Fighting for the Lost (Sebastian's Daughter Book 4) (COMPLETE)

Chapter 48

Selena's POV:

I paced back and forth in the sitting room for what felt like hours. Alex watched me, sometimes glancing down at the floor.

"What do you think he's going to do?" I asked my brother after I got tired of the silence. This was all too much. I'd been careless. It would be my fault if Ciel had us killed.

Alex's face was grim. "I'm not sure. You know Dad won't hurt us, but that doesn't mean Ciel won't hire someone else who will. He's definitely going to figure out you aren't part human, though."

I stopped pacing as my shoulders slumped. "And that means he'll have no more sympathy for me. If he hires skilled enough people, I'll be easy prey. I'm still not back to full strength, even though it's been months."

Alex walked over and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Even still, you're stronger than humans. I know you'll be okay. But if for some reason you aren't, I'm right here."

I felt myself smile. "Thanks, Alex."

He smiled back as the door opened. When I saw my father, any comfort my brother had given me vanished.

Dad's expression was unreadable, something that only scared me more. I wanted to ask what had been decided, what our fate would be, but found the words wouldn't come.

"So...?" Alex asked for me.

The corner of Dad's mouth twitched, then he smiled. "I'm afraid you have nothing to worry about other than maybe some more difficult chores."

Alex and I looked at each other, then his face broke out into a smile while mine remained obviously confused. "I don't understand. I thought..."

Dad answered as my sentence trailed off. "I talked with him. Although the conversation was very one sided in his favor, the master has come to terms with the truth, and as long as our "family drama" does not impede on our tasks here, he doesn't really seem to mind. It's not as if having children violates anything in our contract."

"So there's no repercussions?" I asked. "At all?"

"He isn't too happy about the fact you lied about your identity, but the only drawback really seems to be the fact he knows how strong the both of you potentially are now. I'm sure your chores will become more demanding." He smiled at me again. "Just in time, don't you think?"

I couldn't help but smile back, nodding. I'd gotten better just in time. New chores shouldn't be an issue.

We all basked in our happiness for a few moments longer, then a new thought occurred to me. "Dad, have you heard from Samantha? Is she doing alright?"

Samantha, after I'd gotten considerably stronger, had asked permission to leave the estate for a while to check in on her family and make sure they were still okay. Dad had let her go, and I doubt Ciel ever noticed she left.

His smile softened. "She hasn't reached out to me, but I can assure you she is fine. She was going to go back to the other estate once she left her family. Someone there will let us know when she has arrived back. At this point, I'd say no news is good news."

I nodded. It wasn't like she had a way to contact any of us without coming back here.

Dad walked over and wrapped his arms around me. "I know you miss her, but I can promise you you'll see each other again. You both have long lives ahead of you."

I smiled and nodded again, hugging him back. He was right. We would all be alive for a very long time. One day, our paths would cross again, and it'd be like we'd never said goodbye.

"Well," Dad said as he released me, "we have plenty of work to be catching up on. Were you and Finny finished in the garden, Selena?"

"Yup. Everything was planted, weeded, and watered. Now we're just waiting for something to grow!"

"In that case, you will resume maid duties with Mey-Rin, while Alex, you and I are going down to the kitchen. It seems Baldroy found his flamethrower again..."

Alex and I laughed as we all exited the sitting room and split paths. The boys went toward the kitchen, while I left to find the Phantomhive maid.

I found her in one of the drawing rooms, trying to clean one of the glass display cases, checking for any sign of dust through her cracked glasses.

"Would you like some help with that, Mey-Rin?" I asked softly.

She started, pushing harder on the glass case than she had meant to. The case swayed slightly, and I quickly grabbed it before any damage could be done.

"I'm sorry," I told her, opening the case and righting a couple of pieces of decor that had fallen over. "I really tried not to scare you."

"No, I'm sorry!" she yelled loudly, waving her hands. "I'm so clumsy, yes I am!"

I gave her a comforting smile as I closed the case. "Are you clumsy, or is it the broken glasses?"

She quickly turned away. "Don't take me glasses, please! The master gave me these! I'm extremely farsighted and I can't see without them!" She was clutching the frames to her face and shaking her head. I sighed.

"I'm not going to take them. I know how special something can be when it is given to you as a gift. I have a few items I treasure as well. But don't you think it's about time you got some new glasses? You don't have to get rid of those, you know."

She turned back to me, tears in her eyes. "But, the young master-"

"Surely Ciel would much rather have his maid be actually able to perform their tasks than worry over some glasses you aren't wearing."

Mey-Rin looked down at the ground, thinking.

"You don't have to make an immediate decision. I'm just trying to help. I really don't think he'd be angry as long as you were able to see and get your job done."

There was a long silence between us after that. I didn't want to push her anymore, so I picked up a rag and went to clean the furniture in the room. The maid watched for a moment, then returned to work as well.

We cleaned for a solid half hour before Mey-Rin broke the silence. "Um, miss. Can I ask you something?"

I straightened myself and looked at her, nodding.

"Well, the thing is... I'm not sure how to put this..."

"Did you want to ask about my wings?"

The young woman slowly nodded, staring at the ground. "I've wanted to ask ever since I first saw them, I have, but there was never really a good time."

I didn't say anything. I simply smiled at her, then unfurled my wings.

The maid stared at them speechlessly for a long time, before finally uttering, "Woah."

I stood before her patiently. "What would you like to know about them?"

"I don't know where to start!" She exclaimed. "How? Why? When? Who are you, miss?"

"It's quite the story. Are you sure you want to know?"

She nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! Tell me!"

With an intrigued smile, I told her my story.