Sudden Outburst

“How was your date?” Uncle Niko suddenly asked making Cassandra jolt slightly from surprise. As soon as she realized that her uncle was behind her, she wiped her hands against the apron she was wearing and turned towards him.

There was a mischievous grin hanging on his face, it irritated her, so she clenched her jaws to reply.

“It was good.” She lied, suddenly at a loss for words, it was nowhere near good, but starting up fires right now will only make Blake more pissed, and it was not like she expected her uncle to care about it if things were sour.

The wedding will go as planned no matter what she feels, that much has been established.

“Dinner will be ready in a second,” she said hoping he would leave, Niko nodded his head, as he walked towards the door, stopping for a second. “Join us at the dining today.”

He left.

Cassandra simply stood there wondering if that was a good idea, she had never joined the family for any meal, she always ate her meals in the kitchen, just like her aunt had instructed her.

“You are not part of the family, and don’t ever try to act like one.” Mercedes had declared, her voice loud and clear. “You are no less than a servant, and servants eat their meals in confinement.”

Cassandra shook her head, as she arranged the plates on a tray, since her uncle had invited her himself, she was sure he had something important to say, and her aunt wouldn’t be so mad.

She arranged the table, and Lena climbed down the stairs.

“Something smells good.” She murmured as she pulled a chair for herself beside her brother, “Cassandra, what is for dinner?”

“Um… Creamy chicken pasta.” Cassandra answered softly, as she went back into the kitchen to bring the meal, she was arranging the table, while the family gathered in the dining.

“Cassandra will be joining us tonight for dinner,” Uncle Niko suddenly announced, making all of them, except Lance gasp lightly.

“Why?” Lena was the first to ask, she seemed irritated even by the idea.

“I have an important announcement to make.” He answered and Cassandra dished the last meal before sitting at the last table in the dining.

“What’s so important that you have to bring dirt to the table?” Mercedes asked her husband as she occasionally glared at the girl. Cassandra pretended as though she didn’t notice, the deathly glare, her aunt and Lena threw in her direction.

Lance on the other hand was so quiet.

“Cassandra is getting married.” He announced and there was an uneven gasp in the room.

“Married?” Lena blurted and then she let out a mocking laugh, her mother on the other hand was too stunned to speak. “Seriously? Wow, so who is the unlucky person?”

“I am curious about who is willing to marry such a dull girl as well.” Mercedes answered.

“You remember that deal I was telling you about?” Niko queried, and they both nodded. “That senile old man who found errors with everything I did, I figured he had a grandson he desperately wanted to marry off. I had to set them up, and now he has agreed to invest in the company.”

Cassandra felt her heart clench, he had just called the older McKnight, a senile old man… truly, and Uncle Niko wasn’t a human being. What did she expect from a man like him? Someone who could make a maid out of his brother’s child?

“You got her engaged to a man like that?” Aunt Mercedes sounded offended. “A rich man? You should have introduced a responsible person like that to Lena instead.”

“He is rich indeed, but he isn’t responsible,” Niko explained. “I did my research before I made my decision, his grandfather isn’t just trying to get him engaged for no reason. Rumors have it that he has a mental illness.”

Cadenza’s grip on her spoon tightened, as the food stopped halfway through her lips, her head snapped towards her uncle in disbelief, and Lena winked playfully at her.

How could he do something like that? Getting her engaged to someone who had a mental illness but that also explains Blake’s abruptness. Cassandra felt sorry for him, she wondered how hard life must be for him with such overwhelming sickness.

“Lena is the only daughter I have, I would love for her to be happy, and on the other hand, Cassandra will be satisfied with living with her husband.” He continued. “We will be inviting them for dinner tomorrow, Mr. McKnight wants the wedding to happen as soon as possible, so I implore you all to be on your best behavior.”

“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I don’t support this wedding.” Lance suddenly declared surprising everyone.

“What are you doing?” Uncle Niko asked in surprise.

“It’s disgusting that you are willing to sell out Cassandra for money, yet you’re here clamoring about how you would like Lena to be happy.”

“That’s your father you are talking to.” Mercedes snapped but Lance was far from done.

“Cassandra is your niece, and not some stranger, when are you going to see that?” He rasped, shocking everyone except for Cassandra who knew the reason for his outburst. “She deserves just as much concern as Lena. She is your brother’s daughter, and you shouldn’t mindlessly give her off to a madman just because of some benefits.”

“What?” Niko muttered,

In anger, Lance pulled back his chair and got out of his seat, shooting a glare in the direction of Cassandra before storming off.