Page 94 of Light and Shadow
I stumble into the bedroom and flop on the soft mattress. I’m damp, but at least I’m clean. I moan over how soft and fluffy the bed is. “I may never get up.”
Lila must have put all the clothes away. The only evidence is the dress that hangs on an armoire across the room. Unable to decide if I’m curious about the city and my surroundings or too tired to care, I close my eyes and the decision is made.
Achill in the room stirs me awake. There’s a noise and I sit up, grabbing my towel.
One of the maids is building a fire. “Sorry to disturb you, miss. I saw you were sleeping an hour ago and thought I’d come back so you could rest. The nights get cool here. I didn’t want you to catch a chill.”
I blink and rise. “Thank you. My name is Harper.”
She smiles and uses her forearm to brush her curly blond hair from her face. “I’m Mari. Lila will be in shortly to help you dress and do your hair. Dinner will be at eight.”
The sun is low, almost touching the mountains. “What time is it now?” Suddenly, I miss my phone.
“Nearly six.” Once the fire catches, she makes a little curtsy and rushes from the room, carrying a metal bucket.
I sit at the vanity and pull the towel from my hair.
“Oh dear!” Lila shouts from the doorway. She comes over. You should have called me to brush your hair before you napped. She takes a brush from a drawer in the vanity and works the soft bristles gently through my wild hair.
“We can just pull it into a ponytail. There’s no need to fuss,” I say, but having someone brush my hair is a luxury I can’t turn down, so I sit and let her brush to her heart’s content, while I close my eyes and enjoy.
“We can do better than that.” She opens and closes the drawers a few more times. “The rumor going around the city is that you and the future king are lovers.”
I snap out of my relaxed state and open my eyes. “I don’t know what that means here. Are you asking me if I’m having sex with Aaran? Is Aaran to be king? Is Elspeth queen, or has she been deposed by Venora?”
Pausing from her work, she meets my gaze in the mirror. “Elspeth Riordon is our queen. Venora is a pretender who would destroy this world. Riordon is the royal name, and Aaran is the eldest child. I wouldn’t presume to ask you about your sexual encounters.” She returns to brushing.
“The royal name. I didn’t know. I mean, I knew she ruled. I suppose I knew Aaran’s part as the eldest son, but he always seems so down to earth. I guess I don’t see him as a prince.” Aaran would make a fine king. He’s kind and smart. I, on the other hand, have no business dating or screwing, or whatever we’re doing, the future ruler of a people. “Venora tortured me and left evil behind that nearly killed me. I wasn’t venerating her. I only want to know the status of things.”
She twists and pins my hair before taking it all down. “I think it’s beautiful down around your shoulders.” She holds up a finger as if a thought has come to her. Pulling a shiny comb from the desk, she slips it into the right side of my hair, letting my ear show. “So no one forgets who you are.”
“I’m no one,” I remind myself as Lila goes to the closet and brings the dress back.
“You are our only hope.” She helps me into the dress and buttons the back. With two straps to hold it up, and not much else, it leaves my arms bare. The soft fabric slips along my skin and shows every curve. We both look at me in the mirror. She says, “I think you’ll do fine.” With a smile and a nod, she bustles out of the room.
I slide on a pair of little shoes that are the same color as the dress. They fit my feet as if they were made just for me. Outside, the last of the day’s light slides away. Summer is nearly over back home. I wonder if Mom went to the Jersey Shore and had some fun. She used to love a frozen drink on the boardwalk with her friends. I hope she’s happy. Missing my mother is perfectly normal, and nothing to cry over. Shaking it off, I leave the confines of the room and step into a long hallway.
Left or right? I have no idea. I decide on the left and follow it to a set of stairs that go straight down, not curved like the ones that brought me to my room. At the bottom, I hear voices to the right and follow them, but soon realize I’m heading into a large group of soldiers.
I spin on my heel, rush back the other way and through a set of doors that open into a long hall with portraits on the walls and a piano in the corner. A violin rests on a stand, and several chairs are lined up against the wall.
Maybe it’s a gallery or a music room. Posed paintings of blond-haired men and women cover the walls at even intervals. At the far end is Elspeth’s portrait. She looks off past the artist to some pleasant scene.
“Should you be here?” A gruff masculine voice startles me.
I gasp and turn. “I didn’t know the room was restricted.”
He works his jaw from side to side. His dark-brown eyes stare at me as if he can see through me. He’s handsome andfierce at the same time. In my experience, a deadly combination. “I am Rían Redmond, Captain of the Guard. The room is not forbidden, but if I’m not mistaken, you’re expected at the family dinner.”
This is the man who Aaran stopped to speak to when we arrived. I can’t decide if he can be trusted. “I’ll make my way there now.” I head for the door closest with no idea where I am or how to reach the dining room.
The sharp clip of Rían’s boots hitting the marble floor follows me. How had he been so silent when he entered the gallery?
I call over my shoulder, “Are you chasing me?”
“No. I’m seeing you safely to your destination.” He pauses. “Which it is clear you have no idea how to reach,” he says with laughter in his voice.
I still don’t trust him, but I stop. I can’t run in this dress and little slipper shoes. Turning toward him, I force a smile. “Captain Redmond, would you be so kind as to show me the way to the dinner I’m in peril of missing?”
