"Welcome home, my lady," they all say in chorus, not even daring to look at Thea.

"Are my parents home?"

"Their graces are away," one servant answers.

"What about Arwyn?"

"Her ladyship is with them as well. They are scheduled to return late afternoon."

Thea clicks her tongue against her teeth.

"When they arrive, tell them I'll meet them at dinnertime. Also let them know I brought a friend with me who's going to be our guest of honor."

"Yes, my lady."

"Thank you." She nods with a smile before she scans the servants, zeroing in on a woman. "You." She points at her. "Please see my friend to one of the guest rooms. The best one."

The servant immediately nods.

"And you." She points to another. "Please go to my seamstress and see what readymade gowns she has. Get everything she has available and deliver them to my friend's room."

"Yes, my lady," the servant bows.

This is all so foreign to me, I can only stare in wonder.

"Go with her, Luce. She'll show you to a room and you can clean up and rest. I'll have some food sent up as well, and I'll come get you when it's dinnertime to meet my parents."

I nod slowly.

"Do you think"—I swallow—"that they're going to have a problem with me being human?"

Considering what I've experienced so far, I need to ask.

"Don't worry about it." She waves her hand. "They'll love you."

I give her a faint smile, somehow not convinced.

She doesn't go into detail, though, telling me to follow the servant while she goes to her room.

The servant stops in front of me, her head bowed down. She's a woman in her forties or fifties, but I can't make out her features because her eyes are rooted to the floor.

"This way, please," she says.

"Thank you," I murmur as I follow her up the luscious staircase. We make a right turn, and that's where the real beauty of this place is.

Painting after painting adorns the walls. They're all so damn beautiful, I wish I had the time to stop and admire them. But with the brisk way the older lady is walking, I find it hard to keep up, let alone linger.

We move swiftly through another gallery, and I vow to take my time later on to study it—if I'm allowed, of course. As we walk down a long corridor, there are doors on my right and left—I assume these are all rooms.

She leads me all the way to the end of the corridor, where an ornate alcove separates the area from the rest. Upon stepping foot inside, I note two more doors, one on each side.