Chapter 7

With her heart in her throat, Violet passed through the gate, towards the large house. More than ever, Violet wanted to turn and run as far as she could, but instead, she took one shaky step after another. As she reached the large wooden door, it opened before she could even lift her hand to knock. A man looking to be in his late forties opened the door wider for her to come inside. “Mrs. Chaplin will be here in a moment. Stay here,” he told her before disappearing into a room to her left.

Looking around the room, Violet tried to calm her nerves. There was a large dark, wooden staircase curving up to the second floor. Archways of similar dark wood to her right, leading to a room, Violet couldn’t see well from where she was standing, and another set of archways to a room in front of her. She could see a couch and chairs, along with some dark leafy plants, but nothing more. There were a lot of plants everywhere. They were mostly ferns or other leafy plants. The decoration was of various shades of dark wood. It was a nice contrast to the white walls. The flooring was also made of dark wood. The chandelier was made of a bronze-colored material with several of what looked like electric candles.

Someone cleared their throat and Violet dropped her gaze to meet a thin, older woman. She was much older than the man who’d let her into the foyer. Her gray hair was straight and cut at her upper jawline. Her face was narrow and angular with a pair of black glasses sitting on her thin nose. Dressed in a dark suit jacket and skirt, with small black heels, everything about this woman was stern. “Violet Anders?” she said. Her voice was gravely, yet had a nasal pitch to it.

Her last name wasn’t Anders, but Violet nodded all the same. The woman gave her a slow once over. “So you served the alphas in the Houston area? What were your duties with them?”

“Uhm,” Violet said, realizing Jeremy had told her nothing about her back story. “I did a little of everything,” she said finally. “Whatever needed to be done.”

“I see,” the woman said, her voice flat. Violet wasn’t sure if she believed her or not.

“How long were you with them?”

Swallowing, Violet replied, “Uhm, two years.”

The woman lowered her head to look at Violet over the rim of her glasses. “Are you asking me or telling me?”

“Oh, uh, telling, uhm, of course,” Violet said with a shaky laugh and a shrug.

The woman sniffed, lifting her head to look down at Violet. “I am Mrs. Chaplin, the governess of this house. Come, I shall show you to your room.”

Violet followed the governess across the foyer to a hallway to the left, she hadn’t seen when she was first looking the room over. Down this hallway, Violet followed her to another turn to the right. A large room opened up, with a staircase going down. There was a T.V. on the wall with a couch facing it. Another couch was against the wall to their right. A few chairs filled the room. A small table sat in the far right corner, and a short, bookshelf was pressed against the railing of the staircase. Another small table held an old looking computer. “This is the servants’ area. Here is where you shall spend your recreational time,” Mrs. Chaplin explained, heading for the staircase. Violet followed her down, struggling to keep her suitcase from escaping her as they headed down the stairs.

The lower floor was a narrow hallway, painted an off white color with the same dark wood trimmings as before. There were several doors on each side of the hallway. “These are the stay-in servant quarters,” the governess said, walking to the third door on the left. She unlocked and opened it. The room was much smaller than any Violet had ever had. There was a twin bed along the right wall with a nightstand with a lamp next to it. On the opposite was a door to a bathroom or closet. Near the door along the left wall was a tall dresser that looked like something you’d get at Ikea. “This is where you will be staying. You can leave your things here.”

“Thank you,” Violet said, setting her suitcase onto the bed.

“Come,” Mrs. Chaplin told her, closing the door when Violet stepped out of the room. She locked the door and handed Violet the small key. She pointed down the hallway to the door on the end. “There is the servants’ bathroom. That and the ones half bath upstairs at the only restrooms you are permitted to use. Follow me.”

When her back was turned, Violet wrinkled her nose. They had permitted bathrooms? Back upstairs, Mrs. Chaplin began showing her around the mansion. The first floor was public, meaning anyone could move around unrestricted. There was an office/library where the alpha had meetings with guests that didn’t require a high level of privacy, there were also three guest bedrooms, another restroom that servants weren’t allowed to use, and the family dining room, then the kitchens where the servants ate their meals, and another staircase leading to a holding area. Violet didn’t know what they held or how, and she had a feeling she didn’t want to know.

The second floor was private. Only the alpha, his family, some guests, and approved servants could go up to the second floor. The foot of the staircase going up, Mrs. Chaplin turned to Violet, pinning her with an intense glare with her dark eyes. “You are not approved and will be severely reprimanded if you are found on that floor. Understood?”

Violet’s mouth ran dry as she nodded. “Yes, Ma’am.” She couldn’t help but glance up at the staircase, knowing the information Jeremy wanted her to get for him had to be up there. The only question was how was she going to get up there? Without getting caught, of course.

“Are there any questions?” Mrs. Chaplin asked as she walked away from the staircase. Before Violet could answer, Mrs. Chaplin suddenly stepped to the side until her back was against the wall, her head bowed and her hands clasped in front of her. When Violet didn’t move she clicked her tongue with a sharp jerk towards the wall. Violet quickly moved over and stood as she did. A moment later the front door opened. Two men walked into the foyer. One was much older but broad and muscular. He was dressed in a long-sleeved, black shirt and slacks. His hair and beard was a salt and pepper mix. The thing that most caught Violet’s attention was his eyes. They shone a yellowed-brown color and the anger in them is unmistakable. “This is unacceptable,” he said to the other. His voice was a gruff rumble that seemed to fill the entire room.

The other man was much younger, maybe only a year or two older than Violet if that. His brown hair was tousled in a messy, just got out of bed look that was obviously styled that way. He wasn’t as broad as the older man, but he looked like he could hold his own. He dressed in a white t-shirt, jeans, and a pair of worn boots. Violet could see the edge of a tattoo just under the sleeve of his t-shirt. His eyes were a dark jade color. “Yeah, no kidding,” the younger one said. “Don’t worry. We’ll find her.”

Violet’s heart jumped to her throat. Was that the alpha? Were they talking about her? The older man strode past them without so much a second glance but the younger one stopped. “Hey, Ms. C,” he said with a sniff, but his eyes were on Violet. She swallowed, remembering Erin said they can detect body chemistry. She tried her hardest to relax, but by the look on his face, she didn’t succeed. “Who’s this?”

“This is the newest addition to our staff, Beta Nolan,” the governess replied. Violet noticed she didn’t sound so stern with him. 

The beta made a ‘hm’ sound and asked, “Where you from, new girl?”

“Uhm, where I’m from?”

“Yeah, that’s what I asked,” he said with a scoff and gave her a disbelieving look

“I’m, uhm, from…” Where had the governess said she worked before. She couldn’t remember so instead she said, “The south.”

“The south,” he said, and she didn’t miss the undertone of disgust in his voice. “Alright, I see. Well, Annabel from the south, we have standards here. Dress in a way that doesn’t embarrass the alpha, will ya?”

Wow! Rude much? Violet’s head shot up. “My name is Violet, and my clothes are on brand.”

Mrs. Chaplin clicked her tongue again and the look she gave Violet was downright aggressive. She looked like she wanted to take Violet out back and shoot her.

The beta, however, scoffed. “On brand for the barn raisin, maybe,” he said, mimicking a horrible southern accent. “You got your work cut out for this one, Mrs. C.” He laughed, heading up the stairs in a jog.

“What was that?” the governess demanded when he was gone.

“Sorry,” Violet said, realizing she was expected to just let him talk to her like that. “It won’t happen again.”

“I should say not,” Mrs. Chaplin said, giving her a disapproving glare over the rim of her glasses. “Come, let’s get you to work.”