Pull the Strings #2
I just wasn’t sure if it was my sentence or hers.
* * *
Leaning against the side of my cell, I was trying not to look at my mom’s bones or think about the treacherous things I was soon going to say and do. I was still in the ridiculous purple dress from dinner. What had looked like a fairytale at the start ended up being a nightmare.
The same could be said about the prince, I realized with a pang of sadness. I wanted the dress off, but no matter how wrong it felt against my skin, it was better than being naked in this cold cell.
I told Noxie of the bargain I struck with the king, and it hurt to hear and feel his heartbreak. He said that he would keep as close a watch on Nella as he could.
It was a slight consolation.
So I sat there in silence and near darkness, the only sound being the occasional muttering or sniffling of other prisoners. They mostly stayed quiet, lost in their own minds and hopelessness.
Until they screamed in their sleep.
A guard came by some time later with what I guessed they called food.
It was only a flimsy bowl of brown slop that looked like it was meant for pigs, and a cup of dirty water.
I hoped painfully and desperately that Nella was up in the castle having Halden’s cooking as I ate the disgustingness.
I tried sleeping, thinking that maybe the unconsciousness would bring reprieve from the warring anger and sadness enveloping me.
And that’s precisely how time passed for me. I would sleep fitfully, eat a cup of slop, pace restlessly, eat a cup of slop, and fall back into uneasy sleep.
The king hadn’t come back yet.
Varyn never came at all. My sadness over his betrayal had turned to sharp anger. I had let my guard down for him. Given my heart to him.
But never again.
Caedryn. Varyn. Dungeon guards. Cassius. Aemilia. Purple-eyed blacksmith.
* * *
Going off my sleeping pattern, on what I thought was the fifth day, the two guards came back for me, cuffing me before dragging me from my cell and back to the private royal dining room where the whole fateful night had begun. I shuddered, squinting my eyes against the bright light.
The king and queen sat alone at the table, no Varyn this time.
The guards sat me across from the queen, to the right of the king, who was looking rather pleased with himself. Malvina had her unreadable mask firmly in place, looking at me with little emotion.
I guessed this was the beginning of my dancing puppet act.
“We’ve arranged your first appearance at sunset today,” the king said.
“I will address the city and announce your alliance with and support of the crown. You will read the speech given to you, and you’ll smile and wave.
If your performance is satisfactory, I will have your sister brought to your cell afterward. Do not forget my promise.”
I said nothing because I felt nothing. Nothing for myself, or the humiliation I would feel. I kept reminding myself that this was keeping Nella alive and safe.
“The guards will escort you to a private bathing room where handmaidens will get you presentable. Do you have any questions?”
“I want to see Nella before, not after. I won’t do it unless I know she’s safe.” My voice came out hoarse and shaky after so many days without use.
The king studied me for a moment. “Fine. Guards, take her to the maidens. Get this filth out of my sight and have the sister brought to the bathing chamber. One more thing, Naci. You will be searched thoroughly before returning to your cell. Don’t even think about removing anything from that chamber.
” Every word this evil male spoke was ominous and laced with danger.
The guards lifted me by the elbows, hands still cuffed in front of me, and marched me out of the dining room and into a smaller wing where the private bathing room was located.
Once they had pushed me into the room, removed my cuffs, and closed the door behind them, I saw the two maidens waiting for me.
Mortals.
I looked around and found I was in a similar chamber to the one I had shared with Nella and the other laundry ladies, except that it was much smaller, intended for only one person at a time.
The shorter, younger girl motioned toward the already full tub while the taller, older one pointed at my dress. It was odd, but I assumed they weren’t allowed to speak to me.
I turned around to let her untie the lace securing the bodice and faced my reflection in a mirror on the wall.
It was startling. My face was filthy, covered in dirt and dungeon grime, hair completely matted and tangled.
But my eyes were the worst part. They were empty and hollow, purple circles underneath.
I looked like a girl carved out of grief, a painting crafted with only colors of despair and hopelessness.
The maiden removed the ruined dress and sleeves and then helped me into the tub, where the young girl joined us on the other side. I felt only slightly embarrassed at being naked in front of these ladies, but I couldn’t find it in me to care about much of anything except Nella anymore.
They scrubbed, brushed, lathered, and rinsed, having to empty the tub twice to get the dirty water out before I was fully clean. And they never said a word while they worked, to me or to each other.
“Are you not allowed to talk to me?”
The younger one looked to the older one, who just shook her head, the corners of her mouth turning down. She pointed to her mouth and then made a motion across her throat with her hand.
“Oh, you can’t talk?”
She shook her head and opened her mouth.