Chapter 2
Sebastian sat back and gave her a surprised look. "You are French. I did not notice your accent until you spoke your name."
The girl raised a brow. "Oui, but I have been in England for many years. I thought you might have realized that fact after I said the Barnards were my relatives."
Sebastian returned to his previous polite interest at her sharp answer. It was irrelevant, after all. It didn't matter where she was from, only where she was currently. "Well, mademoiselle Allard, please explain to me how you came to be a cat."
Lucienne had to hold back another sigh. She wondered once again what she had done that was so bad to get her into such a predicament. It was not worth worrying over. The quicker she complied, hopefully, the quicker she could leave. She did still need to find a new employer if she was not going to die that night.
"It started many years ago. My father was a modest Sieur, but he had enough land that was profitable to gain the attention of others far above our station. When I was seventeen, we received an offer for marriage from a certain gentleman of the peerage."
She paused and looked to the side. Sebastian could tell that whatever had happened still made her angry. "That does not sound so bad."
She scowled back to him. "He was loathsome. The few times he came to press his suit with my father, he always tried to get me alone, and it never ended well. My father was not surprised that I refused. He was also in agreement. Although I was eldest and expected to marry well, he did not expect me to do so at the expense of my happiness. It was an unpopular opinion at the time, but my father was a kind man. He turned the offer down."
Sebastian nodded, but something else had occurred to him while she spoke. "While that still doesn't explain much, it also points out a glaring inconsistency. The peerage in France has been abolished for decades."
The girl's nostrils flared as she tried to rein in her temper. Her tone was still sharp. "I have not yet reached the end of my tale. You will either let me finish, or you will let me go."
Sebastian wondered once again at her apparent lack of fear. He could not understand it. He knew pushing her at the moment would not get him answers any faster, however, so he sat back once again. "My apologies. Please continue."
Her eyes narrowed. She had no doubt he was biding his time, but for what was the question. Still, she had not figured out how to make her escape. She ignored him as best as she could as she started speaking again. "The man was the first-born of a Comte. They were not without resources, but that was not the issue. For us to have refused was shameful to him. Though his father did not hold us accountable, the son was arrogant and was not satisfied to walk away."
She paused and looked him in the eye for several seconds before she spoke again. "With what you are, I am sure you know there is more in this world than what most would be willing to accept as real. There are things that would chill most to the bone. Things that are better left to old wive's tales and the darkness of night."
His smile took on a bit of a glint at her question. "I believe that goes without saying, yes."
She hmphed at him, but nothing more before she nodded and continued. "I do not know where he found her, but the boy hired a witch to cast a curse. If he could not have me as his wife, then he would own me as his pet."
Sebastian's brows rose at that information. It made sense, in a way. Though, he could tell she wasn't finished. He held his tongue and allowed her to continue. "He held me for days that way. I was kept in a tiny cage, and he tormented me. I suppose it was lucky for me that he treated all as ill as he did me. Apparently, he did not pay her what he owed. She did not, or could not lift the curse, but she did change it. After nearly two weeks, I found myself changing back to my human form."
"Thankfully, the witch waited until he was gone and had come in herself to let me out of the cage before she changed me. That was all she did. I was given no chance to ask questions and had no time to linger. I took a cloak and left. Even though I was near starved, I still managed to make it back to my father's estate, but not before dark. I made it just in time for my family to watch my transformation back again."
Her jaw clenched, and Sebastian noted with interest that this was the most emotion that he had seen from her since they first met. She must not think about the origin of her curse often. And she was still not finished. Her eyes were no longer seeing the room when she looked up again. "I was lucky that my father was not a superstitious man. He had seen my face. He knew it was me, despite the evil magic that held me. He took me into the house and hid me. When the Comte and his son came the next day, I was in the hayloft of our barn. The boy had claimed I had stolen something from him. Nothing was ever found, and neither was I. It was a mark of shame for my father, but one he gladly bore when I finally explained what happened."
Her eyes refocused on Sebastian. "Since we had land in Brittany, it was of little consequence to have a small parcel set aside for me and any of my inheritors. It still brings in a modest income to this day, but not enough for me to live on. Nor can I return to France. I have lived in England since."
Sebastian was beginning to understand that her tale was far more complicated than he had anticipated. He also expected there was more to her than her young face led him to believe. He had a feeling his next question would reveal something spectacular. "And how long has that been?"
She gave him a sidelong look. "Even one such as you should know better than to ask a lady's age."
His answering smile never reached his eyes. "Of course, but these are extenuating circumstances."
She clenched her jaw to keep from saying something unladylike before she tilted her chin up and gave him a glare. "If you must know, I am 187."
Sebastian blinked a few times. "Pardon?"
She scoffed slightly. "I am certain you heard me."
He tilted his head slightly. "Did I? Because if I did, then it seemed as though you said you were 187 years old."
She nodded tersely. At that action, Sebastian's eyes flashed fuschia, and his grin widened into something just a little too wide to be human. He didn't move out of his chair, but his gaze stayed pinned to her form, even as she moved faster than a human should have been able to and bolted across the room. He was sitting between her position and the door, and they both knew he was faster. For the first time, he could smell her fear.
He got up and slowly stalked toward her, savoring the sound of her heartbeat as it sped up. He may not be able to devour her yet, but just the thought of it was already intoxicating. Nearly two centuries old and not putrid, not insane. Oh, how glorious her soul must taste.
His grin widened even further as she shrank into the corner, and he could see her trembling. He briefly wondered where her fire had gone, but it didn't bother him too much as he put his hands on the wall and caged her in. When he looked down at her, he could see her eyes widened and felt a glorious impulse to sink his fangs into her pale flesh. He didn't want to move from that spot.
He was ripped from the moment when he felt her shift and barely managed to move fast enough for her booted foot to miss certain sensitive parts of his anatomy. Despite the fact that he was a demon, even he could be slowed with the right blow. When he moved back in surprise, she darted around him and tried to run for the door. It did not take him long to recover, and he had her pinned against his chest with a hand over her mouth so she would not wake the household.
He kept his voice polite. "I apologize for my ungentlemanly behavior. Please, forgive me and sit so we can resume our talk."
Her struggling ceased, but he felt it was due as much to shock as anything else. Still, he felt it was safe to remove his hand, at least. Her voice was lowered, but still full of venom. "Unhand me, you cad! I have no reason to stay here!"
Her struggling resumed when he did not do as she asked, though even she must have realized it would not be smart to risk waking the rest of the household and kept the noise to a minimum. It made no difference to his grip on her.
His voice showed no sign of strain. "Please, I have an offer I would like to extend, and it would be much easier if we could do this facing one another."
She stilled at those words finally. After a few seconds, he let her go, and she turned to face him with a wary glance. "What could you possibly offer me?"
Sebastian gave her his most charming smile. "Why a job, of course. Our household could benefit from a governess."
She took a step back and shook her head. "Non."
The word was whispered under her breath, and he could tell it was not meant for his ears as her native accent had once again reasserted itself. Still, he stepped forward and got her attention. "As the head butler, I am authorized to hire as I see fit. We can negotiate the terms. You did say you were currently looking for another employer, correct?"
She looked up to him with wide eyes. "I will not work for this household."
His eyes flashed for a brief moment, but his smile was still genial. "You can accept my offer, or I will ensure that every household that is currently in London will not hire you within this lifetime."
For the first time in many years, Lucienne felt tears prick her eyes. His threat would not destroy her, but it would make her life difficult for a long time to come. She had no doubt that he would and could follow through as well. As hard as she tried to keep her voice even, her memories of her past were still fresh, and the thoughts of why he would want to keep her nearby did not help. "What use would I be? Why would you go to such lengths to keep me here?"
Sebastian had to repress a sigh as he realized his brief indulgence may have been too much. Despite her circumstances, she was still human, after all. They were such fragile creatures. He tried to make his smile into something more helpful. "Given what you have told me, I had hoped we could help one another. I have never encountered a curse like yours before, but we do deal with unusual circumstances often. Perhaps my master and I could assist you while you assist us."
She looked at him with disbelief. "Why would you offer to help me?"
He allowed just a touch of his natural disposition to show. "I never said it was out of altruism. You are in a unique position. You have had several lifetimes to learn and have more knowledge to impart than probably any other human alive. Besides myself, of course, you would make the perfect teacher for our young master. That would free me to handle more important matters."
She looked him over and didn't answer for several minutes. His offer was both terrifying and tempting. She had lived long enough that her curse was not the burden it once was, but it was still heavy and grew heavier each year. No human was meant to live this long. Even as she thought of death as a reprieve, a part of her screamed out. She wasn't ready to disappear.
She sighed as she realized it might be a moot point. Whoever the young master was, he had to be someone of importance. She had not seen the rest of the house yet, but even the kitchen was well-appointed. Besides the fact that the man had a demon for a butler, he probably had enough personal power to get what he wanted. Although, she had to amend that thought some. He couldn't be too powerful if he still needed a governess. Perhaps he had children?
She would find out soon enough. She squared her shoulders and looked the demon in the eye. "I still have many things in the Barnards' home. If I am to come to work here, we will need to have them transferred so I may send them the key. Also, I will require appropriate lodging and pay."
Sebastian's smile widened slightly. "Of course, mademoiselle. I can have the arrangements made tomorrow. Why don't we find you a room for tonight? In the morning, I will introduce you to the rest of the household and the young master." She gave him a curt nod before he gathered her bag and gestured for her to follow him up the stairs.
A/N: Ah, Sebastian got a little ahead of himself there :) At least he has learned decent self-control over the years (especially since Ciel). Now, How will the rest of the household react to their new addition?