The plane arrived in Paris at three pm - we were previously in London, to be more precise. We booked our flight early in the morning. It wasn't too easy, regarding the recent terrorist attacks in France, extra security was needed. It was no problem, of course. Theodosia seemed rather satisfied to be back in her homeland - she stood with her hands folded behind her back and her observant eyes pointed to the sky; rather a usual pose by her, but she wore a faint grin and took in a nostalgic breath of air. She was raised in Paris for most of her life, after all. All of this Scotland Yard business had rather made her forget from whence she came, but now, in this moment, it seemed that she remembered.
Chiron waved down a cab and we all climbed in. "Your destinations, monsieurs and mademoiselle?" The driver asked, turning around.
"Château Villette." Chiron said with his usual grin. He took some pride in mentioning the name - I hadn't the faintest idea why.
"Friends of Monsieur Marsdon, no?" The driver chuckled. "You are very lucky, mon ami." We were taken out to the French countryside, and pulled over in front of the gate to a beautiful structure. The French and their Châteaus had always fascinated me. The architecture was so grand. We hurried out of the cab and Chiron went up to the speaker. He said something into it - something the other two of us couldn't quite make out - and the gate opened.
We walked behind Chiron into Chateau Villette. We were greeted by a maid - the name was Julia Ciência, I believe. A very charming young woman. She wore her brown hair in a short bob - strangely, her clothes were more like what you would see a butler wearing. Chiron and I hung our coats on the hanger near the door, but Alexandra, per usual, kept hers on. It had become rather a part of her personality.
The house itself was beautiful, full with glorious reds and golds. It had an old, almost Victorian feeling. Alexandra had quite a large amount of fun, taking in the air of the place. The room we were in now had very little furniture - obviously just a simple entrance room. To our sides were two doors that no doubt led to some sort of kitchen or perhaps a living room. There was, however, quite the sight in front of us. A large, arched opening led into a hallway. It was a great gallery with paintings about either wall, and doors littered on both sides. In the center of the hallway, an old man with a cane in his hand stood, smiling.
"Welcome!" He called down towards the entrance. He began walking - sort of waddling - towards us. "It has been such a long time, Chiron. Ah, and this must be dear miss Theodosia? I've heard so much of you." He quickly shook hands with all of us, stopping at me. "And who are you, lad?"
"My Detective Inspector." Theodosia answered for me. "He's our plus one. It is very nice to finally make your acquaintance.
"Vice versa, my dear. Oh, and Chiron!" He turned back to the doctor. "It has been so very long!"
"Indeed." He hesitated to proceed. For a brief second I had wondered why Chiron accepted Mr. Marsdon's invitation - he and his father didn't seem to get on. "Anyway, you made it rather vague in the letter - the reason you invited us, I mean."
"I think I made it quite clear. You see, I'm getting on in life, realizing the mistakes of the past and all. I just wanted to have my whole family with me, one last time."
"Well, here we are." Chiron smiled. Whatever had parted the two earlier in life must have long since dissolved. They seemed happy to be in the company of eachother once again.
"Anyway, you simply must meet the servants. Oh, and the missus! She's been such a lovely wife to me."
"You remarried?"
"Hadn't I said in the letter? Any way, yes. Don't know why such a young thing in her thirties would settle down with me, but it happened either way." The answer, to me, seemed obvious. Money was the prime motivation in marriages like this - you would see it all the time in newspapers, with young women marrying old men. While she wasn't quite happy with the marriage, he would die soon and she would inherit money; oh, so much money! It truly was the root of all evil.
"Ah, very well." Chiron seemed to be once again in an awkward position. "Anyways, shall we meet the cast?" He chuckled softly.
"Oh, yes, of course. You've already met the housekeeper. Good old Julia." The woman who opened the door smiled softly and bowed. I do say, she didn't look too much like a housekeeper. "Renee is our cook. I think she's in the kitchen now, preparing for dinner. And Sabine, the maid, she's doing up my room right now. Simone and Sophia are the other two. They do pretty much anything their superiors order them to, no particular specializations. Jack of all trades, if you will." I noted the set of characters presented weren't particularly diverse. Chiron and Alexandra seemed to share my thought.
"Our quarters?" I piped up. "We've still got some unpacking to do." I had carried most of our luggage in. I am so much like the pack mule to my two companions sometimes.
"Ah, of course. Julia can show you."
The woman at the door nodded and walked towards us, stopping by Alexandra, who she must have presumed to be the leader of the party - though that title belonged to Chiron. "Right this way, mesdames and monsieurs." We followed her to our quarters. They were near the end of the hallway and on the left. There were five beds inside - no doubt the room was typically reserved for guests. "Here you are. Ring the bell if you further require my services - I am instructed to give you a tour later." With a smiled and a polite bow, she departed.
Chiron sat in a chair by one of the beds and leaned back, crossing his legs. "I can see it now -" he gave his usual grin. "your head is swarming with questions, Alexandra."
"You never skip a beat. Oui, I have a few."
"Fire away." I put down our bags and suitcases as the two conversed.
"Firstly - why has he chosen particularly this manor? He doesn't seem to be much interested in the Holy Grail. Many searchers of that fabled cup would die to purchase this land - so why has he decided to reside here?"
"I can't quite answer that. Ten to one he doesn't even know what happened here over a decade ago. Just thought the place looked pretty, I bet."
"And the completely female staff, that is strange as well."
"Yes, yes, but I suppose it is for the same reason he remarried young. Men like him would enjoy the company of the young, especially female. It is France we are in, after all. Perhaps this is a common occurrence."
"Perhaps. And now, finally - what has made you decide to come here? You and your father did not get off on the best of terms, I understand."
"No, we didn't. He left me and my mother for dead. I decided to come here simply because it could be interesting. I've gone too long without a good excitement."
"Well, yes - save for last night's wine."
"I don't think we need to talk about that disaster again."
"Right, well," I piped up, "I think I'm off to see what else is in store for us here. I'll wander around a bit for myself. When I get back, I suppose we could ring for Julia and have a tour proper."