Bab 30: Shadow
The chain clung again, but this time it was heard closer than before and the growls turned deep, set in the back of the throat like a roar. All the time Vincent looked at Prudence, but her eyes did not from the dark passage behind them. First, they saw a big black paw and slowly the feline emerged from behind the shadows.
Prudence snapped her head at Vincent in disbelief. A black panther! Who keeps something so vicious on a leash at home?
Lady Fiona lost her footing on seeing the huge animal which was trained in all aspects and its muscles said that clearly about him. The man who held the chains for Shadow walked towards Vincent and the beast snarled, looking at the unknown persons that he was introduced to it today. "Shadow isn't really social," Vincent chimed as he took the chains from the man who had brought him here before going to pet the panther. Vincent rubbed it under his chin and the feline calmed down, sitting on its back legs.
Lady Fiona lost her footing on seeing a wild beast up this close and she landed on the chair with a thud. The sudden noise jolted Shadow from his calming session with his master and look at Mrs Edler with a snarl again.
Prudence, who was standing right beside the couch where Vincent sat, gulped as she dared not to meet eyes with the beast.
"H-His Grace, why is i-it l-l-looking at me t-that way?" Mrs Edler stuttered as the need to run out of here just increased in the pit of her stomach. Vincent rested his other hand, which held the chains on the backrest. It was a terrifying sight to watch as the long, sharp canines and a deep-set growl was back in the feline's throat.
Vincent loved to see this reaction whenever he brought Shadow out to greet the guests. "Shadow must be hungry. He hasn't had his lunch yet," chimed Vincent as he let go of the chains.
For a moment, his eyes turned towards Prudence and saw she was looking in the front without trying to see Shadow.
Prudence felt a hard gaze on her, and she slowly turned her head towards Vincent. A second there, all the fear she had about the panther disappeared and the fear of Vincent Dominick engulfed her. She saw him leave the chains and her eyes followed quickly to the beast who now made its way towards Mrs Edler. Prudence turned back to Vincent, giving him a pleading look, asking him to stop the unfortunate fate of the Edlers. But simply turned back to watch George and Lady Fiona squirm in fear as Shadow approached them.
"Sit," came the command from Vincent, and Shadow took a seat right in front of Mrs Edler. The big cat licked its whiskers, not moving his eyes away from the rich lady that sat which her legs folded up. "Now, I was questioning George. Mind giving the answer or still want your mother speaking her last words for you."
George looked at Prudence the first thing to see if she would speak up for him.
He was not sure why he was being brought here, and Prudence at this knew not to speak. Guns can be controlled, but a hungry beast was just waiting for his master's order to pounce on the first prey it saw.
There was nothing that George knew at this point. All he could see was that his mother's life was in danger if he did not start speaking soon.
His eyes went to Prudence, and he saw how well she was dressed today. But that did not mean her background had changed. George did not like her to be exact he was simply fond of her. Even though she worked in the stables, the girl was beautiful in her own way and George had never seen any redhead before. Even when he looked at her now, he saw how beautifully her locks of wavy orange hair complimented with her ocean blue eyes and the whitish colour of her skin.
But was till where his infatuation went. There was nothing more he observed than her unique beauty, as the girls in Dewrest did not have such orange hair and those blue eyes were a rarity in itself.
Vincent observed the way George looked at Prudence, and his hand clenched in a fist. "Mr George, I am sure you know that you should talk in front of the king when asked."
"His Grace, my apologies," George presented Vincent a humble bow.
Somewhere when Vincent had asked about his liking towards Prudence, George had hoped he did not confront the matters. Who would admit openly that they were attracted to a stable girl? he thought in his mind. But the way Prudence was dolled up right now, George came to believe that she somehow managed to win Vincent's favour and asked him to set her up with him as his marriage partner. After all, no matter how much George would have liked Prudence, he could not ask her for marriage openly.
Thinking of this as an attempt to get them in a marriage agreement, George spoke what felt right to him, "I like Lady Prudence, His Grace. It had been some time since I have been holding her highly in my eyes and I am sure Lady Prudence feels the same about me."
"Oh, that she does," Vincent chimed with his charming smile, and Prudence was quick to look at him in fear. The uncertainty that this man brought!
Prudence was expecting George to show his place or threaten him to stay away from her, but here Vincent actually spoke like a middleman between them, who was trying to set the two up. "His Grace-" Prudence was about to clear it when Vincent raised his hand for her to stop speaking.
Both the ladies in the room were tongue-tied right now. It was a dangerous scenario, with Shadow sitting here with loose chains right now.
Vincent tilted his head to take a better look at George and spoke, "At lunch today with Prudence here, she confessed her yearning for you. Funny how it hasn't even been a day since I have kept her in this manor and she is already missing her horse farm love interest."
George was someone who had always thought highly of himself and used to assume that Prudence also like him while playing hard-to-get.
It was funny how she had used such means to convey her feelings to him. Maybe it was because of the difference in their status. He did not understand why was His Grace said he was keeping Prudence here. But at this point, George was sitting in front of a ferocious beast and did not see how to handle the situation other than rolling with what Vincent said. "Prudence must have missed our time in when we used to meet at the horse farm. She had always been shy in front of me about her feelings."
Mrs Edler's head snapped at her son. There was no way she was bringing the stable girl home as her daughter-in-law. They were already at the lowest bar between the people of higher status. She wanted someone of good standing to marry her only son.
Mrs Edler leaned to her son and spoke in a loud whisper, "Stop saying nonsense Geor-"
There was a loud roar in the room and Mrs Edler screamed before zipping her mouth shut. Vincent proudly looked at Shadow with a devil's smile on his face.
Prudence was shaken to her core as she thought that the panther would actually now pounce on the lady. She had never heard a roar before, and now that she saw a loosely chained beast in front of her, Prudence could not stop sweating. Her hands wrung against each other. What was even Vincent thinking of trying to get George's confession. Somewhere she would still feel a little luck that she could join the sound and safe family of Edlers than be with the Mafia King.
George gave one glance at the black panther and whispered to his mother, "I think Lady Prudence takes a liking towards me mother, we can sort things out later right now let's just go with what His Grace is saying."
Vincent wanted to play a little more and run the show with their fears dancing on his fingers, but hearing what George said got on his nerves.
"Mrs Edler," Vincent addressed the decision maker of the Edler family, "you both seem to have misunderstood the situation here. Your son has been trying his chances on Prudence for a long time, even though she has been denying it." Mrs Edler shot a sharp glare at George and he instantly shook his head.
"Why would I do that mother," George panicked, as he very well knew how much his mother despised people like Prudence.
Vincent unfolded his leg and brought his elbows to be rested on his knees, "Do you mean to say my claim is false?" The glare in Vincent's eyes was nothing less than what the black panther had right now. Seeing Vincent, this angry the panther gave out a loud roar where the screams from both the Edler mother and son resounded in the air. Vincent was not just a Mafia King in the dark, but also in the lights. Everyone knew about him and his ways.
"No, His Grace," George said immediately, not wanting to anger Vincent. He would handle later his mother, but right now George did not want to be a feast for the wild and hungry beast in front of him.
Vincent raised his brows in a question, "No? but it sounded more like it. Did you never make advances at Prudence?"
Prudence gulped hard, as she did not know what to do to make things right. Even though she did not like George even in the slightest, killing someone was not right. Especially to see someone get to be a feast of the panther who was Vincent's lovely pet and worked on his orders. She decided to not speak and let her mouth ruin anything this time, where George was still looking at her expectantly, that Prudence would save the day.
In George's heart, he thought Prudence liked him, and that is exactly what Vincent knew and wanted to erase. "Prudence, why don't you tell how much you love George?" Vincent asked, holding a passive expression on his face.
Prudence did not know what to say, she was already scared that the Panther might make her the meal next.
But she decided to take this opportunity and get rid of George, "Master George, I am sorry I never held any feelings of you in my heart. It was always you who had been making passes at me."
George's mother was furious at hearing this. She wanted to show the girl her place for saying such things, but there was enough fear on her nerves to keep quiet.
"That was never the case!" George retaliated at Prudence when Vincent gave him a hard glare.
"George, Prudence stays with me now. I don't you anywhere near her. Also, it would be great if you apologised," Vincent looked at Prudence, "aren't you happy here, Prudence?"
Prudence did not know what to say to that. Happy was the last thing she was at the moment.
George was like a small kid as he spoke, "She is clearly in fear, just like us."
It was a compromising position where Vincent loved to put everyone in a state of fear squirming under his gaze. But he wasn't expecting the boy to dare and speak about Prudence in such a way.
Vincent was about to speak when Prudence cut in, "I am happy here, Master George," she glanced at Vincent, who smirked at this sudden turn of event. He was getting bored dealing with the pampered and naïve son of Edler's. Prudence clenched her fist at the way Vincent's lips twisted hearing her speak, "I am in no fear like you, so please henceforth stop making advances on me." Prudence was glad that with this George would not pester her again but that was only to say if she had Vincent by her side.
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