Mornings in the manor were always an adventure.
They were made even more interesting by the absence of a certain lord and his ‘dog', as Bonnie liked to call Jackson. However whenever Kol would leave for the day, whether for business or for a hunt, he left Katherine and Caroline in charge.
Or at least they thought they were in charge.
The princess's would get knocked down a peg or two by the commander just below Jackson. His name was Marcel and unlike the second-in-command who was stoic and only listened to his master, this young, African-American vampire would be lovely and courteous to all the servants.
The only caveat was they had to obey every order given to them no matter what, otherwise his pleasant demeanor morphed into something terrifying. Any servant who crossed him found themselves down in the dungeons to be dealt with by Jackson or Kol when they returned.
Katherine and Caroline, having nothing to fear, were still wary of him. Caroline told her sister all that transpired between herself and their father the morning the princess attacked Bonnie.
What she didn’t know was Katherine had heard everything from standing behind the door. The eldest princess simply smiled while nodding her head, not to arouse suspicion.
She hadn't received a conversation from her father, though it made her predict Kol was saving it for when he returned. It was no doubt something important just by the tone of his voice when he spoke to Caroline. Katherine prayed it would be forgotten so the lecture she knew was coming wouldn’t happen.
For now, she had to brush her fears aside and have the confidence she was known for. None of the servants ever dared cross her. They knew she inherited her temper from her father, as well as her penchant for cruelty.
Two servants never seemed to learn that lesson, much to Katherine’s chagrin.
That morning, Bonnie and a blonde servant named Lexi were up, scrubbing the floors of the upstairs where they were right outside Kol's bedroom door. Sunlight streamed through the windows, causing the hardwood to sparkle and shine.
Picking up her brush, Bonnie wiped sweat from her brow while gazing out the windows near the front doors. She sometimes reminisced about running in the gardens or even peering out the windows to watch the rain whenever it stormed. Now they only served to remind her she was in a prison.
However, it wasn’t always lonely for her. Bonnie befriended Lexi on a day Kol commanded the former princess learn what all the other servants knew. This was a day she missed her mother terribly, leaving her scared and confused. While being dismissed by the majority of the maids in the household, there was a tall blonde-haired vampire who, with a smile, offered to help and show her the ropes.
Her name was Lexi and from that moment on, they became best friends. Lexi explained to Bonnie she served Katherine primarily, but would often work on the various chores all the other servants were doing. She tried her best to avoid Kol and Jackson. Luckily the lord had his personal servants handpicked himself as did the werewolf, taking a weight off of Lexi's shoulders as well as stress.
It took a while for Bonnie to trust Lexi. She hadn't told anyone about being the former princess for fear of being ostracized. The witch was already tormented by her stepfather and sisters, no need to make it worse. Bonnie wasn’t aware of Lexi's suspicions until one day where Katherine commanded she clean everything in the princess's room, top to bottom. Lexi walked by the door, which was cracked, about the time her ears picked up Bonnie getting screamed at, all because the witch didn’t know how to do something.
Hearing Katherine slap Bonnie across the face was the last straw for Lexi. Not one to take any abuse from the princess's or their father so lightly, she was usually kept away from the other servants in fear her rebellious ideas might spread. Lexi opened the doors, speeding in to cover Bonnie from the blows that were sure to follow.
To her surprise, blows never came. Lexi turned around to see Katherine shaking furiously, making her smirk. She really did take after Kol.
“What are you doing?” the princess seethed, flickering her dark brown eyes towards the blonde servant. “This is none of your concern.”
Lexi returned Katherine's glare with one of her own. “Actually it is my problem. What's she done to cause you to hit her?”
Her mouth agape, Katherine's eyes widened in shock. How dare she? Didn't this servant ever learn to never question those in authority?
Her surprise instantly transformed into amusement as she twirled a lock of hair around her finger. Katherine's smirk grew wider at the thought of putting this reckless girl in her place.
“You of all people should know the commands we give those lower than us are meant to be followed to the letter. Although explaining myself to a mere servant is beyond ridiculous, I'll play along.”
Her heels clicked while striding across the hardwood floors of the bedroom, eyeing Lexi, who intensely met her gaze but never left Bonnie's side.
“As the former princess…” Katherine’s smirk never dissipated, even when she noticed the other vampire's eyes widen when Lexi turned to stare at Bonnie. “Bonnie never learned what it meant to be a servant because she never was one. Now that she is one, by my father's command, she'll be taught to know what expectations are, as well as punished if she doesn’t follow them or is disrespectful.”
The princess gave Lexi a wink. “I'm sure you were taught the very same things when you came here, weren’t you?”
Lexi never knew when it was a good idea to just agree with Katherine, and Caroline for that matter, or if she needed to teach the spoiled pampered princess some respect of her own. This time, she decided to count her losses in order to wait until the two young women would cross paths again. Then Katherine would understand the tenacity hidden behind Lexi's pretty face.
“I was.” She replied with a smile of her own. “It doesn’t mean I ‘follow them to the letter', as you so eloquently put it. You're the princess, I understand, however.” Lexi turned to face Bonnie who still knelt on the ground. “She was a princess as well yet I’ve never heard her complain. Not even once.”
Katherine opened her mouth to protest but was cut off by Lexi, who raised an eyebrow before coming closer to the other vampire’s face. “Your title doesn’t give you the right to treat us however you please. You and I are the same species, yet you act like I'm dirt on the bottom of your shoe just because I'm a servant.”
She got up close to Katherine’s ear. “I hear its even worse for Bonnie for whatever reason, so unless you want your pretty little nose broken, I would suggest staying away from her, and most of all staying away from me. Got it?”
If there was ever a wrong thing you say to the eldest princess, that was it. Veins immediately appeared in the corners of Katherine's eyes as her fangs grew. It seemed she would attack Lexi for what was said to her, however in that moment she stopped herself. She had another idea, one that wouldn’t involve her getting in trouble.
With an evil smile, she simply screamed and fell to the floor of her room where she leaned against the foot of her bed. Bonnie and Lexi, both raising their eyebrows in confusion, glanced at each other then back to Katherine, watching to see what would happen.
They jumped when the princess began to howl in mock pain, her face contorting while she grit her teeth. Her eyes closed while she grabbed her knee and held it against her, whimpering like a small child. Tears built up in the corners of Katherine's eyes as she uttered another shout, this time for the guards.
About that time, the doors to her room slammed open, revealing four guards who instantly rushed in and restrained Bonnie and Lexi. When Bonnie's face met the floor, it amused her to think she'd been in a situation similar to what was happening right now.
What wasn’t so similar were the pair of footsteps she heard walking towards them. While Kol's and Jackson's strides were full of purpose, the vampire's being a touch lighter, these footsteps had a bit of bounce to them. Whistling floated into the girls' ears, causing them to freeze and crane their necks up, hoping it wasn’t who they thought it was.
“Well, well. I never thought I would find you two together. A witch and a vampire. More so, a vampire who always seems to cause trouble wherever she goes. Isn't that right Lexi?” Marcel smirked at them both before kneeling down to Lexi.
“When are you gonna stop causing trouble for the entire household? One of these days our lord's just gonna tear out your heart. Or maybe decapitation’s more your style. I'll let him know which one you'd prefer when you receive your death sentence.”
His mouth widened in a grin, revealing perfectly white teeth. It made chills go down Bonnie's spine at how calm and collected Marcel seemed when making his threats. It was almost like nothing in the world could spoil his good mood. Not even death.
“Well when you do, could you let him know I'm all for whatever death he has planned for me?” Lexi gazed into the other vampire's eyes, batting her long eyelashes. “But please, make it quick and make sure I'm still in one piece. I would like to be a beautiful corpse thank you.”
Undeterred by Lexi's obviously sarcastic comment, Marcel got up and made his way over to Katherine, who was listening intently but as soon as his attention was on her, she groaned and winced in mock pain hoping he would buy it.
“Marcel! Look! Look at what that,” she pointed her finger at Lexi, “that wretched servant did to me!” The princess lifted up her knee to show the commander. “She pushed me against the bed all because I ordered her to fix it and they both refused! Please tell Father! She deserves to be punished!”
While Marcel knew Katherine wasn’t telling the truth, the thought of Lexi getting punished by Kol was enough for him to play along. Kneeling down, he rubbed Katherine's knee, causing her to hiss. He chuckled softly at her bad acting before swiftly standing up with the princess in his arms.
Giving a nod to the two guards who had restrained Bonnie and Lexi, he motioned them to stand both girls up. After getting to her feet, Bonnie noticed Katherine smiling at her, giving her a wink before she was handed to Mason who carried her out the door into the hallway.
That bitch!
Bonnie watched Katherine disappear with narrowed eyes before her attention was brought back to Marcel.
He was not pleased. At all. There was only one way the situation would be resolved and it wouldn’t turn out well for either of them. Least of all for Lexi.
She was snapped out of her thoughts by Marcel’s warm soft hand on her chin, lifting it to face him. It was so different than Kol's cold one or Jackson's rough hands. Looking up to gaze into the vampire's eyes, Bonnie noticed everything about him lulled her into a false sense of security. This revelation was unnerving. More so since she was used to the utter coldness radiating off Kol or sheer power with Jackson.
“You, girl, weren’t apart of this, I can see that. You'll spend a few days in solitary confinement, though it won’t be as bad as what Miss Lexi receives from our master. If you play nice and obey anyone above you without getting any rebellious thoughts, we'll get a long perfectly.”
He gave Bonnie a smile then turned his attention to Lexi, who glared murderously at him. In a flash, he appeared in front of her, still smiling as he reached out to stroke her cheek. Marcel couldn’t wait to know what punishment Kol would give Lexi. He hoped it'd be enough to give her a much needed attitude adjustment.
Lexi tried to move her face away, attempting to struggle in the guard’s grasp. Even though she would never admit it, Kol frightened her. She felt like she could never grasp his personality.
On one hand, if you were obedient and not causing trouble, Kol was incredibly charming, not nice except to his daughters, but charming as well as being polite. On the other hand, he could be incredibly cruel, vindictive and unmerciful. Lexi knew this from her past experiences with her master.
She had no idea Bonnie had experienced this side of him as well. In a much different way.
Lexi jerked her face away, feeling Marcel's hand stroking her cheek. When he tried to reach closer, she bared her fangs, snapping at him with a growl. All it earned her was a iron grip on her jaw where her face was lifted to meet the commander's smug grin.
“Do that again and I'll see about our master making you toothless. Then you really will be all bark and no bite!”
Laughing at his own joke, Marcel dismissed the guards who took Lexi out the doors. Hearing them go upstairs where she was led into Kol's bedroom, he turned back to Bonnie, waving a hand in dismissal. The guards on either side of the witch bowed, leading her out the door to the dungeons.
That was her first ever encounter with the vampire known as Lexi. When they both were released from their punishments, the two young women were immediately put back to work. Sometimes, when scrubbing particularly hard, Bonnie would notice Lexi wince and reach up to rub her back.
Later that day, Bonnie asked the young woman why her back was bothering her. Lexi had blushed, narrowing her eyes as if she was ashamed of it. Bonnie noticed but promised her, ‘friend' if that’s what they were now, she wouldn’t say anything.
What the witch saw when Lexi let her unbutton the back of her dress would haunt Bonnie. Across the vampire's back were nothing but red scars, some still oozing. Blisters peppered the skin and Bonnie could swear she smelled burning flesh. Horrified by what she witnessed, she could only gasp and hold her hand to her mouth.
What happened?
Turning her head to face her friend, Lexi gave her a weak smile while she thought about what occurred when seeing the vampire.
Katherine apparently fibbed quite well. Kol believed it, of course he would believe his daughter over a servant who gave him nothing but trouble daily. Lexi's punishment was a unanimous decision. But how?
Jackson suggested a vervain bath while Marcel offered to have her stake herself repeatedly just an inch from her heart.
Kol thought about each of their suggestions, however he had an idea.
The Solar Room.
Marcel's face turned a ghostly pale at Kol's suggestion. The Solar Room was a cell in the dungeons expressly built for the purpose of torturing and punishing vampires. It appeared as a common prison cell, except for the fact there was a massive window right in the middle where the sun shone directly through it. Shutters kept the room dark until it was used.
In the center of the room was a wooden table with straps for arms and sometimes legs. It was similar to a rack except there was no mechanism to stretch the limbs. Once the prisoner was stripped, they were laid on the table face down, their arms shackled above their head so their back was shown. Often times they would struggle by kicking, so their legs were bound to keep them still.
Once the signal was given, the shutters were drawn and light would stream in the room, hitting the vampire's flesh. The screams of agony and smells of burning flesh were overwhelming until the sunlight would disappear. When it wasn’t enough for Kol or Jackson, they were reopened, torturing the victim until they either complied or begged for mercy.
One session, the prisoner refused to swear his loyalty to Kol, so he burned for three hours with the vampire there, listening to his wailing. When it ended, a pile of ashes was what remained of him.
Obviously that’s not what happened to Lexi, however she burnt pretty badly.
At the beginning she cursed at Kol, Jackson, and Marcel. Especially Marcel. By the end, about twenty minutes later, she was screaming and begging for mercy. She remembered Kol, while her flesh was still burning, reaching his hand to cup her face as he stroked her cheek with his fingers. Smirking while he observed her face contorting in agony, he asked her if she would continue being disobedient.
Lexi, sweat pouring down her face, gasped and panted. Her hair stuck to her forehead while she moaned in immense pain over her back bubbling and popping from the blisters caused by the heat. Finally, after it seemed she’d start disintegrating, a scream of ‘no!' emitted from the female vampire’s mouth. Lexi couldn’t hold out any more. If she did, she'd die.
The vampire's sigh of defeat was all Kol needed to hear before he commanded the guards to release her. He hoped this would teach her a lesson in being defiant.
‘If it didn’t, there’s always next time.’ he thought with a smirk, watching his men unshackle and lift Lexi from the table.
One soldier carried her in his arms, where she promptly passed out, never knowing how she ended up in the servants' quarters.
She told her story to Bonnie, noticing tears in the corners of her friend’s eyes. Wringing her hands, Bonnie knew she couldn’t embrace Lexi just yet. She had to be patient and let her heal first. Fortunately for both of them, vampire's heal rather quickly.
Bonnie wished the same could be said for her when she ran her fingers over the scar on her cheek. Every time she touched it, the night always played in her mind, each time more horrifying than the last. She'd lost Kai, however whenever Bonnie stared at Lexi, she felt his presence telling her it was okay to make a new friend.
From that moment on, the two girls were as thick as thieves, causing trouble, especially for Katherine, whenever they were together. They were careful not to be caught, meaning they'd separate as soon as one of them spied Kol, Marcel, or Jackson coming their way.
Bonnie recounted the way she was turned from the princess to a servant by her step-family, which fascinated Lexi. Her former title of princess invited some playful teasing from the blonde as well. Lexi shared her story of being sold by her family to pay a debt they owed Kol whenever he took over as lord. While originally bought for a pleasure slave, he became repulsed by her rather quickly and instead made her a servant.
Lexi felt no love for her family from that point on. If they were willing to sell their own flesh and blood without batting an eye, then they were no family of hers.
That’s how the morning ended up with them scrubbing the floors, again. With the two girls being troublemakers, Kol decided this specific task would make sure someone could keep an eye on them. It was a boring job but it kept them out in the open.
Bonnie dipped her brush in the soapy water, sighing in utter monotony. How had it all come to this? Well she knew how, but the times she was a princess seemed to float further and further away in her mind.
Maybe it was best she didn’t think about it. This was her life now, as dismal as it seemed. Glancing over to see Lexi on her knees, scrubbing a particularly nasty stain, Bonnie smirked while taking her own brush in her hands. She made sure to get it all soapy and wet, just how she liked it, before suddenly shaking it off towards Lexi.
Soapy water flew towards the vampire, hitting her in the face when Lexi turned to see what was going on. Water droplets and suds stuck to her blonde tresses as she ran her fingers through her hair, shocked that Bonnie would do such a thing. One thing about Lexi though, she had a competitive streak.
Bonnie gasped and put her hand to her mouth, attempting to hold in her laughter. Out of nowhere, a mass of soapy water came flying in her direction, hitting her face. The witch's eyes lit up in surprise while she slowly wiped her face with a rag. Looking directly at Lexi, who lay on the wet floor, doubled over laughing, Bonnie had found the culprit.
Only this time, the vampire wasn’t getting away with it.
Before Bonnie had the chance to dip her brush back into the water, her ears picked up girlish giggling behind them. Turning around, the witch already knew who it was, or whom.
“I see you both are having fun. Although I don’t think ‘fun’ is what’s required. What are your thoughts, Caroline?”
Gazing down at the two girls with a sneer stood Katherine, wearing a beautiful dark green dress with white in the ruffles. The tiny hat nestled in her hair also had the same color scheme. A pearl necklace with a gold ‘K' in the center rested around her neck, a gift from Kol for her birthday.
Caroline stood next to her sister, wearing a similar dress. Though instead of green and white like Katherine's, it was a dark blue and white. A necklace of tiny sapphires and diamonds was her chosen jewelry, paired with a bracelet of the same colors. Hanging down from the bracelet was a tiny ‘C’.
Caroline merely snorted, directing her gaze at Bonnie. After they fought, she avoided the servant like the plague, remembering the punishment her father had given her afterwards. Her bottom still stung and being over a guard's knee while Kol made her count had been humiliating.
“Agreed, sister. You both had better be grateful Daddy's away. Otherwise your punishments may be worse than last time.” She glanced over to Lexi, squinting her green eyes while giving the other blonde a smirk. “Yes, I heard about what happened. Though, from what I'm witnessing, it doesn’t seem you've learned your lessons.”
“Well apparently you still haven’t learned your lesson either. Or does being a spoiled brat make it so you don’t have any lessons to learn?” Lexi snidely retorted. She stood up to where she was face to face with Caroline. “I heard your ‘Daddy' gave you both a babysitter to make sure his little girls didn’t act up while he's gone.”
She looked away, letting out a snort. “You both are what? 16? 17? How embarrassing.”
This remark caused the blonde-haired princess's mouth to gape open in shock. How dare this servant treat her like a five-year old! What's even worse was, unfortunately, Lexi was right.
Narrowing her eyes, Caroline raised her hand to strike this disobedient wretch. No one spoke to her that way!
Watching Caroline's hand fly through the air towards her face, Lexi simply closed her eyes and smiled. The youngest princess was nothing more than a toddler throwing a tantrum when she didn’t get her way. This was one example.
However Caroline's hand never touched Lexi's face. In fact it didn’t even come close, making the servant open her eyes, only to smirk at what she saw.
Katherine, glaring furiously at Caroline, grasped her sister's arm and restrained it while standing behind her. Caroline struggled to free herself so she could teach Lexi a lesson, but the eldest princess squeezed tighter, wrapping her other arm around the blonde vampire's waist.
She put her mouth near Caroline's ear. “Stop! Marcel could hear what’s going on and come investigate. If he sees you hitting the servant, we'll get in trouble with him, or worse Father when he returns!”
Gritting her teeth, Caroline turned towards her sister, attempting to free herself. She didn’t care what the consequences were, just so this insignificant speck learned her place! That changed when they both heard laughter coming from Lexi. She apparently found the situation utterly hilarious as she gripped her sides, tears rolling down her cheeks.
This however wasn’t amusing to Katherine, who released Caroline only to appear in front of Bonnie's friend. Scowling, her brown eyes watched Lexi, trying to figure out what was so funny. “Well? Have something to share? Speak up!”
When Lexi wouldn’t answer, it annoyed Katherine. She asked the servant a simple question but this fool couldn’t spit it out? Unbelievable! It made her decide other drastic measures were needed.
The princess smirked. This should be fun.
Taking hold of the other vampire's throat, Katherine sped across the hall, slamming Lexi into the wall. The force of impact caused a tiny crack where she hit, making her eyes squint in pain from where her head bounced off.
That’s gonna leave a mark.
As Katherine's manicured hand started squeezing Lexi's windpipe, the blonde vampire gasped and struggled for air, her hands scrabbling for any purchase the wall might give her.
Bonnie watched the scene unfold, her eyes widening in horror but unable to help her friend because of a certain blonde pinning her to the floor. Caroline giggled from above her, making sure the witch didn’t try anything. Her fangs elongated while her eyes turned red, threatening to bite Bonnie if she even dared to move.
Katherine looked back at her sister, an evil gleam in her eyes now that they were in control. With their father gone, they’d finally teach these two a lesson not soon forgotten. But first things first, the princess needed to know what was so funny, whether Lexi wanted to tell her or not.
“Tell me what has you laughing like a maniac, or I'll squeeze your neck so hard, it'll explode.” she hissed, not in the mood to play games.
Feeling the grip on her neck loosen a touch, Lexi smirked while she caught her breath. Alright, Katherine would know.
“I just find it funny that you’re so afraid of what one of your father's commanders is gonna do to you if you hit one of us. You’re the princess, right? You should be above him, telling him what to do.” She paused, closing her eyes in thought. “But he's your babysitter, so it's different in someway? You’re not allowed to because its unladylike?”
Lexi’s eyes weakly lit up in realization. “Oh I see! You don’t want to get in trouble with your father if Marcel sees you punishing us, I gotcha. It all makes sense now. You’re not really in charge.”
Hearing Lexi speak the truth caused fury to radiate from Katherine's body in waves. If only Kol had left her in charge instead of Marcel, she would've ripped out this bitch's heart by now. It never made sense why the commander wouldn’t kill her and be done with it.
No more disobedience, no more time wasted punishing her.
The vampire smiled. No more listening to her mouth off. The servant wouldn’t even have a tongue if she ruled, if the princess felt merciful.
Katherine’s ears suddenly picked up the sound of footsteps. Very fast ones.
Before she could react, she was shoved out of the way, falling to the floor. Pushing herself up onto her elbows, Katherine watched Lexi slide down to the floor, clutching her neck while Marcel stood between them glaring at the princess.
“What is going on here?” he growled, staring at Katherine angrily.
Shit.
She knew she was in deep trouble, but her wiles had never failed her before. They didn’t when she got Lexi punished the last time. Let’s hope they didn’t fail now. Taking a deep breath while she composed herself, Katherine gazed up at Marcel confidently, a lie on the tip of her tongue.
“It wasn’t me, I swear.” she stated, pointing towards Lexi. “It was her! She attacked me and I was only defending myself! You can tell Father all about it when he returns.” Katherine sneered. “Lets hope you learn something from this next punishment, or else there's truly no hope for you at all.”
“Enough!” Marcel's voice boomed so loud, the floor shook underneath Bonnie.
Everyone in the room fell silent, their full attention on the man standing between Katherine and Lexi. Locking his gaze with everyone to be sure they were listening, Marcel closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, he stared directly at Katherine, observing her.
“From what I see in front of me, there's no signs of struggle anywhere on your body. None. It's very peculiar, especially when you say you were defending yourself.”
From Katherine, Marcel turned to face Lexi. “Whereas I can clearly see on Lexi's body the mark from your hand around her neck. What I need to know now is what caused you both to fight, hmm?”
Surprisingly both women remained silent. Instead they opted to stare at the floor, scowls on their faces. This confused Bonnie, who still lay on the floor even after a guard removed Caroline. It was unusual for them not to speak up and blame each other since that’s usually what happens. Lexi would always be the first one.
A chuckle was heard from Marcel.
“Well don’t everyone speak all at once now.” He paced back and forth, his patience for their silence growing thinner and thinner. Finally the vampire had enough. Using his strength, he grabbed Katherine and Lexi by the front of their dresses, lifting them in the air.
Baring his teeth as veins formed around his eyes, Marcel uttered a terrifying growl in anger. “Answer me now!”
Lexi spoke up first, knowing this would be her only chance to tell the truth. Her voice shook a bit as she told everyone what had happened. “Katherine attacked me from out of nowhere because I found it funny she and Caroline were being babysat instead of having free reign of the place. I didn’t mean any harm. It was only a joke.” She narrowed her eyes in the princess's direction. “Apparently some people don’t know one when they hear it.”
Marcel, satisfied with her answer, dropped Lexi to the floor where she was restrained by Tyler and Mason.
Turning his attention to Katherine, he noticed her shaking like a leaf and paler than normal. “Katherine? Do you have anything to say?”
The princess cursed her luck.
Unfortunately she couldn’t come up with a lie to save her this time. Not when it felt as if Marcel was looking right through her. The only choice she could make was to face whatever consequences; and curse her father for leaving Marcel in charge.
Katherine bowed her head. “I started it. Well, I take it back. She,” the princess pointed to Lexi, “started it by making fun of us. However I took it too far by attacking her.”
Finally hearing her confess, Marcel's grip relaxed. Putting Katherine down, she was seized by two guards as well. Shocked, the girl shot the commander a nasty glare. “What is this?” she hissed. “Unhand me! I'm your princess!”
“I’m putting you in your room, young lady, until your father returns.” Marcel snapped, pointing at her. He grinned. “Don't worry, I'll make sure the servants send you your meals.”
He turned to Lexi next. “You, troublemaker, are going to the dungeons. I don't care who started it or who's fault it was. If you two can’t behave, then you’re both in trouble. Understood?”
Both Katherine and Lexi glared at one another for a minute, then hung their heads. It was both their faults and they knew it, no matter how much they despise each other. They nodded, showing Marcel they understood.
Seeing their cooperation, Marcel dismissed the guards who took Katherine to her room and Lexi to the dungeons. Before Lexi was taken away, Marcel stopped her.
“Look, I could hear everything. I knew it wasn’t you who started it. I may be overbearing at times with always punishing you, but this time I knew by listening who was at fault and it wasn’t yours. Your punishment last time caused me to have a change of heart.”
He smiled weakly, “I heard the entire fight from downstairs, so I know it was Katherine who started it. You, however, need to keep your insults to a minimum, especially around the family. Just a warning because you never know who might be listening.”
It surprised and shocked Lexi to hear those kind words come from the person she gave so much trouble to. It almost made her appreciate them.
Almost.
She still had a reputation to uphold and being friends with one of Kol's right-hand men wasn’t gonna help. Smiling and shaking her head as she was led away, Lexi turned back to Marcel. “Tell your master to make the sun hotter next time. My tan never showed up! Let him know Caroline needs one as well!”
If looks could kill, Bonnie swore Lexi would be six feet under by the glare Caroline was giving her. Marcel forced Caroline back to her room, letting her know if he caught her ‘distracting’ the servants from their work, a nice long chat with Kol would be in order about how she still messed around with Tyler.
Bonnie, incredibly confused with what just happened, got to her feet to face Marcel. He never bothered her as much as Jackson did, which was a relief, however Bonnie knew his charming smile hid how dangerous and cruel he could be. She would never trust him.
When he came near to her, Bonnie bowed her head, keeping her eyes trained on the floor as she was taught to do when someone of a higher rank approached. While she didn’t necessarily like Marcel, she respected him after his change of heart in the Solar Room. This would never, ever happen with Kol, Jackson, or even the princess's. Caroline was too far gone for any respect to be shown.
Marcel chuckled, laying a hand on Bonnie’s shoulder. Reaching to tilt her chin up, he gave her a smile when she looked him in the eyes. “What I told Lexi also applies to you as well. I'm not gonna be the good guy, not when I have to set an example, but if I see something is wrong in my eyes, no matter who's at fault, I'll always try to make it right. So, behave.”
Bonnie watched Marcel go back downstairs without another word. Thinking about when she first met him, he seemed to be just like Jackson. However today showed her that even the most cruel hearts can be changed.
Most of them for the better.