Solace: Book Three (Strange in Skin Trilogy)

by Sara V. Zook

  “Me?” she asked pointing to herself.

  I nodded. “Please say yes. I need someone normal to be by my side. I’m already nervous just thinking about becoming married and queen on the same day. I need you beside me.”

  “This is going to be a big ceremony though, right? I mean, am I going to have to be up in front of a lot of others?”

  I cringed just thinking about the same thing. What if I tripped over my own feet and fell as everybody stared? That would be something I would likely do.

  “Well … yeah.”

  “Oh, I don’t know, Anna. It seems like a big deal,” Jo replied.

  I frowned. She probably wasn’t going to do it, and I completely understood why. Jo had lived the life of a Scave and was just settling into her new life in the castle. Asking her to be in front of an enormous group of people would be terrifying as it sparked my own anxiety as well.

  “Just think about it,” I pleaded. “Please.”

  Jo smiled. “Sure.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Ms. Anna James?”

  I turned around at the sound of the voice calling out my name. A small group of contributors had just entered the kitchen. They were dressed lavishly in gold dresses with silver jewelry and belts and seemed to almost sparkle.

  A tall woman at the head of the group smiled as she found me on the other side of the room and motioned for me to come over to her. Her long hair was braided and had jewels dangling from it. Walking over to her, I grabbed hold of Jo’s hand so she’d go with me.

  “Ms. James, so nice to meet you finally,” the woman said, her eyes looking me up and down. “Oh, good, you are slender and well framed.”

  I raised my eyebrows at her instant assessment.

  She looked around the room and bent over to whisper in my ear. “I was afraid you were going to be fat. Humans are known to be pudgy.”

  Wow. This woman isn’t afraid to say what’s on her mind.

  She extended her arm out to shake my hand. “I’m Trishelle. Wonderful to meet our future queen.”

  “Um, nice to meet you, Trishelle,” I said, shaking her hand, my anxiety growing at the group before me and what they wanted.

  “We’re fashion contributors,” Trishelle announced as if noticing the blank expression on my face.

  “Oh.” I realized this was who Emry had been talking about. “Emry said he had set something up.”

  “Yes, yes,” Trishelle remarked. “Everything is ready. The carriage is outside. Shall we go?”

  I looked back at Jo who was taking it all in.

  “Please come with me,” I begged.

  “Who’s this?” Trishelle asked, her tone almost condescending.

  “Jo,” I whispered.

  “Jo …” Trishelle let the name roll off of her tongue.

  “I’m the maid of honor,” Jo said puffing out her chest a little bit.

  I grinned; thrilled she was sucking it up and coming with me with these strange and intimating group of contributors.

  Trishelle stared at her for a moment more before turning around. “Very well. Let’s go.”

  Stepping outside into the warm sunshine, a shiny metal carriage with plush red seats and purple tassels dangling from the windows sat waiting for us to climb in. Jo looked at me with an expression that she was thrilled to be going yet wondering about what was about to happen.

  I shrugged my shoulders. “After you,” I said.

  After Jo climbed in, I followed her and stuck my head out the window as the rest of the contributors joined us.

  Out on one of the balconies of the castle was Emry propped against the edge staring down at me. He had a huge smile on his face as he waved. I blew him a few kisses before popping my head back inside.

  The carriage began to move. I hadn’t even heard an engine start, nor was anyone driving. So weird yet so cool, I thought to myself.

  “It won’t take very long to arrive,” Trishelle told me. “We live very near to the castle. Queen Atavia liked her new outfits very much, and it suited her for us to be close by.”

  I wondered how dear, old Atavia was doing down in that dungeon this very moment, and wouldn’t she just lose her mind knowing I was going to get fitted for my wedding dress.

  “Jo,” Trishelle said turning to her. “What exactly are your powers?”

  Jo gave me an uneasy glance. “I … don’t have any.”

  Trishelle squeezed her eyes shut for a second as if Jo’s words had just caused her pain. She exchanged looks with the male contributor beside her but didn’t say anything more.

  After only what seemed like a few minutes, the carriage stopped on a small piece of land with large white tents. The strong aroma of flowers drifted into my nostrils, yet I didn’t see any plants around. It was as if the grass had been doused in perfume.

  “We’re here,” Trishelle announced.

  “Already?” I mumbled as one of the contributors offered me his hand to help me out.

  “I told you it wouldn’t take long,” Trishelle said as if irritated that I hadn’t listened to her say it the first time. “This is our home.”

  “Right this way, Ms. James,” one of the male fashion contributors said.

  I stared for a moment at the silver headband he wore in his dark hair before slipping my arm in his outstretched elbow.

  Contributors began exiting their tents and standing in clusters to get a glimpse of me as I walked by. I couldn’t help but lower my eyes to the ground and force myself to focus on walking. All of this attention was driving me crazy.

  “Right in here, Ms. James,” he whispered, leading me into a large, open building. “Please have a seat. Get comfortable.”

  “Thank you,” I said, sitting down on a round chair and watching everyone filter in behind me, Jo finally coming in and sitting on the floor by my side.

  “There is no finer fashion than what you’ll find here,” Trishelle said, raising her arms in the air to make a big production of what she was saying. “The sky is the limit, Ms. James. Whatever your idea, we’ll create it to the best of our ability.”

  I sucked in a gulp of air. Create my own wedding dress? Why couldn’t there just be a huge closet lined with already made dresses I could choose from?

  “Well?” Trishelle tapped her fingers impatiently against the side of her face. “Where to begin?”

  Everyone was waiting for me to say something. I didn’t even understand how this whole process worked, let alone where to begin. “Um …” I stuttered. “I want the dress to be … white.”

  “White?” another contributor asked. “White painted with pinks?”

  I lowered my eyebrows. What did Evadere women wear to their weddings? Did they even have weddings here? “No, just white.”

  Trishelle clapped her hands together. “You heard your future queen,” she shouted. “White. Please continue, Ms. James.”

  I closed my eyes for a moment trying to imagine a dress, a dress that would be perfect to marry Emry in, one that would make me look amazing, one suited for a queen.

  “Long, flowy,” I continued, spitting out the adjectives.

  “Like dancing in the wind?” someone asked.

  I nodded. “Yes, a dress that could dance in the wind.” I smiled at the thought. “Trishelle?”

  “Hmm?”

  “I’m not sure what you need from me. I thought you’d know what to do,” I said.

  Trishelle sighed. “We’re just trying to get the bigger picture. We want you to be satisfied.”

  “Can you just come up with something and show me?” I questioned her. “And then we could go from there?”

  She looked a little annoyed, which I was starting to realize was probably normal for Trishelle. She was impatient, quick tempered by nature.

  “Absolutely,” she answered, snapping her fingers at someone who hurried to dart behind a curtain. “Give us a few minutes.”

  I nodded, curious as to what was happening behind that curtain. Would the fabric just magically appe
ar from thin air?

  “So, you’re the human.”

  I turned around to see an elderly male contributor seated in the corner behind me. I hadn’t noticed him before. His face was covered in wrinkles as he sat with his legs crossed while weaving fabric in between his shaky fingers.

  “I’m Anna,” I said.

  “I know who you are,” he told me, his lids sagging so low on his eyes, it was as if he could barely see. “Everyone does.”

  This male contributor made me even more uncomfortable than I had been, if that was possible. His hatred was irrefutable. I was afraid if I’d turn back around he’d sink a knife in me.

  “I just find it interesting …” the old man continued.

  I was half turned toward him, the corners of my eyes locked on his face and moving lips, a paralyzing anxiety gripping me.

  “That such a one as you,” he said very slowly. “A human, can prance around like you do.”

  “Prance?” I whispered.

  “You have no powers. The contributors could crush you like a bug, and who knows, maybe one will.”

  The tears came on just then as I realized what a mistake this was. Emry hadn’t thought this through. He thought everyone would be accepting of me, but it was the same feeling I had gotten from Ben, that a human queen wasn’t going to be overlooked. Powerless was powerless in Evadere. Humans equaled Scaves. Emry hadn’t even grown up in Evadere, he was a foreigner himself. The contributors weren’t going to just let us get married and reign here in their world.

  “A human queen.” His face twisted up in disgust as he spit on the ground beside him. Wiping his lips with the back of his wrinkled hand, his old, foggy eyes returned to me. “And your husband to be, Atavia’s son, who are we to trust him? We’re not going to bow down to you or him. He may threaten to burn all of us to ashes, but he can’t kill us all.”

  My hand flew up to my cheek as I felt a stray tear stream down my face. I felt like such an idiot. I wanted to flee, run out of this place and back to Emry. I had to talk to him and tell him all of these things this man was saying as if there were a conspiracy against Emry being king himself now, as if blood lines weren’t enough. I didn’t want him to be blindsided. I had a hunch they were all talking about me behind my back, but not Emry. He was heir.

  “Come here my pretty human,” the contributor beckoned. “Let me touch that face of yours …” He extended out his hand revealing long, sharp daggers for nails.

  I cringed and stumbled backwards, falling to the ground. The male contributor began laughing, more like a cackle, as I saw others gathered in the tent cover their mouths as they giggled too.

  Jo rushed over to me and helped me to my feet. “You okay?” she asked.

  I attempted to steady myself as I felt a little dizzy. “I think so.”

  Trishelle was standing in front of the curtain, her hands on her hips. Our eyes met. She gestured for me to follow her.

  Once behind the curtain, Trishelle turned around and bent over so her nose was almost touching mine.

  “What’s the matter with you?” she chastised.

  “What?” I mumbled.

  “Don’t humans have a backbone or what?”

  I turned to look at Jo, but Trishelle put her hand under my chin and whipped my face back around so I was looking at her as if I were a child.

  “Do you know who that old fool was out there talking to you like that?” Trishelle asked.

  I lowered my eyebrows, angry at the way she was treating me. “No …”

  “My father, that’s who,” she snapped. “He’s a lunatic. Doesn’t have much up here anymore,” she explained, tapping her finger to the side of her head. “Are you going to be queen here or what, Anna James? Because if so, you better grow a backbone. Contributors are not always nice, like me.”

  Wow. She actually thinks of herself as nice.

  “People are going to be talking about you because you’re human. People are going to be talking about Emry because he grew up human, but he’s Atavia’s son. He’s going to be king, and he’s in love with you, and you’re going to be queen. That’s the way it is, so stand up for yourself and start acting like a queen.” She narrowed her eyes at me. “Stand up straighter, throw your shoulders back,” she commanded.

  I took a deep breath and stood up straighter.

  “Talk is talk, that’s all it is. Can’t let words get you down, you hear?”

  I nodded, still shook up as my stomach felt as if it were flip-flopping inside me.

  “Now, are you ready to see what we’ve created?” Trishelle asked her demeanor a little more pleasant now that she had gotten that off of her chest.

  I took another deep breath to try and slow my pulse. “I’m ready.”

  “Because personally,” Trishelle said, her hand coming up to her mouth as if to block everyone else from our private conversation. “You and Emry are a big change around here, and I think a big change is exactly what everyone needs.”

  “I agree,” Jo piped in, a smile on her face.

  Trishelle winked at her and clapped her hands together.

  Before us there were clothes everywhere, some finished, some not. You could tell a lot of brainstorming happened back here. It was a mess, but a beautiful mess with gems and diamonds dotting the floor.

  “Ms. Anna James,” Trishelle announced in a loud voice. “My future queen, I present to you … the dress.”

  A small group of fashion contributors came rushing out of another room from the side as they held up the most breathtaking wedding dress my eyes had ever seen. My mouth gaped open as I stared at the white flowing material on the bottom as if feathers had been layered together, a gold belt in the middle and the top sleeveless and looking as if it were dipped into a pond of diamonds, each one large and sparkling. Another contributor appeared who was carrying the train which was gold and so very long.

  Trishelle put her hand under my chin to close my mouth, her grin revealing my approval.

  “She likes it,” Trishelle told them.

  “I like it,” I repeated. “I mean, I love it. It’s absolutely stunning.”

  “Do you think Emry will like it?” Trishelle asked.

  I kept staring at it. That was my wedding dress. “Who wouldn’t?”

  She laughed. “Well, there are some improvements to be made. This is merely a rough draft.”

  “Rough draft? Really? It’s perfect the way it is,” I mumbled.

  Trishelle wrapped her arm around my shoulder. “Come now, let’s go discuss what else we can do to this dress, and let’s have you try it on, get some measurements, and let’s not forget little Jo back there. We’ve got to find her something to wear.”

  SEVEN

  “Hello, beautiful.”

  I smiled. I had just gotten back to the castle and Emry was waiting for me right inside the door.

  “You talking to me?” I asked.

  Emry cocked his head to the side and grinned. “Uh-huh. Come here. How was your day?”

  He took me into his arms and gave me a huge hug. I exhaled, letting all of the stress and excitement from the day melt into his embrace.

  The image of Trishelle’s strange father crept into my mind. “Oh … wonderful.” I looked up at him and smiled as I redirected my thoughts to the amazing creation of the wedding dress that the fashion contributors were working on this very moment.

  “Good.”

  He pressed his lips together. He looked tired.

  “Yours not so good?” I asked.

  Emry sighed. “Let’s not talk about it right now.”

  I lowered my eyebrows. Just as I had figured, he had a lot to deal with in figuring out all this king stuff, solving Evadere’s problems, and I got to lounge around and be catered to. I didn’t want to press him. He was trying to keep his spirits uplifted for me.

  “I have something I want to show you,” he whispered.

  I studied his face for a moment. “A surprise?”

  He shrugged.

  �
�Tell me,” I urged him.

  He let go of me and began to walk away. I hurried after him. We walked down a wide corridor. He stopped just in front of a door and turned around to block it from me.

  “Emry Logan,” I said, trying to push past him.

  He grabbed my arms so I couldn’t move. “Ready?”

  “For what?” I asked.

  He shrugged.

  “Quit teasing me.” I struggled for him to release my arms.

  He laughed. “You may not like it.”

  “Like what?”

  He let go of me and pushed the door open with his back. The light from outside poured into the dimly lit hall. He went outside first.

  I held my breath as my eyes took in all the scenery around me. It was a garden, the most magnificent garden I had ever seen. The green of the plants were almost a neon color, and the array of brilliant colors from flowers to trees seemed endless as they extended outwards in the distance. The smell from the plants was phenomenal. It was a little overpowering but delicious at the same time as the sweetness from the fruit trees forced itself into my nostrils.

  “Oh, Emry …”

  “Does that mean you like it?” he asked.

  I went around and touched a pink flower with a blue center just to my left. Its petals were like silk. If only such things existed on Earth. The things that were created here were so beautiful, so vibrant and full of life. It made Earth seem grungy and dull as if the human soul could only be awakened in such a place as Evadere.

  “Wow. Just wow.”

  “Wow like good?” he questioned me again.

  I turned around to him. “Seriously? You didn’t think I would like something like this? It’s incredible. I didn’t even know it was here. I’ve never seen it before. I guess I haven’t really explored the castle.”

  Emry put his hands on his hips and looked around.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a contributor patting down some soil near a flower bush. He looked up and saw Emry and me, then quickly darted away.

  Emry started to laugh. I narrowed my eyes at him.

  Now it was my turn to put my hands on my hips. “This hasn’t always been here, has it? That guy was just finishing up planting.”