Jasmine petal fallen on cigarette ash

Chapter 7

That afternoon, I huddled under the blanket on the couch, enjoying my romance novel. The front doorbell rang when I reached the scene where the two characters kissed each other. I jumped and closed my book in a sneak peek. I carefully looked through the peephole to see who it was. When I saw who was coming, I hurried to open the door. Aunt Lily and Emily walked into the doorway, bringing a gentle breeze.

Aunt Lily was an attractive and gorgeous woman. She looked much younger than her age. The red, tight skirt made her sand-clock body more seductive. She smelled very nice. Emily was also a Venus, but was more innocent. I bet no man in this world could deny dying for her.

“Good evening, Mrs. Lily and Emily. I'm so glad that you came by,” I smiled.

They walked past me, didn’t bother to shoot me a glance. I couldn’t help but compare myself to an annoying buzzing fly. I kept my smile still, sitting on the opposite couch to Aunt Lily and Emily. I rang the silver bell on the table to call Mrs. Bette. She appeared right away, thankfully.

“Mrs. Lily, Emily. This is Mrs. Bette, our housemaid. Would you like anything to drink?”

“I’d like a cup of whiskey. Use Ben’s one,” Aunt Lily answered without looking at either me or Mrs. Bette. She was busy studying the house.

“English tea’s good,” the same as Emily.

Mrs. Bette stared at me. I could see a big question mark on her face.

“Can I please have a cup of English tea with the strawberry jam I made this morning? Thank you,” I smiled to calm her down.

I held my back straight. I put one hand on top of the other and rested them on my lap.

“So, you read The Swan Heart?” Emily asked, her eyes on the book I put on the edge of the couch I was sitting on.

“Yes, I…”

“What a trivial habit. Those sloppy romance stories make you girls over-dream about an ideal husband,” she said before I could finish my sentence. I swallowed all the words I intended to say.

“Did Ben tell you anything?” Aunt Lily asked me. Her gaze was judging me.

“No, Mrs. Lily. I haven't seen him since breakfast.”

“Good, you shouldn't know too much.”

I ducked my head. I should keep silent. No matter what I said or did, changing their prejudice within a day was impossible. I let it be what it was. I believed they would soon realize I was not that useless.

The awkward silence was broken when Benedict was back home. He was surprised to see Aunt Lily and Emily.

“You, go to the kitchen,” Aunt Lily gestured for me to go to the kitchen.

“No, you stay here. I have something to talk about,” Benedict said.

“Is there anything more important than our business with Major Keyworth?”

“No, Lily, but we have a business to do this evening,” he turned to me, “I planned to teach you how to use guns after dinner, but the plan has been changed. My dad called me fifteen minutes ago. He wanted to have a family meeting this evening.”

“For what?” Emily frowned.

“He wants to meet Van.” It was the first time I heard my name slipping from his rough, grey lips. My heart beat a little faster. His pronunciation was not precise, but it was a good attempt.

“Then I should go prepare myself,” I said before anybody could have a chance to say anything else.

“Yes, we’ll head out after around ten minutes,” Benedict said softly, which raised all my hair in fear.

I went upstairs and hid behind the wall separating the hallway from the ceiling space in the living room.

“She asked you to teach her to use guns?” Aunt Lily asked Benedict.

“Yes, she said she doesn’t want to be my weakness.”

“Huh, that girl…” she smirked.

“Why are you here?”

“Why, can we not visit you?” Emily whined.

“Ben, f*****g do something. We can’t let our men be tortured by that f*****g bastard. I f*****g told you that you shouldn’t have anything to do with Alan Willson. Now is good,” Aunt Lily hissed through her teeth. Her voice was a little loud. She rolled her eyes around, then lowered her voice into a whisper. I could not hear anything from there.

I changed to a loose, soft pink ngũ thân tay chẽn made of satin with looming peony patterns. The lotus hairpin was replaced by a rose gold hairpin with the two swallows flying around a blooming apricot. When I walked down the stairs, Benedict, Aunt Lily, and Emily were standing. They were waiting for me. I apologized for letting them wait, but Benedict said I was three minutes early. I was grateful for his rescue.

·•—–٠✤٠—–•·

When we arrived at Mr. Arthur’s house, Queen Moon had risen for a while, her crystal light casting a silver shadow on the roofs of the sleeping houses in Brasshelm. Actually, it wasn’t a house but a small mansion. The exterior was made from cubes of marble in irregular shapes. The marbles glittered under the street light.

Benedict rang the bell. The dark wooden door with gilt flower patterns clicked open.

“Oh God, I’m so glad that you guys came,” a blonde lady smiled broadly, showing her white and even teeth. Her skin was flawless and bright like pearls. Her blonde hair shone with her gestures. She had the beauty of a deer.

“Of course, Daisy,” Benedict smiled back.

“Oh, here you are, Van. I didn’t have any chance to talk much with you on the wedding day. You are so beautiful, like a little fairy,” she held my hand.

“Thank you, Mrs. Beaumont,” I said, lowering my head shyly.

“Oh, you don’t need to be that formal. Just call me Daisy, like Ben. How are you doing? Are you familiar with the new house yet? Did Ben bully you?”

I politely answered all of her questions at a suitable pace while she led me to the dining room. There, three other people gathered around the round table facing the glass window. The yellow fire on the candle danced on the two sides of the table. The cutlery sparkled under the candlelight.

At the far end of the table, portly Mr. Arthur with his clean, dark brown beard sat by himself. His eyes set a chill down my spine with the selfishness and brutality they gave off. On his left was Charles, the reason for Arthur and Daisy’s marriage, and Eve’s death. Nobody knew about it, except for me, because I was the audience, and Mr. Arthur and Mrs. Daisy. Charles was tall and slender. His hair was dark yellow, flinging ahead of his eyes. He was handsome, but looked austere, like a monk. Opposite him was Alice, the blooming rose at her most gorgeous stage of life. She was dazzling like a diamond.

Daisy pulled me to sit next to her, then Benedict sat next to me. Seemed like the lovebirds that could not live without each other. Arthur asked me a few questions, then focused on business work. During the meal, Daisy kept picking up the food for me. She asked if the food was good and if I liked it. If I didn’t watch the show, I might let her kindness at that moment cover my eyes and fall into her side. But I knew what she did to Eve, Benedict’s mother, and why she was nice to her husband’s children.

“I don’t think anyone will be willing to work for us when they figure out what we really do. Ben, why don’t you let Charles be your secretary?” Mr. Arthur cleared his throat. There came the show.

“You keep asking me this question. I answered it many times before,” Benedict sounded flat.

Mr. Arthur thumbed on the table. The cutlery and chandeliers bounced up and down. We all jumped secretly at the same time.

“In what f*****g way are you talking to me? Lily, look at the f*****g garbage you have grown.”

“Arthur, I…”

“Do you f*****g think that this business works only because of you? That you are the f*****g emperor?”

“It actually is”, I thought in my head.

“Arthur, please,” Daisy patted his forearm.

“Ben, I agree with your father. Charles will help you a lot. He ranks first in his mathematics class,” Daisy talked to Benedict. Her eyes were wet.

“No, Daisy. You know our business. If Charles wants to become one of us, he should start low.”

“But why? You are his brother. Why don’t you want to help him?” Daisy cried out.

I thought it was time for my play. I stroked Daisy’s back softly to comfort her.

“Mr. Arthur, Daisy, if you don’t mind, can I say something?” I slowly said.

“Do you think I’m wrong?” Daisy clutched my hand, tears smudged messily on her face.

“Daisy, please calm down,” I patted her back rhythmically. My head was busy putting the words in order.

“Daisy, I think you know what kind of business we’re doing. If we do wrong, it’ll cost our lives. The more people know us, the more in danger we are. If Charles is Benedict’s assistant, showing his face around is unavoidable. Benedict cannot always protect him. If Charles starts low, he doesn’t need to show himself and also has enough time to be trained. Besides, you know the men working for us. They will go on a strike when they see an inexperienced freshman be their boss. Charles needs time to prove himself.”

Silence filled the room. I could feel people’s stares beaming on my face. I looked at Benedict, blinking ceaselessly to ask for his help. He was also frozen. I really wanted to slap his face to wake him up.

“E-em, that’s exactly what I mean,” Benedict concluded.

“You’re right. I never thought about it before. Arthur, we can’t let Charles be Ben’s assistant right away. Charles, you should listen to your brother,” Daisy reached for Charles’ hand, her voice shaking.

“Yes, I didn’t think about it. I almost put Charles in danger. Charles, from now on, do what Ben tells you,” Arthur nodded.

I secretly sighed in relief. Something rough but warm touched my shoulder on Daisy's side. I was terrified. It was Benedict’s hand. His hand curved around my shoulder. I turned to face him. His light but gorgeous smile made my heart beat like the beat of a DJ song. I turned to the front and straightened my back, trying all my best to hide my embarrassment.