C14 White Horse

“You look marvelous, my lady!” Catherine complimented on her. It might be on her girl’s natural instincts to at least feel demotivated to have someone look prettier than her, she couldn’t come to stop such compliment coming from her mouth. Francesca’s beauty came into another phase with the cowgirl style than what she usually wears.

“Oh! That was generous of you, Catherine. I hope you’re not holding grudge against me about your dream man.” Lady Francesca, being her straight forward self, said without mincing words. The handmaid was starting to get the hang of her mistress’s attitude regarding such. It seems as if it lacks the real time experience of communicating properly and sensitively concerning people’s feelings. Perhaps, it was on the environment she was bred into.

“No worries dear, this was just a simply horseback riding activity in the mountains. Plus, it was not like as if he was bit interested in me as much as he did with you. Those hungry ravishing eyes he had on you on the flea market was unmatched with the gentle and plain look he threw on me,” the Feledencian woman argued.

In the very least, she had showed a glimpse ray of consideration about the handmaid, making Catherine felt a little bit guilty of her recent thought about her. And a small seed of hope sprouted in her heart. Despite knowing the real score, the handmaid still wished for a miracle that her mistress’s words would turn out to be true.

Catherine fell silence and tidies up the robe and used garments of her mistress. Just when Lady Francesca was about to leave the room to proceed into the front yard of the house, where she instructed the footman to tie her borrowed horse, she dropped the most precious words the Gunner lady was deeply anticipating for.

“Take a day off for today. And make sure to pack up your stuff from your apartment. You are moving in here in the mansion starting tomorrow,” she indirectly verdicts about the handmaid’s official employment.

The blonde commoner beauty had already proven herself worthy of the job. She was able to separate personal whims on professional responsibilities. And in the short time she assisted Francesca starting from the party until now, she recognized a diligent worker in her. If only she had been born in a different, and more powerful noble family, she could be one of the hot deals in the marriage march.

Surely, for a naturally born with a silver spoon on their mouths, Lady Francesca were starting to realize through the handmaid’s situation, how blessed and privilege she was for being born a Chandler. No matter how bloody the name was, something good about it was still desirable that made people want to cling into it for life.

When Lady Francesca reached the backyard, it was the same time when the footman arrived and was currently tying the knot of rope binding the horse into one of the tree. Joyfully, the young lady sped up her pace to meet the borrowed horses as soon as possible.

It was a white, clean horse with no indifferent color spots on its skin, only some mud on the sole of its feet. Its fur fur was well brushed in one direction; and the mounted saddle as bottom support was obviously freshly washed as well. Her Uncle Bastien had really put an effort on providing the best comfort for his niece in a short time given.

The footman immediately grabbed for a small chair and placed it at the foot of the said horse. Lady Francesca arises from it as a stepping stone to finally conquer the height of the horse; and mount it properly with grace as a lady. The former untied the horse from the tree to let it move freely.

Grabbing on the reign whilst slightly kicking on the side of the horse, Lady Francesca successfully mobilizes the horse with control over it.

She did about three rounds of pacing back and forth in the backyard to built connection and familiarity with the horse when a mailman appears on their front gate.

The footman immediately ran to meet it and receive the small envelop addressed for the house.

“It was for you, Lady Francesca,” the footman said upon looking as to whom it was specifically addressed.

Lady Farncesca’s heart automatically beats louder and faster. Since that day, when she received the first letter from home coming from her stepmother containing misfortunes, she developed a habit of feeling anxious about letters.

“H-Hand it to me,” she struggled to command. Despite what she was feeling, she has to face it. It would not be a good thing if it was Lady Margaret who will see it and not her. It might abruptly increase her blood pressure and cause further health complications, and worst, possibly death.

Once she received it, she dismissed the footman in order to clear out any possibly source of suspicion whenever the letter turns out to be what she was thinking.

With her hands trembling, Lady Francesca slowly opened the small envelop and unfold the parchment of paper…

Her eyes literally widens in shocked…

It was not just a paper. It was two papers. One with a casual letter coming from her evil stepmotehr, and the other was one of the printed double copy of a marriage agreement written and signed by her father five years ago.

‘How on earth did I guess this it right?’ How on earth such written, legal, and binding agreement like this actually existed just as I speculated it to be?’ she wondered.

Worst is, the marriage agreement visibly had the signature of her father, which only implies Duke Landon had already sold out his own daughter to his second wife’s evil plan five years ago basing on the signing date of the document.

Feeling the tightening of her heart as resentment was flooding through it, she forcefully pulled on the reign of the horse to aggravate it and put it in full speed.

She was mad.

She was broken.

And all she can think was to take a nice breathe air in the open wild, far from the noise of the society, and away from the evil schemes and plot for power set to catch her alive and take away what are rightfully belonging to her.

She didn’t wait for the scheduled time of their mountain treking plan with the earl; and proceeded on her own.

Why does rough things come when she was starting to feel normal and live normally as a noble lady of her age would?

For such moment, she was reminded of the burden and weight of the noble name she was carrying.