The Indentured Queen

by Carol Moncado

  He sat down across from her, intrigued.

  “If I want to live across the hall where the room is basically identical except for the window, it comes out of my wages. Not much, but I needed every cent I could get so I lived with it. I get my breakfast and lunch paid for on my breaks, and if I eat dinner in the employee dining hall within an hour of clocking out, I get that paid for, too.”

  “And on your days off?”

  “Half days off. I can eat in the same hall, but it’s taken out of my wages.”

  The way she discussed it so matter-of-factly bothered him. He thought it seemed a little unfair, but what did he know about how this kind of thing worked? And apparently it met the legal guidelines.

  It wasn’t the only thing he needed to mention to her. “I will be leaving town for a couple of days tomorrow morning.”

  “Okay. I’ll miss you.” Her sarcasm actually hurt a bit.

  “Chamberlain thinks you should go with me. Your first official public appearance, but away from Akushla where the spotlight shouldn’t be quite as bad.”

  “Can I get a note to get out of work? I got written up for missing work the day of the wedding.”

  He frowned. “You were at the wedding.”

  “That’s what I told Mr. Bond. I even filled out the form to have the day off, but since I didn’t actually have an invitation, the request was declined. No one got the day off unless they could show their supervisor an invitation.”

  Had he ever thought about how many unseen people it took to keep the palace and the governmental offices in it running smoothly? Clearly far more than he realized.

  “Were there consequences?”

  She shrugged. “None that really matter. I overslept the next morning so I had to work late, but I don’t mind that because it’s so much quieter when I stay late. He also added two months to my indenture because it was my third and fourth write up. Since I’ll be dead before my indenture ends, I figured it didn’t matter too much.” She stood. “Now, what do I need for this little road trip?”

  “We’re not driving, but I’ll make certain Mr. Bond extends no consequences for missing work.”

  “Aw, thanks.” Her tone and expression was gratitude, but exaggerated somehow. “I’m so glad I won’t get in trouble for accompanying my husband the king on his trip.”

  He glared back at her. “I’ll tell Chamberlain to make sure you have what you need. We’ll leave around noon tomorrow. Our first stop will be a local restaurant for lunch, then a short plane ride to the northern part of the country. I have meetings there.”

  “And while you do your whole meeting thing, what do I get to do?”

  Benjamin shrugged. “I have no idea. Take a nap at the hotel? My sisters would probably shop, but that doesn’t really seem like your thing.”

  “Not really. Not when I have no money.”

  She had a good point. “Very well. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Do I need to go to work for a couple hours?”

  Benjamin stood as he shook his head. “No. Sleep in. Someone will make sure you’re awake in time and have everything you need.” He did something he’d never done to anyone but his parents.

  He inclined his head in as close to a bow as he ever came in private. “Sleep well.”

  Katrín was going to screw this up.

  She sat in a chair in the consort’s quarters with one person doing something to her feet, another one giving her a manicure, and cucumbers kept her eyes closed while a warm towel wrapped around her face.

  It took all of her concentration not to twitch as the pedicurist did whatever pedicurists did. If she wasn’t careful, she’d kick someone. Eventually, they finished, but she was left with a hair stylist who was talking about cutting her hair.

  “Uh, excuse me?” she asked. “I really don’t want to cut my hair.”

  “Not much,” the woman told her. “Just a bit of a trim and spruce it up. You have lovely hair.”

  “Okay.” Surely the woman wouldn’t lie to the queen. Katrín could probably make it so she never worked again - if she were really queen, but the woman didn’t know she wasn’t.

  Half an hour of snips and combs later, she spun Katrín around to look in the mirror.

  Katrín gasped. The woman hadn’t been wrong. “I love it.”

  “Just a bit of a trim and a few long layers. It will look better with the shape of your face like this.”

  “I wear it pulled back a lot for work.” She winced. “Or I did before the wedding anyway. A lot’s changed in the last few weeks.”

  The woman smiled. “I can’t imagine, but at least you’re with the man of your dreams who just happens to be the king.” She stepped back and began to gather her things. “The head family stylist will be here in a few minutes. She’ll have your clothes and the staff stylist who will go with you.”

  “Thank you.”

  “My pleasure, Your Majesty.” She curtsied then left.

  A minute later, there was another knock. “Come in,” she called.

  Another woman, this one in her forties or fifties came in along with another woman in her thirties. The older one introduced herself as the head family stylist. She apparently coordinated everyone’s outfits for family pictures or something. Katrín didn’t really understand what she said.

  “And this is Rosalie. She did your make-up for the wedding and will be traveling with you.”

  Katrín smiled at Rosalie. “I remember. Thank you.”

  The younger woman curtsied. “My pleasure, Your Majesty.”

  Good grief. Everyone was so polite. It was refreshing to a point, but not when you couldn’t be sure who was just trying to butter you up.

  “We have about an hour before you leave. Your new wardrobe is packed and an outfit is in your dressing room for you. I’m going to finish your hair and make-up before you change.”

  Katrín just nodded. She wasn’t even sure where the dressing room was. She had noticed her bed was never made so maybe no one really came in here without her knowledge.

  It took Rosalie about half an hour to do the hair and make-up. Katrín was pleasantly surprised when she looked in the mirror.

  “No wine-colored lipstick?” she asked.

  Rosalie shook her head. “That was just to match the king’s shirt and your wedding colors, ma’am.”

  Good to know.

  “If you need any assistance getting dressed, please let me know.”

  “I’m sure I can manage.”

  Rosalie smiled. “Occasionally, there’s a zipper or button or something that doesn’t cooperate. That’s why I’m here.”

  Katrín just smiled at her and headed into the main bedroom and through it to the closet. She’d guessed right. An outfit was hanging on a hook and clearly meant for her to put on.

  But it wasn’t quite what she expected. Rosalie’s outfit was sleek and modern and stylish, but this... It seemed older and more matronly. Maybe the other woman had chosen it. Katrín just prayed all the new clothes weren’t like this.

  She didn’t need any help and was back out in the sitting room in a few minutes.

  Something Katrín didn’t catch frittered across Rosalie’s face. Did she approve or not?

  “You look just like a queen should,” the other woman declared.

  That’s what it was. The outfit looked like something the Queen Mother would wear, not one of the princesses. While it might be fine for a widowed mother of ten, it didn’t exactly suit Katrín.

  This wasn’t the time to complain. There likely wouldn’t be a time to, not when she wouldn’t be doing this sort of thing very often.

  The head stylist glanced at her phone. “The king is ready to leave.”

  Katrín nodded to both of them. “Thank you again.”

  Rosalie gave a longer nod back. “I will see you this evening, ma’am.”

  Before Katrín could thank her, they’d both disappeared. She went into the external sitting area to see Benjamin walking out of his quarters. />
  “Are you ready to go?” he asked as he fiddled with his cuff link.

  “If you are, I kind of have to be.”

  He looked up and frowned.

  “What?”

  “I like the hair and make-up or whatever, but I’m not sure about the outfit.”

  She shrugged. “This is what the stylists gave me.”

  “Then I guess I must not know enough about women’s fashion.” He started for the main door, expecting her to follow. The heels were going to make it difficult, but she did her best.

  Staff members scurried out of sight as they approached. Only a few held their ground and bowed or curtsied as Benjamin walked by. They watched Katrín with varying degrees of open curiosity. In a few minutes, they reached a portico with a car waiting underneath it. Benjamin had stopped for her to catch up before walking out the door.

  He entered the car and situated himself on the far side of the back seat. A liveried footman-type guy motioned for her to follow. As soon as her seatbelt was fastened, the car began to move. Were they watching for her to do that?

  “Where are we going for lunch?” she asked.

  “A bistro not far from here. The owner is friends with my mother’s family. It is tradition to stop there on the way to the northern part of the country.”

  “I see.”

  Katrín stared out the window as the city whisked by. Except for the wedding, how long had it been since she’d been out of the palace?

  Years.

  “There will likely be photographers. This trip has been planned for a while, and they all know where we’ll be eating.”

  “So smile and pretend like I want to be here. Got it.”

  He wasn’t wrong. The car glided to a stop in front of a small restaurant. The streets were crowded with news personnel as well as a bunch of ordinary people.

  The door on Benjamin’s side opened, and he climbed out. She couldn’t see him, but imagined him smiling and nodding at the crowd. Not a big, crowd-pleasing smile, but the reserved one he always used.

  “Ma’am?” A member of the security team held out a hand to assist Katrín out of the car. With a deep breath, she took his hand.

  As long as she didn’t fall flat on her face, it would all be okay.

  12

  Benjamin turned to watch one of the security team help Katrín from the car. Should he have done that? Too late now, but he did offer his arm for her to take.

  Katrín slid her hand into his elbow but still stayed slightly behind him. On purpose?

  The reporters called questions as cameras clicked.

  “Just smile,” he whispered as he stopped in the middle of the sidewalk facing the reporters. “Just for a few seconds.”

  He waited for a thirty count then turned her the other way for a few more seconds. Those gathered would feel cheated if they didn’t get a picture, or so he was told. After a few more seconds, he started walking the four more steps into the building.

  “King Benjamin!” The proprietor’s wife came toward him with her arms outstretched. “It has been far too long.” It was as though she realized he wasn’t alone because she suddenly stopped and curtsied. “We’re happy to have you here, Your Majesties.”

  Benjamin dropped his arm so Katrín’s hand slipped out and closed the distance to the woman. “It is good to see you, Celeste.” He took her hands and kissed her cheek. “Mother would love to have you and Cornelius come for dinner sometime soon. After she returns from holiday, of course.”

  “We would love that.”

  Benjamin turned. “Celeste, this is my wife, Katrín. Katrín, Celeste’s mother was my grandmother’s best friend when they were children.”

  Katrín held out a hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am.”

  A minute later, they were seated at a table near a window overlooking a park.

  “Do we have menus?” Katrín asked softly once Celeste was out of earshot.

  “No. She’ll bring us Cornelius’s special of the day. Whatever it is will be fabulous.”

  On the other wall was a television set, turned to one of the local stations. The lunchtime news was on, and Benjamin wasn’t surprised to see himself. He read the closed captioning.

  King Benjamin and his new wife, Queen Katrín, left the palace for the first time since the wedding. The picture shifted and said “moments ago” on the top. The king has never been comfortable in front of cameras, often looking like he’d rather be just about anywhere else. The new queen looked even less comfortable, though it is her first real foray into the public eye. Her hair and make-up are an improvement over the wedding, though the consensus was that she matched the tone of the day, even if the styles didn’t seem to suit her. Here, she’s freshly styled, but seems to have stolen something from the Queen Mother’s closet to wear.

  Benjamin looked at the video of the two of them. He looked like he always did, but Katrín looked almost scared and pale, a shaky smile appearing and disappearing on her face.

  Then the story was over.

  “Am I actually going to interact with the public on this trip?” the real Katrín asked him. “Or am I staying in some hotel room the whole time?”

  “That’s up to you. I’ll be working during the two days we’re there. We have a dinner with the mayor tonight, but it’s a small event with only a dozen people or so. Tomorrow night, we’ll have dinner with a local charitable organization. The next night we have no specific plans. We’ll return after lunch the next day. You can sleep in and order room service, or whatever you prefer.”

  “Sleeping sounds nice,” she murmured, staring out the window.

  “Here we are!” Celeste and Cornelius set bowls of steaming soup in front of them.

  “Thank you,” he and Katrín said in unison.

  After a minute of small talk about the wedding, they were left alone.

  “Have you ever been up north?”

  “No. We went to Lake Akushla a few times when I was younger, but that’s it. My mother rarely took time off, except for the weekends and not even then if there was an event at the palace.”

  He’d forgotten. “She worked for my father?”

  “She was his official server. Any meal outside of the family quarters and sometimes inside, she served him and occasionally visiting dignitaries. She wasn’t the head server, yet, but she was the best.”

  “Then why did she quit?”

  Katrín shrugged. “When they think you are stealing, you often lose your job or get demoted. A few years later, when I took over the indenture, she quit her new job and went to work closer to home with fewer hours so she could be with my brother more. My sister was working and helping pay the bills by then so she could afford to take the pay cut.”

  Something about what she said bothered Benjamin but he couldn’t quite put his finger on what. “I’m going to make arrangements so she doesn’t have to work anymore.”

  “Thank you.”

  “That was your goal, wasn’t it? With the comments in front of my mother. That your mother wouldn’t have to wait a year to have financial security.”

  “I didn’t think you’d actually do it.” She took a spoonful of soup.

  “Did you think I actually would next year?”

  Katrín didn’t look at him but shrugged as she ate another spoonful of soup.

  “I’m a man of my word,” he told her, suddenly angry at the thought she didn’t believe him.

  “If you say so. I barely know you. How would I know if you are?”

  He didn’t answer, but ate his soup instead. A second course followed that with dessert at the end.

  “Will the crowd be gone when we leave?” Katrín pushed her dessert plate away.

  “Normally, most of them would, but since this is your first public outing, I don’t know.” He took a couple more bites, then wiped his mouth on a napkin before standing.

  Celeste and Cornelius emerged from the kitchen to say goodbye.

  “Just relax and smile,” he told Katrín as
they approached the outer door. “They won’t hurt you, just take your picture.”

  Maybe he should make more of an effort to smile, too. They didn’t expect it from him, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t change their perceptions. Wasn’t that the whole point of this wedding in the first place?

  Katrín stayed a stair step behind Benjamin as they walked to the tarmac. The flight had been short and quiet, with Benjamin going over paperwork with Chamberlain. As it was Katrín’s first flight, she spent most of it staring out the window and trying not to look nervous.

  Now back on solid ground, she wondered if she’d ever get as used to it as Benjamin clearly was.

  They were met by the mayor of the town, though Katrín couldn’t remember the name of it or his name. She needed to get better about that.

  A car took them to a fancy hotel. The crowd was bigger than at the restaurant, but comprised mostly of people and less of media. The walk was longer, but they didn’t stop. Grateful the king had offered her his arm, she gripped the inside of his elbow like a lifeline, and refused to think about the warmth that spread through her from that point of contact. If she dwelt on it, she might realize it meant she found him somewhat attractive, despite his perpetual resting grumpy face.

  They were taken directly to an elevator, which went straight to the top floor after their escort swiped a key card. The elevator opened into a suite. It wasn’t as nice as the suites at the palace, but other than that, the nicest place Katrín had ever been.

  Benjamin dropped his arm and let her hand slide out as he walked toward a conference table on the far side of the room. Katrín moved a bit further in and away as the rest of their entourage poured out of the other elevator.

  What exactly was she supposed to do?

  “Ma’am?”

  A sigh of relief escaped before she could stop it. “Thor? I didn’t know you were coming with us.”

  “This way, ma’am.” He motioned with one hand.

  So when it wasn’t just the two of them, he would be stiff and formal. Great.

  She went over to a group of chairs out of the way and took a seat. Thor sat in the chair next to her.