Shade of Destiny (The Foreseeing) by Shannon M Yarnold Read Free Book Online Page A

the Manor. A baby with no parents, only a name inscribed on the back of a small golden necklace which she wore around her neck. The necklace was too fine a piece of jewellery for Wynn to have been a peasant, but she would not have been brought to them if her parents were noble. Cook had taken her under her wing, and she had fallen into life as a maid with ease. The Master had noticed Wynn instantly, she was far more beautiful than the other maids, and as soon as Wynn had turned sixteen he requested that she bring his meals, and so had been the routine for almost two summers.
           Cook held Wynn’s cheek, the one not marred by the red shape of a hand, and slowly stood up to face her, “How about you go and check the horses? They would appreciate your visit I’m sure.”
          Wynn nodded slowly, quickly bowing before leaving the kitchen through the back door. As she stepped into the brisk morning air, she reminded herself that few maids often earned the right for a few moments away from work, and for this moment, and the many others before it, she was lucky. I’m special to someone, Wynn thought sardonically as she touched her throbbing lip tentatively, finding that it was bleeding less freely now. Lifting her fingers from her lip she viewed the courtyard before her. It was empty save the rose bushes that surrounded it, swaying gently in the breeze. They formed a thick barrier around the courtyard and offered a degree of privacy. Walking up to a nearly rosebush she stood on tiptoes and smelt a dangling rose. It was fresh and sweet and smelt faintly of the rain that had fallen the previous night.
          Wynn stood there for some time, in between the rosebushes, marvelling that the Master would have something so beautiful in his garden. Eventually, when she had had her fill of the rose’s aroma she ambled towards the stables, to the left of the courtyard, reached via a small cobbled path which cut through the rose bushes, but allowed them to grow either side. As she walked she ran her fingers gently along the petals of the roses, their silkiness far more pleasant than the normal things she had to touch on a daily bases, a scrubbing brush, her thick cotton dress and the rough wooden brooms. The servant’s quarters, along with the bathhouse, both combined for convenience, lay on the left of the path, a section of the wall of roses had been cut away to grant access to the back entrance. The dense forest, which surrounded all of Woodstone and the Manor, lay to the right of the path, a hundred yards away. This section of the forest, Lumber Forest, was reserved for the Master’s hunting.
          Wynn stopped in front of the stable once she had reached the end of the path to check it was deserted. She knew that the stable boy, Groom and Hunts-Marshal would not be working this early, as the horses were sparsely used, depending on whether the Master could be bothered to actually hunt for his food, or if the Mistress was having a riding lesson. The stable was attached to the servant’s quarters and looked dilapidated against the polished beauty of the black marble Manor. The large doors, both at the back and front of the stable were open and the breeze danced through it, blowing strands of straw into the air.
          Looking once more behind her Wynn walked into the stables, noting the scent of hay which lingered in her nostrils. The eight horses inside their stalls trampled the ground curiously at Wynn, smelling her aroma and pricking their ears up at the sound of her breathing. Taking time to stroke each one Wynn made her way around all of the horses, enjoying the simple, mutual love which radiated around her. The sound of whining interrupted her and once Wynn had finished stroking the last horse Wynn walked to the end of the stables. There a Beagle bitch lay on the cold, hard ground, six puppies latched onto her, drinking furiously. Wynn knelt down and stroked the bitch’s head. She growled at Wynn but