Chapter 315 - Her Trick
In the blink of an eye, the weekend arrived.
Along with it came the hustle and bustle of the servants who were completing the last-minute preparations for the Madam and Young Miss's trip to the Inn near the Royal Academy.
Yvonne stood next to her father at the main entrance of their Mansion as they waited for her mother to make her appearance.
The family had decided to let the young boy who resided in the dormitories of the Royal Academy sleep for longer since it was a Sunday.
Therefore, it was already well past breakfast time when they had prepared to begin their journey.
'What is taking her so long!?' The impatient little girl stood with her arms across her chest as she tapped her finger on her elbow.
The father was amused to look at her grumbling face the first thing in the morning.
"She is about to meet her son after long so shall we wait for a little longer?" He questioned with tenderness visible for the woman who was taking her own sweet time to arrive.
'You speak as though you would let me leave alone if I refuse.' She snorted in ridicule at his coaxing words.
She was being treated like a child which she enjoyed at times but at times like this, she was annoyed to a certain extent.
However, she still had to uphold the cute and adorable image of his daughter so she smiled and nodded in reply.
Turning her gaze to the staircase through which she might see her mother, Yvonne waited for the lady to arrive.
When Rutherford noticed that she had obeyed his words and no longer appeared to be irritated, he glanced at his Butler.
The faithful servant was well aware of what his Master wished to ask through that glance and nodded his head, indicating that everything was prepared.
While this pair of Master and servant were engaging in silent conversation, another pair finally decided to make their appearance.
Hearing the clicking of heels on the floor, the father and child turned towards the sound and found two women walking down the stairs.
'Staircases are made for grand entrances!' The little girl exclaimed as she had an ardent love for huge staircases such as the one they had in this Mansion.
But right now, her attention was more on the people walking on it than on the staircase itself.
Raylene, the Mistress, was walking at the front while holding the edge of her silver floral gown to make sure that she would not trip on the stairs.
Her hair was tied in a low tight bun and there were loose strands of hair that adorned the face while some fell over her forehead and ears.
The sight of Raylene as she stepped closer to him was what had enamored the Earl, making it so that he could not take his eyes off of her.
Behind the object of his attraction was another woman who was following her.
However, she did not gain the attention of the Earl, instead, she had two other pairs of eyes watching her every move.
Butler Limo and Yvonne had shared a knowing glance when they noticed the maid following the Countess and decided to intently watch her.
With her head lowered, Paula was walking a few feet behind her Mistress while making sure to keep her face hidden from others.
This was because she wished to hide the enthusiastic look on her face at all costs.
Rutherford stepped closer to his wife when she was at the end of the stairs as he held her hand, pulling her close to him.
Lifting her body off the floor in one single sweep, he had his arms around her waist as he twirled with her still in his arms.
"Eeekk!" The surprised exclamation coming out of the Countess' mouth was overshadowed by another sound.
"Arghh!" A deafening screech resounded at the main entrance of the Mansion which alerted everyone who was nearby.
Everyone present there had their eyes set on the person who had let out the frightening screech only to find that the person was now laid flat on the floor.
Raylene's eyes widened when she noticed that it was her maid who was sprawled out on the floor with her face planted to the cool marbled floor.
Tapping her husband's shoulder, she gestured to be let down which he complied to within an instant.
"Someone come here!" She commanded in anger and anxiety which woke everyone from their daze.
Two maids who had come over after hearing the scream rushed ahead and helped the Madam's maid who had suffered a fall.
Raylene looked at Paula from top to bottom as she tried to make sure that the maid was alright.
All while this was taking place, there were two people who were trying hard to control themselves.
The laughter which was itching to burst forth their lips was truly hard for them to control.
Butler Limo and Yvonne had their eyes on the maid so it was without a doubt that they had seen how the poor woman had taken a fall.
However, she was not as pitiable as she seemed.
'She tripped on her gown on purpose.' Yvonne sneered as she had seen the maid step on her gown's hem which caused her body to tip forward.
Sadly, only she and the Butler had witnessed this sight but the others had only seen her fall and lay flat on the floor.
Therefore, they remained silent about her trick and watched how she rose again with the help of the two maids who had stepped forward.
Rutherford on the other hand had an impatient expression on his face while observing how his wife was fussing over the maid.
'She was about to drag Ray along with her.' He narrowed his eyes when the image from a few seconds ago flashed in his mind.
When his wife had just reached the bottom of the staircase, his eyes were fixed on her and hence he was able to catch the figure which was moving towards her at a fast pace.
Thanks to his quick reflexes, he had picked his wife up and twirled her out of harm's way.
So he wasn't surprised when he heard the maid screaming till they turned deaf because he had already seen her body leaping forward.
Right now, Paula was being supported by the two maids as they helped her wipe the dust off her clothes with which she had wiped the floor.
The little girl, the Butler, and the Earl made no move to either help her out or to sympathize with her pitiful state due to their individual reasons.
The former two were aware of her trick while the latter was infuriated that she had almost harmed his wife.
This resulted in only Raylene being worried about the maid whom she had brought along with her from her maiden family.
"Are you alright?" The Countess inquired in a concerned tone.
Her brows furrowed when she saw the strained expression on Paula's face as she nodded in answer.
"Yes, Mistr- Uhh…" Her reply halted after the first step she took forward.
However, she did not express anything as she tried to take another step forward but the outcome was the same, a pained groan escaped her lips.
Raylene felt distressed as she watched her poor maid trying hard to conceal her pain just so that she might accompany and serve her during the journey.
"How are you alright!?" She raised her voice while chiding the foolish maid.
Her health was more important to Raylene so how could she allow her to come along on this long and tiresome journey.
'She cannot even stand without their help but look at her trying to keep a brave face.' She glared at her who in return lowered her head.
Paula bit her lip in grievance at being chastised by her Mistress which only made the Countess feel bad for her.
"You will stay back and rest until I get home. Do you understand that?" Raylene commanded, not affected by the widened eyes of her maid who seemed to be against this order.
'She seems to be able to put up a good act.' The little girl had now stepped closer to the Butler as she commended the maid's acting skills.
"This means that she will stay back." She declared in a whisper as the tone her mother had used was one that they rarely heard.
However, each time she used that authoritative and demanding tone, it meant that there could be no one who could go against her wishes.
This was exactly what Paula had hoped for so she lowered her head as though she was aggrieved by his stern order from her Mistress.
But the sly smile that appeared when no one could notice proved that everything had gone according to her expectations.