Page 74 of I Summon the Sea

Ow.I suck in a breath as my hair is pulled back so hard my cheeks hurt.Ow…

Daria hasn’t said a word to me since the guards escorted me back to my room. She gave me a hurt look and immediately got to torturing me.

Her excuse is getting me ready for the banquet. My hair has to be well brushed and done in one of those insanely tall hairdos the fae ladies favor. My skin has to be rubbed with oils and buffed to a shine. My eyelids need to be daubed with black and my lips with red.

I suffer through it all because I probably deserve it. That seed of guilt that stirred when she first told me how she’ll be punished if anything were to happen to me, well… it’s growing.

Then again, maybe that’s how she always brushes ladies’ hair. Who knows?

On another note, I’m not barefoot anymore. Various pairs of shoes have been brought over, and my feet do fit into some. An elaborate gown has been brought in, too, cleverly made so that the bust is adjustable as needed, which means that the seamstress won’t need to bother with me yet.

Then, there’s the jewelry.

What an elaborate theater play this is, each one of us dressed up and polished, ready to play a role. I won’t say these fae aren’t believers, that they aren’t here to celebrate a sacred rite, but it’s obvious that they are also here for their amusement. Dressing up the winners of every round, dining with them, observing them as one would observe the animals in a menagerie is part of the event’s diversions.

Observe the little humans as they try to imitate us, dress like us, and talk like us! Isn’t it hilarious!

Gritting my teeth, I let Daria manhandle me. She has called another maid whose name eludes me to help me get into this stiff, uncomfortable gown the color of an angry sea. Together, they wrestle me into it, pulling on the ribbons of the bodice until I can hardly draw breath. The underskirt is stiff and itchy, and the gown is too tight at my hips, a far cry from the comfortable, soft spidersilk dress I spent the afternoon in.

I hate this gown. And I hate the shoes they stuffed my feet into even more. They have a low heel and they are made of silk, stiff silk, squashing my toes together. But I have to attend this banquet to see how close I can get to the fae king. How well-guarded he is. How difficult it will be to touch him.

“She’s become unrecognizable,” the nameless maid says, clasping her hands over her stomach, looking mighty pleased with herself. “Like a highborn lady.”

Unrecognizable? Nobody knows me here, anyway.

“The human who voluntarily entered the games?” Daria clucks her tongue. “Everyone here knows who she is.”

Hells.

Daria is still fussing over my hair. My head already hurts, and it’s not helped by the long pins pushed into the sides, pinching my scalp. I bet they are sharp enough to be used as lethal weapons.

“The pearls,” the other maid says, and Daria grabs a small pearl garland and jams it onto my head, adding more pinching pins.

“Don’t be angry with her,” the maid says, wincing when Daria stabs another pin into my hair. She talks about me as if I’m not present. Then again, mute girl equals deaf girl, like I said before. That’s what everyone seems to think. “She didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Didn’t do anything wrong?” Daria finally bursts out. “She vanished from her room, went traipsing through the palace, barefoot! And ended up inside the royal apartments! She was escorted back by guards, and they weren’t happy, let me tell you.Didn’t do anything wrong?”

The maid’s face pinches. “She only wanted to explore. Anyone would want to.”

“She’s a human, like us,” Daria snaps, her voice clipped. “And she’s a contestant. She should know better.”

“Daria—”

“My position could be jeopardized. My life could be forfeit.” Daria clasps a pendant around my neck, almost choking me. “Don’t give her excuses, Peri.”

Peri, then, that’s the other maid’s name, and I resist the urge to throw her a grateful nod. I’m sorry that Daria is upset, but my mission is more important than her fears.

In fact, all I should care about is how to kill the king.

“You’re here for him, aren’t you?”

I go very still. I’d forgotten Jai’s words on the terrace for a moment. Was that why he had followed me to the royal apartments, to make sure I didn’t harm the king? Why hasn’t he done anything to stop me? Why am I not already in the dungeons?

He probably threatened Arkin with a gruesome death if he lets me out of his sight again. The redhead has probably campedoutside my door with blankets and a canteen, in case I try to slip past him.

A crazy idea hits me: What if I disguised myself as a maid? Then I’d walk around freely, able to find my way back into the royal apartments. Daria is about my height. If I can pinch her apron and bonnet, then I’m set. Once you put on a uniform, you blend in.

“Daria, listen!” Peri cocks her head to the side, her sable locks coming out of the bun at her nape. “Do you hear that?”

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