Jeston appears in the doorway, his smile mocking. “Told you we should’ve left her behind.”
Braith shoves him into the pub. Her gray skirts sway as she crosses the cobblestones to where I stand. “It’s really not as bad as everyone says. Trust me.” She reaches for my wringing hands, lacing her fingers with mine. “Just stick with us and you’ll be grand.”
Would it really be so terrible to go inside and see what the place looks like? I can always leave right away if I don’t feel comfortable. Besides, if Braith says it’s fine, it probably is.
With a deep breath, I follow her into all-consuming darkness. After a few steps, we emerge into a room with flickering fae lights hanging over short tables. There are alcoves with pillows on the floor and black velvet curtains that can be pulled for privacy. Sickening sweetness clings to the thick air. Strange music from the musicians in the far corner fills my ears, hitching and falling in time with my unsteady breaths. A man slumps on a bench, pint glasses scattered across his table, his skin glowing like the sun.
Braith brings me to a table where Des and Mari have already taken seats. A man with a scraggly black beard comes by, and Jeston orders a round of pints. To my dismay, he takes the free seat directly beside me, while Braith slips onto the stool to my left, a giddy smile lighting her face.
Besides the duster, this place doesn’t seem so terrible. Not that I have much to compare it to. My aunt frowned upon casual drinking and never let me go out with my friends. Wynn and I went to a pub once…
Oh, how I miss Wynn.
If she could see me now, what would she think? I’d give anything to hear her advice on my dire situation. She always had a way of making even the darkest nights seem brighter.
The barman returns with a tray full of drinks. Everyone grabs for the glasses as if there aren’t enough for all of us. Jeston slams one in front of me, a clear challenge in his pale blue eyes.
A challenge I’m more than ready to accept.
Tonight, I am going to drink until I forget my problems.
Who knows, maybe the world won’t look so bleak through the bottom of a glass.
Thirty
ALLETTE
The drinkin the glass smells rotten, but I take a deep gulp to prove that I belong here as much as anyone else. Oh, stars… It tastes like fizzy bog water. And somehow, the men at our table have already drained their first pints.
When I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand, Jeston’s lips quirk into an approving smile. I don’t want or need the man’s approval, but having it feels good all the same.
I drink mostly in silence, listening to the others exchange horror stories about working at the castle. Apparently, the king has not one mistress but two, and his wife enjoys the “company” of her personal guard. The most interesting thing I have to share is about the disgusting mess I cleaned on my first day. According to Del, the Nimbiss minister assigned to that room leaves it that way almost every morning.
Braith chimes in about her time in the kitchens, saying she saw a steak hit the floor before being thrown right back on the plate and served to the king himself. All the stories make me wonder if the staff in my parents’ tower or my aunt’s had traded similar tales.
What had they thought of me? I’d befriended Wynn but none of the others. Had they talked about how I always left my clotheson the floor instead of in the hamper? How I rarely finished all the food on my plate? How they had to wait until well past noon to clean my room because I was too lazy to get out of bed?
Before I know it, I’m already through the first pint and working on a second.
Braith throws her arm around my shoulders, damn near knocking me clear off my stool. “I’m so glad you came with us.” Her words almost get lost in the raucous laughter coming from everyone else in the bar. When did all these people arrive? The place is packed.
“Me too.” What’s more, I mean it. If I’d stayed, I would’ve wallowed, and I’ve done enough wallowing over the last four years. “I’ve been lonely for so long. I don’t want to be on my own anymore,” I confess.
Jeston leans in, and I realize too late that he must’ve been eavesdropping. “Goldie, Goldie, Goldie. There is no sense in being on your own when you’re surrounded by such brilliant company.” He holds his pint glass toward mine.
He really isn’t so bad—when one is a few cups deep. I smile and clink my glass against his. “Exactly.”
Jeston turns back to speak with Del, and Braith lets out a wistful sigh, her head falling to my shoulder. “Isn’t he magnificent?”
“Who?Jeston?”
“Shhh!” Her finger presses to my lips. “He’ll hear you.”
“Are you sweet on your friend?” I manage around her finger. Her bright red blush is all the confirmation I need. “Good for you.” She deserves to find someone who makes her happy.
“It’s not good. He barely even looks at me. I swear, I could be standing right in front of him, wrapping my arms around his beautiful neck, kissing his face, and hestillwouldn’t see me.”
“Beautiful neck?” I snort.