Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 77730 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77730 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 389(@200wpm)___ 311(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
I nodded frantically at that.
“Okay. Lots of water,” Vishen said. “Anything else?”
I shook my head, then watched him leave.
“My wardrobe is through here,” Jet said when we were alone, walking over and opening the door, then coming back out with a new set of clothes for himself. Still all black, but in a lighter material and a looser fit. “I’ll use the water closet first to change,” he said, taking his clothes into the other adjoining room.
Alone, I sucked in a deep breath before walking into the wardrobe. Unsurprisingly, everything was black. From his undergarments to his night clothes.
I pulled out the largest tunic. Given our height difference, I imagined it would fall around my knees, if not lower. Modest enough, since there was no way his pants would fit me.
Clutching the tunic to my chest, I walked past Jet as he came out of the water closet, then locked myself in.
Even this space was unnecessarily large for its purposes, but the walls still seemed to pinch in. I’d never spent much time indoors. My life was my lake and the forest around it. The world was wide open and thrumming with life. The castle was suffocating and still.
I moved over to the tub—deep enough to fully submerge—and couldn’t help but wonder how many servants would have to carry how many buckets up to this floor to fill it.
There was another area I wasn’t familiar with, a squared-off section with a large bucket and some sort of tube that fed up to a spout with dozens of little holes.
Unsure what it was, I moved over to the mirror instead, pulling off the tiara, the veil, and then the gown.
I unstrapped my flask from my thigh and stashed it way in the back of the cabinet under the mirror and wash basin.
I would attach it to myself again. But it didn’t seem likely that I could escape until I got more of a lay of the land than I currently had. So there was no reason to try to sleep with it on my leg.
Finished with that, I slipped into Jet’s tunic that smelled like cedar wood that must have been something the laundress used to clean it.
Making my way back out, I held the tiara toward Jet. He took it from me and tossed it onto a dresser as if it wasn’t likely priceless.
“Did you find everything you needed?” he asked.
I held up a finger, then moved into the doorway, waving him over. He humored me, making his way over. I gestured toward the niche, bucket, and spout, then shot him a questioning look.
“That is one of the things humans got incredibly right. That is the best that could be managed without the plumbing humans have. It’s called a ‘shower.’ The water comes up from the bucket, into the tube, then pours out the shower head. You can bathe without sitting in the water. It washes over you.”
I held up my arms then waved my fingers as I moved my hands downward.
“Yes. Like rain. But a heavy rain. You can try it if you want tonight.” I shook my head. “Or tomorrow. It’s an option. Have you tried to speak again yet?”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
“It’ll wear off eventually,” he assured me. “Then we can talk it out. Vishen brought you water,” he told me as he moved back into the bedroom.
I followed, finding no fewer than six pitchers and a single water glass. I filled one and gulped it down, feeling a slight ease of the pounding in my head.
“I need to speak to Vishen for a bit,” he told me. “We will be across the hall in the office. If you need anything, you can come get us. I will leave Knight here with you.”
I nodded at that then watched him pet the wolf-dog’s head before leaving.
Alone, I made my way over to the bed.
I’d never slept on one before, always rested on a soft bank of grass and moss beside my lake, often with my arm in the water so I woke up feeling mostly refreshed.
The bed was softer than the moss, soft enough that I felt myself sinking into it.
Huh.
I guess inside living wasn’t all bad.
Reaching down, I pulled the covers up over my bare legs as a chill seemed to move across my skin and start to settle deep.
That was a strange development.
I’d lived outdoors my entire life, through every ice storm, every snowfall, each deep freeze. I don’t recall feeling cold except when I wandered too far from my lake.
But goosebumps had risen up on every inch of skin. Even as I pulled the covers up to my neck, the chill just seemed to burrow deeper.
Knight moved to the side of the bed, resting his head on it, almost as if seeking permission.