Chapter 11: Trouble in Paradise

"Good to see you again, David." Maria said gracefully as she sat at a tavern table. The tavern was completely empty save for him, Maria, and the two imposing looking guards behind her. This whole tavern must have been rented for this event, but since David knew that this place was not part of the larger Ducal estate, he felt safe enough being here. 

To an outsider, David was not a very expressive person. After all the beatings, torture, and brainwashing he went through sapped his sanity away, he found it hard to relax in nearly any situation. When he was working at the manor, he was constantly afraid of being thrown in the dungeon again, and when he had escaped the forest he was on constant high alert. Always ready to kill if he had to, the only time he was ever able to "let loose" was when he was with Alice, he felt comfortable enough around Alice to not hold words back, and to be himself, the self that existed before he went through all this. Even in his own home around the servants he had yet to fully relax, he still had his guard up and his emotions sealed simply because he was afraid. So, as he entered through the tavern door, his expression stoic and his eyes staring blankly, the only hint of emotion he had was a tinge of malice hiding behind his eyes.

For Maria, she had long since been waiting for this day, of course she had seen him when he was still drugged in the basement, which inevitably brought her into confrontation with her father constantly. But it had been a long time since she had seen him in a stable state. Honestly, he looked great, his body looked much fuller than it had when he was at the mansion, his complexion had some serious color to it, and somehow, he had become even more muscular. Even before his arrival she had spent hours at home practicing what to say to him when he arrived, should she be happy to see him from the get-go? Should she act like he kept her waiting? Should she act like Alice and pretend to act innocent and cute? Eventually she had decided to act gracefully when he arrived, to stun him with her air of nobility. Of course it didn't end there, the hours she spent thinking what to say also included thinking about how their conversations would go, she would ask him about what new things he had been up to, how he had taken to his new life working with Alice, how he felt now that he was out. She was so curious to hear from him after all this time, but as soon as he entered the door and she saw the look on his face her heart sank. His expression which hid his emotion was nothing new, even when he was working alongside her he never had anything but a stoic expression on his face, but she could tell immediately that behind his eyes an anger was burning, she had no idea what she did or why he was mad, but she had a bad feeling this meeting would not go as well as she wanted it to go.

David didn't say a word as he closed the door behind him and walked over to the chair in front of him. He then threw his right arm on to the table suddenly causing Maria to jump internally. 

"I'm told you can get blood through the veins on my arm." He said, emotionless. Maria had not expected this, in fact so far this meeting had not gone the way she expected at all. 

"Yes, I can." she said to him somberly, pausing for a moment to stare into his eyes. He did not budge. Realizing the situation she was in, she decided she had no other choice but to go along with it, so, grabbing his arm and bringing it close to her mouth, she bit in. 

It was odd for David, she had drunk his blood many times in his memory, but besides the first time when he passed out, he generally felt nothing. However, now that he had regained his sense of self and his body was in his full control, so too was the feeling of euphoria that came with it. However, he had come here expecting this, so besides an initial drop of his head and an involuntary eye twitch, he managed to remain stoic throughout keeping his facade up the entire time, He had gained a tolerance to it, aided by his loss of self in the past, his body did not react as strongly as it once had, thus he managed to maintain his facade. 

For Maria the taste was wonderful, it had been a very long time since she had tasted this, not since the first time that she drank his blood was the sweet taste of the ambrosia this clear, no bitterness, no sour after taste, nothing, sheer bliss. But she too had come prepared, with her many months of practice she knew how to control herself and not drink too much of his blood. So, after about a minute of her drinking in silence, she finishes. 

It was her hope, that now that she was done drinking, he, who should be feeling some kind of euphoric feelings from having his blood drank, would now be in the mood to talk to her. She wasn't asking for much, she didn't expect him to open up to her quickly, so all she was hoping for was a short conversation at least. However, as soon as she was done drinking, David immediately withdrew his arm and stood up, heading for the door. Her hopes were crushed instantly. Hoping to recover something of her dream, she opened her mouth and stammered out a response.

"David I just wanted to..." She begins before trailing off realizing it was useless. When she spoke to him, he had stopped momentarily to hear what she had to say without turning around. As soon as she stopped talking, he resumed walking towards the door, opening it as soon as he had arrived. However, before he had left through the door he stopped, turning around slightly. 

"Maria." He begins as the emotions within cause his voice to waver slightly. "Had you summoned me under different circumstances perhaps then, we could have been friends." He then quickly turns back around and leaves, shutting the door behind him. 

The whole event had been a struggle for David, and not in the way he expected. Of course, he expected the euphoria from having his blood drunk, of course he expected the intimidating aura of the guards, what he had not expected was Maria herself. He walked into the room, his heart full of malice about what she and her father had done. He had resolved himself to get the whole event over and done with as quickly as possible. But seeing her there, in her gorgeous blue dress, her brown hair reflecting some of the sunlight coming in through the window, her ruby eyes shining brilliantly, and her smile radiating with a gentle glow, it was enough to make him melt. In the very instant he walked through the door, all his malice had left his body and he was all at once surrounded by a content feeling, like a god had made the room just to have him lower his guard. Even as he watched her drink his blood all he could think about was the warm feeling he used to get when he worked with her, and the pleasure he felt when she would smile at him. He had to get out of there quickly or else he would lose his sense of reason. However he needed to tell her that he didn't hate her, he needed to say to her that his memories of her weren't all bad, so he told her that they "could have been friends" that was all he could do, if he said anything more he would be saying too much. In his head he knew he was looking at his oppressor, the person who kept him locked in a house for almost 5 months, the person who had suggested the idea of force feeding him, the person who seemed to only want him for his blood. He knew this and yet his heart ached, he knew not why, so he left. His head and heart in turmoil, without turning back.

For Maria, she was devastated, she didn't get to have a conversation with him let alone say a single sentence, even when she drank his blood, she didn't see a hint of the emotions he was supposed to be feeling, it was supposed to biological, how was he not showing signs that he felt pleasurable feelings when she drank his blood? It didn't make sense. Just remembering the cold stare he gave her throughout the entire event was enough to send shivers down her spine. The man she remembered, the man who was so gentle with her, the man who talked to her like an intellectual, the man who was always patient with her, was gone. But that was not the worst of it, his last words to her "we could have been friends." Absolutely crushed her, he said "could have" meaning that they weren't. No, that wasn't what bothered her, it was the implication of a missed opportunity, the fact that if he had been perhaps treated differently or their first meeting was different or something then, and only then, could they have been friends. In other words, what he said was "We can never be friends in this life." She felt like breaking down and crying, but as she was surrounded by men of lower standing it would be far too unladylike to do so, so she swallowed the urge and stood up slowly. 

"Let's go." she said to the guards as they started walking to the door, her heart still weighing her down. 

David spent the rest of the day reading, his house was done being fixed so besides the daily maintenance of cleaning, there wasn't much left to do. If there was, he would certainly be doing it, he needed to get her out of his head, and busy work was the best for it, but he had nothing to do so instead he just struggled to focus on reading. Eventually the night passed by and the next day came. Spending time with Alice was the best cure for his emotional turmoil, spending time with her calmed him greatly, despite the headaches she still gave him, he felt comfortable with her and that was exactly what he needed right now. Before he left, she handed him a letter. He was concerned for a moment when he received it, thinking back to yesterday, but when he turned it over and saw the imperial seal instead of worry he was confused. "Open it." Alice said with a smile and a bit of a commanding voice. 

David does so, and what he sees is a bank promissory note, similar to a check, but where a check is a means to transfer money this was more like a slip of paper letting you know you will get it at a specific time. That was not his concern though, what bothered him was the amount of money that was on the paper. 

The Empire did not use money like he was used to, denominations were broken down into four categories, bronze coins, silver coins, gold coins, and platinum coins. Though there were some smaller categories within these pertaining to size and thickness of the coin since its value was directly derived from the amount of metal it contained. Also, platinum coins were not something generally used and for the most part weren't in circulation, they were instead used as a measuring tool for governmental activities such as when negotiating in large trade deals or selling off huge amounts of land, as such he had never seen one. Regardless, David had managed to learn all this through working with Alice and Maria respectively. Still he lacked a fundamental understanding of the value of things since he had been sheltered for so long and then had a very rich friend providing for him. 

Even with all that, as he looked at the paper in his hand, he knew that the amount of gold he was being given was astronomical. 

"Um Alice..." He begins with a waver. "This is..." 

"It is not a gift." Alice said as she crossed her arms. "That is payment for a job well done." She said with a smug grin. 

"But isn't this too much?" David said, still taken aback by the amount in his hands. "What I pay you for your job isn't up to you, you don't have the right to refuse." She said successfully holding in a snicker and hiding it behind an elegant exterior. She had got him this time. He knew what she was doing, using his paycheck to effectively "pamper" him. He wasn't comfortable with it, but perhaps this was just one of the job hazards of working for a rich girl. With a shaky wave David leaves the room, leaving Alice alone to now burst out laughing.

When David got home, he immediately sought out Sebastian, there were many things he still didn't know about or how to do so Sebastian had become something of a teacher of daily life for him, besides that he had a feeling that Sebastian would have a better idea of what to do with the money than he would. 

"What can I do for you sir?" Sebastian said as soon as he saw David approaching. Due to his master's discontent with the word "master" he had started to refer to him as "sir" whenever possible since it seemed to him that David was more comfortable with it. 

"Um..." David began as he pulled out the note. "I got paid today and I only had a few ideas of what to do with this money so I was hoping I could entrust it to you to deal with." David said as he handed over the promissory note. 

"Of course. What did you have in mind?" Sebastian asked as he looked over the note, it was more than enough money to complete any task his master gave him, and, if he understood his master right, it would be more than enough to finish the repairs on the house. 

"So, first, I was thinking we could use this money to fix up the rest of the repairs on the house, you know replace the broken wood and finish the garden and such." David said as Sebastian politely nodded. So far Sebastian was completely on the money, he had not read his master wrong after all. 

"Second," David continues "I want you to take some of the money and give it to all of the servants. I still don't really know the value of things so you can pick an appropriate amount of money to give to everyone, yourself included. And then for what's left you can use it to do what you see fit, if there's nothing else we can leave it in a bank for now." David finishes. 

Now this was a surprise, Sebastian knew his master treated the servants kindly, but this was too much, perhaps his master just misunderstood the situation. 

"If I may master, all the servants in the household already receive a generous income from the palace, no one here is in need of further money." Sebastian said with a light bow, trying to fully explain the situation to his master and dissuade him, using the word "master" to emphasize the importance of what he was conveying. 

"I know," David said to Sebastian, bowing in front of him. "But most of you are sending that money home to your families or children, right? So, no one really has any money for themselves." David said, having clearly thought this through. 

"And since Alice, I mean the princess," He quickly corrected himself. "pays for all your wages. I feel like I should at least do this much. Think of it like a gift from me."

"But sir I..." Sebastian starts before being cut off by David. 

"And I won't take no for an answer." He said, mimicking Alice from earlier. 

"By your will, sir." Sebastian said bowing again. 

"Oh, and make sure to pay everyone before you fix the house so that we can make sure we have enough for everyone." David said as he began to leave the room. 

"And next time I get paid, expect to do the same thing again!" He said loudly, now partway into the hall. After another few moments David had fully left Sebastian alone. 

"By your will." Sebastian said to himself quietly. He looked up at the ceiling as he thought of his late wife. 

"It seems like coming here was the right decision. I really did find a good master now, didn't I, dear?" He asked the air before turning his gaze back down and setting a plan on how to use the money.

It had been a few hours since David had left her office, Alice sat at her desk working on some left-over documents from earlier. Of course, she could have had David take care of them earlier, but she knew she was going to be in her office late anyway and didn't want to be left with nothing to do. She had even sent him home slightly early for the same reason. She looks at the fish statue still on her desk and smiles. 

"He is a good boy." she thought to herself as she spun it around looking at it, putting it down after a few minutes. Still though she hadn't stayed in her office this whole time just to reminisce, she was waiting for someone to arrive. Then, as if to respond to the thoughts, a knock came at the door. 

"Come in." Alice said as she put her papers away, preparing for her guest. 

"It's lovely to see you again!" Maria said with a brilliant smile. 

"So, what brings you here, business or pleasure?" Alice said, pretending to be very nonchalant. Maria giggles into her hand softly 

"Business this time I'm afraid." She said with a mock pout. 

"Aw that's a shame, I was looking forward to having you dote on me!" Alice said cheerfully, causing Maria to chuckle. It was really good to see Alice again, of course they had been keeping a regular correspondence for a while now, but it had been some time since either of them had left their homes and saw each other. Oh, how she missed this. It was a breath of fresh air to be around her only friend and away from the stifling parties full of nobles who only see her as an object of admiration or scorn. Alice was different though, even putting their respective status aside, they treated each other like equals and it really shone through in their relationship. After all, they had been friends since she was a child. It truly was a shame she was here in an official capacity otherwise this meeting would be that much more pleasant.

"Yes, it is a shame." Maria said as she gracefully sat down on the couch, ironically in the exact spot where David usually sits. The thought of this did occur to Alice, but she decided not to bring it up. 

"I have what you were looking for." Maria said with a much more serious expression as she handed Alice a handful of papers. Alice spends a few moments looking through them before turning back to look at Maria. 

"So, they are finally making their move?" Alice asked. 

"Yes, it seems that they recently have acquired new "cargo" and are planning on moving within the month." Maria responded somberly. 

"Hmm..." Alice mumbles as she looks through the papers. "How reliable is your information?" Alice asked. 

"I'm fairly confident on the validity of the documents." Maria said seriously. 

"Damn." Alice said as her normal smile faded from face and she bit her lip. "If this is true, we might lose our chance to finally catch them." 

"Yes, it is unfortunate." Maria said with a sigh. 

"If we perhaps had acted sooner or were able to get someone on the ground to investigate them then we would have had a better shot to bring them down." This was a problem, as Alice looked over the documents for a third time, the information given to her was too scarce, too full of holes, the only thing they knew for sure, was where they usually gathered and that they were currently in the capital. But without information on where they kept their "cargo," even if they rounded up all the criminals that they could at the gathering spot their leadership would survive and just move locations and they would have to start all over again. This project that Maria and Alice had been working on jointly for many months now, was in fact the biggest reason that they hadn't seen each other in so long. In fact, even when she went on her "vacation" the time that she wasn't spending with David she was trying to track down the criminals personally. It eventually became a breath of fresh air to have David to talk to in between her hunts. 

The trouble was these criminals were intricately connected to the highest levels of noble society, so they were protecting them, on top of that they couldn't use any but their most trusted subordinates to track them down for the same reason. It was the first huge operation her father had tasked her with, and it seemed to come up with nothing but failure. It was driving her mad, how could these criminals, this scum be so hard to track down. 

"Why is it so hard to find some damn human-traffickers?!" Alice said with uncharacteristic anger. 

Maria is a bit taken aback by her friend's sudden outburst, she had always been headstrong and rather fickle with her emotions, that's what she loved best about her, but seeing her so upset over something like this bothered her. 

"It's simply because we don't know who to trust with this." Maria said, trying to calm down her friend. "It's dangerous, and we would only have one shot. Short of sending the army in to round everyone up all at once we may be out of options." Alice just continues to look at the paper with anger. When Alice had approached her months ago about working together on this project she was overjoyed to be working with her friend, but despite her best effort she had been able to accomplish very little for her friend. She had hoped that Alice, who was a certifiable genius, would be able to still make use of the information. But judging by her reaction even she was coming up empty. Maria looked down at the ground solemnly. Alice looks up from the paper and sees Maria looking depressed.

"Ah, sorry, I didn't mean to blow up like that. It's not your fault." Alice said, now trying to cheer Maria up. But it was no use, the mood had been ruined already. Maria sighs as she regains her composure. 

"Well it isn't all a lost cause." Maria said, trying to look on the bright side of things. "We may not be able to catch them while they are still in the capital, but I'm sure by this time next year we will have enough intel to move on them." 

"Yeah I'm sure we will." Alice said with a bittersweet smile. 

Maria then starts to get up to leave. 

"Well I'm sorry our meeting had to be so short today, but my father only permitted me to remain in the capital for so long, so I must be going." Maria said apologetically, once again trying to change the mood in the room. 

"Yeah it does suck!" Alice said with her normal playful attitude. "Next time bring me lots and lots of chocolate! And maybe stay longer so we can play a game of chess or two!" Maria smiled gently and then curtsied and headed towards the door. However, as she reaches for the doorknob she pauses. Thinking about asking Alice a personal question. However, she only paused for that one moment because she decided against it and then left. Alice, now alone in the room, grimaced in anger as she once again looked down at the papers that show just how little information they have managed to gather. She stayed like that for about 10 minutes before finally giving up and turning in for the night.