“That might be a good idea.”
The palace is vast, and the servants’ halls are even more mazelike than the main halls. This late at night, there are unlikely to be many people in either, but I’m much less likely to be molested or bothered in the servants’ halls. At worst, someone might offer to help me.
I duck out a back door and scurry down the halls, Sym hot on my heels. As I predicted, few wolves roam the halls at this late hour, and I breathe a sigh of relief when I reach the servants’ entrance to my quarters. Safe at last, Sym bows and leaves me to catch what little sleep I can. I shut and lock the door behind me and slump againt the heavy wood.
Ishouldgo straight to bed. I should collapse on my own mattress and be done with today.
Instead, I straighten and strip out of my clothes, heading for the adjoining door to where Sable sleeps.
We were interrupted quite rudely in the woods, and again in the bathhouse. I was determined to get close to Sable, to explore the new kind of burning inside me that had nothing to do with the Sun God’s flames. That meant time alone with her, something that would now be in short supply.
Once nude, I slide through the door to her room, closing it as gently as possible to avoid waking the sleeping beauty.
Chapter 12
Sable
I follow the servant girl with no small amount of doubt and hesitation. Shouldn’t I be staying with Cara? I feel so exposed without her strong presence to protect me.
Most of the people bustling about the palace seem too busy to bother with me, but one servant girl in particular glares daggers at me as I pass. I catch a whiff of hatred and envy, but when I turn back, the stunning blonde is gone.
Why would that young woman possibly have such disdain for me? We've never even met.
I try to memorize the path we take through the maze of hallways, but I know the next time I have to venture out into the palace, I'll get lost. How does anyone get around in this huge place?
Once we get to the room I'm to stay in, the servant girl selects a key from a huge ring of them, unlocks the massive door, and waves me into the room. I take a few hesitant steps inside, and before I have time to take in my surroundings, she excuses herself to get me some food and shuts me in.
It's not a terrible place to get shut into. Plush carpets cover the floors, and red velvet curtains trail from ceiling to floor at the windows, blocking the sunlight. A large crystal chandelier hangs from the ceiling, reflecting the candlelight from the candelabras placed throughout the room. Large, elaborate tapestries hang along the stone walls, insulating the expansive room and preventing drafts. A huge canopy bed sits in the southernmost corner of the room. Gauzy white curtains hang from it, tied to the posts with red silk ribbons, and the crimson sheets—what little of them can be seen under the mountain of plush pillows—have the subtle sheen of silk as well.
This is a nanny’s room? I can’t imagine what Cara’s rooms must look like!
After recovering from the shock of my lavish surroundings, I start to explore the room. On the wall opposite the bed are three doors. One leads to a small, private stone privy, a luxury so rare where I'm from that it takes me a full quarter hour to figure out how everything works. The porcelain sink in the corner has both hot and cold running water, and the toilet itself has a mechanism that flushes the waste to some unknown location.
The second door opens to a large closet, one that puts my bedroom at the convent to shame. The shelves are mostly bare, though I see that my scant few belongings have been delivered there.
The third door is locked, and I can only assume that it's the door to Cara’s room. I can’t even imagine the opulence of her living space if this is what her nanny’s room is like.
Now what do I do?
I have no idea how long it will take for the servant girl to bring food. For all I know, the kitchens are in the far side of the palace. I could be here all day waiting.
On the opposite side of the room from the three doors sits a series of bookshelves. I'm not in the mood for reading, but I peruse the spines to see what choices I have. Everything from religious texts to scientific treatises to fairy tales can be found here, relieving some of the anxiety about the coming days. If I have good reading material, I won't feel so caged in.
Aside from books, there really isn't much to do in this room. Perhaps the nanny didn’t have any other hobbies.
A knock on the door breaks through my inspection, and I open it to a surly guard. He shoves a bowl of stew at me and stalks off before I can thank him. I shut the door, this time turning the lock, and head to a small table and chairs in the corner to sit down and eat.
The stew is delicious, and when I'm done my belly is so full that a wave of sleepiness washes over me. I decide to give the bed a try. I remove my clothes and set myself to task removing layers of pillows so there will be room for me.
Soft silk envelops me when I climb in. I sink into the fluffy mattress and wait for sleep to take me.
And I wait.
And I wait some more.
I lose track of how long I lie there waiting. Long enough for most of the candles to burn more than halfway down. I can’t quite pinpoint what’s stopping me from sleeping.
Perhaps it’s the excitement of the past few days. I suppose anyone who had my simple upbringing might be shocked into perpetual wakefulness when thrust into this lavish environment. Recent events scroll through my mind. I speed up the attack, not wishing to relive that part, then slow down the moments with Cara.
