Dromeus stood in front of his only daughter as she stood waiting near the main gate of their manor. He lightly brushed her dark hair with his fingers. Eudeline was the only thing in the world that was ever able to break his tough demeanor.
"Those filthy Filtiarns best treat you with nothing but respect, you hear me?" His words were gruff with a hint of anger. As he spoke he glanced up at the two family guards that stood at her side.
"I'm entrusting you to see to that."
"Don't worry, daddy. I'll be fine." Eudeline spoke with an air of confidence, but her eyes betrayed her fear. She tried to push it aside and forced a smile. "Luther is to be my husband soon. His family will be my family. I'm sure they will be kind."
"Oh my naive girl..." Dromeus sighed.
"Take care of yourself." He leaned down and kissed her on her forehead. She seemed so small standing next to her father, a giant of a man. He stood upwards of six feet tall with broad shoulders from years of hard work. Eudeline was very delicate in comparison. Only a teenager, she had always been a small girl but had recently began to develop her woman's body. The way her waist curved below her small bust made it look like she could easily be snapped in two. Her soft spoken voice and girlish demeanor only strengthened that idea. But she was determined to do anything to please her beloved family, even if that meant marrying a man who was a known drunk, drug addict and man-whore.
She hugged her father briefly before walking through the manor gates, the two Ballanger guards following close behind. It was a very short walk to the Filtiarn residences as their manors were positioned right next to each other. She entered the gates warily, unsure of what to expect. The Filtiarn guards greeted her with a curt nod and shot quick glances at the Ballanger guards. Five together now, they approached the home of the Filtiarn family. As they approached the doors, one of the Filtiarn guards stopped them.
"Lord Lucian requests my lady's presence alone." Eudeline was taken aback briefly, looking at her two guards.
"Oh, I..." she began before she was interrupted.
"Lord Dromeus placed her under our protection." The larger of the two Ballanger guards spoke up.
"We are only here to ensure that no harm..."
"No harm will come to the lady, I assure you," the Filtiarn guard interrupted.
"You may wait at the doors, if it pleases you. The young lady has nothing to fear. The Filtiarn house prides itself on it's nobility. They would never do anything to put an invited guest in any danger. Now please, I would hate to keep Lord Lucian waiting." With a curt nod, the two Filtiarn guards escorted the small lady into their manor, the Ballanger's reluctantly staying behind.
Luther entered the room with an enchanting grin and dazzling look in his eyes, he hoped to prove not only his father and the kingdom wrong, but also to himself that he could have a real relationship with a woman. Luther’s poorly held facade of happiness and contentment failed to fool Eudeline as she examined his rather handsome face. She could not deny his good looks, which were only enhanced with his intriguing eyes. She could see the broken boy inside the shell of the man before her, kissing her hand with the most inviting hello she’d ever heard. Despite everything she knew about the man, she could not help but somewhat give into his obvious appeals. After a rather long greeting, Luther and Eudeline, accompanied by guards, made their way down the eastern corridor to the dining room.
The long table sat at the center of the room, capable of seating up to eight on either side, and two at each end. Lucian sat at the head of the table, on the opposite side of where Luther and Eudeline entered. On his right,sat Luter’s sister Elaine, with her new husband, Prince Hugo sitting on her left. Walking down the opposite side of the table, Luther sat across from Hugo, after politely gesturing for Eudeline to sit next to his father, across from his sister.
“May I just say Lady Eudeline, you look rather marvelous tonight.” Hugo addressed the lady as she sat down.
“Oh, please, you can call me Eudeline. My mother is still he Lady of our family.” Eudeline replied.
“Easy Hugo, my sister’s jealousy is more well known than my fiance’s beauty.” Luther joked, sipping his wine.
“How’s Dromeus? Has he managed to remove that pole from his ass yet?” Lucian spoke up, handing his pipe off to a servant as the trays of food began to be brought into the room. On the largest of the platters, sat an entire boar, roasted and seasoned, stuffed with herbs and aromatics, the meat cooked to melt in your mouth perfection. For sides, the house chefs had prepared a massive garden salad, containing all fresh ingredients, as well as a cheese and potato casserole, fresh baked bread, and for dessert, cream filled pastries.
“My father is well. In fact, he wishes you well Lord Lucian.” Eudeline answered, concealing her laughter as she too thought her father could loosen up a little.
“Darling, didn’t your father teach you that lying is wrong? We both know your father did not and does not wish ME well.” Lucian explained in an distasteful tone, motioning for his challice to be filled for a third time since he had sat down.
“Eudeline, please tell me how you get your hair to look so damned beautiful?” Elaine said, inserting herself into the conversation, hoping to change the subject quickly.
The small talk lasted for a while, as everyone filled their plates and began to dig into their small feast. If only for a few minutes, Luther was enjoying himself, without the help of inebriation or intoxication of any kind. Unfortunately, while most everyone was eating and talking, Lucian only sat, brooding and drinking. Her presence had offput him. He could see Felicia in this girl, her presence brought an air of joy that reminded him of her mother. Chugging down the last of his chalices’ contents, Lucian order for his sixth refill, taking a nibble of the mostly untouched food on his plate.
"Don't you think you've had enough wine tonight, Father? You really should fill your stomach with something more substantial." Elaine interjected as the servant began to pour the wine.
"It is rude to talk about such things in front of company," Lucian barked back, bringing his chalice to his lips before the servant was even done pouring, spilling a bit on the table.
Luther eyed his father briefly, a bit of uneasiness settling in. Trying to break the tension, he said the first thing that came to mind.
"So how is your mother, Eudeline? We haven't heard from her in some time."
"YES!" Lucian practically yelled, clearly losing control of his volume. "How is the lovely Felicia?"
Eudeline had jumped at Lucian's sudden and loud outburst, but she did her best to compose herself. "Oh. She is still in mourning after the loss of her last child." She spoke a bit quietly, only looking at Luther as she spoke and avoiding eye contact with Lucian at all costs.
"Pity," Lucian spat. "She is such a lovely woman. It's a shame she must hide that glorious body of her's away..." he loudly grumbled into his cup as he downed the wine in a few quick gulps.
"Father!" Luther stood, knocking his chair back.
"Luther!" Lucian mocked. "I only speak the truth. The lady's mother is a beauty. She will be lucky if she can grow to become half the woman her mother is."
"You've crossed a line," Luther retorted.
"I will not have you speak of such things around my betrothed."
"Your betrothed!" Lucian threw his hands in the air dramatically. "Tell me, son, will she care for your bastards as if they are her own children? How long before she finds you in bed with another woman? We all know this marriage is doomed, stop pretending you have any chance of happiness!"
“That’s an awfully high horse there father, when we both know you were never faithful to my mother! You act as though you are this great man of honor when in reality you are the biggest fraud of the entire kingdom! One day the earth will take you and all that will be left is the memory of your wretched attitude and rampant hypocrisy!”
Luther pushed his chair out of the way, sending it toppling to the floor. He stormed out of the room in anger, slamming the main doors behind him. Elaine, clearly distressed, rushed after her brother. Hugo sat, glancing at the two remaining at the table before slowly standing. "I, uh...I should check on Elaine," he said, heading after them. Eudeline had never felt so uncomfortable. She sat, staring down at her plate. Her palms sweat as she clenched her fists together in her lap. From the end of the table she could hear Lucian slump back down into his chair with a loud sigh. After a few moments of awkward silence, followed by Lucian loudly gulping down the challice’s contents yet again, following it up with a satisfying belch he spoke up again.
"It's true, you know," he said quietly.
"Your mother is beautiful. The only woman I ever loved after my dear Essenia."
Eudeline froze. She dared not look up at the man but..."F...Felicia?" she stuttered, her voice barely audible.
"Yes, Felicia. She was a great comfort after Essenia's passing. I didn't think I would be able to love again but she proved me wrong..." he trailed off, his eyes glossy as he stared at the bottom of his challice, contemplating another refill.
Frozen, shocked by the information just told to her, Eudeline sat in her chair staring at her food. Her mind was racing but her body was a statue... Lady essenia had died years ago and... her mother had lost the baby only just a few months ago…
The moment’s following Lucian’s comments, the tension in the room was so palpable it could’ve been cut with a knife. Elaine’s reentry into the room was a welcome break to the tension, quickly escorting Edueline out of the room, the look of discomfort on her face apparent.
Luther stood in the entryway in front of the double doors, waiting to see her. He looked much more relaxed and calm, with a blank expression in his eyes. The two approached each other, both obviously attracted to one another, but both hesitant and scared to let the other one in.
“I’m sorry for my father's behavior, it was inexcusable!” Luther began to explain, before being cut off by Eudeline, placing one of her fingers to his lips to silence him.The two stared deeply into eachothers eyes, Luther finding comfort and warmth in her embrace, the two only hugged, going no further. He felt safe with her, and she saw a beautiful man, more with more father issues than her, and still grieving the loss of his mother. After a rather long embrace, Eudeline exited the double doors to her awaiting guard, who escorted back down the path out of the walls surrounding the Filtiarn Manor, to her father’s waiting carriage outside. Entering the candle lit cab, Eudeline smiled and hugged her father, still thinking about what Lucian had told her.
“How was dinner sweetheart?” Dromeus asked through a thin smile.
“It was fine, just like I told you it would be you worry wort.” she exclaimed with a cheap smile of her own.
As the carriage took the two home, only one though rang in her mind, Does father know?
