Killing On Command

Chapter 6

The Cheshire family were escorted through the gates and into the grounds of the Miller's manor by a man in a waistcoat, shirt and smart trousers. Alex shuddered as she stumbled forward, toward the large building. It looked ancient, and it probably was. It was easy to tell  that there was something sinister about the place by the drop in temperature she felt as she walked through the gates. She turned and looked at how Scarlotte was walking, looking down at her feet and noting the perfect pace and graceful steps she was taking. When trying to put it to practice, Alex tripped, barely recovering from the fall. She heard a snicker of laughter from Scarlotte as she looked down at her. She decided at that point that she'd carry on walking as she had done before.

The doorman bowed at them as they approached the entrance; a large oak door with a brass lion-head door knocker, and Alex looked to her father for a little guidance. He gestured for her to smile, and nodded at the doorman, who opened the door in one swift movement, as if it was made out of paper. She let her father, who had linked arms with her sister, walk in first before she followed.

The entrance hall was beautiful. With the amount of artifacts of ancient origin lying carefully on pedestals and the beautifully polished silver chandeliers holding candles from the ceiling in this room, Alex knew that she out of place. Of course, she resisted the urge to let her mouth drop in awe as she eyed the magnificent paintings on the walls, and the royal red and gold walls of the hall. Even the ceiling was a beautiful sight; a beautiful mural of the kingdom was painted to the smallest detail around a golden fixture in the centre, which held the chandelier in place.

"Its beautiful," Scarlotte muttered, looking around at her surroundings as Alex had been doing. Neither of the girls had seen anything so beautiful in their lives, and they probably would never see anything like this again.

"You're telling me," Alex said, speeding up walking a little so that she could get ahead. At the far end of the hall lay a large archway, which Alex presumed would usually hold iron bars to protect the rest of the manor.

"Ah! Mr Cheshire!" A native voice called from their left. Alex turned, only to see a tall man with dark brown hair walking toward them. She recognized him as none other than Lord Miller.

"Lord Miller, I can only hope we haven't kept you waiting for too long." Grogg greeted, exchanging a friendly handshake with the man. The two couldn't be more different. Grogg must have been at the man's shoulder height, but still looked a little more confident with his build and posture. It was far more superior, as Lord Miller didn't have much to him at all, with an exception from his height.

"Not at all, not at all," He replied, shaking Grogg's hand rather excitedly. He was grinning, but the smile on his face seemed forced as he turned to look at Alex and her sister. "Ah, and you must be the fine daughters of this man!" He sarcastically greeted. Scarlotte's face reddened and she smiled widely at the man. Alex's face stayed hard, just as Zack's words echoed in her head once more. 

You have to make them hate you. 

"Smile will you? You're making me look bad." Scarlotte muttered viciously through gritted teeth. Alex raised an eyebrow at her as Lord Miller held out his hand to her. She rolled her eyes. 

"Alexandria, behave, will you?" Grogg pushed, forcefully linking their hands. After a brief and awkward handshake, Alex wiped her hand on her dress, as if it were filthy.

"I take no offence, Mr Cheshire," Miller said calmly. "I understand that adolescence has caused this, and that she wishes not to be married." He laughed. Alex looked up at him, almost disgusted.

"Can we just get this over with so that I can scrub myself sooner?" Alex asked, causing the same look of horror she'd gained from her father and Scarlotte to be present again. "What did I say?" She asked innocently. She wiped her hands on her dress and pulled part of her fringe out of her face. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw red hair whip around the corner.