Chapter 2 Banquet

The day ran out quickly and soon it was nighttime. The slaves worked nonstop and the only time to rest was at night, when they were all done with their respective activities. Vampires made sure to keep their slaves busy all day.

That night it rained like never before. Evan clung to the blanket as she looked outside the window. The room was cold without any fireplace to bring warmth to it and Evan's childish mind kept wondering why the rain was pouring out this much. Where would the rain pick up all this water to pour down to the earth?

“Get some rest,little Evan, this is the only time we have to rest, girl,” said Mrs. Caviar as she dressed Evan's blanket properly, making sure it covered her.

“Aunty,why is there no fireplace in this room? It's so cold,” said little Evan as she hugged herself tightly.

“Oh dear, I don't kno-” Mrs. Caviar wasn't given the opportunity to finish her statement as Evan threw another question at her.

“Aunty,why is the rain falling so much? Where is the water coming from?”

Evan was still tender and she wondered about everything and was curious to know everything and why they were happening.Back at home when she was still a vampire, her mom would tell her a lot of lies about all this as the girl asked too many questions. Her brother would take his time after coming back from work to explain all this to his sister who listened attentively with more cautiousness.

“Aunty, what about my Mama? Will she visit me?” asked Evan, hoping to hear a positive reply.

Mrs. Caviar shifted closer to Evan, hugging the little girl in her arms and patting her head.

“Don't worry dear,your mom will come. But first you need to listen to everything I say else… she won't come. Understood?” Evan quickly nodded. She desperately wanted to see her mother. And she must do that at all costs.

…

Time passed by quickly;the more Evan grew up, memories about her mother and her family faded. She was now sixteen years of age and no longer a slave as well.

Mrs.Caviar died last year, making sure the girl was no longer a slave but a maid in the first mansion. She was the youngest maid and needed to follow a lot of rules in the mansion. She was not to be seen by any child that belonged to that family. She was just a maid, not here to play, especially with her master's children.

Given the opportunity to leave slavery,Evan was thankful to God and this was an opportunity. Her plan was to save enough money and then find a better place to live. Not that she was planning on leaving this place as the outside world was dearly dangerous.

Today there was a feast held downstairs so the maids needed to do a lot of preparations. Evan was given a lot of work to do by the housekeeper, including cleaning the kitchen. She was never allowed to serve food to the elites when holding an occasion like this. It was a congratulations party for Ezekiel. He was now a Duke of the land.

All his friends and family members were present.Including the lord of this land, who came personally to congratulate him.

Thinking of who this party was for, her mind drifted back to that scary guy. The memory was blurry but not his face, as she saw the face once in a while.

All preparations were now ready just as Mrs.Donovan, Ezekiel's mother, wanted it. She told all the maids to clear up and go to their rooms before the celebration started. The housekeeper started sending in maids to arrange the hall with all different kinds of food.

“Evan,aren't you done cleaning the kitchen?” asked the housekeeper, noticing the girl staring outside the window.

“Sir,I am almost done,” she lied, quickly averting her gaze from what she was absorbed by.

“You know what today is?Be fast,” and with that he took the tray of food and left the kitchen.

Evan sighed sharply as she gripped the fabric on her chest. The housekeeper was so intimidating. He was a half vampire while the rest of the maids were mere humans.

She shifted the thought aside and got to work.

The other maids were almost done with arranging the ballroom;three maids walked into the kitchen to carry the remaining food to the ballroom. They were giggling and laughing.

“The young master is now a duke,he looks so handsome,” said one of them. Evan could tell they were talking about the terrifying guy. ‘A pureblooded vampire with gray eyes? He must possess a lot of ability,’ Evan thought to herself.

“Hi Evan, did you see, the hall is too pretty. Many pureblooded vampires, elites, pretty ladies, and so many pretty men!” one of them said as she hugged the other one happily. “I wish I was rich.”

“Eh!”They all gasped, except for Evan.

“Stop dreaming so big,come on let's go drop this. Let's behave coordinated, maybe someone may spare us a glance, hahaha.”

“You're crazy!Come on guys let's go.” They took the food and left the kitchen blushing. Evan wished she could take a look at the ball. She wished the housekeeper would send her there. And the heavens did answer her prayers.

“Evan, take this red wine to Duke Ezekiel's table. He specifically asked for it,” said the housekeeper, handing her a bottle of wine. It looked thick and expensive. Her gaze lingered on the glass as a moment passed by.

“Evan? Did you hear me correctly?” It snapped Evan back to reality.

“Yes sir,I'm on it.” She quickly left the kitchen and even fixed her hair into a little bun. She entered the ballroom, which was arranged and decorated marvelously. A fresh fragrance mixed in the air. Everything looked admirable and expensive. Evan's eyes darted all over the place, not on the people but on things. Chairs she hadn't dreamed of, food she hadn't dreamed of tasting. And then something drifted her attention. A woman's dress, red as a rose. The woman was a pureblooded vampire, so beautiful and divine.

Evan's gaze lingered on the dress she could admire but never get into. Realizing what she had been doing, she cleared her throat and looked for Ezekiel's table. He was there sitting with his friends as they congratulated him. One girl

wrapped her hand around one of Ezekiel's. As soon as Evan saw that, a deep line of frown formed between her brows. She walked quickly, placed the bottle on the table, and was about to leave when she heard Ezekiel's voice, which left all his friends speechless.

“Have you seen your mother?”

“Huh?”