I placed her plate in front of her, then gave her a fork. I had contemplated giving her a spoon but that didn’t seem dignified, and Iwastrying to win her affections…
My suspicions needed no confirmation, but she nodded anyway, not looking up at me. Her shoulders were slumped inwards. I gripped the bench with both hands as I tried to get a handle on my anger. I wouldn’t want it to come across aimed at her. It unnerved me to think of how close I could’ve been to losing her - without even realizing it. “Is there any chance that you were seen?”
“No,” she whispered as she moved her fork around her plate. “I wasn’t seen. I hid.” Her voice broke over the last word and I saw a tear drip from her chin onto her dress. This line of conversation probably wasn’t helping her appetite, but I understood more fully now why she wasn’t bothered about eating in the first place. Seeing someone you loved murdered right in front of your eyes - I couldn’t even pretend to imagine what she was going through.
I’d seen people killed. I’d killed people myself, with my bare hands. But that was my job. Sometimes, at least. But, being powerless as you watched someone you cared about… destroyed. That was a whole different ball game. To think, if it had been one of my brothers…
I felt for her. I genuinely felt for her.
After noticing that she still hadn’t actually taken a bite of her food, I picked up my fork and dug into my own plate. I had hoped that maybe if she saw me eating she might feel more inclined to try hers. And it also proved to her that it was fine to eat. I wouldn't have put it past her to be wary of me poisoning the food.
“Do you know who they are? Had you ever seen them before?” I gently prod. I had to find out if she was in danger.
“Never. One was shorter, in a suit. The other was tall, he had a long thick scar down the side of his face, it ran all the way down his neck. It looked recent.” I took in everything she was willing to give me, in a way it was a sign of her trusting me. From the top of my head, no one came to mind from her description. To find out who it was, I’d need to know everyone that Anton was doing business with. “Ring any bad guy bells?” she asked with a crooked smile.
I almost could’ve cracked a smile back at her, but thought twice. “No. I might have a better idea if I knew who else your father was dealing with.”
Anastasia's shoulders sagged again in disappointment at my answer. I wracked my brain to come up with a better answer, something that would clear the look on her face.
“I could always look into it for you.”
Much to my dismay, that didn’t seem to please her. Her fork clattered onto her plate. Her lips pursed, eyebrows raised, and her full attention on me. She was all business. “At what price?”
I couldn’t hold back my small chuckle this time. She thought I was going to extort sex from her? Well, I was glad that she still feared me but I didn’t want to let on that I wouldn’t do that. Not yet, anyway. “How about we settle on you finishing that bowl of pasta?”
She blinked at me, then looked down at the plate. She picked up the fork and dug it into the mound of tomato-covered fusilli in front of her.
“So, you really had nothing to do with my father’s death?” she asked between full forkfuls of pasta. It pleased me to see her eating with more enthusiasm. Whether she realized it or not, she’d eaten almost all of what was on her plate. I felt compelled to offer more but I didn’t want to rush her.
“Nothing at all, but I understand if you don’t believe me. You don’t trust me, and at the moment, you have no reason to. If I have to track down every possible suspect and line them up for you, then that’s what I’ll do. If only, to prove that it wasn’t me.”
“Mr King, I could have made you lunch. It’s what you pay me for.” My maid, Heather, playfully scolded. I hadn’t noticed her enter the kitchen but figured her timing couldn’t have been more perfect.
“That’s okay, Heather.” I gave her a tight smile.
While I didn’t mind joking with Heather in private, I wasn’t sure how I quite felt about Anastasia witnessing it. She might’ve taken it the wrong way.
I’d known Heather since I was a child. For a short time, she was our nanny. Eventually, my parents fired her, as they did with most of the nannies. But in the short span of time that she was with us, I grew to like her. She was the mother that we never had. It was by coincidence that she was looking for a job, at the time that I was looking for a maid.
“Will you be requiring dinner tonight, sir?”
“I won’t but Anastasia will. Heather, I’d like you to meet Anastasia Exley. She’ll be staying here with us, from now on.” I made expectant eyes at Anastasia, waiting for some form of small rebellion. To my surprise, there was nothing but that only seemed to put me more on edge. They exchanged polite pleasantries as I watched on.
Heather had already been briefed on our new house-guest and had been informed that while I was gone Anastasia was to have the rule over the house. To some extent.
While Heather didn’t know the specifics about the arrangement, she’d given me her full approval with a wide smile and a wink.
I hoped that it gave Anastasia a small comfort to know that there were people around. We weren’t alone here, and in time she’d come to know that she wasn’t trapped here - not completely anyway. We had a long way to go, while I wanted to trust her my instincts told me that I couldn’t. Not yet.
I put out a can of food for Achilles before moving into the living room. The fire was lit, as it usually was in the evenings. I lounged back into the couch and watched from across the room as Anastasia stood awkwardly under the kitchen arch.
“Are you waiting for a formal invitation? Come, sit.” We were alone again and I could see the effect that had on her. Our conversation from earlier was dead and gone, we’d reset back to complete strangers.
Anastasia gingerly took a seat on the armchair farthest from me. Her eyes flickered to the staircase but I couldn’t let her retreat yet.
“My brothers will be coming over for dinner tomorrow night. I know it’s soon but they’re eager to meet you.”
“You said you mean me no harm. Assuming you meant that, does that extend to your brothers?”
