p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"The creaky iron door that led to the cellar made him think that she was leading him to some sort of a vault. Which, upon further inspection, it technically was, judging by the excessive load of luxurious supplies that could last for the new few generations without the least touch of restocked goods./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"Crimson wines and antique liqueurs were arranged by age. Some went from as far back as the 1790's. The unique teas were familiar to him, suggesting that the head of the household was some kind of English nobility. A door to the left led to a freezer rooms which contained vast collections of sumptuous meats and other frozen foods. Even the lighting in the cellar was extravagant. Off-white colored wax was shaped in, what he assumed to be, the emblem of the family residing there./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"And while she tinkered with lighting a few candles, he had also taken the time to /spanspan style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"notice that it was fairly well kept. It had been swept and mopped recently and not a speck of dust could be found upon the shelves or wine racks./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"He had a better guess of what she was now. By the look of the manor and her clean, patchy clothing and decrepit place of rest, his new master was a low-ranked servant. A military style dog-tag necklace hung loosely around her neck, reaching past delicate ribs, and an imperceptible bruise was visible on the bridge of her nose. It was probable that she had worn glasses before she went to bed but not all throughout the day./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"When she was finished with the lights, her full attention weighed on him. She could now answer his questions. "What is it that you require of me?" He inquired deeply, his echo resonating like music from the depths of the room. /span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"She couldn't want money. She was too pure in soul for any measure of greed to nestle in her heart. And she seemed happy with her surroundings. She knew of the consequences of the contract and must have been intelligent enough to not ask for something terribly idiotic. /span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"Various ideas of her desires flooded his mind now that he had talked to her and observed her movements and speech patterns, if only vaguely. Maybe she wanted to help her fellow servants. He could envision that scene. That she couldn't bea/spanspan style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"r to see the lives of her friends go to waste in cheap servitude. /spanspan style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"Or maybe something grievous had happened to a friend that only an inhuman creature could correct. While the latter had a chance of being accurate, it was often that dead servants went unannounced throughout the whole household. And because of her alleged low rank and young age, it was unlikely that she was fully aware of what was happening around her. So his bet was on the former scenario. /span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"She was too easy to read, he thought. He could tell from the way she shied away from his inspecting stare that she wasn't particularly courageous or bold. But in reality, she was only weighing her response carefully in her mind. /span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"She wanted him to know the whole case, but, at the same time, she could only bear to recount of fraction of the true story. So she had to phrase it in a way that was straightforward but not see-through. And s/spanspan style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"he had to give it quickly so as to not lose herself in emotion but explain it in such a way that he understood without further information./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"With a newfound boldness, she met his gaze "The prince has murdered a companion of mine named Anna. So I would like to... return the favor." The second half was spoken without the same vigorousness as the first but had the same level of determination. Even though her scratchy throat covered up some of that determination./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"The only way to manage such a feat was to be invited into his chambers, where his guards were incapable of intercepting any attack. And because she was not in a position where should could garner his attention easily nor was she of an age where that kind of service would be normal, as the prince was a few years older than her, she would need Mikhail's assistance./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"And maybe he could also the prince to fall in love with her. Then a stab at his heart would be less anticipated and had the potential to cause more pain. Though it was unlikely that he would fall in love with her without excessive time and effort. She didn't think that he even had the capacity to love something other than money./span/p
p style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.701961); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(130, 98, 83, 0.0980392);"span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"It would also do some good for him to be in love with her when she stabbed him. Anna had been in love with him when he had ordered emher/em demise./span/p