Page 42 of The Maid's Secret

Magnus tracked them with his cold, predatory gaze. “I must say, Reginald, this is an impressive parade of servants. I haven’t seen anything like it since the last century.”

More chortles and guffaws.

Uncle Willy’s annoying son took his place in line beside me. He touched my arm, trying hard to get my attention, then he shoved a book into my hands.

“Will you stop?” I hissed at him, as I snatched Aesop’s fables, clutching it to my chest.

The commotion did not go unnoticed. Magnus Braun’s raptorial eyes landed on me. “You,” he said. “What are you doing here? You’re no servant.”

I didn’t know what to say. What is the etiquette when your father’s archrival announces he’s gobbling up the family firm and then engages you in small talk?

I took a step forward. “Sir, are you addressing me?” I asked.

“Iamaddressing you,” he replied. “You clearly have no place in that line. So what are you doing here?”

“Flora, you heard the man,” said my father. “Go to your room.” He said it as if I were a disobedient toddler staying up past my bedtime, when in fact my presence had been ordered by him and Mama.

“What’s that book you’re holding?” Magnus asked as he pointed at it with his Cartier pen.

“Aesop’s fables,” I replied as I gripped the book tighter, my hands shaking.

“A scholar? And a girl?” Magnus said as he sauntered past my father, all the way to where I stood in line on the other side of theroom. “What do you think about…all of this?” he asked, gesturing to the men in black seated at the giant boardroom table.

“With all due respect,” I said, “I know very little about business affairs and even less about the affairs of men.”

“The affairs of men!” He laughed then, as did most of the men gathered in the room.

“That being what it is,” I continued, “I’ve been listening, and I can’t help but think about the book I’m holding and how it applies to this particular situation.”

Magnus eyed me curiously. “Explain,” he demanded.

“There’s a parable in this book about a tiny mouse that chews through a hunter’s net to save a mighty lion caught in it.”

“So?” said Magnus. “What’s your point?”

“That the mighty fall,” I said. “And the mightier they are, the more they underestimate others.” I looked from my father to Magnus Braun. “It’s a peril for the lion, just as it’s a peril in the world of business.”

Magnus tapped his Cartier pen on the palm of his hand, a wide grin consuming his face. “Flora Gray. If I’m not mistaken, that’s your name.”

“It is,” I confirmed. I had no idea how he knew.

“It’s a fitting name,” he replied.

“Her name was my choice,” said Papa from the other end of the room. “The moment I laid eyes on her, I knew she was my precious flower, so I named her Flora.”

“How old are you?” Magnus asked, talking only to me.

“She’s—”

“Seventeen,” I replied.

“What does your future hold?” Magnus asked.

“Studying at university, I hope,” I replied with a discreet curtsy.

“We haven’t agreed to send her,” said my father. “It’s a matter of—”

“Your father and I are different in critical ways, but we have one thing in common,” said Magnus. “We each have but one child. Mineis a son—Algernon. You should meet him. Would that be of interest to you?”

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