24
A fter donning the servant’s uniform, I followed Madam Josephine to Narcissa’s chambers. It was a long route with too many twists and turns and staircases to count. By the time we arrived, my feet were aching. I surveyed the ornate rug and cushioned chairs, wishing I could sink into any one of them. Madam Josephine, however, executed a deep, steady curtsy.
“I have brought your maid as you instructed, milady.”
Narcissa didn’t bother turning around. She was seated before her vanity in an elaborate lace gown. Another maid was combing her hair. “You may leave, Josephine.”
“Yes, milady.”
I was almost sad when the woman exited, even when she shot me a glare.
“Amarante. I underestimated how much I enjoy seeing you like this.” Narcissa finally turned around. Her hair fell in silky auburn waves down her shoulders. “Kneel.”
I resented her a little more as I knelt .
“What are you going to do, Narcissa?” I asked warily.
The maid beside her gasped. “How dare you speak to Her Ladyship that way?”
“Karen is right.” Narcissa stood from her seat and glided toward me, her eyes narrowed. “You must remember you are nothing but a lowly servant now. When a servant addresses her mistress in such a way that servant is punished. Stick out your hand.”
I kept my hands firmly tucked behind my back.
Narcissa scoffed. “Still playing strong, are you? You heard Mother loud and clear last night. Serve me or be ruined.”
How could they threaten to slough their crimes onto me when they were the treasonous ones? I wanted to shout at her, but I didn’t. I would have to have a death wish. So I stuck out my left hand.
“You have the hand of a lady. How unfitting,” she said with a sigh. “We’ll have to change that. Bring me a needle, Karen.”
The maid rushed over with a pin cushion full of needles. They varied in length and width, but they were all undeniably sharp. My arm shook as Narcissa selected the thickest of the bunch. She admired the point for a second before pricking the back of my hand and scraping it across my skin.
I cried out. She didn’t go deep enough to draw blood, but it hurt beyond belief. It wasn’t until I blinked back my tears did I realize she had written something.
NW. Her initials, in angry red scratches on my hand.
Narcissa stuck the needle back into the cushion and wiped her fingers on the handkerchief Karen offered her. “Now it’ll be easier to remember I own you.”
I clutched my throbbing hand to my dress. She had carved her initials on me like she would on a wooden doll! “You’re demented,” I spat out .
She tilted her head. “Did I not make it easy enough? Stick out your other hand.”
I stumbled back. Before I could express my defiance, a knock sounded on the door.
“Lady Narcissa? You are summoned to the Queen’s Garden to accompany Lady Hortensia and Her Grace for breakfast.”
Narcissa shooed Karen away and grabbed my wrist.
“Very well,” she said to the door. She dragged me around the corner to a fireplace, her strength surprising, and shoved my head into the ashes. My forehead banged against the grate. The charred wood chips stung my face. I jerked back, eyes burning and mouth full of cinder. I was overtaken with the desire to shout again—and box Narcissa in the nose at the same time.
“Enjoy,” she said with a smirk. With that, she glided off to the door.
I sat, nursing the bruise on my head, when Karen placed herself before me.
“Lady Narcissa says you are to listen to me when she is absent,” she said. I suspected that her haughty expression was a rare occurrence, but only because she didn’t have many people she could use it around.
I nodded stiffly.
She pinched my chin and smeared more of the ash onto my face.
“What are you doing?” I said, twisting out of her grasp.
Karen snickered. “Lady Narcissa says you are not to be recognizable.”
I stared. “You know I’m a debutante,” I said, touching my cheek. My fingers came off dirty.
The maid raised an eyebrow. “Yes. But I know you’re nothing more than a merchant’s daughter. You’re hardly worth anything.”
“Is that so?” I said. “Then what are you worth?”
“Insolent girl!” Karen struck me across the face.
I glared, cheek stinging, as the maid wiped her hand off on my dress.
“The chamber pot needs scrubbing. Take it outside and come back for your next assignment. Supplies are in the servant’s hall.”
I found Narcissa’s unnecessarily luxurious chamber pot already empty, but it did not make the smell any less offensive. There was nothing pleasant about my experience as I navigated the palace. I was told by a guard that scullery maids were not allowed to roam the main halls. Apparently, there was a separate web of hallways for servants who did the unpleasant work. The way the guard wrinkled his nose at me clearly meant he thought I was one of them.
He was not entirely wrong.
I wandered the narrower, darker halls for a considerable amount of time before I finally found an exit. Madam Josephine had not shown me the way back, so it took several hours to find the servants hall, raid the closet for a pail and brush, and scrub Narcissa’s chamber pot outside where several other maids were doing the same task. Many of them were stouter and older than I was and went in with gusto with their sleeves rolled up to their elbows.
I wanted desperately to use my magic as I scrubbed the inside of the porcelain with the rough brush. The handle needed a good sanding.
By the time I had worked off the stains, my hands were covered in splinters and the older maids had long gone inside after snickering at me. My back ached and my feet were numb. The hand on which Narcissa had carved her initials was throbbing. The other was sore from the splinters. I could not recall another time I was in such a condition.
Narcissa was nowhere to be seen when I came back with the cleaned chamber pot. I was glad of it, but Karen’s pinched face was not much better.
“What took you so long?” she demanded as I entered.
“Cleaning the chamber pot like you ordered.”
The maid snatched the porcelain pot from me with a glare. “You must have been taking breaks. It’s been three hours.”
“I merely got lost.”
She sneered. “Lady Narcissa will not be happy to hear that you’ve been lazing away. You will not have a lunch break today.”
My stomach clenched. I had no appetite after my odious task, but I knew I would be suffering later.
“Very well, Karen,” I said.
She looked surprised that I hadn’t put up more of a fight, but she recovered quickly. “You will call me Mistress Karen,” she said, putting her hands on her hips.
“Very well, Karen.”
Her face reddened again and I resisted a grin. At least in that regard I could defy her.
Unfortunately, my cheekiness did not do me any favors for the rest of the day. My next task was to bathe Misty, which proved to be more difficult than scrubbing the chamber pot. The feline’s hatred for me had not faded in the least when I unceremoniously dumped her into her bath water. I emerged with deep scratches on my arms and a drenched dress.
After that, I was sent to town to purchase the specific lavender-scented soap Narcissa wanted. I was turned out of the shop more than once, but after wiping off some of the cinders with my spit and straightening my dress in the alleyway, I was allowed to purchase the soap. I bought myself a bar with the money Karen gave me, just to spite her.
The sky had darkened when I returned to Narcissa’s chambers, dirty and exhausted. I was told to stand as she supped.
“How did you like your first day, Amarante?” Narcissa said, stirring her soup.
I made no answer. I couldn’t see her face but it was clear she was gloating. The aroma of her dinner wafted beneath my nose, tantalizing me. My stomach let out a pitiful growl.
She laughed. “Karen tells me you haven’t eaten today, isn’t that right, Karen?”
The maid bobbed her head and smiled. “Yes, milady.”
A thin gold chain glimmered around her neck. I narrowed my eyes. No doubt she had been rewarded for treating me as badly as possible.
“You may have my leftovers,” Narcissa said. She picked up a buttered roll and bit into it, chewing slowly. She set it down. “Then you may retire for the night.”
My legs trembled with relief. I had been running errands for the better half of the day. But my relief soon turned into annoyance when the minutes ticked by and it became abundantly clear Narcissa was eating as slowly as possible.
She took a spoonful of soup, ate half of it, and put the rest back in the bowl. She took miniscule nibbles of the rolls. Her salad, she ate one leaf at a time. It was nearing midnight when she finally set her napkin down and gestured for me to take the tray. I bent over and took it.
“You may go,” Narcissa said, reclining in her seat. “Karen. See her out. ”
The maid ushered me out of the room. “Don’t be late tomorrow or you will be punished.”
I wanted to say doing this was already punishment, but I was too exhausted and merely went off.
The dinner tray was as good as empty. Narcissa left a drop of soup, a crumb of bread, and a piece of garnish from the salad. I ate them all as I returned to my room, which looked smaller and drearier in the dark. After putting the dishes into the scullery, I collapsed onto the hard bed and fell into uneasy sleep.
THE NEXT DAY WAS NOT easier even when I expected what was to happen. My entire body ached when I was dragged out of bed by Madam Josephine who informed me that I was late once again. I hated the woman a little less when she thrust a warm roll into my hands and barked at me to be on my way. I devoured it in seconds.
Karen took great pleasure in my late arrival and had the honor of rapping my knuckles five times on each hand. I was then told to draw a bath for Narcissa. It took many trips to the pump to fill her unnecessarily large bathtub and hours to heat it up. When Narcissa was finished and dressed, I was to drain the water and give the tub a thorough scrub with the small brush Karen provided me.
After that was the stables. I groomed Narcissa’s horse and cleaned its stall and nearly had my hand bitten off when I tried to give the creature an apple.
Several days passed this way under Karen and Narcissa’s tyranny. I found myself ducking out of sight when I recognized the debutantes roaming the palace grounds, especially when I saw Olivia and Cedric. My limbs constantly ached. My tasks became more and more ridiculous.
When my crystal pulsed on the fourth day of servitude, I was in the middle of polishing Narcissa’s windows with my sleeve under Karen’s scrutiny. I stilled.
“Well? Get on with it!” Karen said from her place on the chaise longue. Narcissa had gone out for the afternoon, but I suspected that she would not take well to her maid reclined like a lady on her seat.
I tucked the crystal deeper into my bodice. “I have to relieve myself,” I said.
Karen huffed. “You can wait.”
“It’s an emergency.”
She made a face. “Fine. Make it quick.”
I rushed from the room and ran to the servant’s hall to grab the parcel of gold from my room. With the gold in tow, I called a horse chaise to the outskirts of town. The ride took fifteen minutes and I relished sitting down for once. When I arrived, I burst into Miriam’s shop.
“Welcome to Miriam’s—my goodness.” The witch stared at me in shock.
“Can you tell Lana that I cannot make it today?” I said.
“I’ll pass on the message, but—”
I dumped the parcel on her table, rattling the snail-ridden tree branch. “And please give this to her.”
Miriam stared. “Very well, but what—?”
“Great. See you later!”
I was out the door and back on the chaise before she could say anything. There was little traffic on the way back, though several flocks of pigeons crowded the streets. The driver narrowly avoided them. I rushed back to Narcissa’s chambers before thirty minutes was up .
Karen gave me a dirty look. “What took you so long?”
I feigned embarrassment. “I’m not sure you’d want the details.”
This disgusted Karen enough that she left me well alone as I polished the remainder of the windows.
WHEN NARCISSA RETURNED that evening she had a smile on her face. I stood warily as she cut her chicken into small cubes.
“Mother is hosting the soirée tomorrow night,” she said. She took a sip of her wine. “You will have to attend, of course.”
I almost laughed. Attending another Season event was the last thing on my mind.
“You expect me to go like this?” I said, spreading my arms. The servant’s uniform Madam Josephine had given me was wrinkled and stained. The rough fabric was torn where Misty had clawed me. I couldn’t imagine the state of my hair.
Narcissa rose from her seat and circled me like a hawk. Her scrutiny made me uncomfortable, as if she could pounce at any moment. “I admit I didn’t think you would last this long,” she said. “Karen. Come here.”
The maid hurried over at her call and bobbed a curtsy. A new set of pearls shone from her earlobes. “Yes, milady?”
“Draw a bath for Amarante. Tonight, she will be taking your chambers.”
Karen’s jaw dropped. “B-but milady! You can’t possibly—”
“Are you refusing my orders?” Narcissa narrowed her eyes .
“No, milady,” Karen said. She exited the room, but not before shooting me a poisonous glare.
I would have gloated if not for my confusion.
Narcissa leaned back in her seat. “You will be made presentable. After all, we cannot have your friends thinking something is wrong,” she said.
I felt a pang at the mention of my friends. A part of me wished I was brave enough to tell them the truth before any of this happened. There was no way I could pretend everything was fine when it wasn’t. Genevieve especially would see right through me. And Ash. He would wonder why I hadn’t been frequenting the library.
“I trust that you will not speak to them,” Narcissa said.
“What?”
“You will pass the event with me,” she said, taking another sip of wine. “You will not be allowed to wander.”
My anger rose. “That wasn’t a part of our agreement.”
A flash of irritation crossed Narcissa’s face. “Do you think I want to spend this much time around you?” she said in disgust. “You are a threat to my mother, Amarante. She wants you contained so you will be contained.”
“Are you going to make me your slave forever?” I said, raising my voice. “Aren’t you tired of having a traitor for a mother?”
Narcissa slammed her hand on the table, rattling the silverware. “I’d rather my mother be a traitor than a witch,” she spat. The venom in her words stung me. She downed the last of her wine. “Do as I say or everyone will know what a monster you are.”
“The only monster here is you,” I said.
I barely had time to react before Narcissa slapped me hard across the face .
“Say that again,” she hissed.
Karen came back in at that moment. “The bath is ready, milady,” she said, her voice strained.
Narcissa stepped back. Her expression was once again a blank canvas. “Clean yourself,” she said, turning her back to me. “Tomorrow you will look like royalty.”