I prepared myself for nightmares, flashes of Gemma's terrified eyes, the loud crack of bone as she struck the cliffs. Yet none ca. I slept peacefully, the sun rose, and servants got to their work. And at no point did anyone throw an accusation at . When Denice ca to fetch Gemma for her morning duties and found her not in our rooms, she simply sniffed and passed the responsibility to Eleanor for the day.
It was still early, though. A few more days would need to pass before the missing maid beca a problem. So, I went about my day as if I had not committed murder. I washed clothes, swept floors, and did everything that I should do when I wasn't serving Surian.
The waiting was difficult. Every servant, every passing guard, every ti soone stopped , I felt like they were preparing to throw an accusation. But none ca, after all, Gemma was only missing for a day.
~
On day two, the questions started.
I shrugged, partially relieved, "I don't know, Head Maid, I haven't seen her. Perhaps she's with her family?"
"She knows she's not to leave the keep until the selection ends," Denice said.
I just looked at her, two parts confusion and apathy.
Our competition was well-known, and it would be too suspicious if I were overly concerned. I needed to act as if I weren't the culprit. Which ant I would pretend to be concerned while secretly pleased that Gemma was nowhere to be found. I'll only turn it into a true concern when people start to suggest sothing terrible could have happened to her.
~
Three days passed, and I was sitting in the large room with only Eleanor for company.
"They contacted her family. No one has seen her. Do you think sothing happened?" Eleanor asked from the bed next to . Fear caused her to choose a bed closer to instead of one at the far end of the room.
"No, it can't be. I'm sure she'll turn up. I an, what could have happened?"
"You never know, you hear things like this from ti to ti. A girl disappearing from a town or village."
I shook my head as if I was trying to convince myself of sothing. "Not in the castle, you can't steal a tart without half the staff knowing about it before you take a bite."
Eleanor shrugged, "What if she snuck out of the keep? It's not hard to do on an Eight-Day."
I stayed quiet. It seed that, despite Eleanor's horrid personality, she was just a girl in the end. Not used to the cruelty of the world. The idea that soone she knew could be taken or killed seed like a heavy burden for her.
~
I sighed in relief as Denice assigned to Surian for the day. I grabbed the new linens as usual and headed for her room. There were more guards than usual. But none seed particularly focused on . The rumors were flying like locusts. Everything from her running away with a man or being kidnapped at night and sold as a slave. And of course, either Eleanor or I killed her for the position. But that theory didn't seem to have many teeth.
‘What was the baron thinking? Where is his suspicion going? Would he care that much about a missing peasant?’
Surian was the sa as ever, barely sparing a second glance after I served her morning al. Finally, I entered her room and began my plan.
I went over to the unopened jewelry box. The outside was clean, but dust slipped through the gaps in the hinges, so as long as it was never opened, no one would notice. And as expected, it was dusty, aning none of us cleaned it.
Taking out every piece of jewelry, 17 in total, including a diamond-studded diadem. I stuffed them into a canvas sack, a little larger than a coin purse. Then I reached under my dress and hid the sack amongst the folds, then sewed a pin to secure it in place. My dress was naturally voluminous with three layers, so from the outside, nothing looked amiss. I gently closed the lid and went about my duties as if nothing had happened.
I followed Surian for the entire day, carrying a literal fortune of gold and jewels in the folds of my dress.
~
It took another day before I had a chance to toss the evidence. This ti, I made damn sure no one was following . As soon as I reached the top of the wall. I didn't hesitate, I took out the sack, tossed it, turned around, and went back to my rooms to sleep.
When I woke up the next morning, I nearly toppled over with dread. It wasn't Denice who t ; it was guards in heavy plate armor.
"Your presence is requested." The one on the left said.
‘I'm dead. Did soone see ? Did they know? I checked dozens of tis to see if I was followed. No, don't act guilty, just be concerned and confused.’
I thought I was being brought to the baron, but no. We passed his study and were brought to a room I had never dared to approach; Elis's study.
The guard knocked twice, then pulled it open.
I won't lie; I was disappointed. I expected sothing fantastical, magical items, floating lamps, but it seed like a simple study. Incredibly beautifully decorated, but no different than the Baron's. However, it wasn't the Magus who was sitting at the desk; it was the Baron Elodin Redstone himself. The magus was standing to his left.
The guards followed inside. As soon as the door closed, they unsheathed their swords.
‘I'm dead. Soone saw . It's a quick interrogation, then execution, probably. It was a mistake. I was too hasty; all my effort ended here. Oddly, I don't feel regret. Just disappointnt that I never got to learn magic.’
The guards ushered to a seat.
"Did you think we wouldn't find out?" The Baron said his voice grave, without a trace of rcy.
My mind whirled, trying to find sothing I could say that could get out of here. I couldn't find an answer.
Then the baron did the oddest thing. Pulled my quill out from nowhere. Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs n0velfire
‘Why did they have my quill? Did they search my things? It makes sense, I suppose, but what did that have to do with anything?’
"Where are you from, girl?" Elis asked. Sohow, her sweet voice was even more trying than the Baron's.
"F-Farwa......" He slamd his fist down on the table. I jumped, fear made my heart race, and I was ready to bolt, but a firm hand from one of the guards on my shoulder kept in my seat.
"And what is a girl from Farway doing with this?” He said, gesturing to the quill. He handed it to Elis, who muttered so unintelligible nonsense. After a few seconds, to my utter shock, the tip turned orange, then a bright yellow. The heat of the tip increased until it was white hot.
" An obvious lie, your history is also a lie. To think you had the skill to even deceive a forr magistrate. They will be disappointed when they hear of your treachery." The baron said.
Elis spoke next, "I almost mistook it for a mundane quill. The design was just rather old, but for so reason, I found it familiar and got lucky. Enchanted inscribers, this old, all uses the sa formulae. So, where are you really from, Ferosia, Helios, or perhaps you're so kind of spy or saboteur? Farketh possibly. "
‘IT WAS A MAGIC QUILL? Emyr, did you know? Did she just do magic? She mumbled sothing. Do you have to say words to do magic?’
"We know you're not who you say you are. We looked into your background; it's paper-thin at best. Your execution for the murder or kidnapping of Gemma is already guaranteed. The difference is if it's painful or quick. So, I ask again, what was your intention here, and who sent you?"
The Baron nodded to Elis, who muttered again, and lightning erupted from her fingers. It crossed the room and crashed into my chest. It wasn't as painful as I thought it would be, but the shock and seizure of my muscles ripped a scream from my throat. It only lasted a second before I was left limp. I breathed heavily, my mind reeling from what I had just experienced. It was almost a minute before I could feel my limbs again.
"What were you planning to do with the inscriber? " Elis asked with a deadly edge to her voice.
‘What, by Anier's na, was the woman talking about?’
Then the truth hit . Sohow, this was a complete misunderstanding.
I started laughing, half-mad since I was seeing true magic for the first ti, and half because I finally understood what was going on. They didn't find anything, and no one saw . The quill just happened to be magic. Then they found out my identity was false, not a difficult feat in retrospect. I wasn't a master of espionage.
‘I'm not dead, I can salvage this. The truth shall free .’
"You murder in my ho, yet you laugh. You must be a glutton for punishnt." The baron said in disbelief. He turned to Elis again. Before I dug my grave further, I said.
"I didn't kill anyone, I'm not so spy or assassin or whatever you think I am. I don't know where Gemma is, but I'm not guilty of anything. And I can prove it."
Elis's eyes were amused, "Speak, then."
"My na is Edith. I was born in Farway. In three days, I will be fifteen sumrs old. My mother's na is Dariah. I never t my father. The quill I got from an old tinker who ca to the village. He offered a story for a bit, I said he should give the first half, and it was good, I'll pay him for the second. My brothers interrupted before I could hear the rest. Much later, my betrothed and I were looking for a bridal gift of love. The old man was there again. He gave it for a single bit. He was dying, I guess he was trying to pass it to soone."
Doubt ca across their faces, so I leaned into it and forced as much desperation as I could into my voice.
"You don't believe , send a rider to the village. You will learn about Edith. Speak to the whore Helan, who shall tell you of how Edith was beaten and abused, and how the villagers looked on uncaring. Speak to Bren, my mother's husband, about how he sold for twelve silvers to an ox of a man whose last wife died from miscarriages. How he beat a 9-year-old girl bloody. Find a boy in your army nad Sim from Farway. He gave a dagger to protect myself, the sa dagger that sits in my armoire in Darion's Dish. Speak to Porter, Captain Ruben, who took paynt from a boy nad Emyr with brown hair from Farway to Lakeshore. Speak to Devon; his family worked in textiles; they couldn't afford the entrance fee, and I helped them. Bring one of them or all of them here, have them look in the eye, and they will tell you who I am. I ran into the forest when the caravan ca to town, leaving a bloody dress behind, hoping no one would co looking for . If they bothered to look, that is what they would say."
I started shouting, my rage, the pain from childhood, and the desperation to not be found guilty, all combined. I cald down and continued, "I'm not a killer or whatever you think I am, I just don't want to be sent back. That's why I lied about who I was. I-I-was scared. Just send soone to the village. They will prove I am who I say I am. My forr betrothed will confirm I did get the quill from an old tinker. Helan will corroborate my story of why he gave the quill. "
I looked between the Baron and Elis.
"There; all your questions are answered. I'm just a runaway bride. Darion and Beth, with infinite kindness, decided to accept when no one would."
Tears were flowing down my face. I was putting on the greatest performance of my life.
Silence stretched on for over a minute. I didn't know what they were looking for, but it was clear neither of them expected that response.
"Why did you want to beco a handmaiden to my daughter?" The baron asked.
I sighed deeply as if I was unburdening myself from the truth, "I figured if my parents figured out I wasn't dead or where I was. The Baroness would protect and not send back."
More silence, my words were taking root. I could understand why they thought I was so kind of saboteur. A magical item, the disappearance of a maid, and a false identity. Most would co to that assumption, as long as I destroyed the reasons for their suspicion, the only thing left was speculation.
"What do you think, Elis?" The baron asked.
"It's not impossible, coincidences like this can happen. And it would be easy to verify all her words. But I believe she's telling the truth about her origins. It doesn't an she is innocent, but assuming she is speaking truth, we are back to square one." She replied.
"We'll keep her confined to a room and investigate her claims. Also, investigate a tinker nad Emyr. Send soone subtle. Elis, see if you can track down the origin of that quill." The baron ordered.
The baron looked to the right, and out from behind a bookshelf walked Surian.
"What do you think, Surian? Is she guilty?" The baron asked.
Her green eyes locked onto . For the first ti, she looked genuinely interested, "Not any more guilty than anyone else, especially if her words are true. In the end, we don't even know if Gemma is actually dead."
The baron glowered at , "For now, Edith, you will tell Everything. One a contradiction, One lie, and it's the gallows for you."
I nodded, casting my eyes to the ground.
‘I suppose this is what they call consequences. At the very least, I hope it wasn't all for nothing.’
Three weeks later.
Four walls and a bed were my constant companions for over three weeks. My naday passed with no celebration once again. Killing Gemma was pointless in the end. But at the very least, I won't be executed. I had spilled my entire story in copious, unending detail to The Baron, Elis, and Surian. Many tis, they tried to trick , circling back to the topic I had discussed at random. But since I wasn't trying to keep track of lies anymore, they found no contradictions. They put in this room, and that was my life for almost a month.
The room I was in, at least, wasn't a cell. It was small, no bigger than my room at Darion's Dish. I got two als a day carried in by a maid I didn't recognize. Once a day, soone took away my chamber pot. I had no one to talk to, no books to read. My only company was my thoughts.
If I were let go, where would I go? Where would I run? I didn't have a plan.
My goals seed farther than ever.
The lock on the door opened, I hopped out of the bed, brushed out my simple shirt and pants, and tried to make myself presentable. It wasn't feeding ti, so it had to be soone else.
I didn't expect Surian to walk through the door. She looked calm, confident, and self-assured all at the sa ti. Rembering my manners, I curtsied.
She smiled at in her voluminous blue dress and silver jewelry, looking every bit the wealthy noble.
"I'm sure you're wondering what has happened since you've been locked in here," she said.
I nodded frantically, "Yes, Baroness."
"It has been rather dramatic. My Father was rather cross with the entire affair. But he did use it to his advantage. Nanette has made it quite difficult to simply sweep Gemma under a rug," I nodded numbly, listening.
‘Why was she the one telling this?’
"But in chaos lies opportunity. We investigated every single person in the keep; to our surprise, we found two spies. Can you guess where they were from?"
"Farketh?" I answered.
"Indeed, well after that revelation, my father decided to use it to galvanize his people. Officially, one of the spies was nad the killer. Officially, he dumped the body. But lo and behold, at the New Year's celebration, when my father commanded to wear his naday gifts, the box was empty."
My heart raced, but my face remained confused.
"It's entirely possible that Gemma swiped them since Eleanor said that she never cleaned them. I assu you never did as well."
I nodded as if in sha, "Yes, Baroness, the box was always closed, so we just decided, why spend all that ti for nothing?"
"Sa as Eleanor. But that fact has remained hidden; no point in adding confusion to the story. Another interesting fact. My father petitioned Duke ndel for the right to declare war upon Farketh for the cri. He has approved, and my father eagerly awaits the battles to co."
She looked at with an expression so sweet and innocent, I wanted to run for the hills. "That brings us back to you. It was almost too easy to confirm your words. An interview with the headman was enough. The caravan owner, inn keeper, and Davos. Everyone confird who you are. Though if you're wondering your village thinks you're dead. We didn't bother to change the narrative you so conveniently created."
Her smile widened a bit too much for her pretty face, "That brings us to you. You have been cleared of guilt; we could find no contradictions in your story. Father was simply planning on having you banished from the city, giving you a bit of coin, and sending you on your way. I, however, interceded on your behalf. “
"Why?" I asked.
"I needed a personal handmaiden, obviously."
‘She wants after all this? Why?’
"I see your confusion." Her eyes beca cold. "I can still have you banished, or better yet, have you sent back to your village to answer for your abandonnt."
I didn't even have to hide my fear. I would just run away again, but the sha of being dragged back there after all I had gone through to get to this point was too much to think about.
"But I'll not be doing that. Aren't I a generous mistress?"
‘Ahh, I see now.’
This competition was never about who she thought was the best fit for her. It was who she could control. I could practically feel the collar being locked around my neck.
"Thank you, Baroness," I said, bowing low.
"Are you truly grateful? Demonstrate." She pulled up her dress, revealing her delicate, white boots, and placed her right foot forward.
It took a full ten seconds to realize what she wanted.
‘I've sacrificed my life, a family, a happy ho, and my very soul. I suppose next is my pride and self-respect. ‘
‘She can have . Let her take all of . I'll treat her like my goddess and follow her around like a willing slave. She can be my true love. I'll kill for her and die for her if she needs it. I'm right where I want to be. And I will wait for an opportunity. ‘
In my cell, it wasn't thoughts of Gemma, my mother, Darion, or Beth that plagued my mind. Not even the threat of possible execution fazed . It was Elis's lightning. What kind of power could she wield?
I went to my knees and kissed her boot. Then I looked up to see her satisfied expression. I smiled as if she were the most beautiful and precious thing in the world.
"Thank you, Mistress," I said.
Step five is complete.
Now I wait for an opportunity, and when it cos, if necessary, 'Mistress,' I will slit your throat without the slightest hesitation and not a hint of regret.
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