My heart was pounding erratically by the time I reached my room on the second floor, far right. Closing the door behind me, I walked over to the wooden desk, and dumped all the things on it. Slumping down into the white chair, I went over the conversation that just happened.

Had I spoken too much, too soon? Surely Florian won't like it if I would act like that with his son? What if I ruin this golden moment even before it comes into my hands?

A series of 'What ifs' unfurled themselves in my mind, but I'd forgotten how dangerous they really were. Once you fall down the rabbit hole, there wasn't any coming out of it, even if you were to crawl your way out.

In my defense, that man was incredibly infuriating, and every time he came in front of my eyes, I somehow lost all my senses. My experiences had taught me not to bow down in front of such lowly people, and thus, my mouth ran wild whenever I was with him.

I couldn't stand how he squandered away his money and time partying and drinking. I couldn't stand how he acted like he was the only important person on this earth.

Most of all, I couldn't stand how he managed to look like an angel that fell from heaven through all this.

'Chienne folle,' Shaking my head, I reprimanded myself. I really must be crazy, seeing how that devil didn't seem like the devil to me.

(Crazy bitch)

Opening my sketchbook, I stared mindlessly at the blank paper, feeling my desire to draw fading away. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath. I couldn't get distracted from the beginning itself. There was so much more to come, and if I couldn't even overcome such a minor bump along the road, there was no way I would reach my destination.

I picked up my pencil, and got to work immediately, leaving all unnecessary thoughts behind. There was no time for such silliness in my life. The vibrant sun soon changed into the blazing sun, then cooled down, spreading purplish warmth over the cloudless sky.

I looked over to see the sun setting, and finally got up from my chair. Stretching my back, I looked at the designs I'd drawn, and felt proud of myself. Ever since Florian gave me the green light yesterday, I'd decided I wouldn't waste any time and got down to work from the very next day. Designing clothes for a whole season was an exhausting task, and there wasn't any room for laziness.

I looked at my designs once again, feeling proud that I would finally bring a new color to Panache. This label was known for its trendy designs, full of party and even futuristic clothes, but no one had ever visited the other mellow styles. I, as a loyal follower of dark academia and cottagecore themes, decided to take matters in my own hands.

This time, Panache will have a different image.

Excited about my new start, I smiled to myself, and closed the sketchbook. I stored it in a safe place, and put my glasses back in their case. Exiting my room, I found out that the house was buzzing with energy. The maids were running about, cleaning and carrying things to and fro.

Wondering what was the matter, I went upto the only familiar lady in the house. I caught her attention by tapping her on the shoulder.

"Oh, Miss Fontaine! You're finally out of your room!" She exclaimed, and I winced. I should have remembered how energetic she always was.

"Yeah. Um...is something going on? Just yesterday, this house was so quiet. Now, it's buzzing with energy," I asked her, and her energetic expression faltered for a second.

I was all the more puzzled now. What could be so serious that even this woman was so worried about it? She tried to sugarcoat her expression with a forced smile, but I caught onto her discomfort.

"Actually, madam Beaumont is coming back today. She had been vacationing in Hawaii since the last month, and she's finally back. You see, madam likes things..... a certain way, so we're all making sure we don't disappoint her."

I nodded, taking in the fact that I would have to deal with another ignorant, arrogant person in the house. No wonder André was her son.

The woman continued, "Also, I know I'm not in that position, but I'll give you an advice. Please stay out of her sight. I've no idea why you're here, but our madam will definitely not like you."

I tilted my head sideways. "She hasn't hasn't seen me yet. How can you be so sure of it?"

"Because she doesn't like other people a lot. Her only favorite people in the world is her son, and her friends. Apart from them, she considers everyone else her slaves. So, be careful."

She told me, and started to go the other way, but I called her out again. "But, wait!"

As she turned around to face me, I asked her, "You didn't tell me your name. How do I call you?"

She smiled. "Call me Cathy, Miss."

And then, she got lost in this maze of a house. Sighing, I turned around to go back into my room. A house tour was out of question tonight, I would have to wait another day to visit that beautiful back garden. What a sight it must be.

I went back into my room, and took a shower instead. Even though my morning started on a rough note, somehow it didn't faze me as much. Maybe the fact that I'd been productive the entire day afterwards, was the reason behind this unreasonable happiness.

As I came out of the shower, my phone pinged. Sitting on the bed, I checked my message. The hospital had pinged me, telling me I had an appointment with the doctor tomorrow evening.

A sudden wave of fear washed over me. Anticipation and nervousness started to build inside me. I'd sacrificed so much to come here, to be able to afford such high class treatment. But, all of that should be enough to treat my mama, otherwise it would all be in vain. Closing my eyes for a second, I reopened them and replied to the number with an affirmative.

Nothing wrong will happen. Mama will be fine, I was sure of it.

A sudden knock on the door shook me out of my thoughts, and I told them to come in. The knob turned, and in walked an extremely nervous Cathy.

"What is it, Cathy?" I asked her.

"That.... Madam has asked you to come down for dinner. Right now," She delivered the message in a low tone, seeming already aware of my fate.

A sudden realization came to me. I wondered if Florian had brought me here without telling her. If that was true, then her anger would be justified. Bracing myself for whatever that was about to come, I stood up.

"Cathy, tell them I'm coming. And don't worry about me, I'll be fine." I told her, and she nodded, but didn't look so convinced.

Nevertheless, Cathy exited my room, while I fixed my hair one more time. Exiting the room shortly after, I climbed down the stairs. Turning left from the hallway, I entered the living room. The dining room was located just opposite of where I was standing, and through its transparent glass walls, I could see that the whole family had gathered.

Florian had his head down, probably in an attempt to ignore everything his wife said, André was engrossed in his phone, while a tall, slender woman sitting next to him was glaring hard at me.

I walked towards the room, and on my way, caught onto the expressions of the other maids as well. They all looked pallid, as if they'd seen a ghost. If that's what this woman's presence did to them, I was in more trouble than I'd expected. Opening the door to the room, I stepped in and was immediately greeted by an evil glare by the new woman.

Jolene Beaumont, a sensational model who took the whole world by storm thirty years ago, was right in front of me. Her exceptional beauty had been the talk of the town back then, and I now understood the hype. Even after thirty years, and a marriage and a child, she looked young as ever. Long pin-straight blonde hair framed her long face which was free of any wrinkles. She wore an immaculate high end floral dress and stilettos, and her eyes – her eyes were the most striking part of her.

Around her black irises, were swirling clouds of grey. Churning round and round, until they paralyzed the one looking at them, her eyes were so ruthless. That was the only feature of Jolene that André possessed, and they both looked the exact same when they squinted their eyes at someone.

But, as I was now the target or his mother's unwavering gaze, I thought to myself how facing André was so much better. Again, it was true that fear made one delusional.

Straightening my outfit as best as I could, I introduced myself to her, hoping that she would like me.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Beaumont. I'm Lizette Fontaine, the girl who's about to marry your son."

♣︎ ♣︎ ♣︎