The Five Manors

Chapter 6 My Trainer

Once they had us exit the plane they had us line up on the large concrete stretch we had landed on. There was a large building in the about a hundred feet away that was lit up by a few lamp posts and beyond that . . . . Were those mountains? It was hard to tell in the dark but there seemed to be huge lumps, blacker than the night sky, that rose up in the distance.

I shiver, suddenly feeling cold. It wasn't freezing outside but I was thankful for my light jacket.

I look up and down the line we had formed. We all stood behind a thick red line that seemed to be painted on the concrete. A couple guards were standing a few yards away and once we had lined up they had informed us all that our instructors would be here shortly to give us our instructions. We would be alone from there. No more royal guards to watch over our every move and to baby sit us. I was shocked but relieved when I heard they wouldn't have to watch over us anymore. Something about being more independent, one of the guards had said when I had asked him why they wouldn't watch us anymore. When I had then asked who had given him those orders, for certainly it couldn't have been the queen, he had said that it had been one of our instructors.

I smiled at the fact that our instructors had more authority than a royal guard here.

At one point an officer had come up to speak to us about safety regulations, but I had only half listened. Only one goal was occupying my thoughts right now. Vincent. I needed to find him as soon as possible.

Right when the officer got to the part about us needing to drink a lot of water is when I notice three figures stalking towards us from the building. The officer quickly finishes his lecture and moves out of the way. I'm assuming these are our instructors. As the three people get closer, I notice that only one of them is male. A few more seconds pass and then I notice that the male instructor seems to pick up his speed. As he got closer his gaze seemed to hover somewhere over our heads. Was he looking for someone? My question was answered a few moment later when he stands only a yard in front of us.

"Where the hell is the fifth girl?" the man barks.
His first words take me by surprise. Did he seriously not know? You would expect that our instructors would be told this information prior to our arrival.

"She's dead," I snap at him. I didn't care if I was showing attitude to an instructor. Any other answer from anyone else would require a minute of beating around the bush, so it would be best to just get the answer out there.

Everyone's heads snap to me in surprise. I don't glance to either side of me to see it but I can sense everyone's sudden tension. I can't see the man's reaction clearly because of the darkness but was that . . . amusement on his face? Shock? Sadness?

"The fifth girl was attacked sir," speaks a guard from behind me. "The morning after she was chosen."

"Oh," is all the man says.

"We are sorry. We thought you had already been informed about this sir," finished the guard.

"No, I wasn't," the words seem to be forced out of the man's mouth. Listening to him more closely, I hear that he doesn't sound like an adult at all. He was only a boy. He couldn't be much older than me.

By this time, the two female instructors had caught up. They stood next to the boy and he glanced over at them as they approached. "You didn't tell me that there was only four now," said the boy.

One of the females sighs. From the glint of the moon I can see that her hair seems to be a platinum color. "We didn't think it was necessary to inform you of that Sir Alvarez," the woman remarks. By the sound of her mature voice, she had to be in her thirties.

The other female instructors' eyes glint in the darkness. "Considering you would only be the instructor of one of the chosen." She clears her throat and for once I wished that Avery and Jasmine could pick up their usual chatter to fill this uncomfortable silence. What this lady had just said sounded like an absolute lie.

"Lets starts fresh, shall we?" remarked the blond. She raked her steel gaze over all of us.

"Welcome to the Fourth Manor. We will be your instructors for the next few months until we are given new orders by Queen Krea for a change in plans. This is still a place of formality even though you are out of your . . . princess dresses." She says those two words with disgust. " You will call us only by the names we tell you to. There will be no "Okay"s or "Sure"s but only certain answers." The blond turn to the woman next to her.

The woman with the shining eyes, picks up where the blond left off. "Training is every day but Sunday. Beyond that, only your trainer is in charge of your schedule." While this woman still spoke with a stern voice her attitude seemed kinder. I wouldn't mind if she ended up being my instructor. "You will call me Lady Delia," she says and then looks to the blond. "You will call her Lady Estrella and as you have already heard, this is Sir Alvarez." Delia finishes. I suddenly notice how pale her skin is.

I take a quick glance over to Alvarez and notice the square set of his shoulders. He was tense. Something was upsetting him but I wasn't sure what. He couldn't be that upset over the fifth girl, Catherine, not being here. It's not like he knew her.

"You all will see each other again some time this week. Any questions before you are assigned to your trainers?" Estrella asks.

To my surprise, Avery actually has the nerve to raise her hand.

"Yes?" Estrella asks Avery as if she were a student sitting in elementary school.

"I thought you guys were our instructors," Avery says.

Uh oh. I hold my breath and I bet some of the others do too. I am expecting Estrella to snap at her, but instead I hear her release a breath. "We are both. Your instructor and trainer." Her eyes than go down to the clipboard she is holding. She leans over to Delia and says something into her ear before handing her the clipboard.

"Alright," Delia starts. She takes a step to where Avery and Jasmine are standing and I notice that Delia's hair is a flaming red color. Interesting. "Avery and Jasmine?" She quirks an eyebrow to see if she got their names correct. They don't protest, so she continues. "You are with Lady Estrella."I'm not sure what the girls reactions are for I am too focused on who Zarina is about to get. "Zarina." Delia smiles. "You are with me."

All my blood seems to suddenly flow to my feet while Delia takes two steps towards me. "That leaves Guinevere Lynn Woods with Sir Alvarez," Delia finishes. Was it just me or did I hear a smirk in her voice?

I notice Alvarez shift his position right before Delia leans in closer to me and whispers six simple words in my ear, "The things I've heard about you."