Chapter 1 - Flora

A loud knock on the door of my bedroom jolted me awake. I hurriedly got out of bed and opened the door. My father was standing outside impatiently as he tapped his foot on the tiled floor.

“Flora, finally! Have you seen the time? It’s way past your wake-up time!” He scolded.

“Sorry, father. I was in a deep slumber…” I mumbled.

“Get dressed into something presentable and meet me in the common room”

I nodded and he left. Sighing, I closed the door, picked out a royal blue dress and a pair of blue flats to match it with. I took a warm bath and dried off my body with a towel.

Slipping into my dress, I let my red hair down and combed it with a hairbrush before styling it. I put on my flats and made my way to the common room where my father patiently waited for me on the sofa. He looked a little lost in thoughts until he took notice of me.

Giving me a once over, he got on his feet and approached me. “Perfect! Let’s go now!” He said and hurried out of the door. What was he up to?

We both got into his car and settled down before he instructed his driver to start driving. I was very confused by his sudden change in behaviour. “What is it, father?” I questioned him.

“You will know soon. Now, I want you to be obedient and nice, okay?” He raised a brow, waiting for me to answer.

“Y-yes, father!” I quickly responded.

None of us spoke any further and I turned my head to look out of the window. There were many humans walking by, smiling, chattering and interacting with others. Despite there being two kinds living on this ground, there was peace. No wars, no fights, no hate, nothing. I wonder just how us mages and humans maintained such peace.

Because according to what was mentioned in our history, humans and mages were never on such a good term with each other. The fact that we mages had supernatural powers was the reason the humans felt the need to fight us.

My thoughts disappeared as soon as I saw where we were heading. To the manor of the alleged ruthless warlock, Blade Yarrow. A chill went down my spine. I wasn’t ready for what was to come.

What was my father even planning? What work would he have with this warlock? Had we been summoned by Mr. Yarrow himself? All kinds of questions wandered through my mind. I had a feeling of dread bubbling in my stomach. Was it going to go all down from here?

The gates at the borders of the manor opened up and our car was let inside. My heartbeat picked up as my palms started to sweat. I wanted to run away from here right this second. Sensing my anxiousness, my father placed a hand on my shoulder, making me look at him. “Don’t worry too much. Stay calm and collected” he said softly.

I was helpless. So I had to force myself to stay calm. Once our car had come to a halt, my father quickly got out of the car and I mimicked him. My eyes wandered through the dark exterior of the manor. It had 3 storeys with an attic. The manor seemed to have a lot of rooms just by looking at the stretch of it. I wouldn’t be surprised if I forgot my way in here. Having such a large place to live in sounds like a dream. A dream I wanted to be true.

We slowly walked toward the large wooden double doors engraved with swirls and weird designs. As if sensing our arrival, the double doors opened and a maid along with a man dressed in formals stood there. The maid had her head low in respect.

“My greetings, Mr. Harper and Miss. Harper!” The man in the suit greeted us. “I’m Lenox Herrington, the butler of this manor!” He introduced himself.

Lenox seemed to be nearing his 50’s by the wrinkles on his face. His hair had already become mostly grey with a few streaks of dark brown in between. His hazel eyes were dull with some patterns starting to form around his irises. He looked wise.

“It’s a pleasure to see you, Mr. Herrington!” My father’s lips curled up a little as he kept a straight face—or tried to.

I decided to keep quiet and lower my head. I didn’t want to get into trouble or interact with anyone. “The maid here will show you to the meeting room. Lord Blade will join you shortly” Lenox said.

“Thank you, Mr. Herrington!” My father thanked the butler. Lenox signalled the maid to proceed with her task and we quickly followed her. We walked through a long passageway with a few doors on either side of it. At the end of the passageway, there was a large brown door with a bronze round doorknob. The maid opened the door and let us in.

Without speaking a word, the maid turned around, walked out of the meeting room and closed the door behind her. I absentmindedly played with the trinket on my bracelet.

“Flora, you are not to speak unless prompted to. Do you understand?” My father said in a low voice.

“Yes father…” I looked away from his blue eyes which matched mine. Even if he had not made such a request, I wouldn’t dare interfere. I’ve already faced the consequences of such a behaviour. It wasn’t pleasant, to say the least.

The sound of the doorknob turning caught our attention. My father got on his feet and tapped on my shoulder to do the same. I had barely gotten up from the sofa when my eyes turned to the person walking through the door.

Lord Blade Yarrow walked in with a surge of royalty and elegance radiating off of him. His light grey eyes locked with my blue eyes immediately. My breathing slowed down as my heart started to beat with no steady rhythm. This man scared me. Maybe it was the rumours surrounding him or the mysterious aura he radiated but needless to say, this man was scary.