by KC Kellersen
No wishing was going to change that, I did my job and escorted the ladies back to the castle, as the silent guard I was meant to be. When we entered the courtyard, Irene dismissed me with a slight wave of her hand and a wink. In comparison to the blonde, the action made me wince. I only hope it was slight enough that no one noticed.
I left the new servants and went into the main hall. I took the stairs to the left, and at the second floor I made a beeline for the tower stairs. The entire tower was my unit and it was far too large for just one person. It always made me feel both agonizing pain and safe. Pain, because this was supposed to be my home. Where I would have raised a family with my mate while protecting the Princess until after she passed the crown to her daughter. I should have had a happy life here. Safe, because the soundproof tower allowed me time to be myself.
Today I felt trapped by the soundproof of my unit. I flopped my body onto my bed and wished I could follow the conversations of the new servants. With my wolf hearing it would be possible, but everything above the second floor was individually soundproofed. The only sound that could penetrate through was the alarms and the courtyard bell. It was going to be a long two days without the alphas around. I sighed and let my mind drift back to eyes of silver.
Chapter 4
Alina’s POV
It was almost mid-day before finally a woman and a man came down the path, looking directly at the large crowd I was immersed in. My eyes locked on him at once, it was the boy from my memory. I needed to quit calling him a boy, he was definitely all man! Forgetting my fear for the moment, I looked him over.
His black hair was disheveled and messy. He had ice blue eyes that were framed with black eyebrows and strong cheeks. He had a straight nose, full lips and a strong jaw. His black shirt fit tight across his chest and shoulders, flowing loosely over his stomach. His long thick legs were showcased in denim with black boots. He looked perfectly delicious!
He smiled slightly to himself, revealing a pair of dimples that made me want to sigh. As if I needed more reason to drool. The small smile changed his expression so drastically, I couldn’t look away from him, I didn’t want to. He was the personification of tall, dark, and handsome. As fast as the dimples appeared, they left, and his face was a mask of zero emotions once more. I watched, still riveted, as he casually leaned against the pillar, looking almost bored as he scanned the crowd.
When the woman with him came down the steps sweeping the crowd, I realized she was the one in charge. This must be Irene. My fear returned as I looked her over. She was an older human with a bit of pudge; but her arms and legs were strong. She had light green eyes, a large nose and thin lips. Her rounded face was framed with short brown hair. The small smile that played on her thin lips, as she made her way into the throws of people, was not a nice smile. It made shivers dance up my back. I lost her in the crowd, as I was too short to see over the people around me. I briefly thought about leaving now before she came near me but stilled myself. I needed to do this. There were people counting on me, and I couldn’t be a coward. I wouldn’t be a coward!
I saw two women, one after the other, make their way up the steps towards Mr. Dimples. When she came near and wasn’t looking at me, I knew I didn’t have another choice but to test my powers. My heart was thrashing as I stepped out in front of her and said “please…” she looked as if she was going to explode with rage. “Give me the job,” I pleaded, trying to push a power I couldn’t feel. The rage left her, and she nodded at me and pointed up towards Dimples still leaning against the pillar. I beamed inside with satisfaction that I wouldn’t be running away today; on the outside I kept my face calm.
I turned away from the woman and headed towards him; his expression went from amused to shock as our eyes connected. His mouth hung open for just a moment before he fixed his mask of boredom and shifted his icy stare away from me. Hope filled me; did he finally recognize me? I watched his face the entire way, trying to see any signs of recognition there, but he was avoiding me. Looking everywhere but at me. My fear was doused by the hope that this wouldn’t be a useless endeavor.
When I reached the top of the steps, I looked away from him long enough to take in the other two women. The younger girl was a wisp of thing and couldn’t even be in 17th year. Her dark blonde hair was ratty and knotted. She was definitely homeless, if the smell was any indicator. I smiled at her with warmth. I looked to the other woman and fought to keep my smile in place when I noticed the bruises on her face and arms. The bruises stood out against her pale lightly freckled skin; her green eyes were filled with desolation. Hopefully my mother was wrong, and this would be a better life for her. Better than whatever hell she came from.
Guilt swamped through me again as I turned to look back over the crowd. I was expecting to see many disappointed faces, ones that would haunt my memory. Faces that would make me wish to send them all to the First Village, my parents would help them. Strangely there was relief in almost every face. I became aware of every heartbeat in my chest pounding loudly in my ears. This was going to be a very long month.
Irene dismissed the crowd with a few short words that I didn’t care to hear. It was hard to focus through the sound of drums in my ears. And if I was being honest, I was also trying not to openly stare at Mr. Dimples again. What have I gotten myself into?
“You three have been chosen to work for the Queen as servants. I am Irene, head of the household servants. But you will address me as ma’am or Irene and nothing else,” Irene said simply, gaining my attention. She confirmed my fear. This was her, the very woman that my mother warned me about. The woman that had a reputation worse than Lillian herself. I watched as, without another word, she turned up the cobblestone path. I fell in behind the other two women, my feet moving almost sluggishly. I could feel Mr. Dimples’ blue eyes boring into me, but I didn’t dare turn around. I feared the expression I would read there. Would it be recognition or suspicion? I needed to play my part, but I also needed to find out if I could trust him.
One-month Alina. I repeated the mantra in my head over and over again to keep myself focused. I had a task to do and only one month to do it.
The short path to the castle was gloomy. It was a beautiful area, but a cold shiver stole over me as I neared the castle. The tree’s lining the path, though green, felt heavy and foreboding and the flowers in the wild grass seemed dull. The stone walls of the castle loomed above, taller than the market walls. The gates were open, but the guards were watching everyone enter carefully. Overwhelmingly thankful for the map in my pocket, I surveyed the expansive property before me.
The stone castle stood large behind the open stone courtyard with a few stone buildings scattered around the outskirts of the castle. The closer we got, the more I felt like I was walking towards a prison rather than a beautiful castle. It stood forlorn against the mountains behind the wall, intimidating. There were no people on the terraces and the windows were all tightly closed.
Even as lonely and dark as it appeared, the castle and grounds were beautiful. The breezeway along the first floor was punctuated with evenly spaced, intricate pillars. The statues strategically placed of wolves and humans were beautiful works of art. There were five floors on the main castle hall, with many terraces and stairwells, surrounded by four towers. Each tower was supposed to be home for the four protectors; Complete with 5 bedrooms, 5 washrooms and 2 offices in each. The top two floors were for the Royal family, with 10 suites, two libraries, offices, training spaces and more. The servant’s quarters were on the first floor. They contained 15 bedrooms and 4 washrooms. And finally, the main portion of the castle, is made up of two kitchens, the throne room, the banquet hall, ball room, access to the dungeons and public’s library.
When we neared the castles entrance, Irene stopped and turned towards us. She flicked her wrist and started talking. “This is the castles main entrance here; you will not use this entrance ever. Instead we will be heading for the kitchen entrance which is closest to the servants quart
ers.”
I watched as Oliver left the group into the castle until Irene led the way around the right side of the castle. The paths were treelined, just like the street from the marketplace, but it was much narrower. A wolf-shifters large body would make it through here, but single file only. I tried to peer inside the windows as we passed, but it was just as I suspected. The drapes were pulled on every single one.
When Irene indicated the kitchen entrance we filed inside, it was the largest kitchen I had ever seen. It was triple the size of the kitchen back home. The white walls and chrome appliances There were enough workstations for at least 25 people in here, with extra room for servants to amble about. I was sure when there used to be parties here, this room was filled with people working and talking. But today it was bleak, like everything else I had seen so far, with only one servant cooking.
“This is the main kitchen, there is another just like it on the opposite side, but it is hardly used. We will meet every morning here to assign duties for the day. The servants quarters are down this hall,” she said over her shoulder as she walked through the kitchen and on down the hall. I recalled the map from my mind and placed us in the southeast hallway. I tried to follow the map in my head but after the third turn I was a little lost. I wished I had my wolf-spirit, so I had a better sense of direction. I would have to memorize the castle if I was going to be successful at sneaking around here, gaining information.
“This will be your section to sleep in. There are only two other servants in this section, they should have their names on the door. Pick your rooms.” Irene waited impatiently for us to move; the others seemed frozen and unable to make a decision, so I took first action.
Ignoring the fear, I walked past them and opened a door on the right side of me. “I will take this room,” I said as I put my bag down inside the door.
There was a small writing table, with a pen and some papers, a wardrobe, and an unassuming bed. It was simple and very small, but I had lived in smaller. I grabbed the pen from the table and wrote my name on a piece of paper. I slipped the paper into the slot on the door. This pushed the others into motion and they too picked their rooms. The young girl wrote Zetia for the door next to mine. She stood outside the door like I did, waiting for further instruction. The other woman picked a room up the hall a little way away from us, and I couldn’t read her name. She was wary of us and considering the bruises on her, that was okay. Hell, I was wary, and I didn’t have a horrible previous experience.
“You will find uniforms inside. The shared washroom for this section is first door in the hall. Make sure you are presentable, in the uniform and in the kitchen by 6:00 A.M. Now you are excused for the rest of the night.” Irene quickly left the hall and disappeared around a corner.
“Well that was… intense” I said to Zetia, next to me.
“Yes, it was,” she said back a little wryly. “That woman gives me the creeps!”
I laughed softly. “Hi, my name is Alina. What’s yours?”
“I am called Zetia or just Zet.” Her eyes were open and friendly. I turned to look down the hall, but the other woman went inside already.
I shrugged and turned back to Zetia. “I am from Stillforest, you?” It was a lie, but it would work for my purposes. Though the fear lingered, something about being in Zetia’s presence was comforting.
“I am from the outskirts of Riverlands,” she said somberly.
“Do you not have a family you could stay with instead of working here?” She must be really desperate, like all those others who left.
“My family was taken by the Queens sentries three moons ago. I had nowhere else to go.”
Shock crossed my face. If her family was taken, they were wolf-shifters. The Queen didn’t waste time on humans. Shit, that means she was a wolf-shifter as well.
“Please, come inside let’s talk in private,” I said and I smiled to comfort her. I didn’t want to scare her. She entered my room with ease. I wondered briefly if that was my royal power at work again, or if she just trusted me. Either way, it worked to my advantage. She had nothing to fear from me. Even with this royal power, I would never take advantage of it.
I sat on the bed while she sat at the small table facing me. I wasn’t sure exactly what to tell her so I decided as much truth as possible would be best, without giving too much away. But first, confirmation. “Are you a wolf-shifter Zetia?” When alarm crossed her face I continued, “It’s alright you can trust me.”
She waited for a moment and finally nodded. I mulled over how to phrase my thoughts without coming across openly as a traitor.
“You cannot let anyone else know here… I will keep your secret but there are many people here won’t. When do you come of age?”
“I know, and it’s just before the new moon,” she said surprising me.
“Well damn, you are older than you look! I thought you were in your 16th or 17th year,” I said wholly stunned.
“Yeah, I figured out pretty fast to use my small size to my advantage. Appearing young has helped get me this far. Though it chases the men away too,” she said laughing, her laugh was like a couple of bells tinkling. I liked her instantly. She was comfortable to be around, even in this bad situation.
“You do know you will need to leave before you gain your wolf-spirit, right?” Her face fell and she looked downtrodden; her appearance may be just a trick but the desperation rolling off of her was definitely not. “You will disappear just like your family, if the Queen realizes what you are.”
“I need the coin for the next three weeks…” She stopped suddenly her eyes guarded once more. “You seem nice and all but how do I know you will keep my secret?”
“You can trust me Zetia. I will not betray you; I promise.” This seemed to be enough for her. Good, because it was all I could tell her.
She nodded softly and said, “I am here to see if I can find out why the wolf-shifters are going missing.”
“Me too,” I said honestly, surprising myself and she smiled. If this was a trap, I walked right into it. I needed to be a little more wary if I was going to survive the month. But again, if I was being honest, having someone to talk to would be nice.
“Great! Then we will get along fine. Thanks for the advice. I really need some sleep; I will see you tomorrow.” She left the room without fanfare. With a promise to myself to tell her about the First Village before she left, I pushed Zetia from my mind.
I grabbed my bag from the floor and set it on the bed. I opened up the wardrobe and laughed out loud. The “uniform” was a very ugly, grey, shapeless dress and there was three of them in there. Presentable in this dress? What a joke. I put my few belongings away and grabbed my sewing stuff. These dresses would need to be taken in a bit if I was going to wear them. While I was fixing the dress, I sewed in two hidden pockets. You never know when you might need them.
After a hot shower, I fell into the small bed. Every move I made here would have to be precise and every word would need to be filtered. If I wanted to make it out alive. I may have felt like such a coward, but I was determined not to be. I didn’t want my wolf-spirit to have a coward for a shared spirit. I closed my eyes and waited for my heartrate to slow, letting out the fear as I focused on my breathing. Being in the lion’s den made it hard to fall asleep. Once I finally managed, it was a short and restless sleep, at best.
Chapter 5
Alina’s POV
The next morning, I met with the other servants in the kitchen. There was 20 of us in total. No one but Irene spoke. She doled out orders for cleaning, maintenance, laundry, kitchen, and other miscellaneous chores that needed to be done. I was put on kitchen duty with a man named Henry. Zetia and the other new girl left with Irene, and I prayed they would be okay with her. The others filled out of the kitchen and off to their respective locations.
Henry gave me a brief tour of the kitchen and pantry and told me to familiarize myself with the schedule. Breakfast had to be ready for the servers by 7:00 am, lunch by 11:30
am. We would have a quick break and then dinner had to be plated by 7:00 pm. Simple and concise.
What confused me was the number of dishes. I was expecting 5 plated meals, and bulk meals for the staff. One for each of the three alphas, one for the True Protector, and one for Queen Lillian. However, Henry had me plate up 6 dishes. Since no one came in requesting another meal, it had to be a normal thing. I tried to talk to Henry, get him to tell me who they were for, without prodding too obviously. He just ignored me and kept working. I let the dish thing go, I would find out sooner or later who it was for.
When it was time for our break, I inhaled my lunch quickly. Nervous and excited, I readied myself to leave the kitchen and look around the castle. I was bummed when Irene came in and ruined my plans. She insisted that all dishes be done immediately. Henry didn’t argue or stand up to her, he was afraid of her. I was afraid of her too and I hated it. We got to work doing dishes and she left without further comment. Once dinner was served and all the dishes cleaned once more, I was finally released for the night. It was past 10:00 pm. I was on my feet until from sunup to well past sundown.
I walked slowly to the servants quarters, trying to look around a little more than I did with Irene leading the way. No doors stood open. No one ambled about. The castle was completely quiet, it was eerie. I took a hot shower and padded down the hall with my towel wrapped around me. When I opened my door, Zetia popped her head out of her door.
“Finally, I have been waiting for you!” she said excitedly.
“Come on over Zetia, I just need to get dressed.” We entered my room together. I was so tired that I dressed mechanically, not even caring that I had just stripped completely in front of her. “How was your first day?” I asked.