Despite my apprehension on the matter, a small giggle escaped. "I was never going to." How was he bringing out this side of me? I wasn't normally like this. Actually, that was unfair. I'd never spent this much time alone with a man, this could be completely me.
A knock sounded at the door. Raynor dropped my hands as we both turned to look.
One of the Prince's servants stepped into the room. "Your carriage is ready for you, Your Highness."
"Thank you, Vlad," Raynor responded. "I'll be there momentarily."
"I'll let them know." Vlad dipped into a bow and shut the door behind him as he left.
Raynor sighed deeply and turned back to me. "I'm afraid this is where we must say goodbye, Tanwyn."
"Unfortunately so." I didn't know what else I could say.
He lifted one of my hands to his mouth and placed a kiss there. "Until we meet again."
"That might not happen," I blurted.
"Oh, it shall. Even if I have to return for a visit to make it happen..."
"And put up with the Duchess fawning all over you," I quipped.
"I'd deal with a dozen Duchesses for you."
"You don't even know me," I pointed out. "We've had two conversations." And a lot of unacted on glances, but I kept that observation to myself. There was a chance he hadn't felt the same level of connection as I had.
"I'm an excellent judge of character, remember?" Mischief twinkled in his eyes.
"Then I look forward to the moment we meet again." It was strange to be saying things like this. Like we were characters in a children's tale and not two people trapped in the world where they had no control.
He swept into a low bow, causing my heart to skip a beat. No one had ever shown me such an act of respect before, and I wasn't too sure how to deal with it. Before I had time to decide, he swept out of the room, leaving me behind.
I turned around and stared into the flickering fire of the grate. I clicked my fingers, hoping one of the sparks would appear. A second later, a flame danced above my fingers. A reminder that, even if he wished it was different, I wasn't suitable for a Prince.
The door slammed and I whirled around, extinguishing the flame in my hand as I did.
"What did he want?" the Duchess demanded.
"To say goodbye," I answered honestly.
"That would have taken seconds," she sneered. "What else did he talk about?"
"T-the ball that's coming up." That was what he'd told me to tell her, in the hopes she'd bring me with her.
Her face scrunched up in disbelief, though the expression changed to one of disgust moments later. She didn't believe that someone like Raynor would be interested in someone like me, and that could work to my advantage. So long as I could convince her he'd thought of me as nothing more than a plaything.
"You weren't called to his bed," she observed. It isn't a question, and I didn't treat it like that. "So, what did you do?"
"I don't know," I admitted. "We only talked for a few moments, and it was only about the sunset."
"Useless girl," she admonished. "Go find Matron, she has a list of work for you to complete."
I wanted to ask why she was punishing me when I'd done nothing but talk to the Prince a couple of times, but I knew it was pointless. This was precisely because I'd talked to him, and he'd taken a liking to me. But not one she could use as blackmail down the line.
"Of course, Your Grace," I said, and dipped into the best curtsy I could manage given how much my entire body was shaking.
I didn't wait for her to dismiss me, this whole conversation had been one of those.
"I don't want to see you around the castle." A thread of jealousy spun its way through the Duchess' words. She wasn't as unaffected by the situation as she wanted to pretend, that much was clear.
I slipped through the door without answering. Extra chores were preferable to spending more time in the Duchess' presence.
Chapter 8
Dart clung to my shoulder, swaying back and forth as I left the kitchens and head out to the vegetable patches by the East Wing of the castle. One of my extra chores was to put a circle of the ash around the patch to deter pests from eating the vegetables. Normally, we left the ashes in a box by the gardeners' shed, but this is punishment for me.
If I was honest, I didn't mind too much. It meant I had a reason to be out of bed longer, and spend more time with Dart, who had eagerly helped me with the task of cleaning up the ashes. She simply loved being near anything that created heat. Once I was closer to the patch, I dropped the heavy bucket and stood up straight, wiping some of the sweat from my forehead. No one ever talked about how much a bucket of ashes weighed.
Most of the castle was in darkness, but I noticed there was one window lit a few feet away from me. Who could be awake at this time? All of the other servants would have retired for the night, and as far as I was aware, Matron did the same after she'd performed the bed checks. The only person who would still be about is the Duchess herself. But, as the only noble in the castle, surely she'd be in her own rooms? Especially when there was no one to attend on her.
My curiosity piqued, I made my way over to the flower bed under the window, making sure to scratch Dart on the head so she knew I hadn't forgotten about her. With everyone else asleep, there'd be no one to check on how quickly I performed my task, and the only person who would suffer for it taking longer than it should was me and a lack of sleep.
"You need to be more careful," the Duchess' voice rang out from the open window.
She definitely wasn't alone, then. That was odd. No one had arrived at the house since Raynor had departed. Everything had simply gone back to normal. There hadn't been anyone in the kitchens when I'd cleared the grate of ashes, either. Which only deepened the mystery of who she could be talking to.
"Why should I do that?" a man replied.
"The Prince is on to you. He was here these past few days asking questions about you and what kind of troops you had," the Duchess replied.
Ah, then that must be Lord Daryll in there with her, Raynor had said he was suspicious of the local lord. But what did this mean? Was he right to suspect him? And what did the Duchess have to do with all of this? I had more questions than answers, and I had no idea how to get to the bottom of all of them.
"I hope you put him off the scent," Daryll said.
The Duchess laughed. "Of course I did. We have our plan to protect, and at the moment, he clearly believes I'm trustworthy."
"More fool him. He's a bigger idiot than his Father is, if you ask me."
"Tell me about it. He fixated on one of the serving girls and paid no attention to the rest of what was going on in the castle, I didn't even have to steer him away from the storage rooms."
I gasped, then shoved my hand over my mouth in an attempt to keep the sound in. The last thing I needed was to be discovered.
"Can you blame him? You do keep a pretty stable around."
The Duchess snorted. "And why do you think that is? It's much easier to distract men with pretty girls than anything else."
So that was her motivation in having us all here. She planned to use us for her own advantage. I supposed that wasn't much of a surprise. The Duchess was that kind of person, I'd known that since the beginning. It simply surprised me she was this blatant about it. Even some semblance of decorum would have been better.
"If it worked, then hats off to you. Or to the girl you distracted him with."
She sighed loudly. "Unfortunately, she was the one I least wanted him to spend time with. She normally keeps to herself, and I'd hoped that would be the case this time too."
I frowned as I absentmindedly scratched Dart's head. What could she mean by that? I was like all the other girls, wasn't I?
"When do you think we'll be ready to act?" Daryll asked.
"The ball."
"That soon?" Surprise coloured his tone.
"There is no reason to delay it any longer than that," the Duchess responded. "We have several memb
ers of the nobility in place already, plus the weapons and the element of surprise. We should take advantage of that while we can. If we leave it longer, there's always going to be a chance we're discovered."
Much like I was doing now. I didn't even understand everything I was hearing from the two of them, but I knew it was going to change the course of everything. They were plotting against Raynor, despite him being a decent man. And what for? Power? Money? The crown? I wasn't sure. Raynor wasn't the king yet, his Father still held the crown.
I pushed those thoughts aside. The why didn't matter. They were planning something, and it was going to spell trouble. And at the ball, no less.
Not wanting to linger any longer under the window, I moved away and back towards where I should be scattering the ashes. I hoped neither of them looked out in my direction, or they might start to worry I'd been listening, and if that was the case...
I shuddered at the thought. I was disposable. Perhaps not to Daryll, who'd see me as a pretty plaything first, but definitely to the Duchess. And if I was trapped by them, then I wouldn't be able to help Raynor in foiling their plans, something I was now certain I had to do.
"We should keep our eyes peeled, Dart," I said to the dragon.
She chittered, and swayed a little more on my shoulder, completely oblivious to what was going on. That was her normal state, unless she was in the dining room tripping me up, of course.
"I have to get to the ball," I added. "It's the only way I can warn him about what's going to happen." I doubted I could get a message to him before that, even if I wanted to.
Briefly, I considered whether or not Dart would be able to fly that far. But no, it was a silly thought. She only had small wings, and wouldn't know the way. Raynor would have no way of knowing she'd been sent from me, either. He had no idea I had a dragon friend, and hadn't seen my writing. It could even be an attempt to get him off the scent of what was going on.
"I don't know how I'm going to do it, but I'll manage," I promised the dragon, who wasn't paying any attention to me and was instead cleaning her wings.
That was what I got for having an animal best friend. She never answered when I needed her to.
Chapter 9
We stood in a line, just like we had when the Prince had first arrived, but judging from the lack of fancy clothing and the other servants not being here, I guessed we weren't going to be entertaining another wealthy visitor. Which made me wonder what the Duchess was up to. It wasn't like her to even talk to one of us, let alone gather us all.
She paced back and forth in front of us, her austere black and white striped gown only serving to make her a more imposing figure than ever. I tried not to let that get to me.
"As some of you may be aware, the royal family are holding a ball tomorrow night," the Duchess said.
All the other girls stood up straighter instantly, probably because they guessed at where this was going. She'd need attendants, it was a sign of power and prestige to have them. And perhaps, while there, they could find a noble to whisk them off their feet and turn them into a mistress. That option wasn't one I ever planned on exploring.
It only took a moment for me to realise I needed to act that way too if I wanted to end up at the ball to warn Raynor about the Duchess' plans.
"I will be taking two of you with me. Though I haven't decided which two yet. Be sure that I will be discussing the choices with Matron and we will be deciding based on which of you have the least capacity to embarrass our great name."
I could almost feel the others' desire to start talking amongst themselves about what the ball might be like. No one said a word, though. They wouldn't until the Duchess had walked away and left us all to do our chores. That was the way life at the castle worked, after all.
"That is all. You may return to work." She dismissed us with a wave of her hand.
I bit my lip, trying to consider whether or not I could be as outspoken as I wanted to be. I needed to be at the ball, and the only way to do that was going to be by convincing the Duchess I should be one of the girls she took with her.
I hesitated for a moment too long. The other girls had all disappeared, chattering about the opportunity, but not lingering in the front hall.
"What are you still doing here?" the Duchess demanded.
Oh no. What should I say now? Was it worth pointing out that Raynor took a liking to me? Or would that harm my cause instead of adding to it?
"I'm sorry, Your Grace," I said, dipping into a curtsy. "But I was wondering if there was anything I could do to help with the preparations for the ball. I could start thinking about how to do your hair and..."
She cut me off with a barking laugh. "And you think that by pushing me, you'll convince me it’s you I need to take to the ball?"
"Of course not, Your Grace," I lied smoothly. "I'd never presume to influence your decisions."
She narrowed her eyes at me, and I suspected I'd said something wrong without meaning to. Not my best moment, but there wasn't anything I could do about it right now.
"You won't be coming with me," she said flatly.
"But the Prince..."
"My decision is final, and won't change. You won't be accompanying me to the ball, and you were never going to. Put all thoughts of it from your head and focus on your work." She turned on her heels without saying anything else and swept out of the room.
I stared after her. That made no sense. Why was she so against me coming with her? I hadn't done anything wrong that I was aware of. I'd done her extra chores without saying a word against them, the same way I always did. I was one of the best-behaved girls she kept here.
And then I remembered what she'd said to Lord Daryll. I'd been the last girl she'd wanted to catch the eye of the Prince. I had no idea why that was, but I bet it had something to do with why she didn't want to take me to the ball. It was a shame nothing I could do would uncover the reasoning behind that decision.
I sighed loudly. There was nothing else for it, I was going to have to find a different way of getting there. I was reasonably confident when it came to how to ride a horse, I dimly remembered lessons on it from before I arrived at the Duchess' castle. But that didn't mean I could get all the way to the palace on one. I didn't even know the way to the palace.
And I couldn't go to a ball dressed in the worn rags of a serving girl, they'd never let me in.
Which meant I needed to find something to wear, a way to get there, and an excuse to leave the castle, all without raising any suspicions about what I was doing. It sounded challenging, but I'd find a way. I had to warn Raynor that the Duchess was plotting something.
Chapter 10
I stared into the flames, watching for Dart to move within them. It was still early in the morning, but the Duchess and two of the girls, Nancy and Jill, were about to leave for the ball. If I was going to act, then it would have to be soon so I could follow the tracks of their carriage.
"What am I going to do, Dart?" I asked, giving up on waiting for the dragon to appear. I knew she was there, which meant she could hear me.
To my surprise, she zipped out of the fire and around the kitchen, moving at lightning speed.
I scrambled to my feet, unsure what she was suggesting. It wasn't like her to risk exposure like this. With the Duchess almost ready to depart, the cooks weren't preparing her breakfast and were taking a much-needed rest while they could. It was the same as the rest of us would be doing while Matron wasn't looking.
Dart chirped at me, then left the room, flapping her wings and going out into the main castle.
"This is dangerous," I warned her. "You could get caught."
She landed on one of the bannisters and cocked her head to the side, almost daring me to say more.
I was about to reach her when she launched herself into the air and disappeared up the stairs. I sighed and resisted the urge to roll my eyes. What was she up to? It was impossible to tell. Perhaps I should trust her. She wouldn't lead me into danger.
; The memory of me falling while serving the Duchess breakfast flitted through my mind, but I pushed it away. Dart hadn't meant for that to happen, I was certain of it. And it wasn't as if it had done any harm. If anything, it had reminded Raynor of my presence and that he wanted to spend time with me.
I glanced around to make sure no one else was watching. Not that it would matter if they were at this point. They'd already have seen Dart, and that was enough to cause problems.
Satisfied we were still alone, I bounded up the stairs after her, intrigued and worried all at the same time. I didn't have long to find a way to the ball, chasing after a dragon for no reason wasn't going to help that.
Dart must have sensed the direction of my thoughts, as she flew back to me, before circling me and chirping loudly.
"I promise, I'm coming with you," I vowed. I shouldn't be so short with her, even in my thoughts. Dart had been my first friend, even before Jill had arrived here, and I shouldn't forget that. She'd stand by me no matter what, and it was only fair I did the same.
She flapped her wings, turning to the left.
I frowned. As far as I was aware, there was nothing more than a wall there. I shook my head. What was the dragon up to?
Dart landed on a tiny rut on the wall and stretched her body upwards, flapping her wings.
"What are you wanting me to do?" I asked her, scanning the wall for clues about what she had in mind. This would teach me to spend so much time with a creature who couldn't speak.
She chirped and pointed her head towards the sconce.
I raised an eyebrow. "You want me to pull on that?"
The dragon nodded.
With a loud sigh, I stepped forward and tugged on the sconce, not expecting it to do anything. Why would it? We weren't in a children's story. It wasn't going to open up into...
Stone grated against more stone as a door slid open to reveal a dark corridor.
"How do you know about this?" I asked Dart.
Instead of responding, she jumped from her perch and settled herself on my shoulder. Her claws served as a constant reminder she was there, but didn't break my skin. I knew Dart wouldn't do anything to hurt me, even superficially. Our bond was far too strong for that.
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