𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝘼𝙧𝙚 𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝘼𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚 | 𝙋𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙤𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙊𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙖

xxv. No One Would Listen

Charlotte sighed and glanced over at Angelina's bassinet, finding her fast asleep. She had been up in the bedroom for three days, and frankly, she was getting tired of it. Yes, she understood that Erik wanted her to rest, but putting her on bed rest for three whole days felt a little excessive.

After letting out another sigh, she stood up and peeked out the door. At finding Erik nowhere in sight, she stepped out into the hall and grinned.

Freedom at last.

She walked down the hall and down the stairs into the kitchen, where she saw Nadir at the table. "Sneaking out, I see?" he said, hardly lifting his eyes from his newspaper.

"Three days, Papa. I haven't left that room in three days," Charlotte sighed. "I'm going crazy."

"I know, my darling. Erik is just looking out for you, but I was going to talk to him about letting you out and about. Now it seems you can do that yourself."

"I might just tie him up in the guest room and leave him there for a week. See how he likes it," Charlotte chuckled, pouring herself a cup of coffee. "Speaking of which, where is he?"

"He stepped out. A meeting with a client, I believe. He said he wouldn't be back for an hour or so, so you have a bit of time," Nadir replied.

"Praise the Lord in heaven," Charlotte sighed. "Did Gustave get back from school yet?"

"No, but he should be back any minute now."

"Alright. Is there anything you'd like to do in the meantime?"

"You're the one who's been going stir crazy. You choose what you'd like to do," Nadir said with a smile.

"Perhaps we could play a game of chess?"

"Sounds good. Will it be interrupted by Angelina or is she asleep for the moment? Chess isn't usually a quick game unless one of us manages to overtake the other abnormally fast."

"Angelina is soundly asleep," Charlotte nodded. "And don't worry, I've been practicing."

"Have you? Someone's confident," Nadir chuckled as he got to his feet.

"Yes, I am," Charlotte said with a giggle. "Let's play in the parlour."

Nadir nodded and followed her into the parlour, quickly setting up the chessboard. "How are you feeling after all your bed rest?" he asked.

"I feel glad to be out of bed," Charlotte nodded.

"I would imagine," Nadir said with a laugh. "But I know that you are aware that Erik only has your best interests at heart. The way he executes that is lacking, but he's trying to help."

"I know, I know," Charlotte sighed. "I love him, but it gets exhausting when he's like this."

Nadir nodded. "He can be tiring. You'll talk to him about it, I'm sure."

"If he'll even listen," Charlotte replied, moving her bishop. "Check."

"He will. If he doesn't, I'll talk to him myself," Nadir replied as he made his own move.

"Nice try," Charlotte chuckled, taking his rook with her queen.

"You have been practicing."

"Quite a bit," Charlotte nodded. "When was the last time we played together? Back in London?"

"I think so. Much too long," Nadir said with a smile.

"Agreed," Charlotte smiled.

It was then that the pair heard the front door open, shortly followed by Gustave walking into the room. "Hello," he said. "Charlotte, you're out of bed!"