31. Nora
31
Nora
I f I hadn’t already thought Hamish Caine to be a complete and utter sack of garbage, this week certainly proved it. Apparently the chimney required sweeping, the floors needed waxing, and the roof suddenly possessed unacceptable coverage. And I’d been the obvious choice to patch it.
I assumed this was meant to be a continuation of his threat, another display of power designed to force me to comply. Eucinda had delivered him a letter last week, telling him I would attend the remaining events as an equal competitor to my sisters. Guess that hadn’t been enough to appease him.
The silver lining of it all was that he hadn’t been spending much time at the tavern. Working with Helena was tolerable, as long as I didn’t get behind on cleaning. My body ached from the strenuous shifts, and sleep claimed me so fully that besides the occasional run to the market for Eucinda, my life consisted of sleeping, working, and foaming baths. I hadn’t even had a chance to inquire about the missing persons yet and whether they were magic affiliated.
Sleep, half my healing balm for those monstrous shifts, was cut short as my sisters and Eucinda tweeted like songbirds over their anticipation for the ball today. I sat up in my bed, my eyes stinging from vengeance for being awake.
I’d done my best to avoid thinking about what today would bring, but now that it was here, it felt like I’d swallowed a bunch of rocks. The stress sat heavy in my body, knowing that not only was I to appear like I cared about vying for the prince’s hand in marriage, but also because I was going in as a spy. Dee told me to press the staff for information that could help them infiltrate. The expectations for the day piled on as each passing second brought me nearer to the point of no return.
I brushed back my dark hair away from my face and worked off the stress by shaking out my arms. I could do this. And after, I would escort Melody to the Magic Supporters meeting. There, I could probe for the information I hadn’t had time to collect this week, and have something to communicate back to Chol. Knowing I’d be meeting up with him in a stretch of a few hours made my stomach flutter and my lips pull to the side in a smile. The ghost scent memory of citrus had me biting my thumbnail.
How he’d successfully redistributed Crown funds was still a mystery, but knowing that he did had my anticipation heighten to see him later. What else would this impressive man be able to pull off?
Together, we were already improving the kingdom in a way I really only thought could exist in my wildest fantasies. A quick glance around this isolated attic room reminded me where I’d started from when I’d first concocted the idea.
Before I could stop myself, I left the idea of my past and present behind, considering my future. What it held for me. If I’d have a home at all, or if I’d have to leave Highcrest entirely. If I’d wind up in a cell, or in the ground for high treason.
Without me, my people would still have Chol. One could argue he was the better end of that deal, given his connections and sway of influence. Wouldn’t be me arguing that point though, especially not to him. In fact, I should probably spontaneously remind him how lucky he was to have me.
A cacophony of excited giggles climbed the stairs from the girls a floor below, and I knew I couldn’t procrastinate any longer. So I tossed off the covers and made my way downstairs.
Each step reminded me of the grueling tasks at the tavern, my muscles and joints tense with every movement. I winced and whined silently, wishing I could return to bed and sleep until sunset before reaching their floor. My sisters flitted about the dressing room, as if dancing to a tune only they could hear.
Their experience at the ball would be much different from mine, and I needed to be careful. Keeping my true intentions a secret from those at the castle would be one thing, but I couldn’t let Melody, Kenzie, or Eucinda suspect anything either. Which meant my act had to start now. If I expressed how much I truly loathed this day, then suddenly acted interested and bright at the ball, Melody would pick up on it.
So, instead of rolling my eyes or grumbling, I let another kind of mask fall over my features. “Good morning,” I greeted, sounding only fractionally less than happy. Slapping on too much of a pleased expression would also indicate something fishy.
Eucinda scoffed at my use of the word “morning”. They’d all been up for hours, and she turned her nose up at my unladylike sleep schedule, blatantly ignoring the fact that I did it to work the night shifts required to pay the debt to keep this house.
“Nora! Mother finished our dresses, and I found the perfect hairpiece to go with yours!” Melody pulled out a blue crystal studded piece resembling a treble clef. My father used to play beautifully, but the piano and his collection of sheet music was one of the first things Eucinda sold.
“Oh, dear, are you quite sure? The blue would bring out your eyes,” Eucinda countered. I saw the way her eyes sparkled at the elegant clip, and the mere thought of it being wasted on me grated on her nerves.
“Nonsense. It would clash with the soft pink of my dress, and Kenzie’s green. It’s best suited for Nora.” Melody crossed the room with effervescent grace, picking up my hand and placing the clip in my palm. “It’ll look beautiful on you.” Her smile lit up the already bright room.
Beyond Melody, Eucinda’s lip curled into a snarl before turning her attention back to Kenzie’s curlers. We spent the next hour preparing, until finally we left the house, making our way down the streets to the market where a string of carriages waited. Before I was ready, we pulled up to the castle.
There were more guardsmen this time around, and the energy in the air sizzled. It wasn’t until we were escorted to the ballroom that I figured out why.
This room was much more grand than the one where the luncheon took place. Draped cuts of ivory and blue fabric hung from the ceiling, glowing from the massive candle lit chandeliers framing the room. They sparkled, almost like the night sky, and billowed down to the floor where they pooled. Despite my dread, I couldn’t help but feel enchanted.
Ballgowns of every color and shape moved across the floor, like the current of a flowing river, effortless and mesmerizing. Even the chaperones were barely discernible, dressed in their finest wear.
Towering bouquets umbrella’d each table perfectly positioned around the room, in between the circular columns that stretched to the high ceiling. Candelabras taller than men with intricate ironwork lined the walls. Dapperly dressed staff in black tuxes with long coat tails and white gloves dotted the room, and I almost wondered if they served a purpose more than added decoration. It wouldn’t surprise me if the prince thought of his staff as anything more than objects, which would explain why he never cared about the condition of his people. Resentment started broiling in my gut, and I wrung my gloved fingers together, reminding myself to keep my composure.
A trumpet sounded, calling everyone’s attention to the dais at the end of the ballroom. We hadn’t had a chance to take more than a few steps into the grand room before the official welcome speech.
“Welcome, young ladies, to this stunning and exciting event at Highcrest Castle. These walls, while sitting above the city, stand tall only to serve each and every one of you.”
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep my face neutral.
The cherub-faced, gray-haired man continued his address, adjusting his clean white suit with golden stitching and trim. “To say our kingdom is lacking would be untrue, but a great man recognizes that with a great woman by his side, things will only become better. Tonight, as you dance and mingle, hold your heads high, and present yourself as if on this very night, you have this crown placed upon your head.”
He gestured beside him in a graceful sweeping motion, and a staff member appeared, holding the crown of the former queen. The audience released a collective sigh of amazement. Beside me, Kenzie clamored to grasp Melody’s hand, almost overcome with the idea.
While all eyes in the room gawked over the sparkling diamonds embedded in the silver crown, my focus was on the staff, counting how many were in attendance. Servers, stationed staff, guards. I noted how many there were and where they seemed to be placed.
Already, I started assessing how I could casually stumble upon one of them and strike up an innocent conversation. Most of the guards wore full armor, helmets and all. I doubted they would be very chatty. The fashionable staff seemed equally poised as the guards. I’d have to bump into one of them to see if they had been instructed to be silent.
Then there was the kitchen staff, mostly women, constantly flowing in and out with trays of food and drink. They used the front doors to enter and leave the ballroom. Based on the number of guards posted in the halls, attempting to skulk around beyond this room may not be an option, though an idea was already churning.
“Please join me in welcoming the reason we are all here. A man who lives to set an example, graceful and kind, with a strength to rival the lions in the western plains…”
My calculating ceased, and my throat dried as I snapped my attention back to the stage. Heat raced over my stomach, and I placed my hand overtop it to steady myself.
“Prince Nicholas Charmant of Highcrest.” The cherub-faced man stepped aside, leading the round of applause that echoed off the polished stone floors. A rumbling grew with the force of a stampede of wild horses, shaking my already wobbly nerves as I waited with bated breath, keenly focused on the side of the stage I knew he would emerge from.
He appeared, and my tense muscles turned to goo. All I could do was watch the way his golden hair settled perfectly behind his ears, the way his jaw cut the air as he walked, the way his broad shoulders carried the weight of his sapphire embedded crown with ease. He faced the crowd, raising his hand in greeting, a smile spread across his perfectly tan face. The depth of his entirely blue outfit pulled me in like an expanding black hole.
I shook my head, breaking the trance, telling myself I only noticed those things because I knew his time was limited. That I would be partly responsible for his end. Concern wrapped its anxious fingers around my stomach over why I spent any time taking in his beauty when I knew I should feel nothing but hatred toward him. I cursed myself internally, having hoped that the last time he’d affected me this way was only because I’d never seen a royal so close.
But now, we weren’t close at all. In fact, being one of the last of the attendees to enter the room, I was one of the furthest away. Flashes of memory from the moments we’d spent near the food table reminded me of the beautiful hue to his ocean eyes.
I almost swore I could see the darker rim of his irises even across the sea of people between us. The material of my dress suddenly became constricting, the heels on my feet too unstable.
I looked ridiculous. I felt ridiculous. The only saving grace I had was that he probably wouldn’t even see me amongst all the admittedly stunning women and gowns. Being here satisfied Caine’s demand, but I didn’t need to actually interact with the prince. No, I was here for another purpose, a purpose that would lead to liberation.
A flutter of disappointment caught me by surprise when the prince didn’t make a speech and address the room. Instead, he slipped off the stage, and his announcer explained the duration of the evening. We were to be divided on opposite sides of the dance floor and asked to participate when one of the suited staff along the walls requested a dance. The floor would feature about twelve pairs of dancers. The prince would float around the room, requesting dances as the mood so struck him, but the rest of the time we should all be focused on presenting ourselves with precision and poise.
The first batch of ladies was requested, and luckily me and my sisters remained too far back to be approached. Melody and Kenzie conversed amongst themselves until Melody turned to me. “We’re moving forward to try and be selected next. Come.” She extended her elegantly gloved hand.
I would rather walk on hot coals. “No, you go ahead. I need to use the ladies room. I’ll find you after.”
She smiled, and thankfully didn’t insist. Picking up my lengthy pale purple skirt, I shuffled beyond the crowd. Easily confused by the extravagance of the space while on my way to find the restroom I could say to anyone who’d bother to take notice. I padded behind the swarm of women setting all their hopes and intentions on being next to join the dance floor. Their desperation was as tangible as the excess of fabric hanging off me.
I traveled along the border of the room, finally making my way to the spread of delicate treats and sandwiches. One frazzled looking staff member worked to hurriedly refill pitchers that had barely gone down. She looked as pristine as any other person here. Her beautiful onyx hair was pulled back into a neat bun, and her big brown eyes assessed the state of the beverage presentation.
“Oh, this is all so lovely. You really are doing a marvelous job,” I said in my best demure voice.
She was caught off guard by my small talk, and once she looked around, confirming it was indeed her I was speaking to, she turned to face me again. “Thank you, Miss. It’s an honor to serve the prince and his future queen. Please, help yourself.”
“Oh, I’m quite famished already, but thank you.” Lie. I actually wanted nothing more than to bunch my skirts into a makeshift basket and dump a few dozen goodies to take home. “You and your colleagues must be working yourselves to death putting together an event as stunning as this.” I feigned taking in the extravagance with wonder, though it was beautiful.
“Truly, it is good to see this room getting some use. The prince doesn’t host things like this often. It has been thrilling to see it transformed.” She gazed around the room with pride.
The prince didn’t host balls? Interesting. I would have assumed he’d lavish the opportunity to have beautiful women spin around for him on the regular.
“Will the next ball be as exciting?” I baited, pretending the question held no importance.
She quirked her brow at me. “Do you mean the wedding?”
Alright, so the next event won’t be a ball. I brought my white-gloved hand to my cheek, pretending to be embarrassed. “Oh, I apologize. I’ve never experienced anything quite like this, and as there are many beautiful women here, I doubt I will ever get the chance again. Will the wedding be open to the kingdom?” I made my eyes brighten at the thought of a poor girl attending a royal wedding, though it took everything not to roll them.
“The invitations are the responsibility of the first counselor. I’m afraid I do not know his plans as of yet. There will be a reception dinner for dignitaries and the like, with local vendors presenting Highcrest delicacies, but as for the celebration, I’m not sure.” She gave me a consolation smile.
Helpful. “Just as well, I only have this one dress. If I happen to be invited to the next event, do you think the prince will mind if I wear it again?” The way I looked absolutely gutted with concern should win me an award.
She tried chewing on her smile, but it broke free. “I think that dress would be much too formal for the next event, Miss.”
I shared her sheepish grin, hoping to stoke the fire and loosen her lips further. “A more casual affair? How very interesting.” I let the comradery fall from my face, portraying sadness and despair in its wake. “I don’t know if what I own will suffice…I had to trade my last coppers for this dress alone.” I smoothed the glossy purple fabric. If she’d taken notice that it was a decade out of fashion, it may earn me pity points.
She glanced around, as if ensuring our conversation would only be heard between her and me, and my heart thundered. She leaned in closer, dropping her voice to a whisper. “After this ball, there will only be a dozen or so ladies invited to an intimate dinner with the prince. If you’re selected, you should find a simple dress. That’s the last event before the engagement luncheon.” Placing her hand on my arm, she offered a light squeeze and a smile. “Good luck.” Then she whisked herself away to continue her duties.
The thought of an intimate affair with Prince Nicholas sent my mind spinning like the dancers currently twirling on the dance floor. Having those brilliant cerulean eyes fall upon me felt reminiscent of a double-edged sword. Something happened to me when he drew near, a pull I hadn’t trained for, and I couldn’t get a handle on it.
However, as an official conspirator against him, fear spread through me like a nocuous gas. Walking into the lion’s den, exposing myself to the enemy, was not on my to-do list. Heat wrapped my torso, my dress suddenly feeling all too heavy and constricting. Staying far away from him was my only course of action.
A few fancily dressed staff remained posted by the walls, presumably to rotate others off the dance floor. I started walking, keeping my focus on the refined spread before me, though I wasn’t really seeing. My rapt attention remained on how to maneuver myself to one of those staff members and clumsily bump into them.
I hadn’t quite figured out the best route to take when someone brutally knocked into my shoulder. In the same breath, their staining red juice tilted and splashed all over the front of my dress. I wouldn’t have cared about ruining my outfit, wouldn’t have cared when Eucinda raked me over the coals if it didn’t cause such a scene.
“Oh, I am so sorry Nora!”
My nose crinkled when I saw the insincere brown of Jenta’s eyes pairing with that vipers smile. Sorry my ass.
“That threatened by me being here, Jenta, that you had to try and sabotage me? Worried the prince would look at me, and be found wanting when he miserably stumbled upon you and that atrocious green smock?”
Years worth of resentment dripped off my tongue like poison before I could even think twice. To even my surprise, I’d remained calm and collected. Any passersby wouldn’t have questioned that this was a formal, polite conversation if they didn’t focus on my words.
If she was at all shaken by my venomous retort, she’d certainly mastered how to maintain a cool composure. Her tight-lipped smile never faltered. “If you’re as confident as you claim, a silly little stain shouldn’t hold you back. See you on the dance floor.” Her eyes glistened with cunning prowess, and her hip bumped into mine as she walked off.
One of the servers appeared out of thin air, offering a napkin to dab at the juice still beading down my pleated skirts. “Here you are, Miss. Is there anything else I can get you? Club soda?”
“No, thank you, I’m not thirsty,” I said, blotting the sodden fabric with a polite smile, as an idea struck. Time to improvise.