Violette

Chapter 15

I placed the bag next to the door as I stood on the chair again to move the box and cheered silently as the box fit in the space perfectly.
I hopped off the chair quickly as Lyon re-entered. I still wasn't quite sure what to say to him. But I wanted to get to the bottom of what Louis was saying.

I knelt next to another box.
"What Louis said, is it true?"
"I don't really know. As I said, it was a long time ago, we were all very young. But we were told a long time ago by some relatives that your mom left our papa. I'm not sure if that's true, though." I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding, "but at the same time, I don't think what you said is true either, " he stated very bluntly.
"What do you mean?"
"Well...it seems very out of character for Papa, I don't think - no, I know it's just not something he would do."
The silence fell between us, and it was incredibly awkward. Thankfully, I was saved by Megan calling us down for lunch.
We went down the stairs and sat at the table. That's when Megan informed us that Louis was having lunch in his room. We had a Croque Monsieur for lunch. At first, I thought it was an elaborate toastie, but on the first bite, I realised it wasn't nearly as simple as that, and it tasted absolutely delicious. We had just finished eating, and that's when the front door opened.

Lyon and I went to the front door as Claude, Alexandre, and Papa took their coats off.

"Aww, we have a welcome committee," Claude cooed as he proceeded to ruffle my hair gently and then Lyon's hair with extra vigour, causing him to bat Claude's hand away.

"Have you finished unpacking yet?" There was a voice behind Claude identifiable as Papa.
"Almost, I'm going to finish the rest now." I moved over to the staircase to make my intentions clear.
"I'll give you a hand after lunch," Claude added as the three walked into the dining room.
When I got to my room, I immediately went to the next box.
"I need to go now, I've got some school stuff to finish for tomorrow. "
"Thank you, Lyon." He nodded to me as he walked out.
I continued to unpack, but even with my back facing away from the door, I could feel the eyes of that little brown bag starting at me. When should I give the bag back to Papa?
Maybe in a bit.
Should I ask him about mom?

I had finally finished unpacking as I sat near the giant doors that I had opened slightly. There was a slight breeze as I surveyed my finished room. It didn't feel quite right yet.

That's when the door opened as a familiar mess of hair poked through the door.
"Heya Munchkin"
I smiled and waved.
It was strange being around Claude. He didn't seem to walk on eggshells around me. As nice as Alexandre and Lyon were, it seemed as if they were awkward around me, not really knowing what to do or say.
Whereas Claude, even from our first meeting in the car park, never acted like that.
He proceeded to sit next to me on the floor.
I looked at the little bag again, staring at me.
"Penny for your thoughts." I heard a quiet voice next to me.
"Hmm?," I hummed quietly
"Isn't that what the English say."
I brought my knees up to my chest as I fiddled with my thumbs.
I wanted to ask about whether Louis was telling the truth, but Claude had already said before he wasn't sure why mom and Papa split.
"I... got into a fight with Louis. "
"Why?"
"He said mom left Papa, and he called her a bimbo, so I shouted at him."
I turned my head away as I heard a mumbling next to me.
"Don't worry about what he said regarding your mom." I looked at Claude and urged him to continue.
"Lyon and Louis were three and four at the time Delia left. They hardly remember her. I know for certain that as they spent time with our aunt and uncle, they listened too much into what they were saying. They used to say all sorts of crap and gossip, some about Delia. Most of the time, what spews out of their mouths is trash. But Louis and Lyon thought it was true as they were too young to understand gossip."
I let out a giant sigh of relief as Claude smiled at me. He then stood up and offered me a hand, which I took as he pulled me up.
"Papa wants to see you in his study. I'll show you there and once you've done I can give you the grand tour."
I nodded as I walked out of my room, not forgetting to grab the paper bag.
We then stopped in front of a door, and Claude knocked on it and ushered me in before quietly closing the door behind me.
The room was very old-fashioned. The walls and carpet were dark. There were bookcases lined with books on each wall. There were also two leather sofas and a dark wood coffee table. Papa's desk was made from dark mahogany wood with matching brown leather seats. There was a massive window behind Papa that had heavy curtains.
Papa's desk was covered with papers. For a man with such a tidy outward appearance, his desk was frightfully unorganised.
"Violette, take a seat, please." He pointed to the leather chair facing him from across the table.
I took a seat as I sunk into the leather. The gaze from Papa made this seem more like an interrogation than just a chat.
He cleared his voice before talking.
"How is your room? Is everything okay?"
I nodded. "Everything is great, thank you."
"Good, I just want to go over a few house rules with you." I nodded. It would seem odd if there weren't rules.
"Firstly, you are not to leave this house without at least one of your brothers or a bodyguard. Especially whilst we sort of this kidnapping issue." That's okay, mom had the same rule, as lovely as our neighbourhood was back in England, mom was anyways hyper vigilant about my whereabouts, not wanting me to get kidnapped or lost. I certainly didn't want to be kidnapped again either.
"Secondly, no arguing or fighting with your siblings." I nodded and silently agreed with myself never to tell him about the scrap with Louis.
"Thirdly, no lying, back chatting or swearing to anyone. And show respect to everyone who works at the house."

"When you start school, do not get any detentions and keep your grades high. I've seen your current grades, and they are very good, keep it up. " I felt my chest flutter, I did take particular pride in my high grades.
"If you do feel like you're struggling in a particular subject, please tell me, and I can arrange some extra support for you." I nodded.
"Finally, no boyfriends." That's okay. That was also a standard rule at home, but this one was probably the easiest rule to follow. I didn't really like boys. Or even girls, for that matter. Zoe would call me a late bloomer, but I don't really mind. I'm more of an animal person than a people person. I'm still holding out for a King Charles Spaniel or a rough collie. There were some cats that I would keep too. Like ragdoll cats or munchkin cats... maybe not them.

"I just remembered on a personal note. How is your French?" Is this what Claude was talking about just before I met Papa for the first time?

"I know some from my schoolwork, but nothing else,"

"Okay, well, one of your brothers will teach you more. I have no issues with you speaking in English, but I insist the boys speak in French to me." That seemed like a strange rule, but if that's what he wanted, maybe it was a cultural thing.

"Why?" I had no issues with it, but I just wondered why.

"Most of my relatives can't speak English, so this way, the boys can talk to them. It also means if they talk to me in French, they can't forget anything. As you have lived with your mother, I don't expect that you would know much French"
"That's all the rules. With that in mind, is there anything you would like to ask me?" Papa sat back and crossed his arms.
"When would I start school?"
"Hopefully, after the Christmas break, but we will have to wait and see."
I nodded.
"Has anything progressed with regards to my kidnapping?" Jeez, I felt like a journalist in an interview.
"Not yet. On the second attempt, the men that were captured refused to speak. So, we still aren't sure who hired them." I nodded.

"Do you have an idea who it may be?" Surely you must have some idea." I find it hard to believe that if it's somebody who is determined to see the downfall of Papa, he would have no idea who it was.

Papa uncrossed his arms and sighed.

"I do know who it is, but he's very good at covering his tracks. I've been trying to get him for the best part of fifteen years."

Fifteen years! That's longer than I've been alive.

I then moved my hands in my lap as the bag rustled.
"There was another thing, but this isn't a question. I found this whilst I moved a box onto the top shelf of the wardrobe in my room." I slid the bag across the table, and Papa picked it up and looked into the bag without taking the grow out.
A smile passed Papa's face as he spoke.
"I thought I lost that. Thank you. "
I nodded again. I felt like one of those toy nodding dogs with the big heads.
"Are you going to have a tour now of the home?"
"Yeah, Claude offered to show me around,"
"Good." There was a pause as I went to the door and reached for the handle.
"Violette?"
"Yes."
"If you have any problems, or if you just want to talk, I'll be more than happy to lend an ear,"
I smiled widely at him.
"Thank you"