Blood For Gold Part 4
Again, thank you @kriskukko for indulging me. Thank you @punkhorse96 for the amazing feedback. And thank you to everyone else who has read and enjoyed the story.
Now let’s complicate things more shall we?
Blood For Gold
Part 4
Agnes someway, somehow, managed to keep you out, all day, going to a host of other shops to the point you were willing to pay her just to stop, but no, you chose the more “polite” and “correct” path of simply enduring it with a polite smile that never reached your eyes, she insisted on practically giving you a list of suitors to avoid over lunch and afternoon tea as Jane dutifully wrote down all these men, making two lists, one of suitors to attract, and one of suitors to avoid as you wondered if you would fare better by switching the lists as she instructed you on which ones you should appear more moura to and which ones you should appear more English to as it took every ounce of willpower to not stuff the lists down her own throat as you mentally drifted off to that handsome and amazing orc harlot at The Red Velvet Rope, Demsey Draft and wondered if you would see him at perhaps The Midnight Peacock while your foot tapped rhythmically under the table skirt to your favorite moura songs from your memories at Dorierra from all the different festivals that you missed dearly.
But it didn’t end there, after afternoon tea, she sent for her husband to meet you at Romboy’s for dinner where he also put in his two cents on the matter and had even more gentlemen to add to the ever growing lists which now included several pages between the two.
Your only saving graces had been seeing the Voyambi’s at the same restaurants for lunch, tea, and now dinner, seated only a short distance away at a nearby table each time, only for dinner, it was all of the Voyambi’s and you looked over at their table, piled high with a veritable feast as all of them partook in it and it was clearly a happy family meal, while you barely picked at your own food, since Agnes ordered for you and practically ordered you to put yourself on a diet so that you would fit into those expensive dresses she just commissioned for you and noted how the portions you were served were too large for you. You ate what you could, only eating enough to stave off hunger from your belly and headache from your head but nowhere close to being full or satisfied but enough to keep Agnes off your back for the moment and seeing the Duke each time, had you strangely forgetting all about Mr. Draft as you wondered if all orcs were built similarly and strangely you felt a different kind of hunger that was finally able to distract you from your physical hunger too as you gave Demsey a heated hungering glance when no one was looking and quickly looked away when he turned his head to the side in your direction as you knitted your knees together to quell your sudden need as your attraction towards him came back to life. Going to The Red Velvet Rope had only awaken it in you and now you were fantasizing about the actual Duke Demsey Voyambi doing everything to you that Mr. Draft had done as you fantasized how it could be more than just bone rattling sex, it could be actual love making with him. It was a wonderful fantasy for you. But one you knew was too much to hope for-for it to come true.
If you ever got to get out of this gods-forsaken place with these equally gods-forsaken people, except for sweet Jane who despite her awful parents was practically an angel, you were going right back to The Red Velvet Rope and you were going to find Demsey Draft and you were going to rut him so hard his pelvis would be ground down to dust and then you were going to practically unhinge your jaw to eat a literal feast once you were done feasting on him.
Meanwhile Demsey and his sisters were determined to get this note back to you but when they went to lunch and saw you at lunch and overheard Agnes talking about what shops to go to next and where they were going to take tea, had them realizing the wait was going to be longer than expected. And then to hear her list off just about everyone in England as a potential suitor, a few they could agree with, the rest, they clearly didn’t because Agnes was clearly biased and prejudiced and could clearly see what Agnes was playing at. She didn’t want you to go to anyone who threatened the Morrigan name or livelihood or was competition but who would also keep you silenced, shut away and isolated so that the cycle would continue and they prayed you weren’t actually taking any of it to heart.
By dinner time, it was clear to everyone in the Voyambi family when they saw and heard how withdrawn you were, only talked when talked directly to, did not really participate in the conversation and sat there like a doll, barely eating because even they could hear the way Agnes seemed to lecture you on every bite you took while she stuffed her own face as even Jane barely ate as well in between writing everything down her parents were saying, that you were clearly miserable.
Demsey had been relieved that his parents had agreed with him that you were, for a moura, extraordinary, but clearly a victim as they themselves brainstormed on how to help if you didn’t like Demsey as a suitor as his parents especially could pick up on Demsey’s partiality to you and if they were being honest, they much preferred you to Lady Whitesale any day.
Meanwhile Kiera seemed to have her own mission, why had Count Edward only lasted a year? His health had been pretty good for a man his age at the time of his wedding, and why were the Morrigan’s treating you both like a pawn, yet a threat? It didn’t make sense. While it was true that all she had to go on- were rumors about mouras and your behavior, it was still not much to go on. If you were broken beyond repair, the stables wouldn’t help you at all and take the stance that you were a lost cause. And if that had been the case, you could have easily sold what jewelry you were wearing even now, gotten passage to one of the colonies and lived the rest of your life there. Why stay? Why submit to this? Did you have no other choice? Or was this simply the best choice?
When Demsey had said that he heard a rumor that Count Richard Morrigan had contested the living you got but lost because the stables themselves contested it, maybe the living was so handsome, you would be a fool to leave for the colonies, you could, in theory, stay a widow for the rest of your life and keep collecting it without further issue. And it did make sense that if it was a large sum paid annually, of course the Morrigans would try to cast you off. But the Morrigans were one of the wealthiest families in all of England, if they could afford to give you a dowry of fifty thousand crowns, that means the living you were being paid was close to that number a year, up to half that a year. Why pay out 25 thousand crowns a year for forever when for fifty you could end it for good in just a few months. That made the most sense. Because even to the Morrigan’s, it was always about the money.
And by that token, the longer you took to get remarried, the more wealth you could siphon off of the Morrigans. So, that was her only way to tell what kind of person you were going forward, if you started dismissing suitors left and right, rapid fire without considering them, you were also in this situation for the money and you were going to hold onto the golden goose of the Morrigans and play nice publicly, but who knows what kind of person you were in private. Even as much as she didn’t care for Lady Whitesale, her brother could still do better than you. You were too perfect in her book. Too pretty, too proper, too...everything and everyone else in her family was taken up with you only because you seemed perfect, but she was determined to make them see that you weren’t. You may have everyone else fooled, but not her.
Meanwhile from her private booth in the restaurant that overlooked the main floor, Dauphine Yalin Sehzade Raymond and her husband the Dauphin Gregori Raymond, sat in their private booth and watched the scene unfold below them and watched with great interest as you and Duke Voyambi kept missing each other’s looks, when you were looking at him, he was simply eating and when he would turn to look at you, you would quickly look away as Yalin herself could see there was something there and wondered what had happened on that train ride to attract each of you so. While the Duke was of humble origins, she had always seen him treat his sisters with kindness and respect, and especially his youngest sister, he doted on. He was perfectly gentlemanly. And if you did not upturn your nose at his humble origins a match could be made.
Meanwhile the Dauphin’s son, Ramsey, who was almost 40 and had been far too picky in finding a bride and had spent his youth in the Midnight Peacock, dancing with every moura woman in the country in between spending every other night at The Red Velvet Rope, rutting with every moura girl on the menu there and blowing a good chunk of his fortune at the casino there and was himself, about to be cut off from his parents if he would not settle down and mature and find a bride by the end of this courting season.
Ramsey for his part, had finally breathed in sweet relief when he took sight of you again, for he would not take his eyes off of you either. He had been so pouty during Count Edward’s wedding, not feeling it was fair that Edward, as old and feeble as he was could capture a moura bride as perfect as you but yet he was still searching for ‘the perfect one’. He had even visited the stables himself after your wedding, trying to find someone similar and left disappointed. He needed someone who would give his royal moura cousins a run for their money for they were already married with heirs. He needed someone new and fresh yet wise and accommodating and the word he got from Edward only a short three months after the marriage was that you were perfect in all respects and in his plotting, he was the first to mark his calendar of when your grieving period would be over so he could pursue you and he was not going to let the little detail of you being a widow from deterring him.
He was practically enraptured by you now. You were a purer moura than he was and had married into nobility and had acclimated and naturalized into this country and would be perfect as his long awaited bride. Your manners were correct for the polite society of England and wondered what other moura traits you possessed and while he too noticed you kept looking the Dukes way, he had his own plan in mind to keep the Duke occupied and while his mother was distracted by watching you further, he and his father had a small, private conversation of their own where they agreed on the distraction for the Duke because a moura as great as you- should stay with your own kind and the Dauphin, outside of the immediate royal family was the right place for you. And fifty thousand pounds would pay off their own debts nicely and being part of the outlying royal family, they could demand that the Morrigan’s continue to pay your living and they would have no choice but to obey and they could afford to live just as comfortably as the royal family themselves with your added income from the Morrigans. In fact the Dauphin was going to be looking into it the very next morning to see exactly how much it was while Ramsey was going to put his plan in place.
Once you finally made it home, you had ordered your house’s cook to cook you up something quickly because you had barely eaten all day and you were starved before there was a knock on your door.
“Countess, it’s the Duke and Duchess Voyambi are here to see you.” Your house keeper informed you as she came into the kitchens.
“So late at night?” You wondered before you had them go to the drawing room while you stayed in the kitchen and consumed as much as you could as quickly as you could before you went to the drawing room to receive your guests.
“So what do I owe the pleasure of your visit this evening?” You asked once you came into the room and took a seat.
“We wanted to return this, since it was clearly not a receipt, and we pray that you’ll forgive us for reading it, but once we did, we knew you’d want it back.” Amara said as she handed you the note and you wanted to cry since it was just Amara and Demsey and you were grateful it was them and not the whole family.
“Thank you,” you breathed as you took it and held it reverently in your hands.
“But what will it cost to…” You began to ask.
“Nothing, you don’t owe us anything. It was clearly a private letter and we must apologize for breaching that privacy. And what we saw, will never be spoken of again unless you freely chose to bring it up and moving forward, we will deny we saw or know of anything written in it.” Amara reassured you and if it was proper for you to go over and hug her, you would have.
“Thank you.” You nodded in understanding.
“Sultana, might we be friends?” Amara asked hopefully.
“Yes, I would like that very much.” You nodded in confirmation.
“Then you may simply call me by my name, it’s Amara.” Amara insisted.
“And you can just call me Demsey.” Demsey insisted and his voice at saying his name threatened to send a shiver down your spine. Demsey must be a very common orc name. Like John. Or Fitswilliam for most humans in this country.
“Audra.” You motioned to yourself as it was Demsey’s turn to fight a shiver down his spine. Audra must be a very common name for mouras as flashes of Miss Audra Draft from the Red Velvet Rope flashed in his mind before he fought to put them out again to refocus on you as he thought that your voices were eerily similar.
“And as friends, is there anything we can do to help you? Do you need the addresses to the places mentioned in the letter? Will you need any help getting into contact with any other mouras that are in London or the greater part of England?” Demsey asked as he leaned forward in the chair, eager for any kind of direction to go into.
“No, I already have the address, and thankfully I have gotten into some contact with the other mouras here, not all, but some, but I thank you for your consideration and willingness to help Demsey, it’s very thoughtful of you.” You shook your head and did your best not to cry even as glassy as your eyes became because the sentiment was incredibly endearing but finally your smile to him did reach your eyes as you were almost glowing with gratitude.
“Are you sure? Even if it’s something small or simple or big or complicated, you have been a victim of your circumstances, the last thing you should be is a victim of anything or anyone else.” Amara insisted and it nearly broke your countenance, and you wondered how they were able to pick up on that so quickly.
“Uh, um, I...I believe you are mistaken Amara, I’m...I’m not a victim.” You insisted with a wobbly shake of your head as you did your best to blink back your tears, your anxiety started to rise in your chest, as your moura marks glinted rose gold again for a moment, but even as many times as you had said those words, practicing to make sure you sounded convincing, it was still just a lie, repeated until it sounded true but it still did not sound anywhere close to true and anyone who truly knew you would know you were lying but you prayed that they would not know.
“I’m actually very fortunate. At least I had the good fortune for the Late Count Edward to afford me to live in a house as nice as this after he passed. I know of far too many mouras who were left with next to nothing after they became widows, or sometimes, even before.” You tried to reassure them.
“Is that why you stayed in England instead of returning to the stables? Because you weren’t left with nothing?” Amara pressed and as much as you wanted to tell them everything, you could not because of the contract which you signed, but you couldn’t bring yourself to outright lie to their faces any more than you already had.
“No. I didn’t return for quite a few reasons, but it’s a private affair and not without its own complications and thankfully it’s a matter that is already settled and taken care of and there’s nothing else to be done about it and leave it in the past and move forward to the future. All I can say is thank you for returning this to me, but if there is ever anything I can do for either of you, I will be happy to do whatever I can.” You assured them, putting on a brave and pleasant smile.
Amara and Demsey simply looked at each other and knew that this was probably as far as they were going to get with you, at least for now. If your past had proved to you that you couldn’t trust those around you, they could understand that you didn’t want to trust anyone, let alone them, when they barely knew you- and you- them.
“Well then we will no longer trespass on your time any longer, it is quite late, you should be getting some much needed rest.” Dempsey decided.
“Thank you Demsey, do give my best to Lady Whitesale whenever you get to see her next.” You tried to graciously offer as all three of you stood up and Demsey wanted to actually point out that his sister had been wrong about Lady Whitesale but he couldn’t bring himself to embarrass and contradict her and give you the wrong impression so he simply nodded in agreement as Amara was giving her brother a pleading look to say something but he guiltily avoided her gaze.
“Will you be at the ball at Havenfield?” You asked hopefully.
“Yes, we’ll be there, we look forward to seeing you there too.” Amara insisted.
“Likewise, thank you so much for returning this to me. Till we get to see each other again.” You curtsied as they did the same before they left.
“Why didn’t you say more? Why didn’t you tell her about the true nature of your relationship with Kate?” Amara pressed when they got in their carriage on the way home.
“I didn’t want to embarrass Kiera.” Demsey defended.
“But in an effort to protect Kiera who outright lied, you just lost your own chances with her. I thought you had some kind of...friendship, attraction, at least some kind of partiality if you’re willing to go out of your way just to return her note to her.” Amara argued.
“If...if she was really interested in me as a suitor, she would have shown it.” Demsey tried to reason.
“No, that’s a poor excuse and you know it, she clearly has more honor than that, at the mere mention of that potential attachment, she withdrew but remained friendly. If she knew the truth of the matter, she would probably be behaving differently. She’s about to be reintroduced out into society, she can’t afford to make any kind of enemies and if you were even engaged to Kate, you know she would not show you the same loyalty or fidelity. At least mouras are known to be loyal friends and partners and show discretion and shrewdness. Could you not see it in her eyes? How desperate she is for help, for friends, for allies but the Morrigans have made her afraid of her own shadow. The poor thing is about to be bait in a dog fight and you couldn’t even bring yourself to at least warn her about it.” Amara argued.
“It was our first meeting as friends. We still have plenty of time before then.” Demsey tried to justify it but that answer seemed to satisfy her for now. He would find a way to talk to you more. He was sure of it.