Before she could leave, Aurelia stopped her, wanting to talk privately for a bit. The man attending to Aurelia had an accent that was thicker than hers. He said her hair would get in the way of her cut healing.
"Cut it all off if you have to, Angelo."
He did, brought it down to a cropped pixie. Aurelia and Lexis walked through the house as they talked.
"I noticed you didn't come with a lot of belongings. Would you like to go shopping?"
"I'm broke. I can't buy anything."
"I could make the purchases for you."
"I can't accept that. You've already given me more than enough. "
"But you'll need new clothes for the season and school."
"About that, do you need extra help, like another maid or something?"
"No, the house is taken care of." But, you may be able to help around the school. You can assist with some odd jobs. It will help you get acquainted with the campus."
"Ok, sure."
"I must ask, do you have a problem taking instructions from people in authority over you?"
"Not unless they have a problem with me."
"I am not anticipating trouble, but do tone down your responses to people who rub you the wrong way."
"..."
Aurelia continued showing Lexis around the property; they had a games room with billiards and poker tables; a party room with a bar; a ballroom with a grand piano; a dining room; a pool; and a tomb on the mound overlooking the pool. The den at the back of the foyer was connected to a library with shelves up to the roof.
At six thirty, when dinner was served, Lexis noticed there was no distinction between the Malienis and their staff. Everyone present in the house at the moment sat down at the table and ate. The plates were packed in the kitchen and brought to the dining room; you just had to take an open seat and dig in. They all talked and laughed.
"Alright." Aurelia stood up from her seat, the first right from the head of the table, with her wine glass in hand. "I announced before that we would have a new member to our family. Some of you have met her already, the young woman at the end of my line, Lexis."
Lexis nodded at the table of people looking at her. They all raised their wineglasses at her and recited a motto in unison. "Blood binds us, blood keeps us." They then emptied their glasses and turned them upside down on the table. Aurelia smiled at her. Lexis also drank her glass and turned it down. What the frack have I gotten into...
"Welcome to the family, Lexis. You can ask anyone for help or advice. While you are here, you are a part of our family and under our protection."
Lexis' mind was going full throttle. She could not voice a response, and instead nodded at Aurelia. She was even more worried about the Malienis now than she was after graduation. She first thought they were into organised crime, but now she was worried they might actually be some sort of cult with that motto of theirs. Blood binds us, blood keeps us? Was there blood in the wine?! Maybe I should have just gone looking for my father instead...
Lexis sat on the floor of the room that night, soaking in the reality of her choices. When she wakes up tomorrow, she won't be in Jodi's house, not in that shit dump of a city. At the same time, she wasn't exactly free...Sure the Malienis and their staff seem nice but who the hell has guards and a personal doctor living at their home and a blood ritual?! They were looking sketchier the more she knew them. Aurelia barely even flinched when the rock hit her. They both were calm as ever, and Alessandro broke Michael's arm like it was the obvious thing to do in response. And the blood thing!
Lexis didn't want to sleep that night. She stayed up watching the door from a corner near one of the windows, a broken knife blade at the ready. But as the night wore on, she fought to stay awake. It didn't help that she'd barely slept the night before and had drunk blood wine that night. By one in the morning, her eyes were wet with tears as she fought her yawns every thirty seconds.
At some point during her watch, she had dozed off. When she woke up, it was four am. She decided against staying in the room and chose to roam the house. When she got to the second floor balcony, she found the lights in the foyer on. Lexis gripped her blade tighter. No one seemed to be moving around below. Convinced it was safe enough, she continued down the stairs. The lights were on in the kitchen, and the sound of pans clashing signalled at least one person was in there.
Lexis snuck up to the kitchen archway and peered inside. Aurelia was greasing pans and setting them aside. After the third pan, she moved to a bowl and began kneading. Lexis had to strain herself around the raised side of the arch to keep watching. She eventually had to adjust her stance, but her elbow hit the wall and alerted Aurelia, who turned around sharply.
"Lexis, come in."
Shit.
Lexis made an attempt at fixing her clothes as she hid the blade in the waist of her pants.
"Sorry, I saw the lights on."
"It's alright. Did you have trouble sleeping?"
"No."
"It occurred to me after you went to bed that our welcome toast may have caused you panic. I often forget not everyone has a family creed."
"That was your creed?"
Aurelia laughed and continued kneading the dough. "Yes it is. Our ancestors swore an oath of brotherhood. A toast on the creed means we acknowledge you as our own, as our blood. You will be living with us for almost a year. The creed is our promise to keep you safe."
Lexis stared hard at the older woman, trying to figure her out. "Safe from what?"
"From the bare nature of humans. You are a young woman in a house with several unmarried men. I have claimed you as my kin. They will not raise a hand against you." Aurelia turned to her then, with that piercing stare. "If anyone violates the creed, let me know."
"Ok."
Aurelia had kneaded the dough for ten minutes before she stopped, and rolled and folded different styles of bread.
"Why are you baking?"
"Like you, I could not sleep. I saw the time and got out of bed. Vincenzo did not have any dough prepared from yesterday, so I'm making the bread to go with our breakfast."
Lexis raised a brow and tilted her head as she watched Aurelia work.
"I know what you are thinking. We have staff. They are more than just workers; they are my family. If I am able, there is nothing wrong with me taking care of what needs to be done."
-
"Madam."
"Vincenzo. The dough has to proof, I leave the rest in your hands."
Vincenzo nodded and set about making other preparations for breakfast. Lexis and Aurelia moved to the den. They sat in silence for a while, watching the glowing embers of the fireplace before Lexis broke the quiet.
"Why do you have body guards?"
Despite her chuckle and smile, Aurelia looked sad as she answered. " I am my father's only child. He operates a security service and mercenary company. He has always been concerned about my safety. Father is in charge of things in Europe, and Alessandro is in charge of the smaller arm of our services here. These guys are the ones on standby. As long as I have Alessandro, the rest are not always necessary."
"He's your husband, isn't he?"
"He was, and still is, my closest guard."
"You married your body guard? Ow!" Lexis had shifted in her chair and was stabbed by the blade she had hidden.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah, Yeah... just a pinch in my clothes."
"I fell in love with him as a teenager. I think my father intended it. Alessandro was his confidant. But he thought of me as a child and refused my advances until he saw me as a woman." Aurelia had a faraway look in her eyes as she spoke of her past with her husband.
"Who's the tomb for?"
Aurelia turned to Lexis with the same cold, fierce look she had given her that day in the hall. Several emotions crossed her face before she looked away to hide a pained expression. "...Our daughter."
Aurelia didn't seem interested in continuing the conversation, and Lexis didn't say anything after that. Instead, she wondered about the Malienis. They seemed fine, almost perfect in the open. You'd never believe things went wrong for them.75Please respect copyright.PENANAv3TsVTFPl1