Finally, an answer why all the servants were locked in their rooms. “Is it an onwae?” I asked.
This surprised the man, for he barked out a laugh. “No, it’s not an onwae.”
Thoroughly invested, I tapped my finger to my lips and thought out loud. “Well, it could be a werewolf.”
He leaned his shoulder against the wall and watched me with amusement as I pondered the predicament out loud. “Definitely not a werewolf, but avoid the light,” he added.
“Vampire,” I stated, feeling assured of my guess.
A surprised snort came from the man. “Those aren’t usually in our realm. All right. I admit. It’s me, I’m the stealer of hearts and I do it with my charm. But I am a bit out of practice. My name’s Damon.” He offered me his hand, and I shook it. Taking in the massive muscles that ran up his arms. I looked like a child compared to him.
“And you are?” Damon pressed.
My heart ached, and I felt tears well in my eyes. His confident teasing reminded me of Kash’s. I couldn’t speak for fear of crying.
“Is something the matter?” Damon’s smile fell, and he became the epitome of politeness. “Was it something I said? I’m sorry, I don’t get to converse with many women. It’s my fault that I’ve made you uncomfortable.”
I stepped away from the handsome stranger, giving him a wide berth as I headed toward the servants’ quarters. “Excuse me, I must go.” I turned back and as soon as I rounded the corner, I ran.
“I’m sorry, you must let me make it up to you.”
I had already slipped from the room and was rushing toward the servants’ hall. I took the stairs two at a time and stopped on my floor, grabbing the door and pulling, forgetting that it was locked.
“Lochen!” I unlocked the door without thinking and entered a room that was unfamiliar and already occupied.
Two girls slept in a room that was laid out like mine and Gail’s. The closest redheaded girl was tossing and turning, while the brunette had her leg hanging out over the edge of the bed.
Behind me, I could hear heavy footsteps as someone was coming up the stairs.
“What are you doing here? How did you get in?” The redheaded girl woke up and was sitting up in bed staring at me in confusion.
I tried to motion to her to keep quiet, but she heard the sounds on the stairs as soon as I did.
“What is that?” she said loudly.
“Hush!”
I moved to her side and brushed my finger across her forehead. “Somnus.”
Her eyes fluttered, and she fell back onto her pillow in a deep sleep. With a quick spell, I resealed the lock, just as someone tried the handle.
“It’s locked.”
“Course it is. They’re all locked from the outside. Only the matron has the key.”
“Why would the matron lock the girls inside at night?” Damon’s deep voice carried through the door.
“Maybe to save them from seeing your ugly mug,” the higher voice teased, before dropping in tone. “But really, Damon. You know why. It’s keeping everyone safe.”
“Everyone?” Damon said, incredulously.
“No,” he sighed regretfully. “Just us. Are you sure she was a servant?”
“I don’t know Spencer. Something was wrong. She looked like she was hurting.”
“Uh oh, there you go, trying to save the damsel in distress again. You can’t save everyone, Damon. We’re not like others. We’re not good.”
“No, but we can try.”
I waited until their heavy footsteps faded away.
With a sigh, I slipped out and took the stairs to the next floor up and found the correct door to my room.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The next morning, I couldn’t control the yawns that plagued me as I struggled to get dressed.
“Are you okay?” Gail added after my tenth yawn.
“I’m okay,” I murmured through another. “I didn’t get much sleep last night.”
“It’s always hard to sleep the first week at the palace,” Gail answered. “And now with these extra people here for the summons, it’s going to be more work.”
I nodded but could feel my eyes wanting to close. I dared not share with her my night escapades, knowing she would disapprove of my snooping around. We headed down the stairs and paused near an open door. There seemed to be a commotion inside the room where I had sought refuge last night.
Gail had stopped and whispered with a few of the other servant girls, and she came back to me, a look of worry on her face.
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
“Morgan is gone.” She kept her head down and beckoned for me to follow. “Sara said she woke up and her bed was empty.”
As we walked past the room, I looked in to see the girl I had spelled to sleep was the one missing. Her roommate was still sitting on her bed, her face full of confusion.
My heart raced, and I felt faint as I tried to recall my steps last night after I left. I was in such a hurry to make it to my own room. I didn’t relock her door. Was this my fault? Had I removed the only lock that kept the girls safe at night. Not only that, but I spelled her to sleep, making her the perfect compliant victim.
“What do they think happened?” I asked, feeling sick to my stomach with guilt.
“They don’t know.” Gail picked up her pace, and I followed her down the hall to a wing I was unfamiliar with. “But it happens. Maybe she met someone? Better not to question why people leave. It only causes trouble.”
“Maybe it was Damon,” I muttered.
“A demon?” she gasped, mishearing me. “Where did you hear such nonsense?”
We went through the kitchen to grab our portioned-out breakfast pastry before heading to our morning assignments.
“What do you think happened to Morgan?” I took a bite of my pastry and chewed.
Gail was getting frustrated with my questions. “Look, new girl, stop asking so many annoying questions. Morgan ran away. End of story. You’ve only been here one day, and I doubt you’ll be here two weeks tops.” Gail handed me a feather duster and stormed into a room.
I went to follow her, but she pointed to the other side. “Stay over there. I want to think in peace.”
We were in a beautiful round library whose shelves were made of stone and chiseled out of the earth itself. Where one would expect it to be rugged, the shelves were smooth like glass. Lanterns hung from stalactites that contained a soft, glowing moss. Some lanterns were on pulleys that could be raised or lowered depending on how much light the reader wanted. In the center of the room was a large round table filled with more candles and stacked high with books. One could walk in circles among the many rows. It reminded me of a nautilus shell.
As I turned, my foot brushed a book on the floor. I bent down, picked up the book, dusting off the cover as a loud rattle came from behind. I turned to see a bladesman rush toward me, the rapier slid from his sheath and raised to strike me. I dropped the book on the table and retreated safely to the other side, keeping the table between us.
The bladesman’s head twitched, and I could feel the darkness pouring out of his gaze. The rapier in his hand was steady, the tip following me like the needle of a compass as I moved around the table.