Ever After: A Cinderello Story

Ever After: Part V - That night -

"Paulo, where are the candlesticks? We can hardly see our plates." Rodrigo's voice seemed puzzled as she glanced at the tiny lamps that lit the table.
"They are missing Milord. We have searched high and low." Paulo spoke with not a little bit of hesitation. Daniel stood beside him and squeezed his hand in confidence although he knew that if more things disappeared at this rate, his stepfather would not be likely to show any mercy whatsoever to any of them. Rodrigo was growing more and more irritable by the day, it seemed. It was all Daniel could do to keep a retort in when Martinez's voice rose from where he sat.
"The painting in the upstairs hall is gone too. It seems we have a thief in our midst." She glared at Daniel and Daniel knew he was suspected. Why? Then, Martinez's gaze flickered to the other two men, leaving Daniel with a sour taste in his mouth. His friends would never steal anything belonging to the manor! It made no sense.

Rodrigo threw down his fork in disgust. "So this is the way I am treated after all our years together! My wife's prized possessions gone!" He narrowed her eyes at all three, Daniel, Paulo and Lorenzo, and his next words were spoken in a low voice. "I shall garnish your wages until the pilfered items are returned. Is that understood?"
They all nodded, though the edict did not truly affect Daniel. He was not paid anyway, despite the fact that he worked just as hard as Paulo and Lorenzo. Rodrigo reached for more food, speaking as he did so.
"Perhaps I should ship you all off to the Americas with the rest of the thieves." Jacquez had been holding in his excitement all evening and finally let it go.

"Oh, did you hear? The Princess went to the Queen and asked her to release all those women!"
"He didn't!" Daniel couldn't keep himself together. It was so wonderful, yet how like a fool he must have sounded earlier when he had been scolding him for something he had already fixed! Rodrigo glared at him and Daniel blushed, realizing that he was not supposed to be hearing any of this, even if the news was as amazing as what they had just heard. Jacquez continued.
"By royal decree, any woman who sails now must be compensated." Jacquez finished proudly, reaching for more food. Rodrigo gave a small distasteful sound.
"Compensated?" He sighed. "What is this world coming to?" Martinez chose to change the subject and leaned toward his father.
"What I want to know is who is this mysterious Conde everyone is talking about? Why, there must have been ten courtiers talking about her today and how the Princess fell all over herself about her."
As Rodrigo answered, Daniel came forward to refill Martinez's goblet. "We must find out who he is and bury him." These words were spoken so calmly, yet with such chilling certainty that Daniel's hands shook as he poured Martinez some water. He was surprised that he did not spill all the water on the floor. Rodrigo was that determined to make Martinez king? Oh, if he found out who the Conde really was . . .Daniel would be . . .oh he did not want to think about that. Jacquez came to his rescue.

"Father!" He was shocked at how evil his father sounded all of a sudden.
Why such viciousness toward a man they had never met? Rodrigo turned unsympathetic eyes to Jacquez.
"The social pyramid has slippery slopes, Jacquez. Mind you don't fall off."
"It's blasphemy . . ." Jacquez was cut off by his father's sharp tone.
"Darling," Rodrigo knew how to make such an endearment sound contemptuous. "Hell couldn't be worse than a house in the country."