When Lawyer Lüttel met Arthur, Arthur was sitting with Fontel, Lady "Anna," and Pendragon in the small first-floor parlor-one of Lord Doyle's former reception rooms, usually reserved for friends closer than ordinary acquaintances.
As for the reception room on the third floor?
By noble tradition, that room was reserved for Lady Doyle's closest female friends-it also offered the master of the house certain conveniences on occasion. After all, a connecting washroom lay between the bedroom and the reception room.
Major matters such as deciding Oak Manor's future, however, were discussed in the small second-floor parlor.
The traditions of South Los nobility were just that tedious and troublesome.
But the pastries were good.
Seated in a chair carved from birchwood, Arthur picked up a cream-filled puff pastry fruit pie-the apples, oranges, peaches, and pears decorating it trembled as his hand moved, while the cream inside spilled out on either side.
Starting at the narrow tip, Arthur ate half in one bite. The sweet tartness of the fruit balanced the rich sweetness of the cream, while the crunch of the pastry gave him the delightful sensation that his teeth and tongue were dancing.
With barely a second bite, Arthur finished the pie in his hand.
Then he reached for a second.
Fontel paid no attention to the food. He earnestly introduced himself to Lady "Anna," covering everything from his name to his hobbies, and even invited her to his "Enthusiasts' Club"-a small group of idle young men from wealthy South Los families whose main aim was to seek novelty and excitement.
Lady "Anna," of course, remained silent.
That left Fontel a little discouraged.
But the young man immediately began cheering himself on.
Giving up at the first sign of trouble isn't the Doyle Family's tradition-perseverance is!
Watching the wealthy young man work