My Arranged Marriage with the Last Wolf King

03. In Search of a Fresh Start

“Have an excellent day, sir!” exclaims the young boy cheerfully, radiant with happiness at the end of his day of selling newspapers.

In a hurry, Campbell quickly climbs into the carriage, newspapers under his arm, showing his haste. Without noticing, two rolls of the day's news slip out of his reach and land in a puddle, just as the carriage door closes and the driver sets off without delay. Emily, observant, does not overlook this situation and, without hesitation, rushes to pick them up and begins to leaf through the pages.

“I didn't steal them as you could see!” exclaims Emily, casting a furtive glance at the unaware boy, who walks away carelessly in search of delicious freshly baked bread. “Hey, kid! Wait, I have to ask you something!” she shouts, desperate to start a conversation with the quickly departing newsboy.

The young brunette clicks her tongue and, without wasting time, turns her attention back to the newspaper, looking for information that might be useful in her unemployment. Fortunately, she finds just what she needs in a prominent ad, taking up half a page:

“Wanted: Woman aged 18 to 22 for full-time employment at Wolfsbone Mansion, accommodation included. Interested applicants should go to the address below for an interview.”

“Wolfsbone Mansion...?” Emily whispers as she reads aloud the name of the imposing mansion.

“It's strange, I've never heard that surname... is it common in London?” she wonders, assuming it must be.

The young woman overlooks this important detail she should have considered. The first thing she understands is:

“If that gentleman bought all the newspapers, that means I'm the only one who has seen this ad! It's perfect!” exclaims the girl with brown eyes, feeling that everything is going better than she had imagined. “Here it says the address. It says I have to take the train. Oh, that means it's not in this place. I'll go to the train station; maybe there are exchange houses there. I must hurry! It's surely a job as a maid or cook, although it doesn't specify exactly,” Emily murmurs, reading the ad again for the third time.

A more perceptive person would have noticed the lack of information in that ad, but Emily, naive due to her young age of eighteen and her desperate circumstances, assumed that's how things were in that country. For that reason, she overlooked the possible dangers and told herself: “I'll make a good impression at the interview. I must hurry!” she exclaims as she searches on her own for a train station.

Hours later, Campbell arrives at the mansion with a sigh of relief. He grabs the pile of newspapers and enters the luxurious premises, where he is not surprised to find Lord Alexander, waiting for him in the lobby while drinking a glass of whiskey, too early in the morning. Alexander had learned very late last night about the madness that had occurred to Campbell and Thomas, so he told them that at the first hours of the morning, they had to fix the mistake they had made.

“Are these all?” the werewolf asks seriously, consuming the contents of his glass in one gulp.

“Yes, your lordship, these are all the newspapers. I apologize... last night we were desperate and...”

“So desperate that you were about to find me any woman to turn her into my wife!” he roared with such force that Campbell closes his eyes tightly while removing his hat

. “Do you really think I'd accept something so repugnant?”

“My Lord...” Campbell dares to say, with his most serious face: “All the young ladies of society in England have rejected you, there are none available. The last one was... the Duke of Fraser's daughter,” he declares and then stops to press his lips. “There is also no availability in Scotland, Wales, and you have said you don't want Irish women. We shouldn't even consider Americans, so we have no more options, your lordship,” Campbell mentions without daring to look at Alexander, who observes him intently.

“But that doesn't mean I'll marry any vulgar woman who walks through that door!” he shouts, pointing at the door, before refilling his glass of whiskey.

Campbell swallowed hard, aware that his mistake was the reason for his desperation to find a suitor for his lord, but he still hated receiving reprimands...

“And now what do we do, my lord?... Time is running out...”

“I will relent this time,” declared Alexander, casting an intimidating look at Campbell, who in complete silence listened to his lord say: “look for women of Irish origin...” he muttered with such rage that he threw the glass to the floor, creating a small commotion.

“Perfect! I'll get the matchmaker right away!” exclaimed Campbell, while Alexander grabbed a newspaper and, upon opening it, found the ad that Campbell and Thomas had placed. Upon reading it, he let out a laugh full of anger and said:

"Only a crazy woman would come to an interview because of this ad. You can't even manage that! What did you think you'd find? Some desperate i***t?" shouted Alexander at the top of his lungs as he threw the newspaper into the fireplace.

"Burn all that rubbish!"

"I'll do it straight away, Your Highness," exclaimed Campbell, grabbing a handful of newspapers to throw into the kitchen stove.

As he headed towards the kitchen, Campbell noticed that the cook, a middle-aged woman, had two suitcases in her hands and was dressed in street clothes. Observing her appearance, Campbell couldn't help but ask:

"What are you doing, ma'am?"

"What do you think? I'm leaving! No amount of money is worth it. I'm sick of him yelling at me and throwing food," said the stout woman as she headed for the exit, having received her pay the day before and planning to leave.

"Mrs. Duncan, you can't leave! At least wait until we have a replacement. You have a contract to fulfill!" exclaimed Campbell, but the woman responded instantly:

"What contract? It hasn't been renewed in two years and all they've done is exploit me because all the servants leave! There are two demons living in this mansion! Lord Alexander and..."at this point, her voice dropped and she sounded more fearful.

"An infernal being... I hear it at night, its hooves echoing on the roof and its roars. I have nightmares! If you'll excuse me, it's my turn to leave," said the woman pushing Campbell, who let her go.

It was understandable; she was human and didn't know that her lord and that demonic being were the same person. Besides, it wasn't hooves that were heard, but claws when her lord transformed into a wolf during the nights...