Page 22 of Faeling
The door, already open a crack since no one had bothered to come fix the lock, creaked as it opened wider. Into her room stepped King Vallek’s elder sister, Lady Eydis. Dressed as she usually was in smart robes with crisp draping folds, her belt jangling with keys and pouches, and her hair swept behind her pointed ears into a neat plait that fell down the length of her back, she was far too elegant for Ravenna’s small cell. Although never ostentatious, Lady Eydis still exuded dignity and affluence, several golden hoops glittering from both ears, a ceremonial gorget displaying her rank laying on her chest, and silver threads gleaming along the hems of her robes.
The sight of her here was so surprising, Ravenna forgot what she was meant to do for a full moment.
Finally gaining her feet, Ravenna bowed. “Forgive me, my lady, I wasn’t expecting you.”
“Quite all right.” Eydis looked around the room, her keen gaze landing on the broken door. “There’s a good story to this, Iassume?”
Ravenna bit the inside of her cheek. She liked the king’s sisters, clever Eydis and lively Asta, but wasn’t sure where she stood anymore within Vallek’s household. His sisters were just as loyal to him as Ulrich, if not more so, and Ravenna couldn’t help but worry that the lord commander’s sudden tightening of the screws were on direct order of their king.
If so, she couldn’t count his elder sister as an ally.
Still, her confusion over the broken door seemed genuine.
Choosing her words carefully, Ravenna said, “The lord commander thought it the most expedient way of searching my room a few nights ago.”
Lady Eydis’s lips thinned. “I see.” Looking over the door more critically, she said, “Some of the other staff have mentioned the greater…attention he’s been paying you.”
Ravenna just held onto her snort of derision. “It’s hard to miss. I’m not sure what the lord commander hopes to find.” A lie, of course, but Ravenna didn’t care. If she could turn someone against Ulrich, she would.
“Ulrich is…” Lady Eydis sighed. “He’s a determined man. He’s actually why I’m here.”
Ravenna’s shoulders tensed, her folded wings trembling against her back.
“The lord commander has requested both of us for a meeting.”
“Now?”
“It would seem so.”
Trying not to pull a face, Ravenna nodded and took up her cloak. She couldn’t hide her grimace as easily as she slipped on the heavy fabric and drew the cowl over her lank hair.The garment was stifling, but it helped with her disguise and hopefully masked some of her smell.
Perhaps not enough, though, as Lady Eydis couldn’t hide her expression when Ravenna followed her out of the room.
“Forgive me,kone,but…have you not been shown to our baths? The ones beneath the citadel are open to all staff.”
Ravenna’s cheeks burned even through the glamour. Clearing her throat, she muttered, “I haven’t felt comfortable going to the baths with the lord commander paying me so much attention.”
Lady Eydis’s brows snapped down into a forbidding frown. “That won’t do.” Stepping further out into the corridor, she called, “Bryn?”
After a moment, one of the older housekeepers appeared from her room. Brynhíl was the king’s own housekeeper and oversaw all staff who served him and his family directly. She was as dignified as she was strong, her arms thick with muscle and her dark mane woven with streaks of silver. Kind brown eyes took the both of them in as she approached.
Bobbing her head in deference, Brynhíl asked, “My lady?”
Lady Eydis nodded at Ravenna’s door. “Please see that this is fixed by tonight. And send for a hipbath to be put in her room and filled.” Turning to Ravenna, she said, “It won’t be warm, but it will be a bath.”
Ravenna shook her head. “No, my lady, it’s perfect. Thank you! You’re too generous.”
The orcess grinned ruefully. “I’m not, you just stink.”
“I’m afraid to say you do,” agreed Brynhíl.
A laugh burst from Ravenna, and although her flush of embarrassment only deepened, she didn’t mind the teasing. As much as she’d never forget Ulrich’s violation, she’d also neverforget the orcesses’ kindness.
“Thank you, still. I might never get out once I’m in.”
They bid farewell to Brynhíl, on her way to find the citadel’s locksmith, and instead turned to climb to one of the higher levels.
With every step, Ravenna lost her good humor. She chewed on her cheek and whether to ask if Lady Eydis knew what exactly this meeting was about.
