Pawn (The Pawn Series Book 1)

by Robin Roseau

  "I appreciate what you do for me, Mellara."

  She cupped one of the earrings. I couldn't read her expression. But then she said, "I don't want to catch you that way."

  "Why not? Isn't that part of the fun?"

  "I'm not clever," she said. "Not like you and Lady Muranna. Or Lady Malta. I wouldn't have thought of something like this, and I wouldn't do the other things people did to me. Well, I suppose if I could, I'd return them to the people who did them to me, but I can't. I wouldn't do them to you."

  "So you don't want to spank me?"

  She smiled at that. "Okay, I might not mind spanking you."

  "Mellara, in all honesty, if I'm going to get spanked, I'd rather it was you than anyone else."

  "You wouldn't prefer it was Lady Muranna?"

  "I am fairly certain that if Lady Muranna has the opportunity, she'll have something more insidious in mind than a spanking."

  She goes us moving, but then a minute later, she asked, "Is that because you think I'd go easy on you? If you don't yelp, I'm not spanking hard enough."

  "Mellara, please don't take this as a challenge, but it is unlikely you are able to make me yelp from a spanking."

  "I'm strong for my size."

  "And I was raised as a girl of the Arrlotta. A spanking doesn't seem like much at all to me." I didn't tell her I had often gotten a lot worse than a spanking for no more provocation than it seemed I'd give anyone today.

  With Mellara leading the way, we delivered Juleena's laundry. The moment my arms were free, Mellara said, "I have a task for you, Lady Yallameenara. Come with me."

  Once we were clear of the laundry room, I asked, "You didn't want to risk someone else grabbing me?"

  "Didn't you noticed half of them waiting to pounce?" she asked. "It's really rather rude. They know who you are, and they know I'm your maid. I have dibs, but did you see those vultures ready to steal you from me?"

  "I believe I did. Did I wilt?"

  She gave me a quick glance. "Not yet." Then she smiled. "No more freebies from me. I think I might like to spank you after all."

  I laughed. I wasn't worried about a spanking from my maid. Although laughing made my ears hurt, and I stifled it quickly with a small wince besides.

  The people waiting in the corridor outside my room had gone through changes. Lady Malta was gone but she'd been replaced by others from the palace. Reactions as they saw my nose varied, but it was clear everyone was still hoping to catch me.

  It was Andro who stepped into my path. Andro was some relative of the royal family, although it wasn't exactly clear what the relationship was. He was two or three years older than I was, and had given up a purse to Muranna and me more than once.

  "Lady Yallameenara, what task are you assigned?"

  "I am assigned to follow Mellara," I said.

  "That is not a task," he said. He turned his attention to my maid, who was hiding behind me. "Tell her that her task is finished."

  "Lady Yallameenara," Mellara said, "Maybe..."

  "Maybe I should finish my task to you," I said over my shoulder. I turned my attention back to Andro. "I have had hints that it is unlikely Mellara will get another chance, Andro. Do you really mean to ruin her fun?"

  He looked me in the eye, and I watched him come to a decision. "No. But I'm next."

  "I don't seem to have a dance card," I replied. Before he could figure out what that meant, I grabbed Mellara's arm and tugged her around him.

  Once safely in my quarters, we turned to each other. "Thank you, Lady Yallameenara," she told me. "You didn't have to do that."

  "What can I do for you, Mellara?"

  She turned to me, biting her lip. I raised an eyebrow. "Yes?" I asked slowly.

  "I'm youngest in my family," she said. "Until some of my cousins have children, this is probably my only chance to enjoy this tradition. But I only get to make you do one task."

  "You were going to have me clean the room."

  "Yeah, but then Xiella made you clean the princess's room."

  I gave the room a look of my own then turned back to her. "And you were hoping whatever I did would leave me disheveled."

  Slowly she nodded. "Is that terrible? I mean-" She broke off then started over. "Princess Juleena told Xiella and I to make sure we were first."

  "Did she say why?"

  "She said you might ask and we're not to tell you." She bit her lips again. I wasn't really in the mood to laugh, but her own indecision helped to lighten my mood. But then she looked around the room once more, her gaze coming to a stop as she looked out the windows at the sea. And then she began to smile.

  "Lady Yallameenara," she said. "Please wait here. I'll only be three minutes."

  "Of course," I agreed.

  She headed for the door. There was a small commotion as she left the room, quickly cut off by the closing door. I headed to my dressing table and sat down in the chair, eying my appearance. I considered this tradition.

  I'd been pretty upset about it when Juleena explained everything, and I was more upset that she didn't really explain everything. It hadn't helped that I thought she was playing a joke on me. And I supposed she had been playing a joke, but only the joke of hiding the tradition from me until today. And she'd gone out of her way to hide it, too, talking to people behind my back about it.

  I'd been so excited about today, even though it had been so much work getting ready. But now I knew I'd be picked on all day. I'd grown up getting picked on, and I thought my life on The Hippa had been a lot worse than whatever was going to happen today.

  But I was left wondering. Is this what life is? Are people forever looking for someone they can lord over? Do people need to have others in their lives they can treat poorly, so they can feel better about themselves? Mellara was barely a year older than I was. She'd come out of her ten and eighth looking forward to mine. Lady Malta had applied to me the same punishment her cousin had once applied to her, even keeping the earrings so they would be ready when she needed them.

  Muranna and I teased each other, but we had never played tricks on each other. Never. We were a team, always a team. And the same could have been said about Juleena and me. We also teased, and we never played tricks.

  But both of them had been looking forward to this, which to me seemed like a day of playing tricks on me. I wasn't happy about it, and I didn't know how they expected me to be gracious when they -- and almost everyone else in my life -- had set me up to enter the day ignorant that today was to be one long day of tricks on me.

  I turned my head, judging my appearance, making sure nothing was awry and watching the earrings. Even the slightest motion of my head made them wobble around, tugging on my ears. And the stays were too tight, too. The discomfort was minor and nothing compared to the beatings I used to receive for the most minor of infractions. Lady Malta had said she'd begged to have them removed after two hours. The discomfort was becoming distracting, and I realized I'd gotten soft from four years of no one doing the slightest thing to hurt me. But I'd see my ears red and bloody before I was going to beg.

  The door opened, and I turned my head. It was Mellara, of course. She was carrying a bucket from one hand and several rags in the other. "Come take these, Lady Yallameenara."

  I rose from my seat, stepped over, and collected the cleaning supplies. "What am I cleaning, Mellara?"

  "Your windows are spotted with salt from sea spray, Lady Yallameenara. Please clean them."

  I didn't say a word. I was sure she'd picked this task specifically because I was guaranteed to damage my appearance. She wanted to punish me besides. I turned away and headed for the door. Mellara stepped around me and opened it for me, and we were struck by the breeze from the sea. I could immediately feel the breeze tugging at my hair, and I knew my appearance would suffer just standing out here, much less once I began scrubbing at windows. Mellara said nothing about that but followed me onto the balcony to watch me work.

  I set down the bucket and most of the rags, the
n I considered. I was willing to accept her punishment, but I still had to be careful. I couldn't get the clothes wet or they would be ruined for the day. If I let that happen, I wouldn't be able to go anywhere without attracting additional punishment. Mellara would never be able to set them to rights.

  I wondered if she'd thought of that. I rather doubted she had.

  I'd done my share of cleaning in the past. It seemed like the distant past, four years behind me. But I'd never even seen glass before coming to Framara, and I'd never cleaned it before. I'd seen the windows being cleaned before. It wasn't Mellara's responsibility. She saw to my personal needs and the basic needs of my room, but there were others who did the heavier cleaning. But I'd never paid that much attention to them.

  At that moment I realized what a privileged life I'd been leading since leaving The Hippa. I suppose all along, I'd realized this, but as I looked at those windows, wondering how to clean them, it became apparent to me.

  I took one rag and dipped it partway into the water, enough to dampen it, but not enough to make it soaking wet, then moved to one pane of glass and settled in.

  Getting rid of the salt from the sea spray wasn't hard, but the water itself left streaks, and even I could see them. I spent several minutes on one pane, and I couldn't say it looked any better when I was done than when I started. I looked over at Mellara. "I don't know what I'm doing wrong."

  "Try a wet rag and a dry rag after."

  "Oh."

  That worked better, although when I finished my first pane, it wasn't as good as when the regular cleaners did it. I looked over at Mellara, who was watching me carefully.

  "That's good enough," she decided. "Keep going."

  After that, I put my back into it. If it had been summer, I would have been hot and sweaty long before I was done. But it was actually quite crisp, and if anything I grew chilled.

  I did the best I could. When I was done, I didn't think I'd actually saved the cleaners any time, although perhaps the windows looked better than they had. I turned to look at Mellara. Her mouth was open, but she snapped it closed. "You worked hard," she observed.

  I shrugged. It wasn't so bad. "What do I do with these?" I gestured to the bucket and rags.

  "Leave them. I'll take care of them. But Lady Yallameenara, your appearance is a fright."

  "I imagine it is, Mellara. Will you fix it?"

  She began to smile and opened the door to my room. I followed her back inside, and we came to face each other. She looked me up and down, her smile not wavering in the slightest.

  I thought about reminding her whom she worked for. All right. I didn't pay her, and I relied on her maybe more than she relied on me. Neither of us wanted an adversarial relationship. But I'd seen other ladies who were less kind to the servants than I was to Mellara, and I realized being my maid was probably a plum position for her. Four years ago, if I'd thought it was a possibility, I think perhaps I'd rather have been Mellara than to have remained a girl of the Arrlottan.

  Although Mellara didn't have a horse. I wouldn't have given up riding for anything.

  Mellara continued to smile, but then she began biting her lip again. I wondered how she managed to do both at the same time.

  "I know you have to punish me, Mellara," I said. "Is it to be a spanking?"

  "I don't want to do the other things my cousins did," she replied. She stopped biting long enough to grin quite widely, but then she began to bite her lip again.

  "What is it?"

  "Everyone made sure to gather an audience before punishing me," she said. She turned and glanced at the door then frowned. "But I don't want any of them to see."

  "Is that a rule?" I asked.

  "I don't know," she replied. "But-" And I could tell this was at least as much about being seen punishing me as it was about actually doing it.

  I thought about helping her out, but instead I turned away. Then I offered my own smile and turned to my dressing mirror. I began to work on my own appearance.

  "No!" Mellara screeched. "Lady Yallameenara, that's not fair!"

  I looked at her reflection in the mirror. She definitely wasn't smiling now. I turned my gaze back to my own reflection. I wouldn't say I was a fright, but I definitely wasn't as put together as I needed to be. The hat sat limply and slightly askew. The bow looked drab. And the pigtails had begun to work loose.

  But I set my hands in my lap and looked at her reflection again. She stared at me a moment. Then I saw her gaze turn to the hallway door. As soon as it did, I raised my hands and began on the bow.

  "No!" she screeched again. "I-" Her gaze darted to the main door, but she didn't begin moving.

  "I wonder if the princess has gone about her duties," I said casually. I wasn't sure how I felt about Juleena watching this, but I didn't think I wanted Andro to watch my own maid spanking me.

  Mellara straightened and glanced at the connecting door. Then she smiled and hurried to it, but she came to a stop and faced me. I couldn't see her reflection anymore, so I'd turned my head to watch her.

  "Touch anything, and I'll do one of the mean things instead."

  I thought about it and then nodded, setting my hands back in my lap. She watched me pointedly for a moment before knocking on the door.

  Yes, Juleena was still in her quarters. I didn't hear the conversation Mellara had with her, but then the two entered my room, both smiling.

  "Oh, you're right, Mellara," Juleena said before tsk-tsking at me. Then she leaned against the doorframe, still smiling.

  Mellara crossed the room to sit on the bed, pausing before she did it. But sit, she did, and then she said, "Lady Yallameenara, you will accept your punishment for your appearance. Lie here." She patted her lap.

  "I can't believe this tradition," I muttered. I looked over at Juleena. "What happens if I refuse?"

  "You could try it," Juleena said. "You wouldn't be the first child to make that choice." But then she gave a pointed look to Mellara.

  "Lady Yallameenara," said my maid quite firmly. She patted her lap again. "Now!"

  Her tone got my back up, and for a moment I considered rebellion. But I was pretty sure that was a bad idea, so I stood, walked over, and crawled into position. As soon as I lowered myself, I felt my face begin to flame.

  I hadn't realized how embarrassed I was about to be, but I tightened my lips and said not a word.

  Mellara paused. She didn't spank right away. Instead, she adjusted the jumper, pulling it up about my waist so that my bottom was hidden only by the hosiery. If I hadn't already been deeply blushing, I would have at that.

  "How many will you deliver?" Juleena asked.

  "Mine were until I started yelping," Mellara replied.

  "In case she doesn't make a sound," Juleena said, "Pick a number."

  "Ten," Mellara said after only a moment's pause.

  "I believe, Mellara, that you are going to feel cheated. If she isn't yelping, I might suggest twenty."

  I didn't say a word, but I didn't appreciate the princess's interference.

  "I'll stop once she yelps," Mellara said.

  "Or after twenty," Juleena prompted.

  "Or after twenty," Mellara said.

  The first swat was tentative. The next two were only a little firmer. By five, she was putting a lot into them. By ten, I think she was putting everything into it she could. I grunted a few times but didn't otherwise make a sound.

  The spanking itself wasn't the worst; the earrings were. With every strike, they bounced terribly. I tried holding my head as still as possible, although it did me no good at all. Still, I accepted everything stoically.

  My blush faded long before she was done. Oh, I was embarrassed, but my anger from earlier returned.

  She reached twenty, counting each strike. The last landed, and she left her hand in place for a moment before snatching it away. Then there was a pause, and Mellara said in a subdued voice, "If you get up, I'll fix your appearance."

  I climbed from her lap. Then, not loo
king at either of them, I stood in place, staring at a point on the wall. Mellara moved around me, fixing everything as Juleena looked on. She stopped in front of me, offering a critical gaze, but she avoided looking into my eyes, or I into hers. Then she dropped her gaze. "All better," she said, barely audible.

  I gave about a half a thought to wondering why she was upset? Was she angry I hadn't cried out? If so, tough. But I thought perhaps it was something else.

  "Have I completed your tasks, Mellara?"

  "Yes, Lady Yallameenara," she replied, not looking up.

  "Your Highness, were you about to assign more tasks?"

  "Not right now," she said. "I may have more later."

  I turned to the princess and walked to her, not yet removing the nose and not looking into her eyes either. "I would like to see what Malta needs."

  "There are people waiting in the hall for her," Mellara pointed out.

  "That isn't surprising," said Juleena. "Was there anyone who deserves a chance at her?"

  "I'm sure I couldn't say," Mellara replied. "Lord Andro asked for her next."

  "He tried to take me from Mellara," I added.

  Juleena said nothing for a moment then pushed away from the doorframe. "Wait here," she told me before stepping past. I didn't even turn around, but I heard my hallway door open. Again, there was a commotion, and I heard someone say, "It's only the princess."

  "Only the princess?" Juleena said, sounding indignant. "Perhaps you should reconsider that phrase in the future." But then she closed the door. "Yalla, do you have any particular desire to hand yourself into Andro's care?"

  "Not really," I said. "Although he looked determined."

  "I imagine he wishes he could demand you return a purse to him," Juleena observed. "It is unfortunate for him he can't make such a request. It is also unfortunate for him he was stupid enough to allow you and Muranna to fleece him in the first place." She paused. "I should tell you to remove the nose, but I'm not going to. Keep it. Come with me."

  I turned, and as I reached her, she led the way into the hallway. Again there was a commotion, and as I stepped out, I saw perhaps ten people. Seriously? They didn't have anything better to do. Andro was at the front of the pack.