Persuasion in the Pantry [Maid for More #1]

Chapter 34 Part 1: The Wyvernstone Ball

[Before you enter the ballroom...would you like to be privy to a secret (chapter) that only the Agents are aware of? Last night Cain had a dream before he got dressed for the occasion at his friend's home, and if you would like to read it just 'follow' me and refresh your library. If you still can't find it then here is the link: https://www.wattpad.com/311252891-persuasion-in-the-pantry-maid-for-more-1-secret . The sensuous secrets of his mind awaits you...]

Cain swirled the cool punch in his crystal glass and wondered at the extravagance of his friends' home. Where Bexley Manor was crafted from marble and light, Wyvernstone Hall was one of mahogany and granite cut and placed with the harsh weathering of a gothic castle. It was an impressive structure made more lavish by the heavy draperies and jewel encrusted ornaments that its Duchess took pleasure in. Left to her own devices the house had become a statement of wealth rather than familial solace. However, for at least one night a year, there would be no shadows or solitary corners. Every window was illuminated with beeswax candles that reflected its warmth into the gardens beyond. Music swelled from room to room, soaring to the vaulted ceiling and seeping under doorways to fill the ancient home with the illusion of mirth. Even the liquid freezing Cain's palm was chilled to perfection with ice from the Duchess of Wyvernstone's personal vault. He imagined it to be in plentiful supply if it was anything like her heart. There was no love lost between mother and son, and the annual gathering was an amicable agreement to give the impression of a happy ducal family.

Cain's lips touched the frosted goblet and he sipped at the pleasant mixture of peach and lemon. Amid the floating swirls of lace that trailed around the seasons debutants like kite strings invitations to anyone inclined to take hold, he was consumed with the words of his Queen. Even more heavily, the warnings of the Crimson Guild Mistress wormed its way into his mind. His city was being overrun with the dealings of men and women whom he could not see and it irked him like nothing else. There was once a time when he could have named every Agent in his employ and know the exact status of each mission, unravelling the threads with the ease of a tailors trained hand. But, ever since Queen Victoria's ascension to the throne and her recent marriage, there were too many hands trying to grasp and clutch at power in any way they could. Something had to be done, and yet he was relegated to play dutiful son at a country gathering where nothing more glorious than an unhappy marriage was envisioned for him.

The dancing portion of the evening had begun and Cain furtively ignored the searching eyes of many matronly mothers all waiting to throw their daughters his way. He strode around the edge of the ballroom aiming for the card room at the far end with all the haste of a gunshot. At some point in the evening he had lost track of both his mother and his friend. It seemed unlikely that Jay would excuse himself from duties as a host despite how lamentable it must be to stand next to the Duchess of Wyvernstone in painful artifice, however it was far stranger that Cain's own mother would not latch on the opportunity to saddle him with some wide eyed debutant with even wider hips.

He had almost gained the periphery when an uncommon scuffle from the ballroom entrance caught his attention. Under the arches illuminated by several candelabras were several members of the ton all clucking characteristically in the direction of the open doorway. Cain's only concern was that such a group would soon be singed if they were to swell any more in numbers, but for a few brief seconds he glimpsed Jay's dark hair elevated over the heads of his guests.

Finally, Cain thought. He was not going to allow himself to be left to the prying talons of advantageous marriages whilst his best friend escaped unscathed.

He straightened his dinner coat and made his way back, skirting the many human obstacles in his path. However, for once none of them seemed to even notice his presence. It was one thing to be turned over in favour of the hosting duke, but quite another to be ignored all together, and Cain was not an admirer of the latter.