The Begining

It was a crisp November morning, the sun had not yet managed to penetrate through the stubborn cloud cover, so shadows still clung to the corners of the house. The grounds were scarce in stark contrast with the overbearing manor, it’s dark stone walls, gothic windows and spindly towers making a bold statement in the little wood clearing. Tall oaks bereft of leaves bordered the property, their long branches reaching out towards the manor as if the forest were trying to reclaim its rightful land. Leaves hung around the base of the trees, their colors muted by weeks of neglect and decay. A short, portly woman hurried up the path following the crumbling stone wall that led up to the old manor. Her skirts tangling around her legs in the strong late autumn breeze. Though even the wind was unable to move a single strand of hair in her stubbornly tight bun.

“That’s enough now. Settle down.” she said to the wind, so severely it seemed to listen for a moment.

Diverting off the main path, she made her way towards a side entrance that led into the kitchens. There was a lot of work left to do and simply not enough time to do it in she thought to herself. A thick layer of dust coated the manor, large sheets hung loosely on the furniture. The place had not been lived in for at least a decade and she had to have it ready for a dinner party in less than a week’s time.

“Wealthy and idle.” she grumbled to herself.

It was a dangerous, and all too familiar combination that invariably meant a lot of work was coming her way.

***

Annabeth woke with a start, her phone loudly playing The Who, her default ringtone for unknown callers. Her sister, an avid CSI fan, had thought it was quite funny when setting it up and now, to her sisters extreme amusmenet, Anna couldn’t figure out how to change it. She grabbed her phone accidentally answering in her hurry to turn it off.

“Annabeth Wilson.” a shrill voice came through the phone.

“He-hello.” she managed to get out, pushing her tussled brown hair out of her face.

“This is Mrs. Hughes, as I’m sure you are aware. I understand you will be working in the kitchens for the Axon’s dinner party.”

“Yes, that’s right.” She replied. Her colleague, Sara, had practically begged her to take the job and if she was being honest, she could really use the money.

“Good. I have been informed you will arrive at the Manor on the 14th to assist with preparations. I shall call you again tomorrow at the same time with further instructions.”

Annabeth glanced at the clock; it was 5:45am but Mrs. Hughes did not seem like someone you could say no to. She was beginning to regret accepting this job.

“Yes Ma’am." She sighed.

“And Annabeth-” Mrs. Hughes paused. “You have come highly recommended. I expect you shall not disappoint us.” She said in a manner that clearly implied that’s exactly what she thought Annabeth would do.

“Of course, Ma’am.”

With that, the line went dead. As Annabeth fell back into an uneasy sleep, she wondered what she had gotten herself into.

***

“Are you almost ready dear?” Chelsea called out

“Don’t rush me.” Emily snapped back.

Chelsea Saxon sighed. Parties had a habit of making Emily tense, not that she ever needed much help in getting there. This party seemed to have Emily particularly high strung. It was the first time the whole family would be together since the will reading of Emily’s great grandfather. An occasion they would both rather forget. She glanced up as Emily descended the staircase, a red flush in her cheeks, a few aubrun curls of her hair out of place and her grey eyes darting from place to place. She looked like a scared rabbit. Which was quite the feat considering her elegant 6foot frame.

“Relax darling, the guests won’t be arriving for another two days, we still have plenty of time.”

Emily took a deep breath, trying, and visibly failing, to relax.

“Everything has to be perfect, you know how my family is. We can’t give them any opportunity or they’ll tear us to shreds!”

Emily was prone to dramatics but in this case Chelsea knew she wasn’t far off. Emily’s family weren’t exactly full of warmth and understanding even before the will reading. She wasn’t naïve, she knew the only reason they had all RSVP’d yes was for a chance to criticize what Emily had done with the Manor.

“You’ll stay by my side?” Emily asked, not even trying to hide the desperation in her voice.

“I’ll be right there, with you the whole time.”

Emily smiled at Chelsea, her little mouse. She was a over a foot shorter than Emily but she had a look to her eyes that could silence a president and had even on occasion given pause to the worst in her family. She took another deep breath, this time letting go of a fraction of the stress knitted in her brow. With Chelsea at her side she just might be able to make it through the next week with her wits intact. Mostly.