“I’m glad I can cure your boredom.”
“We all have our place in life.”
***
The following morning I was wakened by a new servant with short brown hair and lively brown eyes. Her features were small and delicate with a turned-up nose. She looked maybe sixteen-years-old.
“Good morning, Miss,” she said. “My name is Lisa, and I’ll be attending to you from now on.”
“Please, call me Eve. Where did Mariel go?” I slid out of bed and pulled on my robe.
“Master felt she’d be better suited serving him elsewhere.”
That word again! “Why do you all call him ‘Master’? Isn’t that a little old fashioned?”
Lisa giggled. “I think so, but it’s what he wants.”
“Can you not do it around me? It’s weird and kind of creepy.” I made a mental note to give Boaz a hard time for it later. Even among those in the supernatural world, it was a strange thing to say.
“I would love that,” Lisa said, breathing a sigh of relief. She entered my dressing room and turned on the tub.
I followed after her and asked, “How long have you worked for him?”
“Only a few days. My mom thought it would be good for our family. What dress would you like to wear today?” Lisa strolled among the many dresses in open admiration.
“It doesn’t matter. You can pick. Why would it be good for your family?”
She removed a light purple floral dress with spaghetti straps. “Because my family is Fae, and Boaz is as close as you get to royalty around here. My parents think if I show on my resume that I worked for him, I’ll have a better chance at getting into Dartmouth.”
I smiled, remembering how I had once wanted to go there. All supernatural creatures aimed for Dartmouth College where they could meet others of their kind. The elite school, located in a small town of a remote part of New Hampshire, was the perfect place to go unnoticed and still get a reputable education.
“But they will flip when they find out you’re here, too,” Lisa continued. “You’re family’s like the Kardashians of the underworld.”
I glanced away embarrassed. If only she knew the truth. There was nothing grand or wonderful about being a Segur.
“Can I ask you a personal question?” Lisa asked.
“Of course.”
“Are you engaged to Boaz?”
Heat flooded my face. I didn’t think how our arrangement might appear to others. “I’m only here as his guest. My parents want to k—I mean, our house is going through a major renovation,” I finished lamely. No one wants to admit that their parents literally want them dead. It’s jacked up.
“Oh,” she said and reached her hand into the water to check the temperature. “But he is handsome, isn’t he?”
“Very.”
Lisa stood up. “Master, I mean Boaz, wanted me to inform you to be ready to leave in a few hours. He’s taking you to a movie.”
“Really? I’ve never been.” I removed my robe and stepped into the deep tub.
Lisa’s mouth fell open. “You’re joking, right?”
I shook my head. “My parents were very strict.”
“Wow. And I thought my parents were bad.” Lisa disappeared into the bedroom but came back moments later. “I’ll have breakfast for you when you’re ready.”
“I can take care of breakfast. I really don’t need a servant, Lisa.”
“I know, but Boaz insists, and something in his eyes makes me obey.” She paused. “Does he ever frighten you?”
“Yes,” I admitted. “He frightens me a lot.”
***
“What an awesome experience!” I said as we left the theater. The sky had turned dark and the air cold while we were inside. I really did love the movie. It was an epic adventure that covered a voyage to the South Seas. The hero was perfect in every way, from the words he spoke to the way he stood up for injustice. It was as if I’d been watching another world come to life where goodness always prevailed.
“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” Boaz said. He guided me through the crowds of people and back toward his car, his hand gripping mine.
I stayed close to him as there were a lot of people exiting the theater at the same time, and it made me nervous. These were the most humans I’d been around in one place. Other than Boaz and me, the only other supernatural creature I had sensed in the theater was a werewolf. We had given each other a knowing look, but said nothing to each other. “I feel stupid saying this, but did you know that was my first movie?”
When the crowd thinned out, Boaz pulled me forward to walk beside him. “I never realized how isolated Erik and Sable kept you. It’s a shame how much of life you’ve missed.”
Thinking about this made me both sad and angry. And it all came down to our family’s stupid magic. “Do you know why they wanted me to use magic so badly?” I asked suddenly.
Boaz stopped moving, his eyebrows rising. “They never told you?”