by A Lonergan
“I have never heard of that before.”
He shrugged and wiped the bar down with a worn, brown cloth. “We are rare, indeed. And we don’t have a death wish, you won’t find us in the market square telling everyone of our talents. That would be foolish.”
“Then why would you tell me that?” I looked around the room again, it didn’t sit well with me that we were still alone. Would I be able to defend myself against this magic? I was starting to second guess myself and this mission even more than I had already.
Stupid rutting mission.
“Because I know our destinies are intertwined, in someway, I can’t see it all yet.” He moved down to the other side of the bar and I watched him carefully. His bald head shone in the dim lighting, and he had a limp. Though, I wasn’t sure if it was real or not. That had been the first thing my father had taught me. He had told me that some opponents would make themselves appear inferior so I would underestimate them. It was what made my size such a valuable asset. He scooped up something steamy and made his way back toward me. “There is no reason to be afraid, Little Willow, I am here to help you.”
My name. I hadn’t even given out my real name this entire rutting trip. He set the wooden bowl down in front of me and then handed me a silver spoon.
“I wish I could give you a reason to trust me, though, you’ll just have to listen your gut.” He pointed at the cracked ceiling. “I am tired from a long busy day, your room is on the second story. Stay for as long as you wish, I would like to get to know you before you get yourself killed or before you find the one you seek. I would like to figure out how I am destined to be apart of your story, Willow Bane.”
And on that note he was gone.
I tossed and turned on the rutting cot. The sheets were itchy and not a high quality, which I didn’t know why I was surprised. I kicked the blankets off of me and tried to keep my frustration to a minimum. My body was alight with intrigue for the new city I now inhabited. I patted my body down to make sure all of my blades were in place and slipped out of the window. I scaled the side of the building and was hopping shadows in record timing. This kingdom had far more alcoves than any other I had been to on assignment, at night. During the day the sun shone on every inch of the kingdom. There were no adventures or holidays for my profession, though I tried to enjoy the new places as much as I could before I had to do my job. I didn’t think much about the assignments until right before they happened. Everything was put together and executed perfectly, but this one would be a little more difficult. I had never been to a kingdom that had this much magic. In the others there were elves and little sprinkles of magic here or there… but here… there was more magic than I had ever heard of. It was embedded in everything.
After a few hours of hopping from building to building, I finally found one that was abandoned and I could crouch in for a short amount of time. I had the most precise view of the castle around. I could see the guards patrolling the walls, and I could make out a balcony just barely from my perch in the window. I swung my body up from the ledge and landed like a cat on the roof. This wasn’t a good place for me to be long term, but to get a better view at the balcony on the side of the castle… it was worth it. Especially with the view I had happened upon.
A man leaned against the railing and looked out in the direction of the Wasted Sea. His hair was cropped short and he wore long robes that covered most of his body. That was about all I could make out from this distance, except I could see how handsome and sculpted his body was
Rut.
This was doing me no good.
He was probably just some stupid royal like all the rest of them. Enjoying everything their parents coin could buy. All of the other balconies were on the other side of the massive structure, and I was getting nowhere by gawking. I could barely see his lips moving and then he was gone. The doors closed firmly behind him. It wouldn’t be a bad way to get into the castle, but getting out would be harder, especially when I didn’t know the lay out on the other side.
“Why don’t you try getting in through the servant quarters?”
I let out a manly AHHHHH and about flew off the side of the building. The barkeep from the inn was standing beside me, looking up at the same structure and spot that I had been.
“What are you doing here?” There was no point in whispering anymore. Whatever cover I had was blown when this rutting fool had snuck up on me.
“Just helping you figure out your next move.” He shrugged his shoulders, like it was obvious.
“You really shouldn’t sneak up on people.”
“If you were a real assassin, you would have heard me coming.” He smirked when my jaw dropped. “Or maybe you were too preoccupied.”
“That’s absurd,” I scoffed.
“Who was that man you were watching?” he asked, his eyes practically glowing in the dark.
“I’m not sure.” It didn’t really matter. My target had long hair, and couldn’t be that handsome. It had been in my assignment that my target was an older gentleman, so it couldn’t be him… That was, after I found Claudia.
The barkeep watched me and didn’t say a word.
“What do you want?” I crossed my arms over my chest and fingered my dagger strapped to my ribs, through my shirt.
“I am just here to offer suggestions, should you need one.” He sat on the ledge of the rooftop and I considered pushing him off. It wouldn’t take much effort, he was practically asking to be killed with his erratic behavior. “Also, I think you would find it a lot harder to kill me.”
I blinked at him. I was way in over my head. I was a rutting idiot.
Suicide.
Mission.
“There are some servant positions opening up.”
“And you think that will get me close to my intended prey?” I asked. I needed to be elusive. If he knew too much it would mean getting myself killed, or ending up in the dungeon. I wasn’t ready for either of those options. I needed to get Princess Claudia and get out, I didn’t particularly like the killing part anyway.
“Yes, and I could help you.” His eyes sparkled mysteriously and I didn’t know if I should trust him or not. I was taught to not trust anyone, but using people was different. “You will need a reputable reference, and I could offer that for you.”
“What’s in it for you?” I narrowed my eyes at him suspiciously.
His face grew solemn. “You try to change your life. Look for the good in people.”
I stared at him again. This man didn’t know me. He especially didn’t know what I was capable of or he wouldn’t be sitting her alone weaponless. I was across the distance between us in seconds and pressed one of my dirks against his throat. A tiny nick to the right spot would kill him in seconds. He didn’t even tense up. Rutting scrier.
“I know you don’t like to kill.”
I swallowed, but I didn’t move myself or my knife.
“I know that your mother wants better for you, too.”
I blinked back moisture in my eyes. All this salt air wasn’t good for me. It was making me leak.
“Princess Claudia Hildiguard isn’t even in the castle.”
I figured that and didn’t react the way he probably thought I would. I kept my stance, but his voice wasn’t rushed or desperate. He sounded like he was just telling me about the weather, and we were friends. I didn’t have friends. I had never known the definition of friendship till my first couple of assignments. I had been posing as a friend to a duke, and I hadn’t even known what the word meant. I had nodded my head and tried my best, then gutted him that night when he had shoved me against the wall and his hand slid up my skirt.
I removed my knife from the inn keeper’s pale skin and took a step back. I wasn’t going to end up the victim and somehow go over the side of the roof. That had happened before too. Landing on my feet from this high would be almost impossible. I had learned that the hard way too, with a broken arm and twenty-five stitches. “What do you want me to do?”
“Tell me everything you know about the castle.”
He didn’t hold back.
Chapter Three
Willow
No weapons.
How was I supposed to do my duty? How was I supposed to protect myself if I needed to? How was I supposed to kill if I had to?!
I pulled at the high neckline on my dress. I looked rutting ridiculous. I much preferred my leathers and boots, but that attire would never get me access into the fortress. The dress was even fashioned with its very own apron. How cute. I ground my teeth together. What a mess of fabric, and a waste.
I clutched the letter of recommendation in-between my hands and hoped for a miracle. I didn’t look anything like the other handmaidens around me. They all had their fair hair tied up away from their faces, and my long midnight hair hung straight down to my waist, unbound. All the other women had brown eyes, or lavender. Witches. Rutting witches. They were crawling all over this kingdom and they frightened me. The Emperor frightened me first and now the witches and I would have been lying if I said that the inn keeper didn’t scare me a little too. Knowledge was power and he seemed to have a lot of it.
“HALT!” A redheaded guard stopped me. “I need your papers.”
I extended them to him and he gently took the recommendation from my fingers. His eyes scanned the document quickly before he handed it back to me. His eyes scrutinized me and I was nervous he had a superpower too. They all seemed to have them.
“You don’t look like the other’s around here.” the guard remarked.
A snarky retort was on the tip of my tongue. I swallowed, and curtseyed as the inn keeper had encouraged. It apparently made me appear meek, which wasn’t exactly my style. “Yes, sir. I am from Arinal.”
He cocked his head at me. “Arinal? I do hear the slight lisp in your voice. That must have been a long and expensive journey. Not many ships come from Arinal. How long have you served under your Master Ren?”
I knew what the paperwork stated, we had gone over it too many times to make sure it was embedded into my brain. “Just shy of 6 months.”
“That’s not very long to get a recommendation like this one.” He tapped the papers he had handed back to me.
“His inn has fallen on hard times, and he can no longer pay me. He heard of the opening position here at the castle, and knew it would be a good opportunity for me and an honest living.” Ren had told me that it would play on their heartstrings if I used prostitution against the guards. Many of their mothers were in brothels, and they had no knowledge of their fathers.
The guard touched the handle on his sword and looked me over once more. I looked at the dirt floor and tried to act as submissive as possible. I didn’t know if the charade was working, until he moved aside and gave me directions to the kitchen. I ducked under the large mouth of the door, and rushed to follow the directions he had given me. The hallways were dimly lit. Long shadows stretched down the stone walls from the lanterns hanging above, and sent chills down my back. A slight breeze ruffled my dress and spooked me even more. I was walking so quickly, I almost missed the opening to the kitchen.
A big hefty woman was waiting for me and three others in the doorway and had me sliding to a stop. For stone floors, they were certainly slippery. Her eyes changed from bright blue to purple each time she blinked, and her straw colored hair was slicked back from her face in a harsh bun at the back of her head.
“I am Madam Colver. You will address me as Ma’am and that is all.” She looked each of us in the eyes before she looked over our bodies. “I was hired as the cook because I have the nose of a hound. If you try to slip things into the food or the drink, I will know about it.” She watched me as she continued to speak. “If you couple with the guards, or other patrons, I will smell it. If you commit any acts of treason, you will not have a judgement day. The only judgement you will receive is from your Gods.”
I averted my eyes and looked at the beautifully tiled floor. I had never seen anything like it. The Emperor didn’t let the help into such luxurious rooms of his castle. He met with us in our own homes if he had assignments so he could frighten and threaten our families at the same time. Everywhere I looked it was beautiful. This kingdom was different from any other I had been to. Besides the hallways in the castle, everything was bright and colorful. The money they spent on dye would pay for an entire village to be built back in Arinal.
“I want your names.” Madam Colver said. I couldn’t think of her as Ma’am only. I could address her as such, but it would take some getting used to.
The short stout women on the right of me started. “I am Lîsa.” She curtseyed quickly and didn’t look up from the floor. Her blonde hair was plated down her back. She was a good foot shorter than I but much rounder than I was.
“I’m Willow,” Ren had advised I use my real name, for many of the magic users in the castle could sniff out a lie as well as many other things. Madam Colver wasn’t to be trifled with. I curtseyed and then the introductions continued on. My mind picked up on each of their names as I sized each of them up. I needed allies, but not this many. There were too many women, and the last thing I wanted was to get attached.
“There are many other servants here, and they each have unique positions. If you catch the King’s eye, whether it is good or bad, I will not be able to interfere. You could end up with an equally unique position to the many others around here.” Madam Colver said.
I felt nauseated by her words. What kind of unique positions was she talking about? I hoped she wasn’t implying those of sexual nature. I felt my stomach drop. I had never been put in a setting that I needed to do any of that.
I knew I had to find weapons and soon. I couldn’t risk my virtue or my life. I wouldn’t end up in a brothel or worse. I would compromise my position first and put a sharp pointy object between someone’s ribs before anything like that happened. I had gutted men for worse.
Soon after all the introductions, we were shown to our room. We would all share one large area together. It wasn’t beneficial to me at all. I watched the other girls carefully as they chose beds and unpacked their belongings. I had brought very little with me. Ren had warned me that they would search us and they had been thorough. No weapons, no personal items, and very little money. I had a few items of clothing that Ren fetched for me in the marketplace and that was it. Everything else would be waiting for me back at the Inn when all of this was said and done. Princess Claudia would recognize me and that would be all I needed.
Unless… Unless Ren was right and she wasn’t here, and if she wasn’t here… Then she was probably dead. But I couldn’t let my thoughts take that turn, because I needed to be level headed. I wasn’t going to be here long and if she was dead, I really wasn’t staying long.
The last bed left was the one by the door. I didn’t mind. It was the perfect place for me to be able to slip in and out if I needed to. It was also the farthest away from the other girls, which I preferred too. Some of them were chatting and tucked up on their beds already. I sat on the corner of my cot and watched all the others. I didn’t know how to interact with them. I wasn’t trained for that kind of exchange. I stuck to the darkness for a reason. Not only did I blend in with it, but it was where I felt most comfortable. These women were bred for light and sunshine. Rutting flower crowns, and men’s laps.
All of the other servants resembled one another. I sensed a pattern I didn’t like. It would be harder for me to stay hidden with this bunch. I stuck out like a sore thumb. I considered tying my hair away from my face, but that meant I couldn’t hide behind it. I tugged on a strand self consciously. I could get cheap dye from the market, and change the color! But what if something went wrong and I lost all of my hair? Then I would really stick out. I gritted my teeth in frustration.
Chapter Four
; The new servants had been initiated.
I observed as they stumbled and curtseyed awkwardly around the dinner guests. They hadn’t managed to make their way toward me yet, and I wondered if that was intentional. Not one of them had made eye contact with me.
This had been the first day in a long while that hadn’t been boring or filled with duties I didn’t care to serve. I leaned back in my cushioned chair and perked up when I noticed a raven haired beauty across the room. As if she felt my eyes on her, she turned and our eyes locked. The bright baby blues held me captive for a moment. She blinked once as if she were indifferent and continued to pour wine into the guest’s goblets.
She disappeared from my view just as quickly as she had taken it up. She wasn’t from around here. Her deep olive skin tone and her dark hair would set her apart from anyone in Rosalia. Her coloring was that of our neighboring kingdom across the Wasted Sea, Arinal. The kingdom in the tropics, where they didn’t know snow, and had more sand than anything else.
I leaned over the side of my chair and got my Commander, Nico’s, attention. He pushed his red hair from his eyes and gave me a bored look. He hated having to entertain these people just as much as I did. But they were here for a reason and I couldn’t mess this up. I was under more pressure than I wanted to admit.
“Who is the new girl with the dark hair?” I whispered behind my wine goblet, while I kept my eyes on all the others at our table. We had genies, and witches surrounding us. I wouldn’t take my eyes off of them for a second. I wanted to trust the people in my castle, but I didn’t.
“She came from Master Ren at one of the Inns in the marketplace.” I wrinkled my eyebrows trying to think of who that was. I couldn’t place the name, even though I had been trying even harder for the last year to earn my people’s trust after my sister’s disastrous reign. I came up with nothing. “I beheld her paperwork myself.”
