Kent frowns at the sudden knock on the door.There are no appointments for Arabella - the current Lady Auron - for the day and very few people would call upon an eligible Lady unannounced.
His frown deepens when he sees Lady Auron heading for the door.
"Lady Auron, please allow me to see to the door. It is one of my duties."
"Ah, of course, Kent. I"m sorry, I just - I"m not used to servants..."
He understands that being t.i.tled is entirely new to her but he still cannot help but wish she was more aware of the implications her actions could have.
Especially because he is not the only servant in the employ of House Auron and he knows just how quickly word can spread.
"There is nothing to apologise for, Lady Auron."
He is about to tell Lady Auron to wait in a drawing room to receive the guest, but the increasing insistency of the knocking stops him.
No, better to stop the knocking before it causes a scene.
He opens the door to an immodestly dressed young woman whose long hair covers more of her skin that her clothing.
His eyes flick to the pendant nestled between her b.r.e.a.s.t.s before coming to rest on her face.
Her green eyes are staring at Lady Auron speculatively.
He clears his throat.
"Perhaps we should adjourn to the drawing room?"
Usually he"ll perform introductions, but the longer their guest stands outside the more likely she"ll be seen and the fallout from that may very well be disastrous.
The moment he closes the door to the drawing room their guest rounds on him.
"Who is she?"
He keeps his voice emotionless, knowing that she will latch onto the slightest hint of weakness.
"That is the current Lady Auron."
He pushes down the urge to smile at her surprised expression.
It isn"t often that she gets caught off guard.
"Wow, that was quick. The previous one isn"t even cold in the ground yet."
Those words cause a surge of pain in him.
He has been trying not to think about Sonia"s death.
He tries to keep him himself from reacting but she must see something in his expression.
"I"m sorry. That was uncalled for."
He doesn"t respond.
"Look, I can see that I made the trip here for nothing, so I"ll get out of your hair."
"You"re heading back to the mountains already?"
The question is out before he has the time to think better of it.
"I can"t exactly stay. Even coming here was a big enough risk as it is."
"Um, Miss?"
He nearly starts at Lady Auron"s voice.
Kent almost forgot she was even in the room.
Their guest turns to look at her but doesn"t speak.
"Are you sure you don"t want to stay the night or something? I mean, the mountains are awfully far away and to set off so soon after you"ve arrived would probably be really tiring."
They wait for their guest"s reaction.
She plays with her pendant as she seem to think it over.
It"s him that she stares at even as she responds to Lady Auron.
"I"d rather not stay where I"m not wanted."
Lady Auron is quick to rea.s.sure her but they both know Lady Auron isn"t who she was referring to.
"Lady Auron, could you excuse us for a moment?"
The question is low and hesitant even as it leaves his mouth.
"Oh, of course!"
They barely notice as Lady Auron practically scurries out of the room, her blonde hair billowing behind her in her haste.
"Why did you come here?"
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He knows the words are insensitive, but he doesn"t care.
"I"d thought that with Sonia dead you"d finally be done with your duty to House Auron. I can see now that I was wrong. You"ll always be beholden to it."
She lets out a bitter laugh.
"You"re so devoted to it that I"m surprised you haven"t just proposed to the new Lady Auron to ensure the line continues. Then again, maybe you have and I"m unaware of it. After all, not all news reaches the mountains."
He feels his annoyance build with every single one of her words.
By the time he speaks, every word that leaves his mouth seems lined with it.
"I am a steward of House Auron - nothing more. I"d never want to be more and for you to presume otherwise..."
He practically bites off his sentence unsure of how to finish it.
His thoughts and emotions are in disarray.
"Coming here was a fool"s errand. Give my condolences to Lady Auron."
She spins on her heel and leaves before he can stop her.
He"s not even sure he would have, given the chance.