His body relaxed and he let out a breath. We stood facing each other in the small back room with the spinning wheel beside us. The moon blanketed the room from the window over Rumpel’s shoulder, casting dim silver beams through his hair and over the fibers of his shirt.
“So, are we good?” He motioned a finger back and forth between us.
Now it was my turn to let out a deep sigh. “I still don’t trust you. But you’ve saved my life over and over again, so I owe you,” I explained. “Plus, I miss your friendship.”
He crossed his arms and smirked. “My friendship? Is that all?”
I laughed despite myself, thinking of our kiss. “Yes. That is all.”
“Alright. We better get started on this straw then. I still need to teach you to spin on your own.”
“Actually, you don’t. I have a plan.”
Rumpel looked interested. “Does it include you spinning gold?”
“No. That was a terrible idea and it was never going to work.”
Rumpel eased himself down to the spinning wheel and propped his feet out. He brushed his curls back from his face and looked at me intently.
I sat beside him in my usual place. “I’m going to make a deal with the King. I will spin gold, or rather, you will, for two more months. At that point I am to be released and never called upon again. It guarantees that there is a timeline to all of this and that I get my freedom before I lose you. It also gives you the last six weeks of your life to do whatever it is you wish.”
Rumpel looked thoughtful. “And if the King says no?”
“If he says no, I walk out. He has no control over me.”
Amused, Rumpel said, “He’s gone mad, there’s no telling how he’d react. He could send his guards after you. I doubt you could take them.”
“Then I sit in his cell and refuse to spin. Eventually he will get bored with me and send me home.”
Rumpel picked up some straw and started to spin. “He could kill you, you know.”
I knew. That thought went through my mind hundreds of times. “But I don’t think he would. I think Conrad would spare me.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure. If he can’t get gold out of you, I don’t know that he’d want you.”
That was the second person to insinuate that Conrad was only interested in me for the gold. I’d already guessed as much, but I didn’t enjoy hearing it. “I’m prepared to take that risk.”
“If you’re sure. For the record, I think it’s crazy. But I also think it’s brave.”
My heart swelled and I reminded myself that I was still a bit angry with him.
Rumpel stopped spinning and turned toward me. “I need you to know, I didn’t mean to do it. It was an accident. I was so mad, then I blacked out. When I woke up, they were all dead. It was never my intention to hurt them.”
“But you wanted to hurt someone,” I said meekly.
He nodded. “Yes, the men who killed my wife. I wanted them to pay. But it was never supposed to go further than that. It’s important to me that you know I didn’t consciously kill anyone.”
I twisted my mouth. “I believe you, but it’s still a hard thing for me to swallow.”
“I can accept that.”
Now that we’d moved on from our dispute, we spent the rest of the night talking. We started on the festival, and all the crazy Gifts that people had. That led us to the food that was there, then food that he used to love as a child, then about what his childhood and parents were like. By the end of the night, it was as if the past two weeks never happened.
As easily as that, things felt normal again. As normal as they could.
There was a moment before leaving when Rumpel stood close to me, his eyes asking a question that I couldn’t answer. It wasn’t good for my heart to get invested in him again, but I didn’t have the strength to tell him so.
My eyes gave me away, and he nodded understandingly as he pulled back. The moment I could no longer feel his breath on my skin, I wished for the closeness. I almost asked him to kiss me, but I stopped myself.
I had more important things to think about than Rumpel’s lips, no matter how soft they were.
Chapter Thirty
I asked Anna to dress me in something regal.
“You ask as if I’ve been dressing you as a chimney sweep!”
I laughed. “No, the dresses have been lovely. I just need something that makes me look as confident as a queen today. Ah, there’s the door. Come in!”
A skinny guard popped his head in the room. “You called for someone?”
“Yes,” I said as Anna watched grew even more confused. “I need an audience with the King this afternoon.”
“I’m not sure that’ll be possible, miss.”
I put my hands on my hips and wished that I was already in the dress that Anna would find. It was hard to look in charge when I was still in my nightgown. “Well, if I don’t see the King today then I won’t give him gold tonight. It’s his choice.”
The guard looked uncomfortable and I almost pitied him. I kept my stance strong until he bowed and left the room.
Anna was staring at me with wide eyes. “What is going on?”
I smiled casually at her. “Nothing, I just need to speak with the King about our arrangement, which is why I need a dress.”
With newfound energy she bobbed a curtsy and scrambled out of the room. I tidied up until she came back a few minutes later with a thick bundle.
“This is from the queen’s old clothes,” she said as she pushed the door shut with her heel.
“Oh!” I hadn’t expected Anna to take one of those. The queen died years ago; I was surprised they still had those or that Anna had access to them.
The color of the dress matched sandy shores, and I envisioned the blue silk that lay overtop trailing up from the bottom of the skirt and stopping just below the billowed sleeves and laced neckline, was the ocean rising to meet the land. Intricate pearls were stitched into the bodice. Certainly, that dress was worth more than I was.
If I wanted to look like a queen, this dress would do it.
“Will the King mind if I wear his late wife’s dress?”
Anna smoothed out the dress on my bed. “It was made to wear at a celebration when she got better, though she never did. The King has never seen this dress.”
I felt strange being buttoned up into the late queen’s dress, but I didn’t have time to change my mind, because no sooner had Anna tied off the last clasp than we heard a knock on the door. With permission to enter, the same guard as before came into the room, and his eyes got wide at the sight of me. I allowed myself to savor his stunned expression before he came to his senses.
“Ahem. The King has agreed to see you. You may come when you are ready.”
“Thank you, that’ll be all.”
After he left, Anna burst out laughing. “Did you see his face? You look like a queen for sure in this! He was so surprised!”
I laughed with her. “Let’s hope the King is as impressed.”
“Are you really not going to tell me what it’s about?”
I didn’t know how to explain to her. “You can come with me and find out for yourself.”
I hadn’t thought it would, but that offer sent light to her eyes. “I’ve never been invited to the throne room before!”
“As my trusted maid, you are welcome wherever I am,” I said. I tried to think if I ever saw maids in the throne room before and realized that I hadn’t. I wasn’t sure if I had the authority to invite her there, but she looked so happy that I was glad I had.
“Thank you, miss! You know, you’re a favorite around here.” She settled me into a chair and got to work on my hair.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, most nobility around here don’t see people like me. But you do. You don’t treat me any differently. We’ve all noticed it.”
Her compliment made my eyes water. “You know, I’m really not different from you at all. I’m from a small tavern in a
n outer village.”
She laughed. “You can spin gold! You can call audiences with the King! You have the prince’s favor! You are nothing like me.”
I know she meant it all as a compliment, but I contemplated her words. I thought of myself as being just like her, and the people at those fancy dinners were all above me. I saw myself as a village girl among nobles. But she saw me as one of them. Did that mean that I fit in with both worlds, or that I didn’t belong in either?
“I hope you become our next queen. I could be the queen’s maid!”
Now it was my turn to look surprised. “That’s not why I’m here!”
“Don’t think I don’t see the two of you walking through the halls together day after day!” Anna said with giggles. “I think it’s just splendid. You’re going to be a beautiful queen.”
Beautiful and queen were never words that I used for myself.
“Let’s just finish getting me ready.” There was enough on my mind without the maid’s gossip.
With my hair piled on my head and my dress weighing on my hips, I went to see the King. People admired me as I passed by, and some followed me to see what the occasion was. The guards before the throne room bowed to me and reached for the handles.
This was it. There was no going back now.
I straightened my back and held my head high.
The doors came open with a small gust of air. The room inside looked vastly different from yesterday, with fewer people and the decorations removed. Still, it held more people than I expected.
In my head, I’d practiced my speech in front of the King and maybe a few advisors. The room before me looked like it held all the advisors and some of their friends. Anna gasped behind me as every head turned almost in unison to look our way. The guards stepped forward to ask her to stay behind but I held up my hand.
“She comes with me,” I ordered. Fearfully, I waited to see if they would allow it. They looked between each other and nodded, letting Anna through. We both sighed.
I returned my focus to the King, who made his way to his throne. Conrad sat by his side. I hesitated. I didn’t think he would be in the room.
My feet carried me forward with as much grace as I could muster. Anna stayed along the wall behind me, as though she couldn’t bring herself to stand any closer. The faces of the people around me were mixed. Some held confusion, some awe, and some upset that I was interrupting.
I ignored them all as I curtsied deeply before my king.
“Lady Cosette.” I couldn’t read the King’s voice. “To what do we owe the honor?”
I looked up to his face. Next to him, Conrad was bewitched, staring at me with a smile in his eyes.
The King was looking at me intently, waiting for me to speak. I cleared my throat.
“I have a proposition for you,” I began as rehearsed.
“Then tell us, daughter of Westfallen.”
The title made me pause for a second, but I shook it off. “I have spun gold for you night after night for five months. I have asked for little in return and have been honored to serve my kingdom in this way.”
He smiled at me, but I could see the distrust in his eye.
“But I will not stay indefinitely. I have given you enough gold. I will continue for two more months, at which point you will grant me the freedom to return home and never call on me again.”
I tried not to look at Conrad’s face as I said this. I didn’t want to see him hurt.
The King stood up. “Will you not stay to see this war over?”
I gulped. “I feel I have done more than what is fair.”
He nodded, pursing his lips. I ignored the chatter of the people behind me. The King paced while Conrad sat there looking stricken. “And what will you do if I demand you stay until the war ends?”
My knees wobbled but I righted them. I needed to look tough. “I will walk home today.”
That got a reaction from the crowd. I steadied myself as the King raised his eyebrows. “Walk home? Interesting. Well I have my own proposition for you.”
“Father,” Conrad stood up, but the King hushed him. He turned to me, squaring his shoulders.
“One alternative is to have you executed as a traitor to the country for refusing to help us in a time of war. I don’t think you want that option. The other,” he stopped and looked at Conrad. When he turned back to me, there was a sly smile on his face. “The second option is that you spin gold for two more months, at which point we will reward you for your time and Gift.”
“Reward?”
He grinned, gesturing to his son. “You will be given the hand of the heir of Westfallen.”
That got the biggest reaction yet.
“Father!” Conrad jumped up.
“Sit down. You could do worse than the girl who spins gold.”
I turned to scan the crowd. They were talking to each other and staring at me. I thought I caught a glimpse of Rumpel’s golden curls but when I looked again, he was gone.
The queen’s dress didn’t feel so luxurious anymore. Instead, it felt like a prison.
“If I don’t want either of those options?”
The King slowly stepped down from the platform and approached me and I had a flashback to my first night at the castle. I would hold myself proudly this time.
He drew near and narrowed his eyes. It was safe to say that our evening routine of stifled pleasantries and polite greetings were over. “I have given you two options. By the end of the month, you will accept one of them.”
Conrad abandoned his chair and came to stand by my side. “Leave her be.”
I was touched that he stood up for me, though his father looked annoyed. “I’m making a business deal. A kingdom can never have too much gold, and you’ll soon learn how fast resources can be depleted. She guarantees eternal wealth.”
Conrad looked to me with a tilted head and raised eyebrows, but the look in his eye differed from his father’s. His father saw me as a tool for the kingdom, someone he could force into submission to provide all the wealth that his greedy mind could desire.
A slave. He saw me as a slave.
I was no one’s slave, least of all his.
But the glint in Conrad’s eye sent warmth curling through my chest.
He saw me as a person, and his eyes were asking if I was okay. I gave him a small nod before addressing his father. “I assume the previous offer of spinning until the war’s end then going home is no longer on the table?” I asked, still holding my chin up.
“It was your choice to push this,” the King whispered.
My eyes scanned the room. Feet shuffled closer in to hear what we were saying. All eyes remained on us, and no one uttered a word.
This had not gone as planned. Before leaving, I needed to reestablish some strength. I pulled my shoulders back and my neck up. I tried to imagine how a queen would hold herself in a room of advisors and a cruel king. I didn’t feel the part, but I hoped I looked it.
“You do not control me,” I said bravely, anger seeping through my tone.
As I turned to exit, the King got a strange smile on his face. “I control everything.”
A shudder went down my spine and I hoped he didn’t see it. With as much dignity as I could muster, I paraded out of the room, beckoning Anna to follow, who slunk along the wall with her head down. I doubted her first time in the throne room had been all that she hoped for.
Chapter Thirty-One
When I returned, I half expected to find Rumpel in my room to give me encouragement. He wasn’t there. I dismissed Anna, wishing to have a few minutes to myself. She left without arguing. I sat myself down at the desk and began letting the pins out of my hair as I reran the scene over in my head.
Where had it gone so wrong?
If I hadn’t marched in there, determined to win back some control over the situation, I would be free to go home once the war was over. Instead, I felt the need to make a mess of it. Now I had to marry Conrad or die.
How w
as the King still in charge with demands like that? Didn’t the advisors have an opinion as to who Conrad should marry? Didn’t anyone else think that him threatening to kill me was an abuse of his powers as king? Surely there was someone who would protest his demands.
My mind flashed to the coup that Conrad was planning, and I could only hope he would go through with it soon. He could overturn the King’s demands.
Conrad.
I buried my face in my hands. That look on his face when I said I didn’t want to stay here; I would never forget it. He looked so rejected, and I was the reason his face looked like that.
A knock came at the door, startling me. I shook off my surprise and went to answer it, hoping to see Rumpel. It wasn’t him. It was Conrad. He was still wearing his blue suit coat with buttons in the sleeve collars.
We stood looking at each other for a moment without talking. Finally, he raised his shoulders and let them drop. “What was that?”
“I’m sorry,” I said, grabbing him by the sleeve and pulling him into the room. He stumbled in, leaving the door open behind him. I pulled the last pins from my hair and pushed them into a pile on the desk. Conrad stayed in the middle of the room watching me. How could I explain this to him? “Listen, I didn’t mean to hurt you. I just got so sick of doing everything by his terms that I wanted to assert some control over the situation. I couldn’t live with myself if I just went along with everything.”
Conrad nodded, but I could see the questions lingering in his eyes. “I get wanting to be in control and wanting to be seen as confident. But no one thought any less of you for agreeing to stay here and spin gold for months.”
I buried my face in my hands and moaned. “I’m sure they think less of me now.”
Gently, Conrad placed a hand on my shoulder. “Nonsense. If anything they see that you have courage inside you. It’s a valuable trait for a queen. And this dress! You’re stunning!”
I blushed and twirled for him. “It was supposed to be for your mother. I hope you don’t mind.”
The Storyteller’s Daughter Page 18