My mate, my b*****e

CHAPTER ONE.

I looked at myself in the mirror in front of me and my lips curled into a smile. Alice did a good job in dolling me up so well. My hair was pulled back in a neat bun and adorned with different golden apparels for my hair while the black corseted gown on my body pushed my cleavage out and made it visible to the public eye.

The full skirt over my bodice was coated with golden linings and it opened wide to cover a large area. This was the typical dress worn amongst the women and it was considered as a beauty aesthetic in our society at large.

With one last look at the dress, I lifted myself up from the chair and turned my attention back on Alice who had a huge smile on her face.

My mother hired her to be my personal modiste when I was just twelve years old and since then, I wasn’t able to dress as comfortably as I wanted. I was always clad in long and corseted gowns.

Well, I have come to fall in love with it and it actually looked beautiful on me by the way, no one else in my Circe could pull it off like i did.

“You look so beautiful, charlotte” Alice complimented, “this gown really suits your skin”

“Oh Alice, pray tell me” I answered, “my mother chose this so of course it will be suitable for my skin. The corset is actually a bit uncomfortable for me, can I do away with it? The gown fits perfectly without this whalebone corset underneath it”

“Of course not” the door pushed open and my mother entered.

Madam Hawkings was dressed in a similar dress like me but hers was without the corset and her hair arranged to stand beautifully on her head like an apparel. From the look of things, the women of the Hawkings family were pretty and beautiful.

“You look so beautiful my darling” my mother said to me and I rolled my eyes to the back of my head. Why must a woman have to wear so many adornments by the way?

“This is so uncomfortable, mother, I don’t think I will be able to pull it off for the ball” I whined, “can’t i just wear something normal?”

My mother heaved a sigh, I knew she was tired of my tantrums but what could she do?

“Look here charlotte '' she placed her two hands on my shoulder, “this is the first birthday you are celebrating with your father around, you should look your best. Don’t you think?”

I pouted my mouth but I didn’t say anything, it was not like I could win against my mother in an argument.

The door pushed open again and my father entered looking radiant in his knee breeches and the cravat that was adorning his neck. His hair was slicked back in a dignified way and father looked impeccable. Well, he was the lord of the king’s lower court.

“Father '' I beamed with ecstasy as I pounced into his embrace.

“Charlotte my dear” his lips curled into a smile, “happy birthday my princess” he added and I couldn’t help but blush. Even if father was not always available, he still loved me like he should and I didn’t have anything to complain about.

“Alice” mother called out to my modiste.

“Yes madam” Alice bowed gently.

“Give us a moment, you can come in when we are done talking to her”

“Yes, my lady” with that, she sauntered out of the room while father turned his attention back on me.

This time I could see the look in his eyes had changed. He looked like he was about to say something and he didn’t know how to go about it. Father has always been a great person and seeing him struggling to get the words out of his mouth made me wonder how big was the problem for him to be so lost for words?

“Charlotte” mother called out to me, “before your ball, we have something to discuss with you”

“On with it mother, I am all ears”

The two of them continued to exchange glances and this was when I realized that something was definitely wrong. Mother looked so troubled and I hated to see her In this kind of situation.

Being among one of the most elite members of our society, I knew they had their enemies but was it enough to make them lose their peace over it?

“Did you both forget today is my birthday?” I finally spoke, “do you want to make me sad on this day as well?”

Father held my hand gently and pulled me towards

himself,

“You grew up so fast my dear”

“Easy dad” I squirmed, “this whalebone corset might pierce me to death if you keep pushing me against yourself”

My outburst made him chuckle a little and this was when we heard a little knock on his door.

“My lord” , his right hand man called from outside, “everyone awaits you and the madam at the ball” he added and I rolled my eyes. It was my birthday but everyone was more concerned about my father and my mother’s appearance.

“We will be there in a short while, Charles” father replied and turned to me again,

“We will have a talk over tea after your ball”

After that, he patted me on the back and made his way out of the room while my mother still had that petrified look on her face. she was still restless and I could feel it.

“We will talk after the ball, mother”

With a slight nod, she made her way out of the room and with the room all to myself, I walked towards my window and threw it open.

The night sky of England was so beautiful and for a moment I wished I was one among those walking freely on the streets. From my window I could see women clad in my type of clothing while the men had the kind of my father’s clothes on. Some were walking on the streets while some were inside of their barouche and the city looked so beautiful.

I was not allowed to roam the streets of England like my peers and I was always home receiving teachings from my governess while having little or no adventure in our mansion.

Well that was before I found out a secret about myself and my family. I thought it only happened in ancient stories and myths but who would have thought that my father and his wife were….

My thoughts were interrupted when the door creaked open and my modiste entered again and this time she had a pendant with her.

“Lord Hawkings asked me to bring this to you”

I recognized the bronze coated necklace and my lips curled into a smile. Finally I was getting it after such a long time.

“You have to go down now, everyone is waiting for you”

“Sure”

As I made my way towards the door, the smile on my face intensified. My seventeenth birthday was sure coming with a lot of suprise.

*****

The ball room was already filled with father’s important guests and everyone was richly dressed. Well they were all members of the ton and all wanted to out do each other. The reality of the world wr lived in sucked.

As I walked up to my father who was talking to a couple of people, they all kept quiet when they saw me. It was like father didn’t want me to know what was happening but too bad, I already knew their deepest secret which was scary and adventurous at the same time.

It was twenty four calendar months ago when I was suddenly jerked away that night to the howling of an animal and before i could even….

My thoughts were once again interrupted when my father placed his hand around my shoulder and led me towards another group of people.

They all had wine chalices in their hands and their laughs could be heard from a reasonable distance.

“Ahh” one of them turned to me, “lady charlotte” i could see his lips curl into a smile and I cringed, he had two protruding canines our of his mouth, maybe he wasn’t aware.

“Lord Danbury” I slowly bowed, “my father has said aloof about you” I added. Actually dad just told me to memorize their faces and their names which i actually did and it was helping a lot.

“Of course, happy birthday and welcome to the family”

By the mention of the family, did he mean?

just as I opened my mouth to say something, Charles walked over to my father and muttered a few words to his ears bur i could hear them correctly.

“Ladies and gentlemen” my father’s voice was loud and everyone turned to him, “apparently we miscalculated, today is a full moon” and like that, I saw the faces of everyone change.