Chapter 17
By tradition, the first night with a Blood Knight was also the only one we would spend even partially apart.
Although he had been given a quick wash with a cloth after the battle and fresh clothes to wear, Lysande had now been taken away for a proper bath.
His room, connected directly to my new chambers, had already been prepared long ago.
Over the next few days, they would move his belongings there, if he had any, and that room would become his new permanent home.
He would sleep when I slept, eat when I ate, and even, though separated by thick fabric and surrounded by countless servants, bathe when I bathed.
The maids, this time without Welme, led me into the bathing chamber, where many servants were already waiting.
Thick humidity struck my face, and warmth clung to my skin.
They removed my clothes, slipping the once-white gown from my body and undoing my corset before guiding me into a large copper tub.
One of them scattered flower petals across the water and unraveled my hair.
They hummed quiet songs as they scrubbed my skin with soaps and fragrant oils and combed through my wet hair. At last, the scent of death was replaced by the fragrance of lavender and winter roses imported from distant lands just for me.
It could not have been long, only a few minutes, I was sure, before they finished. They lowered their gazes and bowed slightly.
They helped me out of the bath, dressed me in a nightgown, and braided my damp hair. My chambers were not far from the bathing room, only one corridor below it, yet the walk there felt hundreds of steps long. I felt as though I had to cross the entire world.
That strange feeling pounded in my chest again, growing stronger with every step toward the door.
“Princess, your knight is already inside,” one of the servants said. She would now remain close to me as well, more precisely in the small room situated between my chamber and Lys’s. “Lady Welme is there too,” she added.
Although by tradition Welme was not supposed to continue serving under my hand, I had spent days begging Father to change that rule for me, and though he had said nothing at the time, he had done it anyway.
I breathed a little easier when I heard she would be there.
They opened the doors to my chamber and bowed.
My steps felt heavy, and my stomach tightened more and more. I felt nausea and fear and so many emotions I could not even describe. He was here. Lysande.
We were separated by only two thin walls, walls so thin they allowed every sound to pass through in case of danger. I could almost hear him breathe.
I had not even realized I was standing still, staring blankly at the door that led to him.
My throat tightened, and I swallowed musky air.
My eyes darted toward the bed, but my hand reached for the door anyway.
I grabbed the handle, but it bent downward beneath my gaze before I could even move it myself.
“Fuck—” I muttered quietly before stopping myself and taking a step back.
The air had become thick, and the nightgown, light and transparent as it was, suddenly felt suffocating. The light of the candle lamp danced across the floor beneath my feet, and warm air brushed against my face. My mouth had gone dry.
But instead of his footsteps, I heard the soft tread of a woman.
Welme’s red hair, sticking out in every direction, curled into thousands of tiny ringlets that shimmered in the candlelight.
Her green eyes were wide, her eyebrows raised.
She stared at me in disbelief as she closed the door behind her.
She began to bow, but before her knees could bend, I grabbed her arm and pulled her to the other side of the room, hoping we would be harder to overhear there.
“Princess, how—?”
“I don’t know,” I answered. The realization felt as though it had only now truly struck me. I sat down on the bed and looked up at her.
“I don’t know, Welme. How did he end up here?” I whispered. She had no answer, but she still stepped closer. “Princess, listen to me. Leave the past behind.” She set the candle down on a small table before sitting beside me.
I stared at the patterns woven into the carpet while she continued.
“You are a princess, and now you own him. He is no longer any of the things you once knew him as. I know you developed some feelings—” My head snapped toward her. I did not have to say a word. “I-I apologize if I overstepped...” she stammered.
I took a deep breath, but what could I even say to that? That it was a lie? How could I, when it the furthest thing from it?
And yet a princess was not allowed to have feelings for someone beneath her station.
“I will have to accept the situation for what it is,” I said. “It could have been much worse.” I was trying to comfort myself as much as anyone else. She placed a hand over mine, knowing the truth I was not allowed to speak aloud. “Have you spoken to him?” she asked quietly.
I shook my head.
“I should, shouldn’t I?” I asked.
She shrugged. “You are a princess. You have the right to do whatever you want.” She said it plainly. At that, I almost laughed, but I said nothing more. I stood and adjusted the fabric of my nightgown.
“Wait, Princess.” She rose and draped another piece of cloth across my chest, hoping to cover me at least a little, knowing what I was about to do.
“Thank you,” I told her, and her eyebrows rose slightly in surprise. She was not used to hearing those words from me.
I opened the door and stepped first into the servants’ room. The other three maids were sitting on their beds, whispering among themselves, but the moment they saw me, they jumped to their feet in surprise. “Princess, is there anything we can help you with?” one of them asked.
I simply gestured for them to sit. “Girls, continue whatever you were doing. I will call for you if I need you.” Behind me, I heard Welme enter the room as well. I turned toward her and nodded.
She smiled back in return. Then I opened the door to Lys’s room.