Chapter 7

My body was too excited to waste a second in the place. I rested well and woke up early in the morning for some coffee and reading in the garden. There was a waterfall off to the side that emptied into a wonderful multi-level jacuzzi/pool. A river ran in the middle of the garden which had a small pond in the way, housing some beautiful koi. The garden bloomed with lilies, roses, and hydrangea hanging low from the trees. If there was a place heaven looked like, it was this.
I watched the sun rising slowly into the horizon as I sipped the last of my tea. My phone beeped quietly next to me and I checked it.
‘If you’re awake, we’re gathering for breakfast’, Ariana’s text read.
‘Will be down in a minute’, I replied cheerily and slipped into my furry flip-flops. Mrs. Beaumont had told me to treat them as normally as I could, as if it was my own place. We all needed to get used to each other in our natural way of being. It made sense. I knew Mrs. Beaumont would often walk around in the Caron house in her sleeping robe and would often catch Caron Jr. playing hide and seek with his siblings in his underwear.
Deciding to tidy my hair up in a bun to still feel a little put together, I left the room. The kitchen was bathed in pleasantly diluted sunlight that didn’t hurt my brain. Mrs. Ricci was in a silk ruby robe. Her hair was a little disheveled, but brushed through. A black cat purred around her feet as she plated herself breakfast at the table.
“Ah, Lilith.” She greeted with a sleepy smile, “Did you rest well?”
“Wonderfully.” I said, “This house is absolutely mind blowing.”
“It’s my daughter’s finest masterpiece.” She said breathily, “She made this for me as a birthday gift.”
“Wow…” I sighed, “She must love you so much.”
“I’m blessed with good children.” She agreed, “Come, help yourself. The others will be joining us shortly.”
Mr. Ricci and Guasparre arrived, still rubbing the sleep out of their eyes. Ariana joined us, too, along with two other butlers. A woman soon came around the corner. She was a splitting image of Mrs. Ricci, only younger with longer hair. She was absolutely stunning.
“Bellona, Lilith here was telling me how wonderful she thinks the house is.”
I quickly sipped on my coffee and commented, “You’re a mastermind.”
She smiled brightly at me with her teeth, cheeks rosy like apples, “I’m so glad you think so. I’ve heard much about your work, Lilith. I hope Guasparre won’t be much trouble.”
“Oh, not at all.” I chuckled. She sat next to me to make small talk. Once she’d started digging into her breakfast, Mr. Ricci had gained enough wakefulness to ask me questions.
“So, how do things work with you?”
“Well, I’ve gone through the general profiles of suitors provided. Am I allowed to look into others outside of the provided list?”
“Yes of course,” Mrs. Ricci nodded, “Guasparre will fill you in on what he expects. Our list is just of those we’ve taken a liking to so far. We hoped it could be a good starting point for you and make things easier.”
“It will allow me to assess compatibility rates, and help me narrow down the list. I’ll be using some key traits from that selection to keep an eye out for more suitors who fit the criteria. This will require me to be attending socials with those women.”
“My wife and her friends host weekend tea parties.” Mr. Ricci offered, “You’ll often find the ladies in the list there regularly.”
“I could introduce you to them.” Bellona offered.
“They can’t know I’m a matchmaker, though.” I warned them, “A lot of my work is discreet so people don’t mask their true nature from me.”
This seemed to surprise everyone.
“That…is certainly a little new to us.” Mrs. Ricci said, but nodded in approval, “It makes sense. I’ll hold my tongue then.”
“What will I tell everyone, though?” Bellona asked in confusion, “Should we go for the distant cousin card?”
Everyone looked at me, their eyes assessing my appearance. I felt momentarily insecure, blushing under their intense gaze.
“Yes, close enough.” Mr. Ricci said with a shrug, “She looks a little like my sister.”
The table erupted in lighthearted laughter. I started to feel comfortable again.
“Before I start, are there any other matchmakers in the circle I could refer to for the suitor’s in-depth profiles?”
“Ariana could help with that.” Guasparre said, “She’ll get you whatever information you need.”
“Then it’s settled.” I decided, “I’ll start reading into them after breakfast.”
“Would you need a workspace?” Guasparre asked.
I nodded, “It would make it easier to focus, yes.”

I wasn’t expecting the workspace to be a huge library, but it was a wonderful place to be in. The library was deeper into the mountain compared to the rest of the house, with a cave like pathway lit up by sunlight falling in through holes in the walls and roof. It was such an intimate and cozy place. There were large lamps hanging at different heights from the ridiculously high ceiling carved into the mountain rock. It smelled unexpectedly sterile and clean, with only a hint of damp rocky scent. I could hear the calming waterfall here, though, and a light trickling of running water behind the walls. Vases of various sizes were placed strategically by the bookshelves and empty tables. Some were hanging in small pots on the wall, and even hung overhead.
Such a wonderful place. Bellona left no stone unturned when designing the place. Guasparre led me to the center of the library where tables were placed neatly in a circle with comfortable wooden chairs.
“There’s a Bluetooth speaker system built into the place that you can connect to incase you want some music.” He explained, “Give Ariana a call for whatever you need. I’d suggest going into town for a stroll a little before sunset to breathe. You’ll feel very refreshed.”
“I’ll definitely check it out.” I nodded.
“Ariana will be with you in a moment with the files. Good luck with your work!”
With that, he left with a small wave. I gave him a friendly wave back and place my laptop on the table, taking to a wooden chair that had a nice cushion built into it. Ariana arrived shortly with a large box of folders, placing it carefully on the table. I thanked her and got to work.

Time sped by as I immersed myself into work. The only thing that snapped me out of it was my stomach rumbling in hunger. The light snack of sandwiches that Ariana had gotten me around noon didn’t completely satiate me. I looked at my watch and was surprised to see it was already 5 pm.
I got up to stretch out my body, hearing a satisfying crack in my back and shoulders.
“Mrs. Mendez?” Ariana appeared around a corner.
“Just call me Lilith.” I smiled at her.
“Of course, Lilith. I’m going grocery shopping and Guasparre asked me to take you to town when I did. I suggest a few hours of break to keep your body from cramping.”
“I’ll get my coat and shoes.”
“All right. I’ll bring the car at the front door then.”
Quickly throwing on a long white coat and spotless white sneakers, I grabbed my purse of essentials and made sure not to forget my wallet and passport.
The ride into town was wonderfully calm and peaceful as I watched the orange sun turn the grass to gold. The buildings and statues came into view, glowing as if they had their own halos. People strolled leisurely in the plazas, holding shopping bags and going home with their children from a long day of work. Several dogs carelessly chased each other around the fountains. Yellow lamps came to life, ready for nighttime. The air was cold and smelled like bread and honey. My stomach grumbled again.
“I’ll head to the bakery.” Ariana said, “In the meantime, you could get some snacks to stock up on. The convenience store is right across.”
“How about you go ahead and I’ll explore the place a little on my own? I’ll turn my location on.”
“Okay. Call me if you need me.”
I nodded and she walked away with a cloth grocery bag on her shoulder. My feet carried me to a food stall with an open gyro. It smelled wonderful and I was quick to order a chicken wrap to chew on as I walked. With my warm roll of chicken and cheese in my hands, I decided for a drink to go with it and paid the stall-keeper.
Light music from the restaurant wafted into the chilly air, guiding my feet and a slow, discreet dance as I walked down the streets, looking at the outdoor restaurants, small shops, and fruit stalls. I skipped onto the stairs that seemingly led nowhere, and tiptoed on the edges of fountains where I saw no people.
The yellow lights gently emanating from the buildings’ windows fell around me softly as I found another fountain’s edge to tiptoe on. The enormous statue of a man built into the wall stared somewhere into the horizon longingly, flanked by small winged babies that carried his cloth around his somewhat bare form. I stared at his blank eyes while continuing to tiptoe around him, wondering what would happen if he suddenly moved. It sounded more funny than frightening, honestly.
My foot misses a step and I yelp as I fall forward into the water. But I’m pulled back and fall on the other side of the fountain. I found myself against a firm, warm chest, and arms holding me tightly.
“Madam, are you okay?”
I looked up at whoever my rescuer was, and was met with a keen pair of light brown eyes. They were curious, but held a hint of mischief. Kind of like how cats were. His face was.
Wow, okay, he’s cute…
I pushed myself off of him and crossed my arms, turning my body slightly away from him. Yet, the warmth of his hold remained on me. Squaring my shoulders, I cleared my throat and gave him a suspicious once over. He was dressed in casual running clothes with a bag slung over his shoulder. Seemed like he saw me when passing by.
His hair was loose around his chin, wavy and damp from sweat. He had a light beard and a lopsided smile that was more concerned than friendly. He had nice teeth, and was as tall as I was.
“I’m fine.” I said curtly and turned away, “Thank you. I’ll be off now.”
“Without making a wish?”
Stopping in my path, I turned around and gave him an odd look.
“No offense but are all Italians superstitious?”
He threw his head back in a short laugh. I bit my lip to keep myself from grinning, but it felt nice that someone thought I was funny.
“You’re standing within the evidence of one of the greatest empires. The souls of those who built all this are very much present with us.”
I turned my body completely towards him, walking a few steps closer just to look at his face and make sure he was being serious.
“You’re naïve.” I stated.
“I’m simply a believer.”
I shrugged my shoulders, “Wishes mean nothing. It’s all hard work.”
He raised a brow at me, humored. Pushing a hand into his pocket, he rustled around for only a split second to dig out a coin. He flipped it into the air, and caught it just as the light bounced off its surface. Pressing the coin between his fingers, he held it up to me.
“Then I wish to see you again and prove you wrong.” He smirked, and tossed the coin into the fountain behind me.
Plop!
I gave him an incredulous look, but he was already backing away. He turned and jogged off without looking back at me, and I watched until he was out of sight.
Processing the strange encounter I’d just had with this man, all I could think was…
“What the fuck?”