I can do it now.” Her eyes were pleading. “Lucy, you said you were going to finish this hem last night,” Anne said. Anne, Mary, and Lucy were in the back corner, hovering over a dress that they appeared to be working on, bickering about their progress. I opened my door, and, for the first time, I was completely ignored by my maids. The least I could do was write home and warn them that the money wouldn’t be coming anymore. How did it look that I was the only one getting checks? It would all end eventually anyway. He walked away, and I stood there, trying not to feel sorry for myself. I could see he was disappointed not to get more of a fight. “You’re right,” I said, hating the way the words felt in my mouth. “Unless, of course, you’re here for a payout and not because you love my son.” His eyes burned into me, daring me to challenge his decision. “I think that should end,” he announced, snapping me back into the moment. They weren’t hurting for money the way the shopkeepers back in Carolina were. Elise was a Four, but her family owned high-end hotels. Elise gave hers up voluntarily almost immediately after the payments were stopped for the Twos and Threes.” “It was brought to my attention that of the girls left, you’re the only one still receiving money for your participation. “That’s a good girl.” He started to walk away but then remembered something and came back. I see you’re still here,” he said, his smile and his words at odds with each other. While he walked, he put up a hand, and the men behind him paused as he came close, leaving us with a small bubble of space in which to speak. No wonder the Northern rebels were excited about Maxon. His absence made the palace warmer, and now that he was home, we were all subject to his whims again. Before I knew what it was I was feeling, the king rounded the corner, a small entourage behind him. Even I felt strange, like I wasn’t quite so welcome here as I was only moments ago. The guards stood a bit stiller, and the maids walked a bit faster.
As if some unseen trigger had set off everyone in the palace.
It was while I was walking that I felt the shift. With the gardens off-limits, the Women’s Room day after day was too confining. I’d taken to walking around the palace during the afternoons. And I ached from it, from feeling so torn, so confused. The whole thing just felt tired it was the same problem I’d been facing since Aspen walked through the doorway of the palace.
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