Adam arrived twenty minutes later with a grocery bag that looked wildly out of place against the manor's polished wood and carved moldings. Victor took it himself from the butler's hands with a nod of thanks and waved the staff away. The door shut; silence fell again.
Elias peeked over the edge of the duvet as Victor crossed the room with the bag dangling from one elegant hand. "You actually went to a supermarket?"
Victor crouched by the hearth and began unpacking. "Adam went. I told him what to buy." He held up a packet between two fingers. "This is what you wanted?"
Elias squinted at the familiar garish lettering, then grinned. "Yes. That's the stuff."
Victor set the packets on the low table, pulled a small electric kettle closer, and poured bottled water into it with a smooth, practiced motion. "This is absurd," he said, but there was no bite to it. "You could have anything in the world cooked for you, and you want freeze-dried noodles."
