Page 13 of House of Blood and Roses: Vol. 2
The door opens, cutting through my thoughts. We all rise to our feet as Lord Fallmartin enters the room. He nods at us and takes his seat at the head of the table.
I sit down, smoothing out the skirt of my dress and making sure I'm not accidentally sitting on it to make myself uncomfortable. After spending an uncomfortable dinner in that situation, I have absolutely no desire to repeat the situation.
Servants enter the room with covered dishes, placing them down in front of us before lifting the domes on top. The light soup within the bowl smells delicious and probably has more seasoning in it than any of the stews I ever made back before we came here. And this is just the first course.
I lift my spoon and start to eat, enjoying the tangy taste of the tomatoes used to make it.
"How are your lessons going, Beatrice?" Lord Fallmartin asks.
"Well, I think," I say. "Mr Foccett is working us both hard, but I'm certainly better at my letters. Bastian is too." I look at my brother.
From his expression, I should have stayed silent. If he's feeling self-conscious about the fact that he's having to learn all of this, then I shouldn't have brought it up in front of everyone, even if all the people in this room know about it already.
"I think you're doing marvellously," Lady Ermentrude says to Bastian. "I know it must be frustrating not to have been brought up properly."
"We did the best we could," I say somewhat curtly. "We didn't have much, so our education wasn't a priority unless it was skills to survive." The words come out of me unbidden despite the fact that I do agree with her and feel like my parents should have made sure I had the education I needed in order to become part of this life, especially when at least my mother had known what was in store for us.
"Mmm, it would have been better if I'd known about you," Lord Fallmartin says. "If so, I could have ensured you got the education you needed before you came here."
I restrain myself from pointing out that if he'd known about us, he wouldn't have brought me to court at all. For all of Bastian's faults, he's the reason I'm here and still alive. Without him, I would have died the morning after the Golden Moon.
I push the thought aside. To some extent, it doesn't matter. I'm here now, and I'm living a life I never even dreamed of. I intend to make the most of it, and that includes not letting myself get caught up on things I can't change no matter how hard that is.
"I'm looking forward to the ball," Bella says, clearly trying to change the subject.
"As am I," I respond. "I do love to dance."
"Are you wearing a new dress?" Lady Ermentrude asks my cousin.
"No, I have one already," Bella responds.
"That's a shame. But I suppose we all have to live within our House's means," Lady Ermentrude says offhandedly.
Bella balls her hand into a fist on the table, and Thomas reaches out to give her a comforting touch.
"My wife can have as many new dresses as she wishes, Lady Ermentrude," Thomas says calmly.
"And whose accounts do the funds come from?" Bastian asks pointedly.
I wince. This isn't going very well. I don't know whether Ermentrude meant for her comment to cause this conversation or not, but I suspect she knew what she was doing. She plays sweet well, but not quite well enough.
"Our personal funds are sufficient," Thomas says, his voice surprisingly level. More so than I would be in his situation.
"Perhaps we should talk about other matters," Lord Fallmartin says. "Lord and Lady Vermouten are welcome members of House Rothorne and will not be questioned in this manner." The way he looks at Bastian tells me that he's caught the animosity between him and Bella.
The servants enter the room and clear our plates, replacing them with the next course. Another goes around the table pouring wine.
I put my hand over my glass to stop them.
"Is everything all right, Beatrice?" Lord Fallmartin asks, giving me what seems like a genuinely concerned look.
"Oh, erm, the Prince doesn't like wine very much, so I'm accustoming myself to not drinking it at every meal," I lie. In all honesty, I didn't think anyone would notice.
"A wise decision," Lord Fallmartin responds. "You should make sure to tell the cooks next time the Prince comes for dinner."
"I will," I murmur, realising that I now need to make sure that I tell Linc about this so he knows. I should have thought all of this through before doing anything, but it was mostly reactionary.
"Excellent. There should be plenty of refreshments to Prince Lincoln's taste at the ball too."
