We were an entourage headed to the prince’s bedroom. I was flanked by the prince, South, and his guards. The moment of truth had come.
“Surely you cannot leave without letting us see your present unwrapped, Your Highness?” Hark said, stepping in front of us before we could actually leave. He directed his question at the prince, but he was looking at me.
“Fair Farrow, would you mind making every man in the room jealous?” Prince Mather said finally.
“As you wish, fair prince,” I said.
I had been prepared for this by Madame Linea. By the years in the Couterie.
He put his hand on the sash of my gown and untied it before I could do it myself. I stopped his hands.
“No, let me,” I purred. But I felt a flare of anger in me. Not just for myself but for every Couterie who had walked into rooms like this before me.
I was like all of them, but there was one difference. At the end of the night the prince and the Queen would be dead.
I hesitated for a moment. I had been naked in front of the Couterie and had not felt an ounce of shame. I didn’t feel shame now. Not for myself—but for the boys surrounding me, with their hungry eyes waiting for me to disrobe for their entertainment. The anger rose in me when I looked at them. The Couterie had not prepared me for that.
I sauntered away from the prince as if the pause were on purpose. I turned my back to him, then slowly slipped my dress to my shoulders, revealing the paint that Madame Linea had painstakingly brushed over me this morning. The boys seemed to hold their breath. I let the silk fall to my waist, unveiling the map across my body: Hinter. And then I dropped my gown to the floor, exhibiting the fluttering silk drawers barely covering my buttocks, painted like the churning sea and mountains, and my legs. The boys reacted again. Hark was the most vocal with a long whistle.
But when I turned around, I was looking at only the prince. There was longing in his eyes and appreciation. The paint served as another layer of mystery between me and his court and was the ultimate salute to the prince.
“I pledge my allegiance to the future king,” I said.
A cheer went up from the boys in attendance. All eyes were on me.
The prince broke into a wide smile. “I pledge allegiance to the kingdom laid bare before me,” he said, and he bowed down to me.
“Take your prize, Prince Mather,” one of the other boys chimed in.
Without asking, he kissed me again. This time I felt his hands exploring my back and beyond. As his hands inched lower, I wondered for the briefest of moments just how far he intended to take it with all of the court watching.
But he stopped suddenly and draped his own jacket around me. He picked me up and carried me down the hallway.
We didn’t speak. I could feel his heart beating through the thin cotton shirt he wore, and I could feel his musculature too.
The hallway turned. We reached the prince’s bedroom.
Prince Mather pushed the door inward. The door shut and the lock clicked closed behind us.
And then we were alone.