Total pages in book: 207
Estimated words: 196971 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 985(@200wpm)___ 788(@250wpm)___ 657(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 196971 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 985(@200wpm)___ 788(@250wpm)___ 657(@300wpm)
"That she's not wearing makeup?" Rhapsody asked blankly.
Peyton rolled her eyes. "No, silly. I'm talking about her boo-hoo story of being a poor little girl with a sick mother, blah, blah, blah."
Rhapsody frowned. Indeed, everyone knew that Emily was from an impoverished family and with a seamstress mother who had recently fallen ill. It was the reason why Emily was often late or missing classes outright...or so the other girl said.
"There's just something about her I don't trust," Peyton grumbled.
"You don't trust anybody," she pointed out.
"True," Peyton acknowledged with a shrug. "But enough about that girl who always ruin my mornings," she dismissed with a sniff. "You've heard about the Marquis of Sangre coming here, haven't you? Everyone reckons the marquis has come here to acquire himself a pet," Peyton shared in between elegant sips of her soup. "Do you reckon it's true, though?"
"I do not think I can answer that," Rhapsody said honestly. After all, her Master had not said anything about making their affiliation public.
Peyton, however, seemed to think she was joking. "You've got the driest humor. I love it."
When lunch break ended, it was their turn to part ways, with Peyton heading down the greenhouse for private lessons on botany while Rhapsody was to attend a weekly lecture on Social Graces. On her way to the third floor, however, a manservant approached Rhapsody, saying politely that he had in his possession a note from faculty.
Dear Rhapsody,
May I have the pleasure of your company this afternoon? I await your presence at the tower.
Sincerely,
Your Master
P.S. Excuses have already been submitted (and duly accepted) to your professors on your behalf.
A STRANGE TIGHTNESS constricted within the marquis' chest as he watched the bookshelf by the alcove swing open to reveal a staircase from which his pet eventually ascended. He had spent the entire night in the school's restricted library, reading what he could of soul seers. A foolish attempt to convince himself that Lady Zari's vision might not come true, but it was all he could do, with Sir Isaac yet to respond to his urgent missives.
An exquisite scent drifted to him, and it drew his attention back to his pet. Lavender, frangipani, and poison ivy. And when she came close, he saw that her eyes were soft and lustrous, and her cheeks flushed with color. Would it make him an arrogant arse to believe that this was because she was pleased to see him?
With any other girl, that would indeed be the case, but with his pet and her emotionally distant ways...
Probably not.
"Good afternoon, milord." His pet's voice was a sound that was still wonderfully and uniquely her own. Lace soft and hauntingly serene, innocent still, but something had changed, too. A whisper of allure, Mihail thought, that only a woman who knew the pleasures of flesh could only possess.
"Good afternoon, milady." He waited for her to ask of his whereabouts last night, but she did not. She was indeed every inch the perfect pet, one he did not deserve...
Rhapsody was startled when the marquis suddenly cupped her chin and place a quick hard kiss on her mouth.
When Mihail pulled back, he saw that his pet was gazing up at him with wonder.
"How unexpected," his pet marveled as she took the arm he offered, and they began to walk.
"What's unexpected?"
"Your spontaneous kisses," she explained. "I did not realize how strongly attracted you were to what's Not Normal."
Mihail was exasperated. "It's not—-"
His pet looked up at him expectantly.
Ah, fuck it.
If such a thought was what gave his pet a sense of security as his pet and heartkeeper, then he was fine with having her think he was a pervert.
"Where are we going, milord?" Rhapsody thought to ask as the marquis helped her into a carriage, a sleek, black model with a discreet emblem of the House of Sangre's coat of arms at the back.
"I received a message from the authorities," Mihail murmured. "Their chief coroner has returned from Brimstone. He shall be performing the autopsy today. I thought you'd like to be present while he presents his findings."
"It would be nice to have additional proof that I was not his killer," his pet remarked.
Mihail casually turned his gaze towards the window so as not to be tempted to smile. While his pet had a point, the placid tone in which she uttered the words had made it seem as if she was discussing something as trivial as the weather.
It was a fairly short ride to the headquarters of the Enforcers, and its facade deceptively nondescript: an old stone building located across the Office of Citizen Affairs and with nary a signage to identify it.
The marquis' coachman steered his horses towards a narrow passageway that led to the building's side entrance, a sturdy-looking metal door illuminated by the torch burning brightly on each of its side. An Enforcer, his assignation made recognizable by the uniform he wore, came out while the marquis was helping Rhapsody out of the carriage.