Page 46 of Hollywood Games
‘What did you do?’
‘I politely asked him to leave.’
‘Oh, I’d love to see you ask him impolitely,’ said Valentina.
The sound of a gong rang out and the room quietened. Clive was standing by the door to the dining room. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, dinner is served.’ He pushed open the doors and everyone filed through to take their seat.
The room was beautiful, filled with candles, flowers, warmth and soft light. Rory sat at the head of the table, Zoe to his left and his mother to his right. Seated next to his mother was Brad, then Kirsten, and next to Zoe was Vlad, then Valentina. Barbara, dressed in a long cream dress, with a string of pearls around her neck, looked stunning, classy, and young enough to be Rory’s sister. Brad was dressed in impeccably tailored black tie and was devastatingly handsome; his shirt almost as white as his teeth.
Rory leaned forward. ‘Kirsten, as this meal is your idea, would you like to say a few words?’
Kirsten fluttered her eyes, delicate spots of pink appearing on her cheekbones. ‘Oh yes, my lord, that would be wonderful. Thank you.’
Rory tapped his knife on the side of his glass and stood. Everyone stared. He had a presence Brad could only dream of, and money could never buy.
‘Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of myself, my mother the countess, and my fi-girlfriend Zoe, I wish to formally welcome you to Kinloch Castle. This evening has been put on by Miss Bjorkstrom, so I’d like to invite her to say a few words.’ He sat down and motioned to Kirsten who stood and clasped her hands to her breasts.
‘Thank you, my lord. His Holiness Vladyka Mirov and I wanted to share with you this meal of non-violence and spiritual purity. Using ingredients from the four corners of our beautiful world, we bring you a cruelty-free dining experience that will nourish your body and calm your soul. We give you our solemn promise no sentient being has been affected or harmed by our food tonight. Thank you.’
She sat down and Vlad clapped loudly, joined a little less enthusiastically by everyone else. Clive motioned his small army of servers forward to present the first course and Zoe looked at her plate. It was pretty, a pile of salad leaves, with what appeared to be deep-fried chicken strips. On the side, a dollop of what she hoped was humous, some strange-looking crackers, and a smear of deep purple around the edge of the plate.
‘It’s a microgreen spinach and swiss chard salad, dressed with sunflower oil and aged balsamic vinegar,’ Kirsten explained. ‘On top, deep-fried tofu tossed in polenta. Then there is a raw, sprouted garbanzo bean dip with tahini, raw buckwheat, nutritional yeast and carrot crackers, and a raw beetroot coulis.’
Zoe gave her a wan smile and tucked in, pleased to be finally eating. Her joy was soon outweighed by the fact that it was not particularly palatable. The humous was bland and gritty, the crackers tasted like cheesy cardboard, the tofu sticks were tasteless and spongy, and the salad bitter. She looked around the table. Kirsten seemed in seventh heaven but everyone else was eating slowly and there was no food at all on Rory’s plate.
Zoe leaned towards him. ‘Fancy a taste?’
Rory whispered his reply out of the corner of his mouth. ‘I’d rather eat Basil’s bedding.’
Zoe giggled. ‘Where’s Charlie?’
‘He had the option of eating this or patrolling outside in the rain with Bandit. He chose the better option,’ Rory replied.
As people around the table looked for something to do other than consume what was in front of them, the rate at which they drank alcohol increased. Vlad had already drunk two glasses of wine by the time their plates were removed and the next course presented, and the volume of chatter around the table was going up by the minute. The next course was a cold soup of onion, garlic, chilli and coriander. Zoe managed to choke a little down, but her tummy was hurting, her eyes watering, and her mouth on fire from the effort.
Rory passed her a handkerchief and leant to whisper in her ear. ‘You okay? Don’t eat it if you don’t want to.’
She blew her nose. ‘Thanks, it is a bit strong.’
Vlad turned to her, dark and intense. ‘It’s good for the blood, it creates heat and fire.’
Zoe nodded politely. ‘I think my British palate isn’t quite used to it.’
‘You need breaking in. I can help.’
Zoe could see Rory to her right straining to hear what Vlad was saying above the noise of the table. Barbara put her hand on his arm and gave it a squeeze.
‘Your Holiness, how are you finding Scotland?’ Barbara asked.
Vlad turned to give her the full dose of his magnetism. ‘My lady, it is as I have foreseen. Full of beauty, life and death. The visions I had are coming true.’
‘Visions?’
‘Yes, my lady, Brad is recreating history, the ancestors are reborn in him, in Kirsten, in Zoe, in you. The spirits and pixies are awakening again.’
‘Pixies, Mr Mirov?’ enquired Barbara, one eyebrow raised.
‘Yes. They are found where ley lines meet and at ancient sites. The castle is built upon a geo convergence of thermal energy, ley lines, magnetism and ancient powers. It is especially potent with the sexual power of the divine feminine.’ Vlad paused to look intently at the women around the table before continuing. ‘Pixies are ancient spirits drawn to these places. When there is such an abundance of female beauty, they become very active.’
