned back exposing her breast. “I’m just not used to this sort of thing.”
I removed my bra, covering my breasts the best I could with one arm, and removed my panties with the other. I couldn’t help but notice that she intensely watched my every move. I stepped in the water as fast as I could, and almost slipped in the process.
“Relax child, enjoy being pampered. I’m sure it hasn’t been like this for you before now,” she said.
“No, never like this,” I agreed.
The maids came over with sponges and soap. One joined the other that was washing Yvette, and the other began trying to wash me. “I can do it myself, thank you,” I said politely, taking the sponge from her. The bath felt better than I could have imagined. The soap was infused with some sort of fragrance and oil, and as I lathered it onto my body it felt like my flesh had turned to silk.
“May I help you wash your hair, Miss?” the young maid asked, and it was the first time I had heard any of them speak.
“It is their job to help you,” Yvette said before I could protest.
“That would be very nice, thanks,” I said, still a little hesitant.
As soon as she began washing my hair, I was glad that I had agreed. Her hands were like magic, not only cleaning my hair, but massaging my scalp as she did so. I leaned back, and closed my eyes, truly relaxing in the first comfortable place that I’ve had since I stepped on the boat. When the maids had finished, they brought two robes that were made of silk for Yvette and I.
“Shall we get out and get something to drink?” Yvette asked. “You must be starved.”
“I had goat last night, so I am fine,” I said, as we started leaving the tub. What I said must have sounded funny, because the maids began snickering among themselves.
“Enough.” That was all Yvette had to say. All three maids stopped simu
ltaneously and bowed to their mistress. “Ignore them. They are not used to hearing your accent. They seem to have forgotten their place momentarily.” I could tell that her words frightened the three, one of the girls, the one that had helped me, began to slightly tremble.
“It’s okay Yvette, really. I’ve been laughed at before, it didn’t bother me,” I said, attempting to calm the young girl, but even as she helped me dry, she never stopped shaking.
After we put on our robes, we went to the room across the hall. It looked like a library of sorts, books from ceiling to floor. There were two large chairs by the fireplace, and a beautiful wooden desk in the corner.
“Come let us dry our hair by the fire. Do you prefer to drink from a glass, or would you like it straight from the body?” Yvette asked showing me to the chairs by the fire.
“Glass, please.” I answered. “I wouldn’t want to smell like a goat after that wonderful bath.”
“We couldn’t have that,” she smiled. “I, too, prefer the glass. There is a time and place for taking our drink directly from the vein.”
We were served by the fireplace, the blood still warm in the crystal goblets. I took a large drink, and then remembered I was in the presence of a fine lady with perfect manners. So I sipped like my mother had taught me to do in front of company.
“This is much better than the goats we had on the boat,” I said, taking another sip of the delicious fluid.
“Well, we take much better care of our goats around here,” she said taking a drink from her glass. “Now tell me, are you glad to be here, away from that demon Martin Vigée Lebrun?”
“Please don’t take this wrong. I have loved every minute of being in your fine home, but I also miss my family dearly,” I said.
“It was Martin I asked about,” she quickly added. “Do you miss him?”
“I was starting to get close to him until the night he...” The words caught in my throat. “I’m sorry. No, I don’t miss him. I wish he were dead.”
I think she would have asked more, but there was a knock on the door.
“Enter.” she said, looking toward the door.
“Sorry to bother you my lady, but the other guests have started to arrive,” said the young woman, whom I recognized as one of the maids from earlier.
“I must leave you,” Yvette said, already standing. “But Maria will show you to your room. Finish your drink, then go straight to bed, for tomorrow night there will be a gathering of my friends. A ball, if you will.” Before I could thank her, she was out the door.
I gulped down the rest of my drink, no more need for manners since she had already gone. I stood and said to the maid, “Sorry about that, I was just a little hungry.”
“Yes, Miss,” she said simply, then turned, knowing I would follow her. Instead of going down like I thought, we went up another flight of stairs.
“We don’t have to sleep in the basement?” I asked, but she only shook her head and continued walking. Not very talkative, I thought to myself, and I didn’t bother asking again. Surely they knew about the whole sun thing, I thought as we went up the stairs.
Once we reached the top, I found myself peering down a long hall with at least ten different doors along it. She stopped at the first door to the right, and opened it. As soon as I stepped inside, she closed the door and I heard the lock turn.
“Hey, what are you doing?” I asked through the closed door, a little panicked.
“It is for your own good, miss. Order’s from the Mistress,” and that was all she said.
I heard her footsteps as she walked away. As I turned and looked at the room, I thought to myself, that there are worse places to be locked in. This room was even nicer than the beach house, from the furniture to the large fireplace that was blazing. The four-poster bed reached all the way to the ceiling, and the covers were no doubt made of silk or satin, solid maroon in color. The furnishings appeared to be new by the way the wood glistened in the light of the fire, but I was almost positive it was all very antiquated. Probably from someplace fancy, like Paris or England, I told myself. I could see that a nightgown had been placed on the bed for me to change into, so I did. It felt better than the robe, more secure, but I still felt strange with no undergarments. I took the brush I found on the dresser, and took a seat on the rug in front of the fireplace.
I brushed the tangles from my hair, and when it was somewhat dry, I decided to take another look around the room. The dresser drawers were empty, except for a few sweet smelling sachets. I glanced at myself in the large mirror that was atop it, and was surprised to see how well I looked. Even though I was exhausted, the freshly clean face and hair made me seem very well rested. I checked the door one more time, and sure enough, it was locked. I couldn’t imagine why they would need to lock the door. They probably think that a poor country girl like me would get lost wandering around an enormous place like this, and they are probably right.
I decided to make the best of my time and get some much needed rest. I folded the heavy comforter down by the foot of the bed and climbed in. The bed was so soft, that I must have sunk in about a foot. It sure wasn’t stuffed with old cotton like mine back at the farm. I wished I was in that old bed beside little Edna, I wished for a lot of things, but knew those days were long gone. My thoughts went to my mother and little Johnny, giving my mind the questions there were just no answers to, so I tried to think about my new life. I had no answers for much of my thoughts on that either, so I just laid there, trying to think of nothing, and waited for the dawn to take me from it all, if even for a short time.
Chapter 11
The next evening, I awoke to Yvette staring at me from the chair by the fireplace.
“Did you enjoy your rest?” she asked.
“Yes, very much,” I replied.
“That pleases me, because we have a busy night ahead of us. There are some guests here that would love to meet the one who was to be the bride of Martin.”
“I’m not sure I understand what you mean,” I said, sitting up in the bed. “How did they know I was going to be here?”
“Let me rephrase it,” she began. “Three or four times a year, I invite people of our kind to my home. After you had already gone to bed, a few of them arrived, I told them about you. So you see, it is my fault that they wish to meet you.”
“How does everyone seem to know about Martin? He only made me this way a few weeks ago.”
“He has been a problem for many years. He does not believe in our ways. Throughout those years, he caused much trouble, and everyone knew that it would not be long before he became lonely,” she said, looking up at me from the armrest she had been lightly stroking. “I had my people track him. I’m just sorry to say that they were too late to save you from the world you are now a part of, which is why they brought you here. He has never been to Cuba. Martin’s home is London, as is mine.”
“Then why are you here, if you don’t mind my asking?” I asked timidly.
“Not at all. I came to Cuba to head up a new enterprise, one that you will learn about soon enough,” she said as she stood. “We have guests waiting. My maids will come in and help you get ready. There are many dresses to choose from in the armoire.”
“Thank you, Yvette. What can I do to repay you for everything you’ve done for me?”
“There will be plenty of time to think on that later. For now, you must prepare for our party, and you must look your best.” She walked to the door. “I will see you downstairs in the ballroom.”
As she left, the three maids from the night before entered all carrying items from shoes to hair ribbons. They scurried about placing things on the vanity, not once looking at me, until they started taking out the things from the armoire.
“Is my lady ready to choose her gown for the night?” one of them asked.
“Yes, I think my lady is.” I replied grinning from ear to ear, while they started laying ball gowns, genuine ball gowns, out on the bed for me to choose from. “This may be harder
than I thought. How do I choose one? They’re all so beautiful.”
“How about this one?” the smallest girl asked holding up a silver dress with a blue trim. “It matches your eyes.”
“I love it. I hope Yvette likes it, she has been so nice to me,” I said while admiring the dress she was holding. They all began glancing around nervously, clearly avoiding my gaze. “What? Did I say something wrong?”
“Oh, no ma’am, it’s nothing. We just don’t want to keep Mistress Yvette waiting,” the young one said, while the other two remained silent. It was clear that it wasn’t nothing, but I didn’t want to push the issue. They were already acting like scared little mice. You could smell the fear on them and see it in their eyes. I just had no idea why.
“Well, then,” I said. “We best get a move on before we all get in trouble.”
All three muttered a “Yes, miss,” then got to work. I let them help me put on the dress. It had so many ties and buttons in the back, I never would have managed doing it alone. Then they started on my hair. They twisted and pinned curls for what seemed like an eternity, but finally they were done.
“Come, Miss, take a look at yourself. You look very beautiful,” one said.
“You look like a princess,” added the little one that chose the gown.
They stood me up in front of a large mirror, and for a moment I was speechless. Had I not known it was me standing there, I’m not sure that I would have even recognized myself.
“Wow, that’s me? I can’t believe I look like this,” I exclaimed.
“You are pleased with what we have done?”
“Very. I seriously can’t believe it’s me,” I said. “Thank you so much, you girls did great.” They all seemed to relax a bit for the first time since we had met.
Living in Darkness (Bloodbreeders) Page 9
