Maid For You 2

Chapter 11

And, more or less, that was how the next few days went. Prince Nikolas was a man of habit. Every morning, he would lay out the plan for the day, and I always knew what to do and where to be at all times. He was naturally a very tidy sort of person, so cleaning up after him took hardly any time at all. He was very rigid and precise, but in a way, I found it rather refreshing. I didn't go into everyday wondering what to expect. His schedule hit the same beats every day. Breakfast at 6:00. Lunch at 12:00. Piano at 12:30, etc.

On Sunday evening, I was heading to the dining hall for my own dinner when I saw Prince Coleman headed down the hall. I bowed in respect, and started to continue when he—unsurprisingly—started to talk.

"Bowing to me, are you?" His eyebrow rose in amusement. "Has Prince Nikolas managed to civilize you, then?"

I shrugged. "I'm just following proper procedure, Prince Coleman."

"Yes, but this is you that we're talking about."

I laughed. "Quite true. Perhaps your Nikotan nemesis has tempered me somewhat." I decided not to add that it was because Prince Nikolas didn't act crazy and that I always knew what to expect.

The same could not be said about Coleman.

"How have you been?" I asked. "It feels like I haven't seen you in forever, between my bedrest and now serving Prince Nikolas."

"I've been fine. Isabella is doing a good job in your absence. However, Mama's been most agitated."

"Your mother? Why?" I asked. I wondered if it had something to do with my queen maiden position. Perhaps Queen Klara was having regrets? Though, if she really wanted to, she could rescind the offer with very few consequences. After I had already told Lydia and my parents, the Queen told me that I should keep the fact that I was queen maiden a secret, since the general public wasn't supposed to know until Friday. Only the household heads were to know, and the rest of the staff would be informed on Thursday night.

"My grandmother is coming," Prince Coleman answered. "On my father's side. She and my mother do not get along very well."

"Oh, that's unfortunate."

"Grandmother used to live here at the castle with both my parents, as there was plenty of room and it was fairly customary." Prince Coleman then laughed. "Father had to give his mom her own mansion by Lake Sherano and 'ask' her to move there in order to save his marriage."

"That bad, then?" I asked.

"Grandmother visits during the Autumn Festival, Christmas, and birthdays, and Mama hates that. But she gets most vexed when Grandmother occasionally shows up unannounced."

"Why do they fight so much?" I asked.

Prince Coleman looked as though he was about to answer, but then he broke into a mischievous grin. "Would you like to see why?"

"What do you mean?"

"Grandmother is coming in an hour, after dinner. You can come watch the whole show."

I smiled. "Alright then. But first, I have to eat."

"Of course," Prince Coleman said. "After you're done with that, come to main exit in the west wing. That's where we'll all be."

I ran into the Luke at the dining hall, and the two of us quickly ate our dinners before both heading to the west wing.

"Is their relationship really so bad?" I asked Luke.

He laughed. "You'll have to wait and see," he said as we turned into the west wing exit hall. It was smaller than other entrances—more intimate. Prince Coleman, Princess Calista, and Queen Klara stood around waiting. Coleman looked at ease in his green sweater and khaki pants. Calista wore a maroon blouse over dark blue jeans, and was leaning back on the wall and scrolling through her phone. Queen Klara wore a berry red dress and stood absolutely rigid.

"Ah, Little Maid, Lucas!" Coleman said as Lucas and I approached. The Queen glanced over at me with an agitated expression.

"Miss Cassie," the Queen addressed me. "Does Prince Nikolas not require your services at the moment?"

"No, your majesty. He doesn't need me after dinner."

"Ah." Her green eyes shot towards the main door, waiting to see if it opened.

"I figured Cassie might as well meet Grandmother," Prince Coleman said. "Since she is the queen maiden, and she ought to know what she's getting herself into."

Princess Calista suddenly dropped her phone. "You're the queen maiden?" She suddenly cried. She swooped down remarkably gracefully to scoop up her phone, before turning to face me. "But you're a maid."

"That is of no matter," Queen Klara said. "I felt Cassie was an excellent choice for the role."

"But why?" Calista asked bluntly, to which her mother didn't respond. At that moment, the doors to the exit began to open, and in stepped an old woman in her sixties with short, curly (presumably dyed) brown hair wearing a firetruck red dress that clashed horribly with her skin tone. An obscene amount of gold and diamond necklaces draped themselves around her neck, no less than six gaudy rings on cluttered her fingers, and big fat gold cluster earrings camped onto the ends of her sagging ears. Prince Coleman's Grandmother could have been spotted a mile away.

"My little Coleman!" she cried in a high voice with a posh Areganan accent. "My little Calista!" She rushed up to her grandchildren, hugged them furiously, and placed kisses on their cheeks that stained them with red lipstick. "My, my, Calista!" Grandmother places her knobby hands on Calista's shoulders. "Well I think you've grown a little bit from the last time I saw you!"

"Thanks, Grandmama," Calista answer bashfully as she rubbed her cheek and smeared her Grandmother's lipstick stain. "Though, I haven't grown as much as I would have liked."

Grandma deCourcy's voice dropped from its whimsical, high pitch and dropped into a more gravely sound. "That's because of your mother, Calista." She shook her head. "She was a late bloomer, I'm afraid."

It was at that moment that Queen Klara spoke up. "Welcome to the palace, Marjorie." Her voice sounded a little strained, drained of its normal jubilance.

"Ah. Klara." Grandma's voice was clipped. "I've told you before, don't call me Marjorie. That's for friends."

My jaw dropped.

"Oh really?" Queen Klara rose an eyebrow, and smiled with a hint of venom. "Shall I call you 'mother,' then?"

Grandma's face contorted into a sneer. "Mrs. deCourcy will do just fine."

Queen Klara placed on a tight-lipped smile. "Well, that could be confusing as I am Mrs. deCourcy myself."