The Crazy Daughter of the Duke's Family - Book One: Pandora

Chapter 7: Traces of the Past

For a few more seconds, the servants looked at each other awkwardly, until their mistress dismissed them. "You are free to return to your duties."

They relaxed and walked away, while Humphrey stood exactly where he had been before, as if to say, "This is where my duties lie".

And that was indeed what he was thinking. "Lady Rowena, I am humbled by your appearance," the aging man said, bowing with a hand on his chest, "may I know if there is a specific reason for your long journey?"

"That is none of your concern," she said in a stern tone as she walked past him, emulating that of her father's when he spoke to the knights and servants in the capital, "please prepare rooms for me, my guards and my maids, if you have not already done so."

With the image of a perfect lady, as Ballinger had taught her, she crossed the entrance hall gracefully and headed for a grand staircase. It was one of those split staircases one might see in a princess movie, where the protagonist descends slowly, looking all glamorous and beautiful.

In this case, Rowena was going up, not down, so it was okay for her to look a little disheveled from her two-day carriage ride, at least according to her logic. 'I probably look a little toasted. I'll have to make sure I look great when I get back down.'

Humphrey and the knight, Yaakov, waited a bit as she climbed up, her maids proudly taking their places right behind her.

"Of course, we have already arranged for everything you will need during your stay. Please call for us if you require any further assistance. Do you wish to eat or drink anything before you turn in?"

She paused, only to look over her shoulder as her luggage was brought into the castle. "Please bring me a regional map along with my meal tomorrow." As she made her request, she instinctively resumed her ascent until she realized something. "I will merely be resting for tonight. But I would like someone to show me to my room."

Of course, she must have gone up because of common sense, but how would she find the room she was looking for? The estate looked huge, even from the front.

"How could I have been so insensitive," Humphrey exclaimed after a moment of shock, "Sir Knight, would you like to follow us at once? Your colleagues will be taken by the other staff to their arranged accommodations."

Rowena wondered if it was okay to call a High Priest a knight and which party would feel more bitter about the mix-up, while the old man walked ahead of her and made her follow him all the way down a long corridor until they reached a large door.

They didn't notice the commotion around the carriage in the front yard, but it was the presumed knight who had a feeling that it might be happening.

Behind the door they had been aiming for was a beautiful, soft lavender bedroom, at least twice the size of her already spacious room in the annex, if not more.

There were plush dolls prominently displayed on the bedding, sitting comfortably between big and fluffy looking pillows, with their backs to the white and gold ornamented headboard. There were intricate dolls made of glass and porcelain lining shelves all along the four walls of the room, and she didn't even dare step in for a moment for fear of dirtying the white and very fuzzy carpet that covered the entire floor like a safety net. There were also several shelves stacked with fancy looking books, picture frames, and a huge dresser.

There was so much in there. A big chest at the foot of the bed; a stand with a polished violin made of very dark and grayish wood stood proudly next to a large desk with everything she had in the annex as well – and more.