Royal Hearts and Hidden Truths

TROIS

                                         TROIS 

JEANETTE 

    I immediately sat up, my heartbeat erratic and frantic. My blond locks clung to my neck, wet with perspiration. My heart refused to stop jumping, so I stood up, got out of my room and went outside. 

I sat on the wooden porch, looking up at the starry night. The sweet evening breeze soothed my skin, slowly causing my jumpy heart to eventually relax. 

  "Unable to sleep?", I heard Mother's voice behind me. I turned. Mother was in a white nightgown, her hazel eyes full of concern. I nodded with a small smile. She came to sit beside me.

   "Nightmares?", she asked. I was about to shake my head no, but I paused. "Kind of", I shrugged. Mother looked at me thoughtfully for a full minute before speaking up again. 

   "The Sherpard twins?",. I turned to look at her sharply. "Why would you think that, maman?", I asked with a raised brow. "I don't really know. They used to give me nightmares when I was their nanny. I thought the same just happened with you, you know… meeting them today and all that", she continued with a shrug. 

    "Were they that bad?", I asked in curiousity. "Bad? They were horrible, Anette! Merdre!", Mother said vehemently. Then they were really bad if Mother spoke French.

   "What were some of the things that they did?", I queried. Mother curled up her lips on distaste. "They were so evil, given their ages at that time", she began. "Though I was surprised when Jeune Maître Edùard smiled at me today. They never did that", she said. "Maybe they changed?", I shrugged offhandedly. 

   "Changed? Jeanette, people like that do not change. Do you remember the Fraylian macaw our neighbour Monsieur Dermanté bought for your fourth birthday? You might not-" "I remember, Maman. It was a brightly coloured male and I loved it so much. I named him Porpique, didn't I?", I asked with a nostalgic smile, vividly remembering the proud bird.

   "It's a pity it flew away", I added. Maman's expression changed. "What is it, Maman?", I asked in concern. "It did not fly away, Jeanette", she dropped the bomb. 

   "What do you mean?", I felt dread simmering at the bottom of my stomach. "Those boys, especially the elder one, had sneaked away from their house to the tree where Porpique usually waited on for me. If you remember, he used to fly following me to the Maison de Famille Sherpard". 

"They found out and one day after work, I went there only to find Porpique dead at their feet. With no remorse, they merely shrugged and skipped away, not bothering to apologise", mother finished her story.

   My heart sank. So they killed my Porpique which I thought had escaped and was living quite the life in the wild. "Why did you not tell me?", I asked. "You were too young by the then, and besides you would picked up a fight with them", she replied with a wry smile.

 "That I'd have, and taught them a lesson or two", I nodded. "And Madame Sherpard would have gotten an excuse to give me the sack. No, Anette. I did what was right at that moment, given our circumstances", mother said.

   "They were so cruel", I remarked, remembering the mysterious green eyes I had seen today. They held secrets and mysteries, not cruelty. Nevertheless, I shook my head mentally, they killed my Porpique. For that, I was never going to forgive them. 

                                      ∆.∆.∆.∆.∆

   "Jeanette, today Jeune Maître Edùard requested you send him his breakfast", one of the elderly cooks said to me as I walked into the kitchen in tow with Liana and Bica, two of my closest friends among the maidservants in the Sherpard house. We exchanged glances; theirs of surprise. I did not need a mirror to know my expression screamed disgust and unhappy. 

   "Why? Must I be the one to send his breakfast?", I asked trying to veil the distaste in my tone. "Yes, now scamper off. I've got work to do", the maid waved me off and left. "Why's Jeune Maître Edùard asking for you? Have you offended him in anyway?", Liana asked in concern. "Not that I can remember. Don't worry, I can handle him", I reassured her. 

She let out a soft chuckle which Bica smiled. "I know you can. Just be careful, Jeanette", she said. "I will".

   I reluctantly went for the elaborately stacked up tray and walked away, through the dining room and the parlor, before beginning my ascent on the ebony stairs. 

   "Maria-Jean's daughter", I heard an arrogant voice call. I rolled my eyes and turned to see Madame Sherpard standing at the bottom of the stairs. 

   An indignation towards her family rose within me and before I could register, the words flew out of my mouth. "It's Jeanette, Madame Sherpard". She looked stunned for a while before wrinkling her nose in disdain, her shoulders set so high I could stand on it and touch the sky. 

   "Disrespectful, as expected of a peasant like your kind. Come down", she ordered in a half yell. My anger began to simmer. Who was she to order me around, just because she had been born into a privileged family, when she could nothing without the lot of us? I took deep breaths.

   "Madame, Jeune Maître Edùard asked me to bring him his breakfast. I'm afraid I cannot do your bidding. Who knows what he might do if he's not satisfied", I said in an even tone, giving a curtsey. Her hard face turned white then red and I knew I had gotten her. She feared her sons even if she tried to hide it. "How arrogant! So prickly and uncultured! As expected of a peasant", she huffed and turned around, leaving the parlor. I exhaled in part relief part frustration and turned back to continue my ascent.

   My heart jumped when I saw Jeune Maître Edmondé at the top of the stairs, staring at me. A small smile formed on his lips. "You have balls of steel, Jeanette. First time I've seen a servant talk back at my mother. Interesting", his smile widened and he winked. Despite myself, my cheeks pinked.

 He- scratch that- They were really handsome with their identical shoulder length black hair and striking green eyes, well mewed jaws, and narrow strong noses. The only difference was the slight bump on Edmondé's nose which gave him a slightly feral aura. 

   But beauty had nothing to do with the heart. If you were rotten in the core, outer beauty was worthless.

    I sidestepped him and entered Edùard's quarters, immediately regretting it. He had just walked out of the bathroom, upper torso bare and glistening with droplets of water. I immediately averted my gaze but he had already caught me staring. 

    "Bonjour, Jeune Maître Edùard. Your breakfast", I said. "Send it to my bedroom", he ordered. I nodded and moved to oblige. "Wait. Have you had your breakfast?", he asked and his voice sounded directly behind me. When did he get so close, I wondered, feeling the heat of his body up close. The proximity was messing up with my head and all I could think of and smell was his spicy sandalwood smell. 

   "Jeanette? You've not answered my question", he asked more than stated. "Sorry, yes I have, Jeune Maître Edùard", I answered, forcing all the unwanted thoughts out of my head. 

   "Call me Edùard", he said. "I can't, Jeune Maître. It's disrespectful", I replied. "It's an order", he nearly growled. What the...I did not take nonsense from anyone even if he was the king of France. I swivelled, meeting his glare with one of my own. "An order I cannot obey", I replied. His nostrils flared slightly in anger, I presumed. Then out of the blue, a tiny smile appeared on his face. 

   "Backbone of steel, I see. Give me the tray", he asked, taking the tray from my hands. I quickly dumped it in his hands and deliberately ignored the questioning looks both brothers threw in my direction. I had already overstayed my tolerance.

   "If there's nothing else, Jeunes Maîtres, please excuse me. I've got tons of work to do", and with a curtsey, exited the room as fast as my legs could while trying to ignore the very obvious intense stares I could feel being drilled into my back.