Chapter III

Beauty kept herself occupied well enough for the rest of the afternoon. She rang the library and arduously explained why she was giving up her position there, before in time composing herself to try calling her father. When she finally input Moe's number into her chunky cell phone, the trill of dial tone blurred into the crackle of a pre recorded greeting urging her to leave a message. She didn't like to think that her father was ignoring her, but Beauty chose to believe he was still angry over contending with the probability that he had drank into the day.

Moving towards the window in the small bedroom Gold had designated her; Beauty slipped back the netting and looked down at the verdant garden below. The mansion had at first seemed pleasing enough with its blush walls and panels of brilliant glass, but all alone in its enormity Beauty felt uneasy. She was being ridiculous, of course. Already fighting homesickness in the unfamiliar terrain of a stranger's estate, it was enough to cast paranoiac shadows in anyone's mind. Yet as Beauty gazed at the quilt of daisy woven grass, she flit back to reality startled and pricking with the uncomfortable feeling that she was being watched.

To distract herself, she fetched a book from her bag and positioned herself as to allow the light entering the room to flood the pages of her volume. She read happily enough for what was nearly an hour before uninvited thoughts began to push apart the words – thoughts of the peculiar man who had made her his housekeeper.

Beauty knew that she disliked Gold. She especially detested his smugness and the ease his features twisted to a snarl when he said something unpleasant – which he did far too often, but through her initial distaste a springy tendril of fresh emotion grew. It was frustration Beauty at last realised, as if someone had torn fistfuls from the novel balanced in her hands and left her to make sense of it. Gold was a man with such brevity that he didn't even have a first name, he was a mystery.

At eight fifteen, Beauty heard the rattle of the front door followed by the musical tap of Gold's cane across the polished wood of the entrance hall. Unsure of whether he expected her to prepare dinner and even more uncertain of what Mr Gold ate, Beauty had cooked a simple soup out of some earth stained vegetables she had found in the pantry.

'I see you made dinner.' Gold remarked, as he entered the kitchen where Beauty leaned dutifully over the broth. 'You needn't have bothered, with it being your first day here.'

'It hardly took me any time at all.' Beauty chirped. The bubble of anxiety, taut with the knowledge that might she might have angered him by her impromptu meal, dissipating.

'I trust that you've made yourself at home while I've been away?'

'Oh, yes. The house is very... spacious.' Beauty replied scrabbling for a non offensive truth.

'I suppose that it takes some getting used to.' he smirked as Beauty cast her eyes back down to the simmering pot.

'Yes, I think it will.' she reasoned. 'I'll go and lay the table, it's about ready.'

'Please, allow me.' Gold interjected with unexpected courtesy before she could turn away from the stove.

In the time that it took Beauty to slice up some pieces of crusty bread and fill two daintily decorated bowls, she found that Gold had already finished setting the table and was pouring two glasses of rich burgundy liquid. From the looks of the stuff, Beauty took an educated guess that the wine was older than she was – hell, perhaps even Gold himself.

'Wine?' she speculated, 'I thought that I was meant to be working?'

The ghost of a smile wavered across her employer's lips.

'We're celebrating.'

'What's there to celebrate?' Beauty said curtly. She was promptly shamed by how ungrateful she sounded and set down the soup bowl in her hand, quickly replacing it with the elegant neck of a glass.

'The renewal of your Father's business.' He gave her a mocking sideways glance. 'Are you so quick to forget the details of our arrangement, Miss French?'

'Of course not, but there was really no need for you to go to any trouble. Not that I don't appreciate it though.' she backtracked.

'It caused me no difficulty what so ever.' He raised his glass to chime melodiously against her own. ' Here's to the longevity of Game of Thorns.'

'Cheers.' Beauty clumsily took a sip of the velvety liquor and seated herself opposite Gold on one of the handsome dining chairs.

Beginning in awkward silence perforated only by the metallic clink of overeager spoons, the dinner conversation progressed to a tentative exchange after Beauty trouped back into the kitchen to ladle them out second helpings. She found her limbs curiously loose as she steadied herself back down at the table and a boldness came over her which untied her tongue. She conspired to gather as much information about Gold as she could, that was before her courage drained with the headiness from the wine. Her employer didn't outright object, however his replies were weak and as she continued the inquisition his lips pursed together in a tense line. He refilled their glasses and before she could protest, Gold indulged Beauty in her own round of well measured questions.

She was laughing with a sunlight in her voice which shocked them both, by the time the rusty dregs of her third glass of wine settled. Beauty considered that she might have had rather too much to drink for an evening spent with her new boss but despite her trepidations, the evening had been surprisingly pleasant. Only for a moment when Beauty enthusiastically talked of her plans for the future had Gold flinched and shifted about awkwardly.

'I'm sorry that I failed to acquire another bottle, Miss French, seeing how we've already enjoyed most of this one.' Gold remarked as their laughter waned.

She disliked it when he called her that, Beauty realised. Miss French was too formal – like reading the header on a letter – and the way his accent had wrapped the word Beauty made her wish that he'd call her it again.

'I don't drink very often.' Beauty instead admitted, 'It makes me think foolish thoughts, and occasionally act on them.'

'Now that's something I would like to see.' he teased as Beauty's cheeks ran scarlet.

Suddenly the drone of Beauty's phone vibrating in her pocket snapped them both back to reality.

'Do you mind if I take this?' she asked, pondering the unknown number which flashed across the screen.

'Go ahead.' Gold prompted.

'Hello, this is Beauty. Who's calling?' she hesitantly questioned the receiver.

'It's Mr Anderson. I'm so glad that I've been able to reach you.'

'Mr Anderson, is everything alright?' Beauty replied, perplexed as to why the supplier for the shop was ringing her at nearly eleven at night.

'I was hoping that you could tell me. I've been trying to get hold of Moe all day, he didn't open the shop this morning for the delivery.'

Panic rising in her chest but adamant to maintain her father's reputation and not to alarm Mr Anderson, Beauty attempted to put the man at ease.

'Oh, I am sorry Mr Anderson. My father mentioned something about visiting an old friend, I suspect that he got caught up and forgot all about it being delivery day. Honestly, I don't know what to do with him sometimes. Will the order keep?'

'Sure, it's only some fertiliser and tools. I'm glad to hear that, I was worried with Moe not answering his phone.'

'He must have left it at home.' Beauty swiftly lied. 'He's not back yet but I can get him to give you a call first thing?'

'That would be great, Beaut. Your father's a lucky man to have you looking out for him.'

'He sure is.' Her attempt at a laugh reverberated back hollowly to her ears.

'Well I better get to bed now, sorry to have disturbed you so late.'

'That's no problem, goodnight.'

'Night.'

Gold had been sat opposite Beauty, stony faced and unmoving as a statue for the course of her conversation. His eyes which had connected with the distance over her shoulder, flit back and regarded her attentively.

'My father's missing. I have to go and find him.' Beauty stated.

'How do you know that he's missing?' Gold inquired.

'He went out last night and didn't open the shop this morning.'

His expression shifted to one of scepticism.

'From what I know of your father he'll likely be in The Rabbit Hole around this time.'

'The Rabbit Hole?' Beauty repeated somewhat dazed. 'I don't think that my father would go in there.'

'Then it appears that I know him better than you.' Gold cut in.

Feeling the guile rise in her throat, Beauty tried and failed to stop it pouring out across her snide employer as she rose to her feet.

'You don't know the first thing about either of us. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go and find him.'

Gold's brow furrowed, his hand gripped white around the top of his cane as he stood up to meet her.

'Careful with that temper of yours, Miss French. And although I admire your determination to find your father, I won't have you blindly trawling the streets at this hour.'

Fury and purpose thankfully muting her, Beauty turned her back on Gold and went into the kitchen to retrieve her coat from its hanging on door. She pressed down on the handle to open it onto the garden but the lever remained firmly stuck in place – how strange, she didn't remember seeing Gold lock it.

'Beauty...' his voice rose up, dark and odious as a bruise behind her. 'You're not leaving.'

'And you're going to stop me?' Beauty challenged, turning around.

'If I have to, no good will come from you endangering yourself.'

'Where's the key, Gold?'

'That's my final word on the matter, so go and sit yourself back down.'

'I'm not a prisoner.'

Gold's eyes lit up and Beauty realised with contempt that he was struggling not to laugh.

'Call yourself whatever you like, dearie if you disobey me then I will make you pay. And if you go so far as to try and break our deal...' he stroked a finger lazily across his chin, 'let's just say that I always get what I want in the end.'

Beauty paused motionless, she recognised straight away that what Gold said was the truth. He was a man who made sure to get what he wanted regardless of the price to others and after all they did have a deal. Yes, there was nothing that she could do if Gold refused to allow her to leave – that was unless she could find something to bargain with.

With that in mind, before Gold or her reasoning could protest, Beauty kissed him square on the mouth.