Beauty and the Beast

Chapter Two

Chapter Two:

  Isabelle let out a sigh of relief as she watched Gerard mount his horse and trot away from the cottage, agitated.  

"Miss," Lumiere said softly, "We must make haste. My Master does not like to be kept waiting. And this was a direct order."  

"Why?" Isabelle asked, cocking her head slightly to the side. "I have done nothing wrong. Why must he take me?"  

Lumiere grimaced, letting go of the foolish notion that perhaps Isabelle was as weak as she looked. He sighed and looked over at her father who seemed to be a little out of breath and sweaty. 

"You are sick, old man?" Lumiere questioned as he sat down on the couch next to Maurice.   

"Yes," Isabelle answered for him, "he had a heart attack st the end of last winter." She drew the filthy curtains closed over the window and turned around."But don't try to avoid the question, please."  

"How old are you, my dear?" Lumiere asked.  

"I'll be nineteen next Spring," she said. This seemed to surprise Lumiere and Isabelle felt the need to elaborate. "A lot of people think I am younger."  

"Ah, well, on to the matter at hand," Lumiere recovered quickly. It was well known by, at least, the other servants at the estate that Lumiere could talk himself out of most situations. "Master Adam has more than enough to provide for your father in your absence. We will even send a servant or two over to help him fix this cottage up and look after his failing health," he explained to Isabelle.  

"Papa will not be accompanying me?" Isabelle asked, her eyes wide with fear and abandonment.

"He'll be here all by himself?"  

"Of course he won't be here all by himself, dear," Lumiere decided he needed to ease her fears. He leaned back on the couch, as if the conversation they were having was commonplace. "Like I said, he will be well provided for. Forgive me for insinuating, but probably multiple times over what you could possibly do for him on your own."

 Isabelle's mouth opened slightly to retort, but what Lumiere had just said did have some sense. "I have your word?" she asked after a few moments. Her voice was soft, but demanding as her eyes pleaded with Lumiere's brown ones.  

Lumiere felt a stab of guilt, knowing that all the financial stability in the world does not make one forget about the absence of their family, "You have the word of my Master, Isabelle. That's all you really need. He is an honest man."  

Isabelle shivered, remembering his coldness the night before, which led her back to her original question. "He wanted nothing to do with me last night. Why, this morning, does he want me to come there?"  

"I am not privy to that information," Lumiere looked straight into Belle's innocent eyes... and lied. He knew a little bit of the situation, but not enough to really understand it.  

"Belle," Maurice's eyes were glazed over in fresh tears, "Sweetheart, you have to go. Perhaps he'll let you go one day. And then you can come back to me."  

"You don't know him, Papa!" Isabelle snapped, fresh tears stinging her eyes as well. "He wouldn't even let me rest last night when I was lost and found myself at the doors to his Mansion! I do not want to go back there, Papa!"

"Master Adam is a very private man, miss," Lumiere interjected, needing to regain the upperhand in the conversation, "But for reasons that I am not privy to, he has reconsidered and asked me this morning to come and retrieve you."

Isabelle looked back at Lumiere, "You told me I had three days to give you back the basket and cloak."

"And I know that you would have, Isabelle," Lumiere said understandingly, "But you will learn very quickly to obey, and not question, my Master. You are to come with me. Really, miss, you don't have a choice."