Author's note: Sorry about the short chapter, I promise the next one will be much longer.

After lunch, there was some more mail to sort out. The next task was to answer some of them that were not directly addressed to "the masters". I refused to think of them as such, and instead thought of them as my new bosses. Calling them by master made me feel like some sort of slave.

The letters themselves that I got to write responses to were very simple – some of them just bills from the local gardener who tended to the bosses private garden that apparently existed somewhere around here. Another letter was from an auction house in Florence, about a purchase of an antique music box that needed repairs before delivery. As I was writing my replies to these, Helen came to sit at the desk behind me and began writing in a big ledger that looked like it came from medieval times.

I decided that this was a good time to ask about what the company actually did with their business. I cleared my throat and Helen looked up, her perfectly shaped eyebrows raised in question. I unconciously tried to smooth my hair down, something I did when I was nervous.

"You know, this is sort of embarrassing – but Im not really clear on what it is that The Volturi...does. Care to explain?"I asked.

Instead of answering me right away, Helen shared a strange look with the two other secretaries in the room. It looked as if they were suddenly uncertain about something. A long moment passed before Helen looked at me again, her manners completely different from before – her eyes were wide, fearful.

"Why, I thought that it was understood before your arrival." she murmured. I shook my head slightly.

"No, I didn't recieve much information about that particular detail – are they litegators or something? Bankers?" I asked, because that would explain the company's wealth. And why they seemed so withdrawn from the outside world. I fully expected Helen to nod at this, but she was still looking uncertain, pale even. But then Marion suddenly came to stand in front of me, a bright, cheery smile on her face as she approached my desk, eyes gleaming. She put one hand on the back of my chair, obscuring Helen from view.

If I had thought that Marion appeared sedate and military before, now she practically hummed with energy, something barely contained as she regarded me. I couldn't understand what was suddenly so exciting.

"Lawyers, yes, sort of – the company goes back generations. " she answered. Despite her reassuring answer, there was a strange tension in the air. I attempted some small-talk in order to asssure these people that I wasn't snooping, if that was the reason for their sudden strange behavior. I made sure to look very fascinated by what she told me.

"Really, generations? That's interesting."

All the while, Marion did not let me out of sight for a moment, like a snake stalking its prey. Her dark eyes were immovable, unflinching.

"You know, I saw that there's a gap tomorrow morning in their schedules– I think the masters would be very interested in meeting you, Rebecca."

Well, that was unexpected.

"But I thought they would be too busy this week? " I said, since that was what she had told me earlier. Marion continued to smile as she walked away from my desk to sit behind her own, but her dark eyes were still fixed on me.

"Oh, I'm sure they would make an exception to look at some fresh young blood."