Know Who to Count On

Chapter 8: When Two Worlds Collide

 Alexis made his way back to his room, his steps almost jaunty as he whistled a tune to himself. He had slipped out of breakfast early in an attempt to run into a maid that was working on his floor so he could try to befriend her, possibly get some information about what rumors were going around about him. He'd expected it to be easier to run into them, but the staff here seemed trained to avoid all contact with the guests as if their lives depended on it. And it's possible I'm right on the money with that, he thought glumly.

He was nearing his room when he suddenly felt a faint pulse of magical power. He stopped and looked around, trying to use his mage senses more than his eyes to determine where it had come from. After a second he continued down the hallway, reflexes at the ready for anything that might happen. He had just reached his room, the last one in the hallway before it took a ninety degree turn to the right. Another pulse flowed past him and he got the feeling it was coming from around the corner. Cautiously he moved to the corner of the hallway, peering down to see if anything stood out to him.

Suddenly a maid emerged from a room at the far end, slamming the door behind her before putting her face in her hands, clearly starting to weep. Alexis began making his way down the hall, calling out to her once he was part way there.

"Miss?" he said, "Are you alright?" He hated having to say that as it was obvious she wasn't, but it was the natural expression to choose. She didn't seem to hear him and so he picked up his pace, jogging the last bit of distance between them. He reached out to touch her shoulder, but stopped short thinking this might not be the best move if she had recently been assaulted. If this were somewhere else he might have just assumed she'd had an argument or something less violent, but in this household that was one of the least likely reasons to see a woman cry. It didn't help that he remembered noting Jonathan's absence at breakfast and now had a feeling he knew why.

She looked up and pulled back from him in one motion, her hand going to her chest but he realized she wasn't trying to clutch any metaphorical pearls. Anger flashed through him now that he'd confirmed his suspicions. He saw her look at the door to the bedroom and back at him, her mouth opening and closing but she seemed incapable of speech. Still her actions spoke loud enough and he realized the perpetrator must still be inside.

"Stay here," he instructed, though in her state he wasn't sure she would listen. He turned and strode towards the door, pushing it open and stepping into a scene that took his initial flare of anger and turned it into an inferno. Jonathan was there, pinning another maid to the floor with one hand around her neck and the other stuffing two fingers down her throat. The young man looked up as Alexis entered, a sneer on his face as he likely thought the other maid was returning. Jonathan's sneer flipped to fear in a flash as he released the girl and looked as if he might be about to make some excuse, but Alexis had no time for the younger man's words. He covered the distance between them, grabbed the other man's arm to haul him to his feet and swung his fist into Jonathan's chin. Alexis watched in satisfaction as the pervert was thrown back against the wall before he collapsed to the floor in a heap. The still burning rage within the young count wanted nothing more than to pummel the piece of garbage until he'd stopped breathing, but the sound of the coughing girl at his feet helped him to let logic take over.