Chapter 10
An Assistant’s Assistance
G rasping two goblets by their stems from a table so overloaded with food and drink that it was a wonder it didn’t buckle, Eli did her best to dodge and weave through the throng of nobility back to where the lord she served waited. Or rather, hid from the young unmarried ladies who had been eyeing him the way hungry house cats would a plump mouse.
Keeping her head bowed, Eli was able to deftly make her way back, the scents of Troivackian moonshine, red wine, perfume, and sweat all mingling together. It certainly did smell like a rousing good party.
It reminded Eli of her days back in the Zinferan court. In Troivack, most parties were conducted with great dignity and seriousness, and didn’t have the exuberance of the Daxarian court, nor the frivolous luxury of the Zinferan.
Eli looked to the thrones before she could stop herself. Her heart dropped when she once again imagined someone from long ago with alarming clarity…
Chin… Why am I thinking about you now after all these years?
A knight who was already laughing far louder than was necessary tumbled into Eli, knocking her back and sloshing drinks all over her and the couple she ended up crashing into. The older lord and lady squawked in alarm.
Eli pivoted nimbly, already bowing before the couple had righted themselves. “Apologies, my lord, my lady.”
“By the Gods, be careful!” the woman trilled while looking in dismay at her stained, bright-orange silk skirt.
“I am sincerely sorry, it seems the party is—”
The woman waved off Eli’s words and straightened herself. “I’ll send the bill for the cost of the dress to house Ashowan.” She’d already lost interest in the assistant.
A deep-rooted ire shook Eli. Before the lady could notice this, her husband did, and he flinched as though sensing some greater power around Eli simmering in the air.
“My lady.” Eli smiled, her teeth flashing, and then without bothering to look behind herself, she effortlessly grabbed the knight who’d bumped into her. He was standing right at her back, guffawing with other partygoers. She yanked him forward with surprising strength. “This here is the man who caused the situation. Please send the bill to him. Good evening.”
The noblewoman and the knight blinked at each other in confusion. Eli pressed the two half-filled goblets into the knight’s hands and stalked back into the crowd, her cheeks still warm from anger.
By the time she reached Lord Tamlin’s side, she didn’t have to look at him to know he had seen the whole thing. She was sure he was going to say something glib, and if he did, she was already waiting to snap at him to tell him she’d be happy to ditch his cowardly arse there.
“You almost lost control.”
Eli’s eyes snapped to him. “Pardon?”
“Your magic.” Tam’s voice was quiet, without an ounce of teasing in it. “I saw the way that lord reacted when you looked at his wife.”
Her heart quickened, but she pretended to still be annoyed and not display her panic. “I might have been somewhat terse with the noblewoman. If you prefer, I can return and offer that you, my employer, pay for the dress.”
“That is not what I’m getting at. And I’m not asking you about your magic, either. I just need to know what sets it off. I’ll avoid placing you in situations in the future where that might happen.” Tam lunged swiftly toward a servant carrying a tray of full goblets and managed to pluck up two cups without making the man stop, though the contents in the cups were different; one with red wine the other moonshine.
Eli felt a foreign emotion rise in her throat. When was the last time someone had tried to help her without forcing her to do something?
“I like things to be fair,” she heard herself say, then instantly pinched her mouth shut again. Why the hell had she even told him that? Of course he’d have follow-up questions!
“Ah. So you are fine when the exchange is straightforward, and reward or punishment is assigned properly? Business interactions, like when you accept shipments of moonshine or categorize inventory are fine then? Alright. I won’t send you to negotiations where you’ll be at a disadvantage.”
“No, I—” Eli found herself at a loss.
Her first reaction was to tell him that she would accept whatever task he needed her to perform, or that she was perfectly capable of managing her magic and emotions. She didn’t get the chance, though, as he handed her the goblet of wine.
“If you want my cup of moonshine you’d better say so now. I’m going to need a few of these to last to the end of this.”
Eli squared her toes to face Tam, her mouth opening. Then closing.
She wanted to thank him, but not in a heartfelt way… more like a coworker? An equal?
Instead what came out of her mouth was. “My lord, everyone says you are quiet and do not speak often, but you’re actually quite chatty.”
Tam snorted as he drank from his goblet and had to cover his nose as the burning moonshine threatened to come out his nostrils.
Coughing, the future duke struggled to right himself. Eli gave him a wary pat on the back.
Tam lifted his dark eyes glistening with humor. “You know… I’m baffled how anyone found you easy to overlook. Nearly every word out of your mouth is insulting.”
“Being called chatty is insulting?” Eli countered defensively.
“Did you mean it as a compliment?” Tam gave his chest a final thump for good measure before going to take another drink. He didn’t seem to care whether she had intended to taunt him or not.
But again, the assistant didn’t get a chance to respond, because two noblewomen descended upon them.
“Lord Tam,” the first woman said with a curtsy, her smile hidden behind her lacy fan. She had shining auburn hair that curled at the ends and bright-green eyes, and though her mustard-yellow dress was a few years out of fashion, it was of superior quality.
“Lord Tam, are you having a nice evening?” The second woman had long chestnut-brown hair that she had partially tied back. She wore a modest plum-colored dress and kept her hands gently clasped in front of her skirts. Standing next to the auburn-haired woman—who was draped with so many pearls, she must have rattled when she walked—she almost looked as though she were of commoner origins.
“Good evening,” Tam returned tightly.
Eli shuffled a foot, desperately wishing to flee, but a sharp jerk of Tam’s head in her direction froze her in place.
“Congratulations to you and your family with regard to our new queen, Lord Tam! I am Lady Josephine Wrights, and this is Lady Ivette Davenshire. We are here from Sorlia,” the brunette explained kindly, her warm brown eyes soft as she spoke.
“Thank you.” Tam took in a very quiet breath before turning to Eli, who nearly recoiled when the two noblewomen did the same thing.
“Eli, you were just telling me about something quite interesting. What was that again…?”
Any pretense of good feelings toward Tamlin Ashowan dissipated faster than a drop of water on hot coals as Eli was reminded of the primary reason he had forced her to attend the blessed event.
“I’m sorry, my lord, I’ve completely forgotten. Pardon me, ladies, I must go take care of something very important for my1—”
Eli turned and tried to flee, but Tam was quick. He seized the back of her collar and held her back. Reluctantly, she rejoined the discussion.
“No, no. Don’t worry. As your lord I think it is perfectly fine that you stay! Now. What was that very interesting thing you were talking about?” Tam asked through a pained smile and flashing eyes directed at Eli. The two noblewomen behind him shared looks mixed of uncertainty and irritation.
“We were talking about how it’s time you found yourself a wife.”
Eli knew she shouldn’t have done it. She knew she shouldn’t have thrown Tamlin Ashowan under the metaphorical carriage. Good Gods. He had been perfectly decent! He was helping her and being far more considerate than she deserved!
So his murderous expression was entirely justified.
Behind him, Ladies Josephine and Ivette beamed.
“I think you have misspoken, Eli, we were talking about you getting married,” Tam declared a little too loudly. “You see, Lady Josephine, Lady Ivette, there seems to be quite a damning rumor going around that Eli here has five children already!”
“Ah…” Lady Ivette replied slowly, her excitement snubbed.
“I must confess…” Josephine addressed Eli, the docility in her eyes dwindling. “I have heard some strange things myself. Namely that you are the son of Mr. Reese Flint.”
Eli bowed graciously. “I am afraid that is not entirely true, either.”
“Are you truly in a hurry to marry? You can’t be older than twenty! Lord Tam here is twenty-eight, and he isn’t even betrothed to anyone.” Lady Ivette lowered her fan to reveal a broad mouth and square jaw.
“Well, that is because I’m committed to bachelorhood.” Tam inclined himself politely to them, his eyes becoming increasingly fixated on the floor.
Eli had noticed him looking up more often of late, but seeing him almost fold in on himself now, away from the women, made her wonder again what his magic was… She reached over and patted him on the back. “While I think Lord Tam should still marry, his lordship is only thinking of the future of the woman he would wed. To be a part of such a curse—ah. Pardon me. I was not supposed to speak of it…” Eli feigned an apologetic expression.
The two noblewomen looked at each other, the reaction in their eyes somewhere between disturbed horror and hungry curiosity.
“Whatever could be so—”
Eli held up a hand, silencing Lady Ivette, while she kept her other hand on Tam’s back. She could feel how still he’d grown.
“I’m sorry, I really have said too much already. My lord, would you like some fresh air?”
Tam gave Eli a remarkably convincing sad smile and lowered his head toward the door.
They managed to make their way through the crowd, the blaring colors and music, the laughter and loud conversations. Once they broke free into the corridor, the cool air was both shocking and refreshing.
Tam and Eli walked away from the party until at last they reached the front of the castle, where no one else had bothered to venture as the night’s festivities were really just beginning.
Feeling rather proud of herself for getting them out of the situation, Eli was surprised when Tam rounded on her, looking concerned rather than pleased.
“Eli… I know you were trying to help, but you just made my life very difficult.”
“How? It deterred those women, didn’t it?”
“Remember how the coven is already concerned about how I could harm people? You think they aren’t going to be alarmed about a possible curse? Curses are one of the reasons that witches were hunted here in Daxaria in the not-so-distant past. They are never taken lightly.”
“But everyone suspects something like that anyway!”
“We have always been very clear that my reservations about my magic have nothing to do with curses. I’m probably going to have to have a meeting about this before we leave to clear it up…” Tam sighed and started rubbing the back of his neck. “May as well go find Mr. Howard now. The sooner he knows to book something with the coven leader, the better. Morgan is already drowning in paperwork…”
“I’m sorry.” Eli dropped her face and clasped her hands contritely in front of herself.
“I understand… I do. After attempting to abandon me, you were trying to make it up. I also know you did not grow up here in Daxaria, so you might not have learned about our history. It’s alright. I’ll handle it. Let’s just find Mr. Howard, and then go back to the reception, hm?”
Eli was feeling more uncomfortable than she had in her entire life.
She had never been given any leniency when she’d made a mistake. Not by her parents. Not by her tutors. Not by the Troivackian king. Not even by Chin… Yet here was a stranger, being considerate, protecting her, and just being overall so… so…
“Come on. Don’t worry about it.” Tam patted her shoulder before striding past her, back down the corridor, his hands finding their way into the pockets of his black trousers. He’d already made it a good way down the corridor before Eli was able to will her feet to move again.
She sprinted after Tam, tugging on the back of his long black coat. Honestly, it fit him about as well as a sheet despite the fine fabric.
When he turned around, his face partially illuminated by a nearby torch on the wall, Eli couldn’t quite bring herself to look directly at him. She already felt completely at a loss as to how to convey her thoughts. All because… He was the most lovely person she had ever met.
“What is wrong with you?” she blurted. She didn’t have to look to know his face had hardened, so she plundered on. “You’re nice. Generally. You have a decent sense of humor. You’re wonderful with children, you’re handsome—”
“Handsome?” Tam laughed, but Eli ignored him.
“You seem like you’d at least have a group of close friends, so… so why don’t you? Why are you alone?”
Tam bent forward until the top of his head was in line with her own. His dark eyes bore into her face until she finally looked at him.
He didn’t seem angry… but he didn’t look happy, either. It was a rather indescribable expression, really. But then he said, “Why are you smart, funny, pretty, and isolating yourself?”
Eli flinched.
She hadn’t been called pretty since—
A thump in a nearby closet drew both Tam and Eli’s attention.
Frowning, Tam carefully reached for the door handle… Pulled it open, and…
His jaw dropped.
“Hannah?” Tam spluttered as his father’s lifelong friend, the head of housekeeping for the castle, hid her disrobed state behind the man she was with… a man whose identity left Tam at a complete loss of words.
Eli tilted her head and eyed Tam and the man, confused as to why neither of them were closing the door to give the couple privacy. So what if the king’s assistant, Mr. Kevin Howard, was in a clandestine relationship with the woman named Hannah who was the head of housekeeping? Neither of them were married anyway!