"Well, luckily the Eleazars never have to worry about that as Master Silas can always handle any daytime business,"
Those were the last words Edgar had uttered towards Arabella before finally adding, "let us not stay here more than we need to be as your presence might be distracting," the young man chuckled.
To say that her presence could distract the workers was an understatement as the supervisor had been barking at the servants to focus on work louder than his usual. Their eyes continued to slide to the side, following her figure until she disappeared behind the wall.
It was understandable, they were human and she was too, a beautiful young woman at that. A bit of an intriguing one for sure, but if anything that fact only added to her charm.
Her sight reminded Silas that he'd found no opportunity to speak to his mother about the conversation she needed to have with Arabella. Not that the matter had completely escaped his mind.
"There we have it, Master," the head of the servants came running to Silas with more stacks of paper, "The last seventy lounge chairs to be delivered for the celebration," drenched in his own sweat, the man made the clearly conscious decision to keep some distance between himself and Silas, even though he was never asked to.
Only his diamonds followed the man's motions as the vampire remained still in his spot, "Right," his eyes then snapped towards the men in formal attire that descended from the newly arrived carriages, "Let one of the butlers guide them to the ballroom. I'll await them there,"
"Of course, Master," the servant bowed.
Silas settled in the ballroom until the music orchestras came in separate groups, instrument cases in hand.
He ordered them to start, and the men played their pieces to the best of their abilities in the hopes of impressing him; their hearts gave that away about their efforts.
Music filled the room as one after the other, the teams performed before Silas until the last of them came and went. Without taking any notes, the vampire had already made his decision which he was sure his mother would second.
Silas communicated his decision to the butler that had been standing by his side. He sat in place watching as the man approached the orchestras that had stood out and guided them out of the room while the rest gathered their things to go back from whence they traveled.
As Silas walked out of the ballroom, a singular heartbeat stood out from the lot. It seemed to follow in his tracks and when he reached a deserted corridor, he finally stopped and called them out.
"What is it you need, human?" his voice blared, raising the heart rate of whoever lurked in the unknown.
Only seconds were necessary for Edna to come around the corner, looking all coy, "It is I, Master. I merely sought to know if there was anything you were in need of," she smiled.
Silas turned to face the way he'd initially been heading in before speaking, "If I were to need something, I shall make it known. Until then, return to your work. There's much to be done around the manor these days," the vampire took a few steps ahead, but then stopped to add, "And I don't fancy repeating myself so do not follow me again. I won't be kind the next time,"
Without another word or consideration to Edna's raging heart, Silas resumed his walk out to the gardens where Arabella stood and watched Edgar work.
The two humans beamed as they discussed gardening and greenery.
From where he stood, Silas caught their conversation about white roses and how Arabella's mother loved them more than any other plant or flower.
The lack of tension and strain in their voices was hard to ignore. There was a remanence of restraint or timidity in Arabella's tone here and there, but the vampire chalked it up to a force of habit in her instead of a sign of discomfort in the gardener's presence.
All in all, they seemed to enjoy each other's company.
Silas walked through the gardens, making sure to stay out of their sight and kept on going, crossing all the way to its end and then beyond it, following the paved path leading to the limit of the property.
Only about twenty feet away from the main gates did he stop to take the way branching out towards the granite fashioned mausoleum.
The vampire stood for a moment to admire the tall statues guarding each side of the entrance then the carvings garnishing its exterior walls.
A wave of relief washed over him as he noted that the place had been well maintained since his last visit which went back a decade or so before. Pristine both inside and out.
Silas' diamonds traveled over the silver coated names and dates painted on the marble plates lining the walls all the way to a single, large tomb that rested at the heart of the construction.
He eyed the name and dates engraved on its side intently before pushing the granite lid topping the bed of eternal sleep with great ease.
Well conserved and besides his marble patterned, gray skin, Emeric Eleazar looked exactly the same as the day he'd drawn his last breath and what a day that was! Carved itself in Silas' mind to haunt him for the rest of his life.
A particularity found only in vampires whose bodies never went through the decomposition process contrary to every other species.
His departed father seemed so peaceful as though he'd merely been getting some rest in order to rise again the next day.
Silas placed the lid back as it'd been before then exited the mausoleum. Such curious creatures humans were, he thought.
They'd declared war against every intelligent species and fought tooth and nail for a stretch of land, leading to so much loss only to realize, in the end, that even with weapons certified to take vampires down, the price to carry on with the war was too steep.
And their pride… Oh! Their pride! No nightwalker could ever compete when it came to that.
Even at a loss, they refused to admit it and instead demanded a truce.
Utterly incapable of coexisting and sharing with others and when they raised a country of their own, they found out they couldn't stand each other either.
Arabella and every human that came seeking shelter were proof of that.
On his way back to the manor, Silas spotted Arabella once more, smiling radiantly as she watered the flower beds.
Edgar was close by spreading manure around various plants before mixing it into the dirt.
"... No wonder father prohibited her from gardening," a little laugh had escaped Arabella at the end of her sentence.
That had been all that Silas had caught of it, the beginning of their conversation might as well have been lost to time.
"Your father prohibited your mother from gardening!" Edgar sounded a bit taken aback from the way he half asked.
"Well, he sure had a lot to say about it," she spoke in a quieter tone before chirping up again, "Which is why I even asked. How come your shirt remains in such an immaculate state? My mother could never!"
"I am… Not entirely sure what to say to that. I never really paid attention to this," the young man chuckled.
The pair remained silent for a moment but then Edgar's voice rose again, "But… I will ask the Lady about it," he nodded, a tad more serious while looking at Arabella.
"Ask her about what?" she wondered.
"The rose hedges in these gardens are of many colors, except for white," he smiled, his eyes on the hedges in the distance, "I shall ask the Lady permission to sow some white rose bushes,"
Many sparks flickered in Arabella's eyes upon hearing those words, "Really?" her heart flittered, "You would do that?"
"Of course! I see it would bring you much joy. I believe it's worth the try,"
Something ticked in Silas… Something he, himself, had no way of understanding, let alone explaining.
Perhaps it was the gist of his words or the effect they had on the young woman, but it gave Silas the inexplicable desire to stand between the two and put an end to their exchange.
Long before he thought things over, Silas flashed before Arabella whose light immediately dimmed upon locking eyes with his.
Frozen in place she stood, gripping the watering can which dangled closer to the ground, threatening to slip out of her hands.
"Master,"
As always, it was Edgar's voice as he bowed that had hauled her out of her daze, making her spring into action and curtsy before Silas, "Master," she too muttered.
His eyes bore into hers and for once, she did not turn away, too stunned to react as per her usual, but that allowed the vampire to study those clear gemstones, lacking any veil that might diminish their sheen.
"Come with me," he ordered, then turned to leave, offering nothing else.
Arabella gave one last glance towards Edgar before putting the watering can down and speeding away to catch up with Silas.