Wolf's Bane

The Man in the Library

It was hard for Desiree to think of the mansion as home. It was certainly a far cry from the one-bedroom apartment she'd been sharing with her dad. She saw a few people walking around, cleaning or carrying things.

"You'll get to know my staff soon enough," Andrew assured her as he followed her gaze. "They're all good people and I trust them. You should, too."

Desiree leaned closer to whisper, "Do they all know about what you are?"

"Of course." He didn't bother to lower his voice. "Most of them are werewolves, as well, but of a lower status. I have some humans on staff, but they are from trusted families."

"Right...but you're not an alpha?"

"I told you that concept is ridiculous. I have certain abilities that most werewolves lack, but that hardly makes me a leader."

"But you're their boss, right?"

He paused. "Well, technically, but that has to do with money, rather than my werewolf status. I come from a wealthy family."

"And lower status werewolves tend to come from lower status families?"

"That does tend to happen," he admitted. "It's not because of the reasons you may think, though. I'll explain it properly when we have time."

"We don't have time, now?"

A woman who looked to be about Desiree's age walked over. "Welcome home."

"This is Poppy," Andrew explained. "If you need anything, you may ask her." He turned to the woman. "This is my bride, Desiree. Everyone here is to treat her as they treat me."

"Of course." Poppy offered Desiree a smile. "It's lovely to meet you, at last."

"At last?"

"That's the last bag," the driver told them, having carried in her luggage. "Shall I take them to her room?"

"Please do," Andrew said. "Poppy, will you show Desiree to her wing?"

"I would be happy to." Poppy turned to Desiree. "Please follow me."

Desiree looked at Andrew. "You won't be showing me around?"

"I'll give you the grand tour later," he promised. "Unfortunately, I have some work I must attend to. I will see you again at dinner. In the meantime, feel free to make yourself at home. You may explore as much as you like. If you need anything, ask one of my staff members and they'll take care of it for you."

Desiree wasn't sure how to feel about that. She didn't think she'd be comfortable having people wait on her hand and foot, but it felt wrong to argue. "Okay."

"You should go with Poppy, now," Andrew said.

Desiree turned to the girl who was watching her, expectantly. "Lead the way, I guess."

Poppy obeyed, walking away as Desiree followed behind. Desiree glanced back at Andrew, but he'd already moved on to something else. She realized she was falling behind Poppy and hurried to catch up. They ascended a flight of stairs and headed down a hallway where the walls were covered in paintings. The whole house appeared to be a work of art. Desiree was afraid to even touch the walls. She worried her shoes might ruin the nice floors.

"This hallway houses the head maids and butlers," Poppy told her. "There's two of each and they have different shifts, but one will always be around. If you need something the other staff members don't know about, they'll get one of them to help."

"So they're basically the managers."

"Basically," Poppy agreed.

"Do you enjoy working here?"