Under the vampire Lord's protection-Chapter 85: Strict criteria

As always, the locket resting upon the nightstand was her priority. Little groans escaped her when she sat up before moving through the room, the dull muscle ache that lived in her rang as the secondary aftermath of the previous, busy night.

The primary one being the memories that still flashed behind her eyes every now and then as Arabella performed her morning routine.

It wasn’t long before the usual grinding of the trolly against the floor arose from afar, drawing nearer by the second then completely halting in front of her door.

"It is I, Miss. I’ve come with breakfast," Ada’s voice followed the knock.

"Come in,"

Facing the mirror, Arabella stood making her last adjustments to the dress she’d picked for the day.

"How was your sleep, Miss?" the maid had asked sheepishly while pushing the tray inside, towards the table.

Besides the wincing of the wheel tray, one could hear a pin drop in that room as both women seemed to note the invisible strain around their throats, making it extremely difficult to utter the words they wished to free.

"Oh... It was alright," just as quietly as Ada, Arabella had replied, "I’ve seen you during the gathering,"

Throughout her sentence, Arabella gripped her locket, gently but quickly dragging the pendant across its chain from one side to another.

What she wanted as an affirmation came out more as a question instead.

At those words, Ada’s entire body froze momentarily. The maid then slowly placed the dish she had in hand on the surface of the table and turned around to face Arabella with much reluctance.

"I truly am sorry," she started, an apologetic air on her, "I was well aware of what the ball was for and yet I kept it from you all this time, I...," Ada trailed off after that, never picking her sentence up again where she’d left it.

Seeing her state, Arabella immediately relinquished her locket and launched forward to lay both hands on Ada’s shoulders, "No, it’s alright! Please don’t say or even think that way. I could never blame you for that,"

The two women maintained eye contact for a moment before Ada broke it, turning towards the dishes on the tray once anew, "I, along with other maids and butlers are in charge of providing the tributes with their basic needs, from the time that they’re brought in until the night of ceremony," she marked a pause during which only the clinking of dishes resonated, but as though Ada sensed the stifled urge to ask questions in Arabella, she continued, "They never say much... The tributes, I mean,"

When she was finally done with the table, she turned away and stepped out of Arabella’s way.

"I can imagine," Arabella muttered, "Will you sit with me?" she asked.

"Well, I am still on surveillance duty as you called it," a soft chuckle escaped Ada as both women sat at the table.

"Right...,"

Ada kept staring at her own lap while Arabella tried to focus on her breakfast. To no avail, of course, as her companions’ latest words already stomped on the very little appetite she had to begin with.

"They’re always young. Well, mostly," out of nowhere, Ada’s voice rose again, prompting Arabella to stop mid bite and look up at her, "They’re almost never on the older side and they’re never... Well, not adults,"

"I suppose the treaty was clear with the criteria for tributes," placing the fork down by the plate, the young woman wiped her lips with the linen cloth sitting within her reach. freewebnøvel.coɱ

"It seems so," Ada started again, "Some of them cry, but not all of them," her eyebrows furrowed for a moment, "Some even smile and laugh despite knowing their fate,"

"I am not really sure what to make of that," Arabella’s eyes traveled towards the open window and followed the fluttering curtains, "I suppose if one’s life was misery where they came from, they might feel they don’t have much to lose,"

The expression on Ada’s features upon hearing those words made Arabella hasten to further clarify her stance, "I will never claim to have led a miserable life before Umbraria, of course, but others may see things differently,"

Somehow, Ada’s traits seemed to twist further at which point Arabella found herself at a complete loss.

Her mouth simply opened then closed again as her eyes painfully watched Ada’s demeanor fall with every second that passed.

There was something in her eyes. Something strange. Stillness... The sort of quiet that spoke louder than a thousand voices.

Her shoulders visibly slumped as if something continued to press down her neck in an attempt to make her shrink in her seat.

It made every hair on Arabella’s body stand. Even more odd since that was an instinctive reaction she often displayed when confronted with something... Frightening instead of simply uncomfortable.

It crept under her skin, birthing a stinging that almost caused the young woman to flinch in place.

"What should we do today then?"

The question had tumbled out of her mouth before she could assess it.

"I... Am not sure, Miss. What would you like to do?"

As though snapping out of a muggy daze, and seemingly taken aback, Ada returned it without an actual answer.

"Well, you know... I am not sure either. To be honest,"

Quiet claimed the air around them once more until a new question popped in Arabella’s mind and this time, she thought it through.

"Actually, I’d love to hear about what you like to do in your free time. Would that be an appropriate question? Please don’t hesitate to stop me if I am overstepping,"

For a very brief moment, there were little stars that shone bright in Ada’s eyes before completely fading. It was like she’d allowed herself to dream for a split second before facing reality again.

"I don’t get that much free time," she offered a weak smile.

"What if you’ve got more? What would you do with it then?"