The Knight's Mysterious Maid
Chapter 47: Bad luck (3)

Chapter 47: Bad luck (3)

Annalise hoped she was just hearing a chicken speak with Rafael’s voice and he wasn’t actually here. ’If I don’t turn around I can just ignore that I heard something,’ she decided.

Annalise took a big step to the side to move on to the next chicken.

"Are you ignoring your employer? After we had a talk about you being better?"

"It is him," Annalise whispered, closing her eyes. What was with his timing? If not for being distracted by chickens she would have heard or seen him and run away.

"Turn around. Standing still does not make you invisible," Rafael said.

Annalise opened her eyes and slowly turned around to face her fate. She smiled in hopes to help with whatever he was going to tell her. "I am not here with the chickens to scare anyone. Who would be afraid of chickens? That one I can understand," she said, pointing at one which kept eyeing her and walking near like she was a worm it was hunting. "This is my punishment."

"And what exactly did you do to earn a punishment?" Rafael asked, leaning over on the wooden fence. This had to be some kind of record for her to be on punishment already. He was too generous in giving her a week before she would be fired.

"After returning the dress to you, I was meant to go back to work, but then there was Lady Delilah and you speaking with me so I was late. This is the punishment Mavis has placed for me. Gathering chickens who will not stay still," Annalise said, looking around at the small creatures who were still making too much noise as if signalling to each that the threat was still around.

"I see why you wouldn’t mention Delilah, but why didn’t you tell her that you were speaking with me? That would have saved you from running after chickens. Many of the knights would rather stay away from them. Come out," Rafael said since this was too much for one person. She’d spend the entire day out here running after chickens if he left her.

Annalise pointed at the basket where there were supposed to be eggs for his breakfast. "I am to be filling this with eggs for you to have for breakfast tomorrow. Unless you don’t feel like eating eggs for the next few days. They are not that good in my opinion."

Rafael almost smiled because of her trying to convince him not to request eggs so she would not have to collect them. "Come out. The chickens are afraid of you threatening to cook them over fire here," he said.

"And feed their flesh to their friends who would happily eat it. They are the evil ones not me," Annalise said, practically running out so she could get out of this job. At least she had collected one chicken.

"Men!" Rafael called, turning to the knights who slacked off under Christian’s leadership. "New training. Grab a chicken and put it back into the coops. Do not step on the eggs or you will be running around the estate until I say so. Collect the eggs and put them in baskets. Do it before I count to two hundred and I will let you have an hour off-"

Annalise jumped when it felt like the ground was shaking. Before Rafael could finish his sentence, there was a group of large men running toward her, or more specifically, the area with all the chickens. She stepped closer to Rafael to use him as a shield if needed if one of the men were to trip and fall in her direction.

The knights were full of energy unlike what they had when Rafael was standing before them. An hour off would feel like a day off with the way Rafael had been working them.

Annalise stood amazed by how fast they were moving to collect the chickens and the eggs. Maybe she actually had good luck since she was now standing on the other side of the fence watching knights do her job. She was going to take a lot of credit for this. As long as the knights kept their mouths shut about this, Mavis did not have to know who put away the chickens or collected the eggs.

"Thank you for helping me, young master. I will do something else in the meantime," Annalise said.

Before she could leave, Rafael grabbed her hand and watched her pull her hand away from him with a sheer lock of horror on her face. Once again, he thought it had something to do with what happened with Connor or maybe she didn’t like men touching her. He didn’t take offence to her reaction since he had thoughtlessly grabbed her instead of speaking.

"I apologise for grabbing you without any warning. You are to at least go back inside with eggs. They almost have a basket full of them already. Excuse me," Rafael said, leaving to give her space to herself. He left where Annalise stood to go over to where Christian stood with folded arms, watching the knights scramble to collect the chickens. "Why aren’t you in there?"

"Why aren’t you in there? You’re a knight too," Christian retorted.

"Keep that up and I will personally throw you over the fence," Rafael replied.

Christian didn’t doubt Rafael would pick him up and throw him over the fence. It wouldn’t be the first time he found himself lifted and then on the ground because he had angered Rafael. Christian looked beside him at Rafael leaning down on the fence and then across from them where the maid that Logan was clearly chasing after stood.

Christian didn’t see why Rafael had them do her job. He figured Rafael still felt sorry for what happened with Connor or there was something more. Either way, he had a feeling that one of the men close to him was going to have his heart broken in the future.

Christian was about to look back at the sight of the other men fighting with chickens when he noticed someone who did not belong out there or on Rafael’s estate, making her way toward them. Christian tapped Rafael’s side to get his attention. "You should run away right now," he said, still keeping his eyes on the threat.

"Why?" Rafael asked, standing up straight.

"Rafael!"

Rafael frowned when he heard the call from Giselle, whom he assumed to have left since he had not seen her after he had spoken to Annalise in the library. How had he gotten rid of Delilah only to be stuck with Giselle? "Tell the men at the gates to stop letting in everyone without my permission," said Rafael as he walked behind Christian to get away from Giselle.

"You storm your enemies without fear but constantly run away from women. Not that I blame you when it comes to this one," Christian said, staring at Giselle, who was too scantily clad around so many knights. The woman never seemed to care what the town would say as long as she could catch Rafael’s attention.

Christian had heard from a woman he once had a relationship with that Giselle claimed to have slept with Rafael. He relayed this message to Rafael, and it was part of the reason Rafael kept avoiding her.

Rafael never liked to be left alone with her or be around her for long enough for anyone to believe he had bedded her. Her parents would try to seize the moment and come crying down the estate that Rafael had ruined her and needed to wed her.

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